H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler Jr.: past president and general manager, Lowe's motor speedway past president and coo, speedway motorsports inc., concord.

• Position: Entertainment - Humpy Wheeler announces retirement

Such prestigious titles as president and chief operating officer may have preceded his name, but make no mistake: Humpy Wheeler was, above all, a world-class entertainer. Described as snippets of P.T. Barnum, Walt Disney and Don King rolled into one, he presided for 33 years over dazzling, in some cases startling, pre-race shows at Charlotte--now Lowe's--Motor Speedway, setting a standard for NASCAR entertainment that has spread to tracks across the nation. "Great events people create the illusion that something is going to happen at an event that's so great and unique that you've got to be there," he once said.

Though the Belmont native, 69, announced his retirement a few days before the Coca-Cola 600 in May--apparently after a falling out with boss Bruton Smith--his work will live on. Every time jets roar over at the final note of The Star-Spangled Banner or a jet-powered outhouse sputters in a circle, race fans will remember him.

Humpy's greatest hits ...

* October 1984: More than 200 soldiers and airmen re-enact Operation Urgent Fury, the October 1983 U.S. invasion of Grenada. The 15-minute show includes the strafing of thatched huts and splintering of palm trees.

* May 1987: Driver Jimmy "The Greek" Koufus jumps a souped-up school bus...