Don Ostendorf started his racing career in 1949 at North Platte, and he went on to become one of the toughest short track drivers Nebraska has ever produced. Ostendorf won the NASCAR Sportsman Championship for the State of Nebraska in 1953 and 1954, as well as winning many track championships throughout Central Nebraska and South Dakota. He participated in Nebraska’s only NASCAR Grand National event on July 26, 1953, at North Platte, running as high as fourth in the 100-miler against such national stars as Lee Petty, Fonty, Tim Flock and Dick Rathman. He also raced in the National Open for NASCAR Sportsman cars at Langhorne, Pa., in 1954. He was inducted into the Nebraska Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2002.