1960-1962 - Jimmy Davies won the USAC Midget title three years in a row in 1960, 1961 and 1962.

1963 - In 1963 Bob Wente won the championship after have been runner-up to Davies for three years, only to reverse positions with Mel Kenyon in 1964.

1964 - Mel Kenyon won his first USAC Midget championship.

1965 - Mel Kenyon looked like a repeat winner in 1965 until burns received in a championship car accident put him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season. Californian Mike McGreevy then took over Mel Kenyon's car, won the championship in 1965.

1966 - Mike McGreevy barely defeated the recuperated Mel Kenyon in 1966.

1967 - Mel Kenyon won back the title with a record breaking 17 victories to defeat McGreevy.

1968 - The pair finished the same way in 1968 with Mel Kenyon USAC champion for the third time.

1969 - Mel Kenyon made a valiant attempt to become the first ever four-time champion in 1969 but had to be content with second place as veteran Bob Tattersall of Streator, Illinois, earned his first title after coming close several times. Perhaps the greatest boost the sport received after its heyday of the 1940's came in 1969, when two days of USAC Midget racing were held in the Houston Astrodome for a giagantic purse of $62,000.00. This increased intrest to the extent that other great enclosed facilities began looking toward conducting such events.

Starts....................4
Feature Wins........0
Runner Ups...........0
3rd Place..............0
4th Place..............0
5th Place..............0
6th - 10th.............1
Failed to Qual.......0

1960 BADGER Midgets (BMARA) Mel finished 6th in the points standings driving the car #61 owned by brother Don Kenyon.

Starts....................1
Feature Wins........0
Runner Ups...........0
3rd Place..............0
4th Place..............0
5th Place..............0
6th - 10th.............1
Failed to Qual.......0

Indianapolis Raceway Park Mel Kenyon is crowned the 1961 IRP Midget Track Champion.

Starts..................36
Feature Wins........2
Runner Ups...........4
3rd Place..............6
4th Place..............4
5th Place..............0
6th - 10th.............0
Failed to Qual.......2
Season Results.....5th

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

Three-time USAC Midget champion Jimmy Davies in the #21 (above) pushes the back end of Mel's midget around at the Chicago Amphitheater on January 13, 1962.

June 11,1962 - Springfield, Illinois - Mel Kenyon wins his first USAC feature race.

Starts..................50
Feature Wins........2
Runner Ups...........6
3rd Place..............4
4th Place..............4
5th Place..............5
6th - 10th...........17
Failed to Qual.......5
Season Results.....2nd

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

After Ascot Speedway owner J.C. Agajanian (in cowboy hat above) promoted his annual Turkey Night Grand Prix in 1963 with names like Parnelli Jones, Roger McCluskey and A.J. Foyt, a youngster from the Midwest named Mel Kenyon came and took all of the glory from the superstars of the era. USAC Midget Supervisor Bob Stroud is seen standing on the left.

Starts..................55
Feature Wins........7
Runner Ups.........11
3rd Place..............8
4th Place..............9
5th Place..............5
6th - 10th.............6
Failed to Qual.......8
Season Results.....National Champion (by 57 points over Bob Wente)

Starts..................22
Feature Wins........7
Runner Ups...........4
3rd Place..............1
4th Place..............1
5th Place..............4
6th - 10th.............2
Failed to Qual.......5
Season Results.....8th

January 10, 1965 - Rumble in the Fort Wayne Memorial Coliseum - Mel Kenyon wins his first main event in the Rumble in the Fort Wayne.

January 31, 1965 - Rumble in the Fort Wayne Memorial Coliseum - Mel Kenyon wins his second main event in the Rumble in the Fort Wayne.

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

Mel & Marieanne with the Peter DePalma Award in 1965.

Starts..................50
Feature Wins........3
Runner Ups...........9
3rd Place..............6
4th Place..............5
5th Place..............7
6th - 10th...........12
Failed to Qual.......7
Season Results.....2nd

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

"Herbie" the midget looking pretty sad after a crash at Columbus, Ohio in 1966.

Photo courtesy of Tom Eidmiller

Mel seen doing what it takes to get that #1 off of McGreevy's car for the USAC National title. Mel beat McGreevy by 24 points at season's end and became USAC Midget Champion again.

Starts..................49
Feature Wins......17
Runner Ups...........9
3rd Place..............7
4th Place..............2
5th Place..............2
6th - 10th.............6
Failed to Qual.....10
Season Results.....National Champion (by 24 points over McGreevy)

January 29, 1967 - Rumble in the Fort Wayne Memorial Coliseum - Mel Kenyon wins the main event for the 3rd time.

Mel and Don with a slug of "Feature Win" stickers on the car.
Photo courtesy of Landy Scott

Photo courtesy of Gregg "Grogg" Sauer

Cover courtesy of Scott Bennett

1967 USAC Yearbook featuring A.J. Foyt, Mel Kenyon, Don White and Greg Weld on the cover.

Starts..................59
Feature Wins......11
Runner Ups.........14
3rd Place............10
4th Place..............1
5th Place..............0
6th - 10th...........13
Failed to Qual.......9
Season Results.....National Champion (by 3 points over McGreevy)

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

"Herbie" looking happy & healthy proudly displaying the #1 again with Mel and Don in 1968 back at Columbus (above). Mel won a total of 54 races in "Herbie" in the span of 4 years. Mel and Don built the car and named it after Walt Disney's© lovable character in the movie "The Love Bug".

January 7, 1968 - Rumble in the Fort Wayne Memorial Coliseum - Mel Kenyon wins the Rumble main event for the 4th time.

Taken from "A Hand For the Wheel" by Jack Albinson

Mel leads the way at Joliet Stadium in 1968. Mel was the winner of the very first race at Joliet. Notice that 3-K racing was the first to run a full roll-cage on a midget.

Cover courtesy of Scott Bennett

1968 USAC Yearbook featuring A.J. Foyt, Larry Dickson, Bobby Unser and Mel Kenyon on the cover.

Starts..................63
Feature Wins......14
Runner Ups...........3
3rd Place..............3
4th Place..............7
5th Place..............6
6th - 10th...........17
Failed to Qual.......5
Season Results.....2nd

Photo courtesy of Tom Eidemiller

Photo courtesy of Tom Eidemiller

Cover courtesy of Scott Bennett

Mel shown leading the way in the painting printed on the program cover of the First Annual Astro Grand Prix, held in March of 1969 at the Houston Astrodome. This event boosted the popularity of midget racing across the U.S.

Photo by Jim Chini courtesy of Mike Grieff