Merced Speedway honors Van Hoecke with cancer fundraiser

Matt Van Hoecke will live on in the memory of Merced Speedway racers and fans, as Saturday’s program will raise funds for the American Cancer Society in his honor. A speedway fixture for 30 years, he passed away from prostate cancer nearly three years ago.

Van Hoecke found a way to become a racing innovator. While working in the Sun-Star mailroom and advertising departments for 20 years, he nurtured his hobby of shaping fiberglass, honing his skills until he could begin a side business.

Van Hoecke learned his craft at a local boat shop. Then, he began making fiberglass pieces for Foster Farms to earn some extra money.

“He was on the pit crew for driver Andy Ferris at Merced Speedway on Saturday nights, when he put two and two together – fiberglass could be used to make car bodies,” brother-in-law Dell Humbert recalled. “In no time, he was shaping wooden molds that would be used to make fiberglass car bodies.”

Van Hoecke creatively dubbed his business “Matt and Glass” – a play on his name, using the two components that comprise fiberglass: the woven fiber matt and the gel coating that turns hard and becomes glass-like.

“Within five years he was able to quit his job at the Sun-Star and make his skill a full-time job,” Humbert explained. “He was making fiberglass bodies for kiddy-car rides, go-karts and every type of full-size car that raced – especially sprint cars. The wooden molds he carved were stacked with a forklift, as high as the ceilings, in three buildings across the street from the fairgrounds. There were hundreds of them.”

Matt and Glass Race Car Bodies were so in demand that they were being rushed to drivers across the country underneath Greyhound buses that departed daily from Merced.

Cancer challenges Van Hoecke; he beat it for 10 years

Van Hoecke was 50 when he learned he had prostate cancer. Like a racer, he put his foot down on the pedal harder, and he didn’t let up.

“We’d be on the way to cancer treatment in Fresno, and he would demand I stop at Hoosier Tires to pick up some tires for a guy who needed them for Saturday’s race,” Humbert said. “He branched out – he had a full speed shop in a trailer and would never let down any racer who needed a part.”

As cancer continued to spread within him, Van Hoecke was still trying to work – even from his wheelchair. When Van Hoecke’s wife, Debbie, along with Humbert, decided to shut down his business, Van Hoecke would still get calls for parts.

“He couldn’t tell anyone no – he would send me to the trailer to find that part,” Humbert added.

It was 10 years after being diagnosed that the race with cancer ended for VanHoecke.

His hundreds of softwood molds, which had to be waxed regularly to be preserved, rotted from neglect after the business closed.

Remembering Van Hoecke on Saturday

“As a family, we’re thankful that the track, its drivers and fans are remembering Matt,” Humbert said. “It’s wonderful that this race program is happening and that it will benefit the fight against cancer.”

Humbert, his wife, Janice, and sons, Robert and Geoffery, will be selling ribbons that Debbie Van Hoecke made to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. Merced Speedway promoter Ed Parker will donate $1 to the organization for every ticket sold Saturday night.

This Week at Merced Speedway

The weekly racing season at Merced Speedway will come to a close Saturday night. The next race program will be The SportMod Nationals on Oct. 15. It will be the speedway’s biggest event of the season.

This Saturday night, the track champions in the IMCA Modified and SportMod divisions will be celebrated with champagne and trophies. Randy Brown (438 points) of Chowchilla leads Winton’s Ramie Stone (407) in the IMCA Modified division. In the IMCA SportMod division, Rick Diaz (530) of Chowchilla leads Merced’s Mike Drake (477).

Double points will be up for grabs in the speedway’s Hobby Stock division. Michael Shearer (229) of Atwater leads Sonora’s Kevin Joaquin (186).

Racing will begin at 7 p.m., and the grandstand will open at 5 p.m. Tickets for adults are $12, and $10 for seniors 65 and older. Students with ID from 13 to 17 years get in for $10. Children six to 12 get in for $5. Kids five and under get in free.

This story was originally published September 23, 2016 at 5:31 PM with the headline "Merced Speedway honors Van Hoecke with cancer fundraiser."