Cheryl “Mindy” Allen

At the 1972 Indianapolis 500, Cheryl Allen watched race leader Mike Mosley crash on the front straight and then bail out of the car with his suit on fire. On the way home, she told her fiancé Howard, “I never want to be at a race and feel that helpless again.”

The traumatic event led Allen to become a 30-year member of SCCA and a leading flagger in the Pacific Northwest. Cheryl’s specialty was training new workers in the lore of F&C. She was best known by her track nickname “Mindy,” bestowed on Cheryl by the Northwest’s elite “Pros From Dover” worker fraternity. She always answered cheerfully to that name, and made friends throughout SCCA with her warm and engaging personality.

Mindy joined SCCA in 1978 and flagged her first Champ Car race in Michigan in 1979. Moving to the Northwest in 1986, Cheryl worked the Portland Champ Car races until the end of the series, and worked as a turn captain at the Runoffs eight times from 1998-2005.

Mindy was passionate about taking care of those around her. She was a mentor and a welcoming voice to newcomers at the track. She taught others what she knew and was fiercely dedicated to keeping everyone safe while they experienced the intense aliveness of racing. Her specialty within F&C was training new workers, which ensured that every flagger and every driver in Oregon owes her a debt beyond reckoning.

Mindy was at her best during an alert on track. She used to say those moments are “a call to act.” She said that when she saw a car crash, her immediate reaction was to go and help. That’s the kind of person Mindy was – ready, willing, and able to help in a crisis.

Mindy served as Assistant R.E. and Director at Large of Oregon Region, and continued to serve as Oregon’s Assistant Chief of F&C until her death. She worked the Runoffs from 1998 through 2005, serving as a turn captain most of those years.

Her memorial service on January 2 in Portland drew an overflowing crowd, with many moving testimonials to her influence and legacy. Her turn bucket was placed up front in honor at the service. Her family asks that remembrances be made to Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong Foundation.

Mindy is survived by her husband Howard “Duck” Allen.

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