Parents ensuring Spencer Clark’s legacy lives on

Losing a race barely moves the needle on life's Richter scale.

You prepare the car and race it the best you can.

T.J. Clark taught that lesson to his son, Spencer, preparing him the best he could for racing's unexpected occurrences.

That philosophy can work on racetracks. But in life unforeseen obstacles test the inner spirit far more than any race can.

It's another lesson that T.J. and his wife, Debbie, know all too well.

Spencer was on the cusp of breaking into a major NASCAR series after he turned 18, one of motor sports' fastest rising stars in the West, if not the nation.

Today, his star rests in the heavens.

Five years ago Saturday, Spencer died at age 19 from injuries suffered in a crash. It wasn't on a ring of asphalt, but on a New Mexico highway as he was riding in a truck hauling his race car home from North Carolina.

I've known the Clarks since T.J. began racing in the NASCAR Truck Series in the mid-1990s, when he started 31 races and finished as high as 12th in three of them.

It wasn't surprising that Spencer followed in his dad's shoes, with educational guidance from his mom. He grew up around race shops, often sitting in a makeshift cockpit playing racing video games.

He developed into a dominant driver at Las Vegas Motor Speedway's Bullring in a variety of categories. At 18, he graduated to the K&N West regional stock car series, where he posted three top-five finishes.

Within a year of his death, the Clarks started the Spencer Clark Driven program to provide young racers proper training and competitive race cars to continue what Spencer started.

"In (our) time of grief, many people were telling me how Spencer helped them or their kid and what that meant to them," T.J. said. "It made me very proud and thankful, and I realized this would be a great way to honor my son."

Today, the program is developing another Spencer.

Spencer Gallagher, 24, is driving for Las Vegas-based Clark-Diederich Racing in the latest edition of the Clarks' No. 23 Allegiant Travel stock car.

Gallagher will race Saturday in a K&N race at Iowa Speedway. It will be a challenging day for the Clarks and partner Chris Diedrich, crew chief for Spencer Clark and now Gallagher.

"Saturday will be a tough day, and we'll be in Iowa roughing it out," T.J. said. "Debbie has a hard time going to the Bullring, and I struggle going to bigger races."

But they have faith in God and believe they are extending their son's legacy.

Spencer Clark's dedication to the sport is what drew Maurice Gallagher to him when Spencer was 16. Gallagher watched Spencer help his son's growth as a racer, and as chairman of Allegiant Travel, which operates Allegiant Airlines, he became the Clarks' first major sponsor.

"I know where he is and what I have to do to keep his memory alive," T.J. said.

That effort will be evident on June 11 during the inaugural K&N race at the Bullring when Gallagher drives an Allegiant-backed car with Spencer Clark's No. 23 on the doors.

"I'm excited about it," T.J. said. "I used to break down whenever I saw his (No. 23) car in the shop. I'm beyond the crying stages.

"Our goal is to keep my Spencer's name out there and to help other young racers like he did."

Lessons taught, the Clarks know all too well, are not limited to finding the best line around a racetrack.

Jeff Wolf's motor sports column is published Friday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He can be reached at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247. Visit lvrj.com/motorsports for more news and commentary. Follow Wolf on Twitter: @lvrjwolf.