Johnny
Coy
by Dwight
Clock
Nothing is more important to a young boy than his
heroes. Growing up on
Long Island in the fifties and sixties I was blessed to have a choice of
them. As a diehard N.Y. Yankee fan, back then I had Mickey Mantle and
Whitey Ford as my heroes. When my attention switched to racing in the
late fifties, my hero became Johnny Coy.
Coy raced open wheel cars - midgets, sprints, and even champ
cars. It
was in the midgets that Johnny Coy earned his reputation as one of the
fiercest competitors ever to set a wheel on a race track. And it was at
Islip Speedway, my home track, that Coy was at his best in a midget.
Johnny started racing in 1946 after attending a driving
school and realizing that he had a talent for racing. There were many
midget clubs back then and Coy raced with several of them. NASCAR even
had a midget division in the 1950's and in 1957 Coy was their champion.
During this time he had also tried his hand at stock cars and had done
well. In 1961 Coy went to the fabled Indianapolis Motor Speedway to try
his luck. He passed his rookie test easily but his car was not
competitive enough to qualify for the race.
Throughout the sixties, Coy raced primarily with ARDC,
winning many races. It is estimated that Coy won well over 500 features
in his illustrious career. He also won in stock cars. In 1965 Coy
defeated the likes of Jim Hendrickson, Fred Harbach, and Al DeAngelo at
Islip, in the Frankie Torres owned '37 Ford coupe #27.
Picture Courtesy of
Himes Museum
In 1968 Coy decided to go after point
championships. He went on to win the ARDC drivers title four of the next
five years, winning in 1968-69 and 1971-72. He continued to race and win
in midgets and TQ midgets until about 1983.
Johnny Coy's driving style was characterized by an
aggressive, elbows up manner. You just knew when the green flag flew
that, no matter where he started or what car he was in, that he would be
a factor before it was over. Two of Johnny's children made a name for
themselves in racing as well. Joey Coy was the 1989, 1991, and 1993 NEMA
midget champion as well as the 1992 ARDC champion. Johnny Jr. drove
midgets to many wins but is better known as a former Nextel Cup crew
chief for James Hylton.
Sadly, as time goes on, our heroes pass from the scene. We
lost Johnny Coy only weeks ago. Yet I will never forget the thrills he
gave to all of us during his career as one of Americas premier midget
drivers. He was truly one of a kind.
Dwight
THE END
Source: Dwight
Clock/LongIslandJam.com
Posted:
December 3, 2006