Black’s success on track honored

Ken Black likes to think of himself as a builder.

It can be a house. Or a dragster. The man is hands-on in everything he does.

In 1975, Black borrowed $5,000 from his dad and started what would morph into Vegas General Construction, which built thousands of homes in the valley and became a highly successful company.

In the mid-1990s, he partnered with George Marnell to form a drag racing team. Black, who spent the better part of five decades participating in the sport, has more than 100 wins on the drag strip.

Black’s KB Racing team has had plenty of success on the NHRA circuit, winning multiple Pro Stock titles with driver Greg Anderson, the latest in 2010. The team also has ventured into Top Fuel, but Black’s heart always has been in Pro Stock.

“I’ve been a door-slammer my whole life,” he said.

On Friday at Orleans Arena, that success will be acknowledged when he is inducted into the Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame. He will be joined in the Class of 2014 by UNLV baseball coach Tim Chambers, golfer Chris Riley, motorcycle racer Carey Hart and the Herbst Family.

“It wasn’t as much about going fast as it was about the competition,” said Black, 68. “Going head to head with someone and winning. It’s always fun to run.”

Black remembered the first time he raced. It was 1964, he was 18, a senior at Western High School, and he entered his Chevrolet Nova at Stardust Raceway. He finished first and was awarded a trophy and a jacket.

“I didn’t know what I was doing,” he said. “But after winning, I was hooked.”

Back then, Las Vegas was far from the sprawling city it is today. There was plenty of room to race cars, legally and illegally, and Black found himself immersed in the speed game.

“I was 6 feet 4, 6-5 in high school, and people always asked me if I played football or basketball,” he said. “I would tell them, ‘No, I wasn’t coordinated enough.’ So I stuck to racing cars. Back then, I think the fastest I went was 130 mph. Today, they go 210 mph in Pro Stock.”

Black remembered how simple life was in those days.

“We’d go to the Blue Onion Drive-in at the edge of Fremont Street, and we’d be hanging out, then we’d go race and go back to the Blue Onion and brag about who ran the fastest,” he said. “It was a scene straight out of ‘American Graffiti.’ ”

Today, racing is a click away on a computer or a tablet or phone. Black can follow the sport from anywhere in the world. But for him, there’s nothing better than being at Las Vegas Motor Speedway watching his team perform.

“It’s one of the nicest places to race anywhere,” Black said. “To have that kind of facility in Las Vegas makes me very proud.”

Black, who will be presented at the induction ceremonies by fellow Hall of Famer Cliff Findlay, still can’t believe he’s going into a sports hall of fame.

“When they called me and told me, I was shocked,” said Black, a bishop in the Mormon church. “But I’m very appreciative of the honor, and when I got into racing, I never thought about it being a career. I was hoping I might be able to impress the girls.”

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.