Charlie Mincey and Legs Law
Charlie Mincey (right) receives a trophy and handshake from fellow driver Barney Smith (left) as announcer Jimmy Mosteller (center) emcees the ceremonies at a local track.
“We were over at Carroll’s garage one night and “Legs” Law (worked for Raymond Parks and married to Raymond’s sister Mary) had gotten out of prison and stopped by to relax. Fella’ there wanted a ride to downtown Austell. Legs took off toward Atlanta, spun around, came back inside the garage and spun around again, without hitting anything. The poor guy changed his mind and jumped out of the car. Legs was just mess’n with him.
“Legs wanted to meet Charlie Mincey, who was a bit younger but while Legs was away at the Big House, Charlie became kind of a legend around Atlanta and Dawsonville with his driving tactics and hauling whiskey. He was the new kid on the block. Legs never could drive a race car without wrecking, but was a pro at driving a car on the streets and running whiskey. Charlie could do both, and both were from Atlanta. One night Legs met him over at Red Vogt’s Garage where Raymond Parks had all his race cars built. ‘Lets me and you settle this driving business with a little race around town,’ Legs told Charlie. But Charlie just laughed at him. ‘I’m married now and I don’t need anymore attention from the police to prove something to you.’”
Bo Fields/Hugh Babb/Roy Shields
“Bo Fields was from Mableton. He drove a 25 mile feature somewhere with one of those fuel injected race cars set up by Hugh Babb. It had a 55 gallon drum in the backseat. End of the race that drum was nearly empty. That thing was sucking out that alcohol.
“Bo went to Alabama while I was in the Army. Bo, Fonty Flock and Billy use to all drive the Hugh Babb/Al Dykes car at different times during the forties. Billy was the first to drive the car, but money and percentages caused a lot of jumping from car to car back then,same as today.
Bo Fields pilots the Hugh Babb prepared, Al Dykes owned racer through the turn of an area race track.
“The last time I saw Bo was at one of those Alabama Reunion deals a few years ago. He bought a farm over there. But before that the last time I saw him we were heading to a race in Daytona in 1949 before I left for the service. He was driving using the middle line as a guilde. We were both sleepy and all of a sudden were in a herd of cows, in the middle of the road. Drove right through them without hitting a one. Believe me, we were awake the rest of the way there.
“Hugh Babb also worked on Government cars too, just like Red Vogt did. One of Babb’s masterpieces was a car he had primed up for legendary GBI man Roy Shields. You didn’t mess with Roy.
“While I was at basic training, Bo and Billy made a whiskey run to Alabama. The next weekend Shields saw Billy at Al Dykes place, and told Billy that he knew where he was that night, and could have reached out at anytime and grabbed him. ‘Don’t go back’ was the warning Shields told Billy. Well, Billy had a clean record, and no need of taking any changes. And so he didn’t go back.
“For whatever reason, Bo changed his address to Alabama, and still today has never came back to live.
“Roy was chasing racer Guy ‘Crash’ Waller soon after down a road in Douglasville, Georgia. Guy had a load of whiskey. Unfortunately, the road was a dead end. Ironically neither Guy nor Roy were familiar with the area. Both wrecked and Roy died. Billy and I went to see Guy in the hospital. When a GBI man dies, the heat goes up.
“A few years latter Bo’s wife was murdered out on their farm. Bo’s brother still lives in Mableton though.”