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Topic: Harold Lindsey- aka Johnny Dee, aka Johnny Jusmadeitup, aka Johnny......... Email this topic to a friend | Subscribe to this TopicReport this Topic to Moderator
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 06:52:13 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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If you ever go looking for parts for an old race car, at some point in your travels you will hear about a guy in Wichita Falls by the name of Harold Lindsey. The ironic part is some of you have raced against this guy back in the 60's-70's but you may have known him by another name. or two

His racing career started on a quarter midget track at the Wichita Falls track in 1949. Lloyd Ruby was around in those days looking to add two more wheels under his feet after racing bikes.

Harold made his way as best he could finances providing through the ranks, eventually moving down to Garland ,Texas and racing at the various tracks there and on into East Texas, Arkansas, back and forth having a blast.

After a stint in the service courtesy of Uncle Sam, and moving back to Wichita Falls he resumed racing at the local tracks.........for a while.

Harold was a firefighter by employ, and the ever present need to place respectability in that profession required an outside image that met or exceeded standards set "unofficially" within the higher ranks of the department.





brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:13:00 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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I'm sure you'll be shocked to learn that racers in those days could be a rough lot. Somehow when a fight or some sort of chicanery broke out near a track, it was always blamed on the racers! It didn't help when MOST of the individuals involved WERE racers.

This as well as insurance concerns prompted various outfits in most towns to adopt a 'no racing allowed' rule for its employees. In Wichita Falls one time even Lloyd Ruby himself was looking for a steady job at the fire department. He was told he would have to quit his endeavors at a certain speedbowl in order to draw coffee on company time there. That didn't fit Lloyds schedule for career advancement! Thus he had to settle for the road to Indy instead of being a fireman.

Lloyd makes it to Indy, and the Firecheif  of Wichita Falls uses him as an example of how tough he was on the no racing rule. He used it so effectively everyone within his reach that was turning a lap went to using made up names! This helped a little but there was after all no rule against watching. Thus it would get around that so-and-so was racing. Therefore calling the bluff that surely had to be answered.

For this and other reasons Harold Lindsey took to racing at other tracks.  With his wife he would plan a 2-3 day weekend  racing at different tracks and meeting new people. If you were new to a place, they treated  you with the utmost hospitality......For three weeks and then you were just a member of the house band. Keeping it versatile was the key to having fun.

To be safe against being discovered at other tracks, he would make up names just as he was going into the pits. Johnny was easy to answer to so it became his alter ego's first name usually.




brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:21:41 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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If he was broke, he didn't go. If he wasn't he did. No championships to chase, just a stressful job to escape. He ran a little of everything here and there especially 6-cylinder modifieds as well as super modifieds. These days he has been involved building pro-four modifieds at Wichita Falls and is currently working on a 4 cylinder sprint car or two for the future. He has an eye and a nose for old school racing related items. He tends to bring old race cars home when they might end up in a scrap yard. In the pictures below, he has a few for sale but then there are also future projects he has had on the slate to be done. Below are a few pictures he sent me-

 

I'll load them as the browser allows





brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:23:22 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:25:43 PM
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Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:27:29 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:30:27 PM
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:32:19 PM
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:37:59 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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At one point he was finally confronted by his boss about his racing.

"I know you've been racing and I'm here to remind you about my rule against it".

Knowing his boss was an avid fisherman, Harold replied " Every year hundreds of people die in fishing and boating accidents, far less than do in race cars! I'll go along with you when you outlaw fishing! Otherwise we can see a litigant judge to sort it out"!

The rule was overturned.





brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:40:35 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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This is just a sample of what is in one of his yards. Look closely, you might see your old race car in there.




brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:42:07 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 07:43:43 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 08:17:12 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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This message was edited on December 11, 2007 at 08:30:59 PM by brian26
Reply to:
Posted By: brian26 on December 11 2007 at 07:40:35 PM

This is just a sample of what is in one of his yards. Look closely, you might see your old race car in there.



See the car in the lower left corner? It is a homemade sprinter. Wheel base was 96-100", Some checking was done and it seems

a CAE sprint body from Speedway Motors would fit very nice. For a homebuilt, it has some nice lines. From what I could tell it is built solid as a tank! Not quite as heavy though.

In the bottom right corner if you'll look in the back there is a modified frame with a cage extension. That car was at one time Steve Sanders 6-cylinder modified. Not sure about the coupe body in the foreground.




brian26
December 11, 2007 at 08:18:42 PM
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Posts: 7918
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 08:21:10 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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The camaro above is all steel, and raced very little if at all. Not sure if it is for sale.





brian26
December 11, 2007 at 08:24:41 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
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brian26
December 11, 2007 at 08:35:42 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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If  you were in the Lawton-Wichita Falls scene at the turn of the '70s you might remember the Uncle Sams Club race car. Red, white, and blue no.1 with a square fiberglass body. The car in the lower left is that same one. The body is indoors. I don't think it's for sale. 




welder
December 11, 2007 at 09:06:53 PM
Joined: 11/29/2006
Posts: 595
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how would you find out which cars are for sale, in the early 70s lanny edwards came to wichita and bought 5 or 6 complete cars to lease out to get the supers started down there. i was looking for a certain car and talked to harold,he did not known anything about them as it was before he started racing. i am always looking for late 60s or early 70s cars from the kansas area dwane




brian26
December 11, 2007 at 09:35:04 PM
Joined: 12/03/2006
Posts: 7918
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This message was edited on December 11, 2007 at 09:36:51 PM by brian26

Harold had just moved back in  around 69.   I wouldn't doubt Lanny bought a few cars, but I've never heard about it. I do know Lanny had some frames built in those days and had them in front of the track for sale.

If you want to get in touch with Harold, e-mail me through here and I'll help.




jdsprint71
December 13, 2007 at 02:07:16 PM
Joined: 05/02/2005
Posts: 1337
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I doubt Lanny bought any cars to lend them out to start the class back then , if you will remember the NCRA had formed and all the tracks were getting together to start this series, Lanny and G.W. Elkins as well as Bud Carson really had the first big impact on the NCRA getting as big as it was back in the 70's, the first big push to get an organized series then others stepped in to help make it go on , Lanny invested a lot of time and money in the NCRA series from what i have been told by people who owned businesses in Lawton as he would stop in during the week and visit with and try to get them to buy sponsorship at Lawton in the weekly racing program as well as help with $$$ to bring in the NCRA Supers Modifieds and Modifeds to Lawton.

Lanny did one stint that I know of in the chassis business down at Dallas and got the short end of the deal with the Barnett Chassis deal, only time I ever heard or seen that Lanny got taken for money.

I just always heard Lanny really struggled to make it through the 60's and then the 70's came along and the NCRA and his tracks he owned or operated from 1 to 6 at that time period took off and i guess as they say the rest is 40 plus years of history in the race track promotion business.

Brian one of those frames sure looks like one that Bobby Wainscott #33 the Holiday Gulf Station car had when he ran Lawton back in the early and mid 70's , reason is it has a loop around the radiator that I remember that was so much larger than other hoops on cars at that era , he used it from what he told me and my dad back then to funnel air through the radiator , kind of a deflector shield to direct air into the radiator.

Interesting he has a down tube chassis amongst all the older stuff there in the pics, looks like a Nance 100" frame that had down tubes added to it, like the one Johnnie Burnell ran back in the 90's at SFS , just added downtubes to the Nance car.

Even the yellow chassis with white hood , has the somewhat old wolfgang style hood , looks like an old Barnett or a later model Grant King car. Not sure though , not a close up enough view to tell.

That frame with just the orange hood and sprint tail sure looks like the same type frame that Dave Frusher won the 79 NCRA title with , had the main one frame rail running from the back to the front of the car, probably is not but sure resembles it , that car worked really well back in 79.

 

Lot of old history there in that yard and if only those frames could talk , you could probably write a book .

Brian need to get your 6 pin wheel and splined hubs I got for you at that recent swap meet. Give me a ring and we can get a meet up place and time in the near future.





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