Jerry Sims
Little Joe, the Clown Prince of Stock Car Racing
This '63 Mercury Marauder is the first vintage stock car I built when I began changing from building local dirt cars to Grand National models. I always thought those Bud Moore Mercs were mighty pretty race cars and this is one of my favorites. Did you know that the first museum for stock cars was the brainchild of Joe? Darlington's Bob Colvin said that Joe was always coming back from some race with tales of old cars and memorabilia that he had found. He said, "You know Pops, we ought'a build a museum for this stuff before it's all gone." Almost immeditately after Joe's death at Riverside the Darlington Raceway board of directors voted to build the museum and call it the Joe Weatherly Stock Car Museum with Joe's best friend Curtis Turner turning the first shovel at the ground breaking ceremonies.
