RACING HALL OF HONOR

[txtom]

Here are a couple of pics of the late, great Leroy Brooks.

The 19 car of Frank Ferris is the last car Leroy drove. This was an MRE Stinger chassis, probably the only one that made it to this area. MRE was a forerunner to the AFCO company we know today. Leroy's last ride ended in a flip in turn one. The car sat for years behind Special Automotive; I don't remember what happened to it. How about that aerodynamic Regal body?

 

In the second pic, Leroy is shown tuning the #81 Chevelle driven by Jerry Grant at TWS while car owner Lee Machen looks on. This pic is the first race at TWS for the Super Stock class. Leroy basically tuned this car the entire time it raced. This car is well documented for the number of wins it had with Jerry behind the wheel. It was a winner this day.

 

You can still see this car at Special Automotive; it currently has Monte Carlo sheet metal on it, as well as a few other changes. The building of this car was started in 1980 by the late Harold Oatman, and finished by Special Automotive in 1981. It has not turned a lap since 1993.

[mfbarnes]

The great Eldon Dodson!

[Definitive]

How about San Antonio Speedway?(Highway 16 Raceway)(San Antonio International Speedway)

[Budman]

To be added to the list of dozens of other old dead tracks in our region, Turbo-D? Time will tell I suppose.

 

Mark,

 

Tell a little about Eldon Dodson.

[rickracer]

Yea Tom Like that #81 needed a crutch!!!

[NickHolt]

To be added to the list of dozens of other old dead tracks in our region, Turbo-D? Time will tell I suppose...

Neil Upchurch sent me a list of asphalt tracks in our area that have closed over the past several year. Very painful to look at.. Of course, SAS now belongs at the top of that list... Sad, indeed.

 

Longhorn Speedway, Austin, TX

Texas World Speedway, College Station, TX

Sooner International Raceway in Altus, OK

Twin Cities Speedway, Odessa, TX

Meyer Speedway, Houston, TX

Pan American Speedway, San Antonio, TX

 

Nick

[Nathan]

Buddy Woodall

 

Frank Ferris

 

I have one of Franks last chassis I am not for sure which one the body for it is a white with red stripes fiberglass camero body with 16 on the doors and the roof still has 02 and leroy brooks on it. even franks old box van still says leroy brooks on the side but with franks number 19.

[PAPA]

This was the 2nd Twin 125 @ Daytona in 1973. Clarence Lovell is #61. He failed to qualify for the 500

[ivicic]

I remember watching Eldon Dotson race at the Sportsdrome in Grand Prairie. I was maybe twelve or thirteeen. He was my favorite driver in the dirt modifieds. He would come to Waco every now and then in the 80s. He passed away a few years ago of a heart attack, I think he was at the race track somewhere when it happened. Rebelracewriter might know more since he keeps up with the dirt crowd.

[ProTree]

TxTom,that MRE of Franks that LeRoy drove was in my garage for awhile in mid 90.A friend of mine got it from Frank.We went to Franks out in the country on a Sunday west of Georgetown and it was sitting with new aluminum skin,we dragged it out and winched it in the trailer,took it to the shop and pressure washed it for a few hours from sitting for a spell.Pulled the drivetrain out of a car we had running super/stock at Longhorn and put in it,then took it to Deckard/Haas Body Shop and finished some body work and slapped some color on it,put some big dirt tires on it and played a few times at the HiWay 16 /Texas Dirt track behind Ol Alamo Dragway a couple times when they ran late models,then my buddy sold it to somebody,dont remember who,it will come to me as I think about it more.I'll try to scan some pics of it and post em when I find em.I know I got some of it where it was sitting at Franks when we went to pick it up,when we were pressure washing it,and when it was painted.

[Nathan]

I remember that car it sat in frank's building for a long time. I used to play in it as a kid dreaming of the day when i go old enought to drive one. GREAT memories

[texastracker]

We really do need a Hall of Fame or Honor for the past Texas greats!

Here is a pic of Eldon Dotson when he first began coming to Waco (1975)

 

Also the great Bodie Lanier, whom died of a heart attach while leading a big show @ Cowtown Speedway.

[fastoval]

Was just reading some old threads and thought I would offer a name for the Hall of Honor, Dub Rollins.

Dub raced at C.C. Speedway for many years, won championships many times. You could not race against a better competitor. He would race everyone the same. You could pass him if you were faster or you could be passed clean. I had the honor of knowing this man from childhood. You could always find him squated down next to his car in the pits having a cup of joe and a cigarette. If I could only put into words the impression this man had on so many young fans. Maybe some of the Rollins or Hardcastle racers of today could elaborate to us some of his accomplishments. Dub's brother Shorty was NASCAR rookie of the year in 1959. There was another brother named Johnny, the stories my Dad told me of growing up across the street from these men could only be told by someone that was there or has listened to them for a lifetime.

RACE ON ROLLINS BROTHERS!

[302cominthru]

Here are a couple of pics of the late, great Leroy Brooks.

The 19 car of Frank Ferris is the last car Leroy drove. This was an MRE Stinger chassis, probably the only one that made it to this area. MRE was a forerunner to the AFCO company we know today. Leroy's last ride ended in a flip in turn one. The car sat for years behind Special Automotive; I don't remember what happened to it. How about that aerodynamic Regal body?

 

In the second pic, Leroy is shown tuning the #81 Chevelle driven by Jerry Grant at TWS while car owner Lee Machen looks on. This pic is the first race at TWS for the Super Stock class. Leroy basically tuned this car the entire time it raced. This car is well documented for the number of wins it had with Jerry behind the wheel. It was a winner this day.

 

You can still see this car at Special Automotive; it currently has Monte Carlo sheet metal on it, as well as a few other changes. The building of this car was started in 1980 by the late Harold Oatman, and finished by Special Automotive in 1981. It has not turned a lap since 1993.

 

Txtom - don't mean to question your authority, but didn't Leroy drive a black and silver Chevy Nova at Hwy 16 Raceway (1980?) after Pan Am closed? I do have photos of that car and will try and share them with everyone. I'm not sure of the year this particular phot was taken, but I must admit, it's a damn beautiful ride.

[txtom]

Txtom - don't mean to question your authority, but didn't Leroy drive a black and silver Chevy Nova at Hwy 16 Raceway (1980?) after Pan Am closed? I do have photos of that car and will try and share them with everyone. I'm not sure of the year this particular phot was taken, but I must admit, it's a damn beautiful ride.

 

 

Yes Leroy did, before the Ferris #19. The #19 depicted here was new in 1983. Here is a little Brooks car lineage for you.

 

Brooks got the #70 Camaro that Glen Schwabe was so quick in in the mid 70's. It is well documented in this history section. Maintained by Lee Machen of Austin, it had a bounty placed on it, $500 for anyone who could beat it. Schwabe built a new one, Brooks got the old one. Brooks got the better end of the deal, as the new Schwabe car never was as good as the old car. Old timers on here will remember that Dwight Hamilton later got the newer camaro.

When Brooks was approached by Billy Ormond to drive his Nova, the camaro ended up with Jim Mangram, who had a few drivers in it, two that come to mind were Mangram himself, and Alvin Stewart.

 

The Nova you are thinking about was the Billy Ormond car from south Austin. Ormond had a wrecking yard on south Congress. This Nova was exceptionally quick, and Brooks won some significant races, including the Liberty Bell race at Meyer Speedway in Houston. The car, at various times, was black and silver, silver with red numbers, plain primer and even yellow. Brooks ran it some at Hwy 16, with mixed results. One problem by this time is Ormond went out and did a complete suspension change to the car, and it did not respond like they had planned. It was very uncomfortable for Brooks. Add to that he got it in the fence at 16, and he never cared for the car after that. I don't think he dove it after about 1980 or 1981 or so.

 

He then stepped into the Ferris ride as you see above. They had a good run, and won several races. The MRE car was new for the 1983 season, and was a wicked fast car. It was a MRE "Stinger" chassis, and I think it might have been the only one of those cars to make it to this area, at least in the asphalt cars.

Unfortunately, Brooks flipped this car at Longhorn after getting into another car's fluids, and that pretty much ended Brook's driving career. The car sat behinf Lee Machen's shop for a few years, and I think Frank finally came and got it. Brooks got focused with Terry's racing after that.

Brooks was a great friend, I guess I knew close to 30 years. I helped with a couple of the cars mentioned, and later helped Terry with his ARTS truck effort from 1998 to about 2002.

I was also honored to be a pallbearer at Leroy's funeral.

 

You mentioned not hearing much from Betty or Terry lately, none of us has. They do not involve themselves with racing or racers around here anymore.

[302cominthru]

Thanks for the insight. It's been years that I've been able to revisit the great memories my family was able to share with Leroy, along with his family. As a 9 year old, growing up around racing in south Texas was a dream come true. Watching Todd Ford, Teddy Jones, Bubba Storbeck, Leroy Brooks, Jimmy Spencer, Steve Klestinic, Billy Echols, Don Myers, the Kelly's, the Stewarts, the Oatmans, on and on the list goes, was a privelage. My memory isn't as sharp as once was and that's why I value your input.

 

I remember the lineage in which you describe - I just never knew the "behind the scences" info that apparently you were privy to. The yellow car you make mention of wasn't a Chevy Nova (was it?). I thought it was a Pontiac Ventura - in fact I have photo of of the Ventura as he heads up the dirt ramp which is exiting the pit area and entering the track in turn 2 at Austin Speed-O-Rama with the distinctive Pontiac nose and grille (I'll try and start posting the hundreds of photo's my twin brother and myself collected for so many years). It was taken at probably was what could have been his last Aqua-Fest appearance. What makes this particular photo special is that I took it with a cheesy polaroid camera I owned - it wasn't one that a track photographer like Ted Hood had taken (although Ted would be proud) and it's a faily good photo.

 

I didn't have a 30 year friendship with Leroy as you did. But imagine this, I knew Leroy for 8 years and clearly understood as a young teen what he stood for and what kind of individual he was. I've never forgotten Leroy or his family and it's nearly been over 25 years since the last time I saw him. What a man.

[txtom]

The yellow car you make mention of wasn't a Chevy Nova (was it?). I thought it was a Pontiac Ventura - in fact I have photo of of the Ventura as he heads up the dirt ramp which is exiting the pit area and entering the track in turn 2 at Austin Speed-O-Rama with the distinctive Pontiac nose and grille

 

You are correct on that one. They did hang a Ventura nose on it after one of the rebuilds. The Pontiac nose was actually a little slicker that the flat Nova nose, although we really didn't know that much about aero back then. At times, that car had a mix of Ventura and Nova sheetmetal. probably whatever Ormond had in his yard at the time.

 

One of the reasons for my behind the scenes knowledge of all this was Leroy Brooks went to work for Lee Machen after leaving T.R. Ray's garage, and I was helping Mac at his shop on whatever car he happened to be working on at that time, such as Steve Klestinec, Jerry Grant, Leroy, and so on.

 

A story about Brooks I have never put on here before--

 

I was around those guys in the mid 70's at Pan-Am and Austin, while still in my high school years.

In 77, I joined the USAF, and my job was in NDT testing. You have heard of Magnaflux, Ultrasound, X-ray, and so on to look for cracks and other kinds of defects. I did this on aircraft. (Still do).

Well, after tech school, I was stationed at Bergstrom in early 1978. I went by the shop, and Brooks came in a little later. We talked for a few minutes, and he asked me what I was doing, as I hadn't seen him in a few months. I proudly went into a 5 or 6 minute summary of doing all that NDT testing looking for defects and such. He very studiously listened to every word I told him, and never interrupted me, until I was through bragging on the importance of myself to national security. After a minute, he took a drag on his cigarette, and then asked, "so, you are working for the government looking for cracks and such on their planes?"

I replied yes, and then, after another minute, he stated "I think I got it. You're now a F**# off, looking for a F**# up." And he had this little sly grin, while at the same time my ego is deflating. Then he finally let loose with the laughter that told me I just got took.

 

Another one, about 1982, he was fixing to run the valves on the Chevelle Jerry Grant drove for Mac. He rolled the engine around to TDC, and grabbed one of the rockers. He then said it was about a thousandth off. I asked him how he could tell that just by grabbing it. He held his hands out like "I don't know, guess I got a good feel for them. I stuck the feeler gauge under the valve tip, and damned if it wasn't a thousandth off. Then, just to rub salt in my wound, he stabbed the distributor, and when I asked him which timing light he wanted to use, he said he didn't need one. Now I thought, he ain't that good, but he stabbed it, twisted it a little, and locked it down. Well I called him out on it, and he hooked up the light. I told him I'd check it. Supposed to be 38, it was on 38. DAMN again.

Now LATER, I found out that they had been playing around with the valve clearance, and he knew it was a thousandth tight. He also had marks on the rotor and distributor body that were at 38 degrees if he lined them up.

Long tall drink of water had me again. Leroy and Mac gave me crap over that deal for years.......

[302cominthru]

Man....I bet your brimming with stories such as these. Thanks for sharing some of your special moments with me as well as all the other members.