Did you know Sportsman/Modified Stock Car Racing went international in the 50s?
A friend of mine Crawfish Crider and 6 other drivers went to England in the Spring of 1955 with 7 cars. They went on the Queen Mary out of New York, drivers, cars, trailers and spare parts. Before it was over the promoter cheated them out of their money.This is when I first heard about this adventure. One Saturday Night at Bowman Gray we were asked to go through the Grandstands and pass our helmets to raise money to get them back home.Some of the drivers were , Bobby Meyers, Soapy Castles, Possum Jones.
I had never heard that story. Thanks for sharing it.Jeff
So much of the history of modified-sportsman racing has been forgotten. there are virtually no records of anything before 1982.
Until Racersreunion came along I haven't thought much about "the good ole days", but now I find myself trying to remember some things that might be of interest.
Read about it in Crider's book. Been trying to get in touch with him for a long time to send him a disc with some of my model pics on it. Got a '63 Marauder model that I'm gonna do his Grand National car out of. Love to be able to send him some pics when I get it done.Been knowing Soap for years and built him some cars way back in the mid seventies. They don't come no better than that original crowd.
Crawfish was operating a service station down around Daytona last I heard.
Bobby Meyers won some of those England races, didn't he? Anyway, when he returned home, his coupe was emblazoned with "Sir Robert" over the windshield.