More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

I've got some more 1966 Paragon Photos I need ID help with. Any help is very much appreciated.
#54- does say Driver "Bub" on the side

Thanks.
Russ

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

That #401 car is the Tobias car out of Missouri. This must have been a long race like the 150 lapper at Paragon. The #62 is an old CAE supermod with a bigger fuel tank on it. Thanks for posting this stuff, I really enjoy it.

---------- Post added at 12:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:22 AM ----------

Someone was talking about Jim Bob Leubbert on one of the other threads. Here's Jim Bob racing at Greater Pittsburgh Speedway at Clinton, Pa. in 1965.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Here's Jim Bob Leubbert in 1965

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Had my dad take a look at these pics he said the 39 is Rex Mitchell, the 81 was Mike Blake and he thought and 62 could've been Frank Hollingsworth. He was pretty sure about the 39 but not so much on the others.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

The 54 is Jim Johnson from Mooresville, In. His nickname was Bub.

The 81 is probably Gene Blake, Mike's father. I think Mike was still in grade school in 66

I tend to agree with the earlier poster's identification of the 62 as Frank Hollingsworth.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

401 was owned by Ellis Tobias, he had several drivers over the years, this possibly is Wib Spaulding.

later,
Bob Mays

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Thanks for all the responses and information, I really appreciate it.

---------- Post added at 01:05 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:01 AM ----------

Originally Posted by racerjim2:
Here's Jim Bob Leubbert in 1965

Cool shot of Jim Bob! If you are around the Speedway anytime soon, take it into his shop and show it to him. I'm sure he would love to see it.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

#54 bub johnson, 81gene blake, 62 frank hollingsworth, 39 rex mitchell

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Dick Vance from Hannibal MO drove the Buick-powered #401 at the old Pittsfield IL speedway. Back in the early 1960s, the speedway decided to have a special month of races. For 4 weeks in a row, the feature would pay $1,000 to win, an big purse back then. The gimmick was that the winner the first week would start in last place the second week, and so on through the third and fourth weeks. If one driver could sweep all 4 weeks, they would get an additional $1,000 bonus.

Although Dick was always competitive and won every once in a while, Ellis Tobias obviously thought he needed a better driver if he was going to have a chance for the sweep. The first week there were cars from 13 states at the track. We were thrilled when the announcer said that driving the #401, from Waco, Texas...

Yup, the legendary Gordon Wooley was right there in little Pittsfield, Illinois. And yes, he did pick up the bonus for sweeping the 4 weeks. I think that was the only times I got to see him, but he was certainly worth the price of admission. What a driver!

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Years ago there was a national magazine (can't remember if it was Hot Rod, Car Craft or what one) that had a 3 or 4 page article and photos of the Tobias car. I remember the car had a tail section from a Allis Chalmers tractor. I thought it was kind of crude even for the time but it was a winner.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Dirtnonwingfan, that brings back some good memories, most weekends for us when I was a kid was pittsfield, jacksonville, and to joes on sunday night. I had lunch with a few of the guys that raced there Francis Wildman Kelly and Ronnie Milton. Those two guys could wheel a race car. Francis is 85 and would still jump in a car and race. Those were some good times.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

"Wildman" Kelly certainly got his nickname honestly. Do you remember the time he trashed three different sprint cars/supermodifieds in three weekends and showed up on the fourth Saturday with a fuel injected flathead in a beautiful grey #77 '32 Ford (I think) and ran with the sprints? Ran well too. Glad to hear he is still around.

You are right, those were good times. I miss the greased pig races, corset races, 500 lap partnership races and all the other crazy stuff they did at Pittsfield. They knew how to promote. Do you know if anyone has ever done any sort of history of Pittsfield? All the best raced there. I remember the week before the first Knoxville Supermodified Nationals when a guy with a strange looking winged car came up from Kentucky on his way to Knoxville and blew everyone away. None of us had ever heard of Roy Robbins, but he did OK the next week at Knoxville too.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Ya someone did some reasearch on Pittsfield I will call a friend of mine, he knows who did it. I started going to pittsfield in 65 or 66 I was 5 or 6. Being from Bluffs that was a big deal. Do you remember Hank Lawshe, he and my dad were good friends. got a video of hank and his cars. Running the IMCA circuit in the 50's and early 60's. Well it is is still in my blood just boutght a car to run at 34 and knoxville in the 305 class, just want to have fun. I will find aout about that research.

Kelly Sears

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

I can't find that other post but here's the Ember Link car someone mentioned.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Originally Posted by racerjim2:
I can't find that other post but here's the Ember Link car someone mentioned.

Jimmie, looks like another Indy car to me, boy, a lot of them had a lot of years left on em. In probably, 1958, in Columbus, where the Jail is now, was a little used car lot, I looked at one there once, it had a Chevy in it, lights and road ready. Bob:)

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

That was a Carl Kinser take on a Greg Weld mechanical rabbit... I think there was a picture of Larry Miller driving it with a big block chevy in it...

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Originally Posted by HurstBros0:
That was a Carl Kinser take on a Greg Weld mechanical rabbit... I think there was a picture of Larry Miller driving it with a big block chevy in it...

Was that the same car Karl took to Atlanta?

And Bob, I'd like to have one of those now.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Originally Posted by racerjim2:
Was that the same car Karl took to Atlanta?

And Bob, I'd like to have one of those now.

Not sure about Atlanta, but the roadster I remember Karl having was the old Kinder-Roberts Kurtis that he found parked in the living room of an abandoned house somewhere around Bedford, In. I think it was pretty much a standard Indy car with a Chevy stuffed in it and not much else in the way of modifications.

I think you may be thinking of an IMCA race at Macon, Ga that was someting of a warm up race for Tampa around 69 or 70. I think Bob Kinser drove the car for that show.

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Originally Posted by racerjim2:
Was that the same car Karl took to Atlanta?

And Bob, I'd like to have one of those now.

Me too, Jimmie, but they wanted to keep it, more than I wanted to buy it, and as I remember, they were wanting around $500.00 for it, but I was probably building something else, that was taking all my spare cash, that musta been around 1959, cause that year I bought a driver, 1931 Ford A coupe, off a lot on Central Ave, for $75.00. Wish I had that one too! Bob:)

Re: More 1966 Paragon Photos ID Help
 

Originally Posted by Speedwrench:
Not sure about Atlanta, but the roadster I remember Karl having was the old Kinder-Roberts Kurtis that he found parked in the living room of an abandoned house somewhere around Bedford, In. I think it was pretty much a standard Indy car with a Chevy stuffed in it and not much else in the way of modifications.

I think you may be thinking of an IMCA race at Macon, Ga that was someting of a warm up race for Tampa around 69 or 70. I think Bob Kinser drove the car for that show.

Your absolutely right. I wasn't thinking! It was Macon, Ga. where Bobby ran the roadster. But I don't think it and the Link roadster are the same car at all.