The asphalt short tracks of Northern Ohio have always been proving grounds for a specific breed of racer: the hands-on, working-class heroes who build, tune, and drive their own equipment to the absolute limit. This week, the motorsports community lost one of its truest pioneers with the passing of Elyria’s own Jim Shirey.
For more than three decades, Shirey was a cornerstone of open-wheel racing, taking on the heavyweights of the International SuperModified Association (ISMA) tour and leaving an indelible mark on the sport.
From Elyria to the Hall of Fame
Shirey’s rise in the supermodified ranks was meteoric. In 1976, he accomplished what most drivers only dream of: capturing both the Rookie of the Year honors and the Supermodified Track Championship at Lorain Raceway Park in a single season. That early dominance set the tone for a career defined by mechanical ingenuity and relentless grit.
Through the 1980s and into the 90s, Shirey was a fixture on the supermodified circuit, famously wheeling the Dick Holynski entry in the early 80s before cementing his legacy in cars he helped wrench himself. He wasn’t just a steering-wheel holder; he was a true mechanic who understood the intricate, raw engineering required to keep a supermodified glued to a flat track at unimaginable speeds.
His innovation, sportsmanship and driving grit has inducted him into Hall of Fames from track to track But his 2025 induction into the Lorain Raceway Park Hall of Fame, a Hall of Fame he helped champion, might have been the greatest of his career.
“Losing Jim, we are losing a great friend but also an encyclopedia of the history of racing in Northern Ohio and nationwide” Lorain County Motorsports Hall of Fame (formerly Lorain Raceway Park Hall of Fame) board member Jim Foose, Jr. said. “Jim was a cornerstone of our racing community. Not only was he an active, dedicated, and invaluable member of our Hall of Fame Board, but we also had the distinct privilege of celebrating his incredible on-track legacy just last year when he was honored as a 2025 Inductee into the Hall of Fame.”
The 1994 Hy-Miler Nationals
If you want to understand the heart of Jim Shirey, you have to look at the 1994 ISMA Hy-Miler Supermodified Nationals at Sandusky Speedway.
For nearly ten years, Shirey had campaigned in the supers, enduring strings of finishes that rarely reflected his true talent behind the wheel. But in 1994, teaming up with veteran builder and mechanic Jim Bodnar, everything clicked. In a grueling, caution-filled 100-lap feature where fuel mileage and mechanical attrition were heavily on the minds of every crew in the pits, Shirey drove the race of his life.
He waged a torrid 39-lap battle with defending champion Doug Saunier before making the decisive pass. Even after taking the lead, Shirey had to survive six late-race yellow flags, a near-disastrous tangle with lapped traffic on the front stretch, and the relentless hounding of Gary Allibritain. When he finally crossed the stripe to take his first and only Hy-Miler Nationals victory, it was a storybook ending for a driver who had paid his dues the hard way.
A Legacy Continued
Shirey officially took the checkered flag on his own driving career in 2008, but his presence at the track never wavered. Just last year, he took his rightful place in the Lorain Raceway Park Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2025—an induction that honored a lifetime of dedication to Northern Ohio racing.
Today, the Shirey name is still beating out a rhythm on the region’s bullrings. You can see Jim’s fierce competitive streak every time his son, two-time Outlaw 350 Supermodified Sprint Series Champion Danny Shirey, straps into his machine in the 350 Outlaw Supermodified Sprint Series—a tour that never fails to deliver the kind of raw, edge-of-your-seat racing Jim championed. And the racing bloodline extends even further to his grandson, Gage, who is already cutting his teeth in Quarter Midgets.
Jim Shirey was the kind of racer who made our local tracks the heartbeat of American motorsports. He will be deeply missed, but every time those supers fire up and take the green in Northern Ohio, his legacy rides with them.
Celebration of Jim’s Life
The Shirey family has informed me that they will hold a Celebration of Jim’s life Saturday, October 3rd at Laubenthal Mercado Funeral Home in Elyria, OH. Once we have the times, this article will be updated.
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