Wendell Scott vs. Willy T. Ribbs - Willy in the News Today

In case you hadn't heard, the City of Baltimore is hosting the Baltimore Grand Prix IndyCar race on city streets this weekend. Today's Baltimore Sun paper has a feature story about the return of Willy T. Ribbs and proclaiming him "the Jackie Robinson of racing." That rubbed me the wrong way. I sent the writer of the piece a little e-mail and told him if he looked around he'd find Beltsville Speedway and Old Dominion, both venues where the late Wendell Scott competed and who I'd argue is more rightly accorded the comparison to Jackie Robinson than Willy T. Ribbs. In the article Willy T. goes on to say he'd be the perfect replacement next year for Danica Patrick to bring attention to IndyCar. He further offers all of his worn out excuses about why he never made it in bigtime racing. He neglects to mention being arrested here in Charlotte and missing the race Humpy Wheeler lined him up for (in a Will Cronkrite car, I believe). Anyhow, I guess Baltimore is getting what it deserves when you spend taxpayer money to fund a race on city streets.

Baltimore Sun Story Link:

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-08-31/sports/bs-sp-grand-prix-ribbs-0831-20110830-22_1_baltimore-grand-prix-racecar-driver-african-american-driver

Dave:

I went and looked at the link you provided. I find it a little humorous!

Here is a link to an article that was written about Willy's NASCAR adventure.

http://blogs.thatsracin.com/scuffs/2008/05/the-ballad-of-w.html

It was relayed to me in a chance meeting with an off duty Charlotte police officer, that the way they were able to apprehend Willy after he jumped from the rental / pace car and ran off on foot was the fact that as he was eluding the cops, he ran into an open gymnasium and started shooting a basketball, thinking that they would think nothing of a young black man shooting hoops. Unfortunately for Willy, he had chosen a gymnasium that was part of an all girls school!

I believe the message is more about irresponsibility and less about race. The claim or comparison of a baseball legend to a so-called race car driver is not just and the Baltimore Sun misspoke in my opinion. Comparing Scott and Robinson yes, most definite.

There will be color/ethnic barriers for the rest of time because people don't forget and don't forgive and those injustices will keep being brought up over and over and the reminder will never go away, there will be no forgiveness because forgiveness would mean taking down the barriers that separate and to some that terrifies people in so many different ways.

Wally,

I could care less if Willy T. Ribbs was sky blue pink and I certainly hope that you are not suggesting that I am racist, because if so, I would like to set the record straight. It's his attitude, demeanor, irresponsiblity, hedging of the truth, that cast my opinion of the man. To even have the audacity to suggest he was/is "the Jackie Robinson of racing" is just a downright misstatement.; I was around when Sam Belnavis, the former head of Miller Brewing Sports Marketing in theBobby Allison days tried to shop Willy around NASCAR a second time and he was the same. The leopard hadn't changed its spots.

Thanks, Wally. As always, the discussion has made me remember something long forgotten.... another of the great characters I met in NASCAR. Back in 1981, many of the teams still didn't have 18 wheelers and you saw maybe 1-2 black team members in the garage. When we took the Wrangler sponsorship to Bud Moore in 1982, for example, one provision of the contract was that Bud start using an 18 wheeler to replace the "bob" truck/tandem trailer he used. We would pay the cost to paint it. Most teams if they had a big rig, leased or borrowed the tractor. Anyway, around that time, 30 or so years ago, Richard Childress struck a deal with Anderson & Webb Trucking of Mt. Airy, NC (birthplace/hometown of Andy Griffith and model for the fictitious Mayberry) to supply a tractor to pull his rig as part of an associate sponsorship deal. Along with the tractor came a driver from Anderson & Webb Trucking- not just any driver, though. The driver was the very personable and very black Freddie Webb , who preferred to be called by his nickname - "Stroker." Freddie was one of those guys you liked immediately. He was a real life cross between "Shaft" and "SuperFly" who could talk jive, redneck or corporate, depending on the circumstances and the company. The unmarriedStroker's greatest contribution to the racing set, though, was his constant sharing of various secret methods to pick up and entertain members of the opposite sex. When Stroker walked in and sat down at a table in one of the hotel/motel bars on the racing circuit, that table and surrounding ones immediately filled up with rival crew members wanting to hear the latest tales and newest techniques to keep the opposite sex happy. Stroker was a real character, a colorful one at that, with no reference to his skin color. The last time I saw Stroker was in the lobby bar of the old Sheraton on. U.S. Route 1 in Southern Pines, NC during a fall Rockingham weekend. As far as I know, Stroker was a pretty good truck driver. There's absolutely no doubt, though, that he could spin a tale. The last time I saw him, the tall tales competition was intense. We shared a table with the late Joe Whitlock and former Detroit Lions linebacker, turned actor, "Mad Dog" Alex Karras. The tales flowed along with the refreshments, but nobody topped Stroker.

PKL,

Thanks for posting the entire article. I make no apology, though,for e-mailing the author and suggesting he look around Baltimore at Beltsville and Old Dominion and learn of Wendell Scott's exploits before coining "Jackie Robinson of racing" terminology about Willy T. It was very obvious the author knew nothing of racing, as you so accurately point out and had an assignment handed him for which he was not prepared.

I have had the privileged as well to meet Freddy.

I was the main 'stock' supplier for the movie Stroker Ace and Freddy was one of two drivers provided by Anderson and Web trucking to haul around the cars and pit equipment.

I was given as many contracts good for 30 seconds of exposure in a Burt Reynold movie as I could 'sell'. My recollection is that all but two of the cars in the movie came thru my shop in one manner or another. I had built all the others at one time or another and the owners were plenty interested in having the exposure that I sold them by way of contract.

The large tractor trailer trucks were either mine or Anderson and Webb's in one shape or form. I provided all the pit equipment and the Proto tool folks were very willing to assist me in that effort, and provided me with 14 top tool box sections and 3 bottom section, two of which were full of tools. They were VERY good to me.

At any rate Anderson and Webb folks provided two drivers each time we went from one track to another to drive their truck and mine. That Freddy was funny as hell. Either he or 'Bubba' Smith kept us in absolute tears the entire time they were filming. Often filming stopped because one of them had every one else laughing loudly.

Freddy and I would bet $1 on who could drive the truck over one, two or three of the little lights in the center of the highway with out hitting more than the bet was for. He killed me in that game and I soon enough figured out not to bet against anything to do with a truck if Freddy was involved.

He would stay with us during the filming and I had the contract to do the car and truck maintenance and you can see Freddy once in a while in one of my shop uniforms, a three-tone brown/tan shirt, usually around the Datsun shop truck.

I will always remember and think highly of my memories of Freddy. He makes every one want to see him again. Cool Guy!

P.S. It is rumored that most of his 'tips' worked! LMAO!

One other thing, PKL...

The Baltimore Sun has on its staff one of the country's finest and most knowledgeable racing writers, Sandra McKee, who has covered many NASCAR races, including all of ours at Richmondand is a heck of a reporter. It's a shamed they didn't let her look over the piece, but they are using the shotgun method of coverage, as is usual, if a paper wants to do lots of features. I know Sandy is still there because I just read her 2:00 pm update about today's 5 hour delay getting cars on the track due to open intersections and having to put fences back up after being taken down for high winds. According to Sandy, the USF 2000 Series will have no qualifying due to time constraints.

ha ha ha only you wally would have read that book---and me. actually it is true to heart on real southern living in the day.

Goals are accomplished and demons fought in varying ways. We are privileged to have on this site as a new member Ann Bland Salster, daughter of the famed racing announcer and broadcaster, Sammy Bland, who announced when Wendell was racing. She has just posted a few historic pictures from back in the day and will post more. Look at this brief recap of how the newspaper in Amelia, VA was founded by Ann with the encouragement of her father, Sammy during a time of racial unrest in her town/county:

The Amelia Bulletin Monitor is a weekly newspaper in Amelia County, Virginia, founded in 1973. Prior to its founding, the county had been without a newspaper since the 1940s, when the Amelia Gazette shut down. The Monitor, as the current paper is known, was founded by Ann B. Morris (now Ann B. Salster), who is still the paper's owner and publisher.

In 1973, Morris had recently moved to the county with her husband, Sam Morris, whose family owned a local hardware store and had lived in the county for several generations. At the time, some affluent white citizens of the county were founding Amelia Academy, a private school. The enterprise was seen as a movement against the integration of public schools, which had happened in Amelia County during the late 1960s. The county had considered shutting down its public schools rather than integrating them, as neighboring Prince Edward County had done. But some influential Amelia people said it was not "the Christian thing to do." So, the schools were integrated. Morris felt that Amelia Academy was not a positive undertaking for the county, and called her father to tell him about it. Her father (Sammy Bland) told her to write a letter to the local newspaper. She told him there was no local paper, and he responded: "Start one." Morris was the editor and publisher until 1990, when her second husband, Mike Salster, became editor. Ann Salster remained as publisher. Mike Salster was an award-winning veteran of daily newspapers, including The Columbus Dispatch in Columbus, Ohio. He left the paper to work for the Virginia state government in 2005, and Assistant Editor Wayne Russell, who had worked at the paper since 1981, became editor. He is still in that position.