Fuel experimentation results earn racer 'Fireball' nickname

"Fireball" Jim Jenkins sails around a track in his No. 5 race car back in the 60s. This car is the racer that Ken Taylor had his fatal accident in. Jenkins later purchased the car from the McCown Bros. of Sedalia after racing it for them for a year or so. (Contributed phot) [Click to enlarge]

In 1961, "Fireball" Jim Jenkins started his 31-year racing career after purchasing a race car from Bill Utz, formerly of Lexington.

Jenkins and his brother, Jack, worked at a trucking business driving dump trucks.

Jenkins of Slater stands in front of his shelf of memories that contains photos, trophies and items friends and family have made him to honor his 31-year racing career. (Rachel Harper/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge]

Jack decided they ought to start racing for fun on the weekends.

Prior to racing, both Jenkins and his brother spent time at Kilgore's in Slater, which is where the Hibbard brothers, Russell and Roy, had their cars. They were also good friends with Ken Taylor.

So when Jenkins and Jack went to Lexington and purchased a car from Utz, they brought it home and "worked on it all week and half the night."

Jenkins said they started it up outside the shop and the motor blew up.

"We never made it to the track," he said.

So they had to get another motor and rebuild it. They went to the track the next weekend.

The deal between the brothers was that one would drive one night and the other would drive the following race night.

"I drove the first night and elected to start at the back of the race. I was so nervous that my foot on the (pedal) went bup, bup, bup, bup."

On the green, Jenkins "throttled the old girl and went through the middle."

Before he knew it, he was in the front of the pack and then a racer T-boned him coming off a corner.

Jenkins said they spent more time fixing the car and when they went to the track the next weekend his brother said, "You did so good last week, you just go ahead and drive."

Jenkins spent many weekends racing on Friday night at Moberly, Saturday night at Jefferson City and Sunday night in Marshall.

Jack and Jenkins made quite the pair in the racing scene until Jack joined the navy and "left me by myself."

Racing "got to be a great thing for me." Jenkins ran races all over the Mid-west.

He partnered with and drove for the Tobias brothers.

"We traveled a lot of states," he said.

He ran in Indiana, Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Texas and North Dakota.

"I was points champion a few years at Capital Speedway, points champion in the B class for two years at Sportsman's Speedway before I had to move up a class."

One of Jenkins biggest accomplishments was winning the B feature at the Knoxville Nationals in 1964.

One year, Jenkins placed second at the Missouri State Fair and "if I had one more lap, I would have won it."

Jenkins said the most interesting race was on July 4 at the Missouri State Fair.

"A guy was carrying three big trophies and I told him I think I will be taking one of them home with me."

Jenkins had a bad run and had to start at the tail of the field in the C feature.

He worked his way to the front and won that feature so he got to start at the back of the B feature.

He worked his way up through the pack and won that one as well.

He started at the back of the A feature and ended up fourth.

"I got to take two of those trophies home," he said. "I raced 200 and some laps on the green that day."

Jenkins said he did encounter a few unfortunate events in his racing career.

"I have turned over a few times but I never got seriously hurt."

At a three-day show in Minot, N.D., Jenkins placed second in points, second in the big race and won a sprint car frame. The Tobias brothers made another car out of the frame.

After Taylor was killed in the accident at Sportsman's Speedway, Jay Lyle took over driving the McCown Bros. racing Chevy after it was rebuilt. In 1968, Jenkins took over driving for the McCown Bros.

"There were seven weekends of races left for the season. I won all the features in that car."

Jenkins said that he could remember one race at Sportsman's Speedway where Clarence "Hooker" Hood from Memphis, also known as the "Tennessee Tornado," came to Marshall to race.

The buzz in the pits was the $100 "bounty" on The Tornado for anyone who could beat him.

Jenkins started on the pole and the Tennessee Tornado on the outside. Jenkins ended up winning the race and Bobby Ford of Marshall took second while Hood finished third.

Jenkins went up to Hood after the race and asked him if he knew that he had a bet on him for anyone to beat him.

He replied, "No, if I did I would have tried harder." Jenkins said he replied back, "I think you were trying."

He said the best thing about racing was "the joy of victory and the checkered flag. The checkered flag was the only pay."

A funny fact about Jenkins is that his wife, Lois, used to "boo" him constantly.

"I hated when he showed up because he was always winning. That meant the (hometown) boys wasn't," Lois said.

She is originally from California and her brother-in-law is Woody Carpenter who opened the California track in 1965.

Lois used to work with her sister in the popcorn stand at Marshall's track. "(Jim) was always coming up and talking to my sister about me. She was always trying to set me up with someone."

Jenkins and Lois have been married for 27 years in November.

Jenkins said he had a saying, "When they were applauding you, you were doing good. When they were booing you, you were doing great."

And last but not least, how did Jenkins get his nickname "Fireball" Jim Jenkins?

John Hughes gave him his nickname, he said.

"When I had the first No. 5 car, my brother and I got to playing with the fuel. We got to mixing benzene or castor oil in it. Well, when you went into the corner and burp it, it would shoot a ball of fire out."

And the nickname has stuck to this day. Some of the people he works with doesn't know that his name is Jim.

They still call him "Fireball."

Contact Rachel Harper at

marshallcity@socket.net