Robison shows Pony Stock at El Cajon car show

James Robison didn’t race at Barona Speedway on Sept. 15, but the Fallbrook driver and his Pony Stock went to East County on Sept. 19 for the Cajon Classic Cruise car show in El Cajon.

“It went really well. There were a lot of kids that really seemed to enjoy the car,” Robison said.

“I think I helped probably 10 kids get in the car,” Robison said. “They all seemed really impressed.”

Robison took the 1977 Pinto he has been racing at Barona Speedway to El Cajon. Barona Speedway had a race Sept. 15, but Robison chose not to compete. “We looked at the weather. It was going to be over 100 degrees,” he said. “We’re not in the points race this year.”

Robison and his father, Rod, have plans to build a Street Stock, but those plans were delayed after they purchased the Pinto from Dave Londrow. Londrow also owned the 1974 Pinto Robison and his father drove in 2011, which is no longer in suitable condition to race. Robison did not race this year until July 7.

Robison also guessed that the other drivers might be impatient in the hot weather. “I just kind of had a bad feeling about it,” he said. “It was a situation we decided we didn’t want to be a part of.”

The Robisons’ home in Fallbrook has air conditioning, so Robison and his father stayed home Sept. 15 and watched the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on television. They later watched a video of that night’s Barona Speedway race, in which all but the front two Pony Stocks took body damage. “It was crazy,” Robison said.

In 2011, Robison had taken the 1974 Pinto to one of the weekly Cajon Classic Cruise events. Debi Chapman, who organized the Barona Speedway presence at the Cajon Classic Cruise show, had hoped to ask Robison at the track Sept. 15. On Sept. 17 Chapman called Robison and asked about bringing the car to Downtown El Cajon.

“We’re trying to sell the Pony anyway. It would be a good idea to take it down and have people look at it,” Robison said.

(The proceeds from the sale of the Pony Stock will be used to help complete the Street Stock.)

Londrow lives in Alpine, and he joined Rod and James Robison with the Pony Stock – which was in show condition since James Robison did not race the previous Saturday. The Robisons had no firm offers for the car. “We got a couple of people who were interested,” James Robison said.

The Pinto was one of eight Barona Speedway cars at the El Cajon show Sept. 19.

The Robison family moved from Santee to Fallbrook five years ago. At one time James Robison drove a 1977 Nova as a street vehicle, and in the past he took the Nova to the Cajon Classic Cruise show and to the weekly La Mesa Village Back to the ‘50s Car Show in Downtown La Mesa.