Parks Novelty Racing Team

Raymond Parks and his drivers, Lloyd Seay (left) and Roy Hall (right).

By 1940, Raymond was knee deep in racing.

“I made a deal with Vogt to keep up the cars.  Red, at the time, had his place on Spring Street by the Varsity Drive In.  I would cover the expenses and keep only the trophies, though I’m missing quite a few from the ’41 season,” he said, smiling.

After Seay’s success, Raymond headed to Beaudry Ford Company in Atlanta.

“The first thing I did was pick up two new 1939 Fords sitting out on their back lot for $525 each,” he said.  “In that era of racing, the ’39 Fords were the pick of the litter.  They were the first Fords with hydraulic brakes, and the last year the shifter was standard on the floor.  Plus they were cheap, and the motors could be made to go very fast.”

One was for Lloyd and one for Roy Hall.  Hall, also from Dawsonville, was a cousin to Seay and Parks.  He was a carbon copy of Lloyd in many ways.  Both spent time incarcerated periodically, but both could drive a car, whether trafficking or on the track.

“What these boys did on their off days was none of my business,” Raymond told us.  “I’d known them since they were both kids, but after the races, they went their way and I went mine.”