Something that drew me to the sport when I was younger as I attended short track racing almost every week during racing season from the mid/late 60's and beyond, was not just the courage and skill displayed by those behind the wheel, but was also knowing that most of those same guys that were "piloting" those creations were also the guy that built those creations... including fabricating/modifying parts and pieces as needed.   Not only that, but may were also their own crew chief when it came to making it run right on race night, and who also was the one that had to fix it after a crash.

It seemed there was a time when the majority of the pits was filled with guys just like that.  If you wanted to race, especially years ago, you probably had to have pretty good mechanical/fabrication skills.  (If not...you needed a lot of friends or a lot of $$$'s!)

So... this weekend's questions is, What drivers do you think of who were not only known as a driver, but also had a lot of mechanical ability and fabrication skills?

Driver, Mechanic, Fabricator.  What driver(s) do you remember as checking all of those boxes?

So many in the early days but Whip Mulligan, Budd Olsen, Toby Tobias, Maynard Troyer, Richie Evans and Bobby Allison just off the top of my head.

Bob Rossell

James Madison Horton III, Billy Pauch Sr., Pete Bickell, Kenny Brightbill, Brett Hearn.

Gus Frears and Kenny Weld

Did Gus race before becoming involved with the Bullock #76?

First my late brother, Norm Lemasters - basically a one-man band.  

Also Don Hendershot in his early days and Clyde Suydam.  Side note about Clyde.  Don Hendershot told me that back in the day Clyde had no money to replace a blown engine so on Friday night when his wife came home from work, Clyde pulled the engine from her car, raced Saturday and Sunday, came home and put the engine back in her car so she could go to work Monday morning.  Talk about determination!  (Or maybe a couple of loose nuts and bolts.)

Frankie Schneider, Kenny Brightbill, Dick Tobias

Jimmy Horton, Howie Cronce, Bob Rossell, Fred Dmuchowski, Fred DeGroot, Bill Tanzosh, Art Lentini.  I could go on for awhile...

John you need to talk more about your on father, he was all the above and then some.

Thx for mentioning him, he always built his own stuff pretty much out of necessity, lol. My brother and I learned a lot in that garage.

Tom Hager

Joe's favorite driver in the #292. Al is still out in his garage every day tinkering with something. He has an impressive old-school machine shop setup there, with lathes, a workbench, an old Lincoln welder, and other tools. Stuffed inside the garage are multiple projects going on at any time. Besides building and driving back in the day. He's out there in the garage fabricating parts for old motorcycles currently. Al's skills are impressive IMHO. 

Al Michalchuk.... He'd build em, race em, sometimes flip em, and fix em, and race em again.  Worth the price of admission all by himself.  

Other Trenton/ Levittown area drivers that come to mind are: Joe Hall and Lenny Martin.  

Scott Ely  

Carl built his own cars before and long after the era of the bought frames started.  His cars were sometimes innovative and ran pretty well for what he had in them.  As an Iron Worker, he also helped build the World Trade Center.

Anyone who raced for themselves deserves all the credit for being good fabricators/mechanics. It's not just the race cars but also the stuff that gets you there. A lot of people just don't realize how much goes into getting a race car to the track every week. Sometimes it's more work with your trailer or hauler than the race car itself.

Most racers are not born fabricators or mechanics. It is a skill you develope out of necessity over time. You're usually pretty bad, but practice helps you and most become pretty good. many can take those skills and make a living at it.

Gil was a master fabricator / hot rod mechanic on his own cars --before Durkin  , He'd come north from Miami to race asphalt & dirt --

He had to be a great mech. to keep ol'raggedy ann # 29 going !!

blessings !!

bill--------

cant forget about ray liss

Paul Marra. Built drag cars before switching to stock cars. I once asked him if he would dyno the engine with a cam to his specs, answered " every lap". Watched him build a one of a kind transmission. I could go on.

Several of the Carberry Family of racers.  Both on and off the track (street cars, hotrods and racecars)

Scott Haus

Kevin Collins (Buskirk)

‘Nough said!

Cant believe no one said Bob Fisher.  Everything he ever made was amazingly nice. Even today, with the hot rod he is building. 

bryan- thanks for thinking of fish - the BEST fabricator i have ever seen i know im parshall because we are close friends but he could also drive and win !!!!!

Les Katona.  From his small 2 bay garage in Lawrenceville, to Lawrence Engineering shop in Trenton.  Built them and raced them with much success.