Midwest Loses Another Racer

[Mark40H]

Phil Howard of Jacksonville, Illinois, died this week. Phil ran a dry cleaners in Jacksonville. He was very competitive in the pro-class for many years. Phil was a loyal Quincy Welding customer. I am sure most of you old-timers remember Phil. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Very sorry to hear that Art. God bless his family and may he rest in peace.

Phil was a very nice, quiet guy and ran a good race. He ran the national circuit, and we were always glad to see him show up. He will be missed by all his racing friends.

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

Thanks to Art for spotting this information and posting it.

As Wayne stated, Phil was an intense competitor, my trailer partner in the late 70's/early 80's, and a very good friend. I will try to post some pictures and more information about his racing career and what he overcame during that time in the next few days.

Funeral is to be at Buchanan & Cody Funeral Home 1:00PM in Jacksonville, Illinois Saturday, April 28, 2012. Condolences may be left at www.buchanancody.com

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Thanks for that link Bill Van. As a Midwesterner you raced with him much more than I did, and I knew you would bring some good info. If you could Bill Van, would you start a thread on Phil on the encylopedia? I've got stuff to add to your stories, but I think it would be better on the encyclopedia where we can all find it.

ADD: I just went to the link Bill Van provided, and it is very easy to give your condolences. I have never seen this done before, but I think it is a very good thing. Phil was a very special guy.

[ProHydroRacer]

Phil and Jeany are back together again.
He was a good guy. He will be missed by many.
See you at the finish line, may you rest in peace.
Bill & Joyce Kurps

[geodavid]

I am so very sad to hear this. It was a joy to have seen Phil at the last Depue reunion. I was thinking about him and hoping to see Phil this summer. We pitted next to him at one of my first big races. I was impressed with his professionalism and preparation. I became a Phil Howard fan for life. Even tried smoking to be like Phil. When I saw him in 2007, the first thing I asked him was if her was still smoking? Will miss you very much. God Bless You Phil Howard.
Alan

[F-12]

Sorry to hear of Phil's passing. Great competitor, and all around nice guy. Rest in peace, Phil.

[jrome]

Phil was a true gentleman at the boat races. He was tuff driver . He was easy to get along with the races. I never had a problem with Phil when I was on the Judges stand. Rest in peace Phil.

[Gene East]

Joe,

No one ever saw Phil give an official a bad time, but I saw his wife Jeanie take action once.

For those who did not know Phil, he was a great competitor who was hard to beat even though perhaps he was at a disadvantage to his fellow competitors.

Phil lost most of his right hand in a horrible industrial accident. He drove with a ball and socket arrangement that secured what was left of his hand to the steering wheel, but in a manner that would allow him to be easily and safely released.

After Phil won a very competitive B-Hydro race, the PA announcer made a well intended comment about how Phil had overcome a handicap to become a top level driver.

Jeanie went to the judges stand, took the mike and told the whole world that the only handicapped drivers in that race were the ones who had to compete against her husband.

Those of us who knew Phil and Jeanie would agree!

Rest in peace!

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

Gene:

I had forgotten that story with Jeanie and the announcer, (and even though both Eileen and I were present we can't remember where it took place) but that story perfectly illustrates the kind of folks both of them were. Phil, one of the nicest people you would ever meet and one who kept my spirits high (among many others) while I was in traction for 5 weeks from a Tunnel boat blowover in '74, because they both knew what it was like to be hurt and a long healing process as the result, and Jeanie as one of the most supportive wives you would ever want to meet of Phil in all his work and play as his business partner (he ran the plant and she ran the office).

I had the opportunity to meet some of his relatives I had not met before at the funeral, and they were very interested in some of the boat racing stories we were able to pass on. They were not in his life during his racing career and really did not know much about that part of his life until they looked at some scrapbooks after he died. They realized at that point that Boat Racing was a very large part of his life and who he was, so made sure some very nice pictures and trophies/awards he won were on display at his service.

They are to send me some of them to me shortly along with a list of his racing accomplishments, and I plan on putting a post up at that time with more about him, his racing, and what he overcame to accomplish what he did in it.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

That's a good story Gene. Phils was not handicapped. When his right arm was steamed, and he got to the point to where he was stabilized and the doctors were able to save his hand they told him it would not be like it was before. No fingers, but he would still have a hand. Phil asked them if they could shape it into a ball. They said they could. Phil did not want to have to quit racing.

I always had my steering as tight as I could get it....especially with D and F. No matter how tight it was...it always wanted to turn right when I grabbed for another position to make a left turn. It tends to muscle up your shoulders. I never asked Phil about how he was able to drive so well. When I first met him, he was winning or finishing in the upper tier. He had to do all that without being able to get a more advantageous grip on the wheel. It must have taken him some time to figure out placement for his cup. I don't know how long it took him to regain his competitive position because I never asked. It was something no one ever talked about. We just saw Phil at the races and shook hands left handed and went out and raced.

I have some pictures of when Phil almost blew over at the Eastern Divisionals at Winona, but I never posted them because it was such a quick and sudden rise, that I couldn't focus quickly enough. The hydro came back down and Phil hit the throttle again. No...Phil was not handicapped. He just had to learn a more difficult way to turn the steering wheel. And he learned very well.

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

The accident that left Phil with a "ball" for a right hand occurred before I got to know him well, I think in the very early 70's, perhaps as early as 1969. He discussed it with us one time several years after I ended up in the hospital from the accident mentioned earlier, and it happened with a "sheet press" in his laundry. The press was constructed of a series of rollers that ran touching each other with room for one layer of a bed sheet to pass between them and the rollers had steam inside them to provide the heat for both drying and pressing the sheets.

The press had lots of maintenance required to keep it running smoothly, and Phil would have to climb up on the press rollers and straighten or pull sheets out from between the rollers if they started going through in an incorrect manner. Long story short, the press got turned back on while he was on the rollers, and his right hand was caught between several hot rollers and subsequently both crushed and burned quite badly.

When he was brought to the hospital, he was insistent with the Doctor as he was being taken to surgery, before he even knew how badly he was hurt, or what could be done to heal his hand, that if any of it had to be removed he be left with "something" he could turn a steering wheel with. Phil was a fan of a driver of midgets and sprint cars here in the midwest, and one of the drivers (don't remember his name now but he was a top flight driver) also competed at Indy several times. This driver had lost his hand and part of one arm in an accident in a midget or sprint car and had been fitted with a prothsesis that had a pin on the end that fit into a socket on his steering wheel that was put in the cars he was driving, so Phil knew that is was possible to continue his Boat Racing career as long as he was left with something that could be used to someway move the steering wheel in his boat,and he was very forcefull with the Doctor that something be done with whatever was left of his hand, that would allow him to do the same thing and he got a commitment from the Doctor before he would allow anything to be done.

His hand was removed about halfway between the knuckles and wrist, leaving him with that much to work with. The Doctor then made an incision in the flesh of his stomach, slid what was left of his hand into the incision, an sewed it back closed. It was then allowed to heal for a number of weeks, with what was left of his hand inside and underneath the skin on his stomach. After a certain time had elapsed, (some weeks) what was left of his hand, and a large flap of skin was cut from his stomach that was six to eight inches longer than what was left of the hand, and then that flap was folded over and sutured to what was left of his palm. Then skin grafts were taken from his leg to cover the large place on his stomach where the skin was that was now formed into a ball on his hand.

After many months of therapy, healing, exercise, etc., a "socket" or cup was made from steel, lined with leather and foam rubber, clamped on the wheel, and that is where he placed what was now a ball that would allow him to turn the wheel in his boat. Even though he was now able to move the wheel, it was still very difficult to drive in this manner, because as we all know, with a hydro at speed, you get tossed and thrown around quite a bit, so just try to imagine how it must have been trying to drive while having to lean forward with all your weight so as to keep your "stump" in the cup, and then be able to turn the boat without any fingers to grasp the wheel with. He exercised every day for years, and his forearm on the right was like steel. You did not want to try to arm wrestle him, as he would put you down in a second, even though he had no fingers to grasp your hand with.

I always admired Phil from the first time I met him, for several reasons. Firstly, he NEVER indicated in any way that he was 'handicapped" insofar as driving his boat. (see Gene East's post re his wifes comments when he was called that by a PA announcer) He never complained, or came in from a heat that he did not run out front in by saying "if I just had my hand back, I would have smoked them". That was the deck he was dealt, and he played it like it was, with no complaints and no bitching. Many times I witnessed his "ball"
bleeding when he would finish for the day, but he never cried about it, just competed at a very high level for another 15 years after his accident until he stopped driving at about age 55 in the mid 80's. We remained close friends with him, along with Jim Trimble, who was his trailer/racing partner when we first met he and Jeanie.

I had the opportunity to "test" his hydro one day at a race in Iowa, just because I wanted to see what he was faced with every time he went out and competed. After about three laps my arm was about to fall off, my knuckles were bloody, and I came back with a renewed appreciation to just what lengths a person will go to to be able to continue to do something that means so much to them that they won't quit when life deals them something like Phil had happen to him.

A great person, an intense competitor, and a really good friend and racing partner. You can't be more fortunate than to have someone like that in your life, as Eileen and I were for 40 years.

ADD: Thanks to Gene East for remembering Unionville, Mo. as the place where Jeanie helped the PA announcer out with his description of Phil's driving ability. This race and the time frame for it adds more authenticity to the time frame when Phil had his accident as that race was late 60's or very early 70's. This was a very nice facility, a waterworks lake for the town, and the race was very well attended by the Midwest PRO drivers, but unfortunately it was very windy race day and the course was like the ocean with large waves and rollers. I seem to remember Jim Schouch (SP?) won almost all the runabout classes with a C/D runabout with a two cylinder flathead for power, as you just could not hold the throttle on with the larger motors and the motors at the time had a tendency to load up if still equipped with magneto ignition instead of CD which was starting to become popular for that reason..

The race was promoted by Butch Leavendusky and I for the Kansas City Speedboat Association and for some reason we never went back.

[Gene East]

Bill,

The race was at Unionville,MO. I'm not sure of the date.

Thanks for detailing Phil's injury and the ordeal he endured to remain an active and successful driver. We can only imagine the pain Phil experienced.

I've often wondered how he could pull himself forward when the boat got light in the bow, but I don't remember ever seeing him go over backwards.

As you also mentioned, gripping the steering wheel with your fingers also decreases the stress of keeping your arm extended.

Phil was a strong man, both physically and emotionally. He was an inspiration to all of us who were fortunate enough to call him a friend!

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Thanks for the info Bill Van. I had forgotten that he had to have his hand inserted into his body. He did truly have a very strong arm. Popeye would have met his match with Phil. And you're right about him not flipping Gene. I never saw him flip. I guess I'll dig out those out of focus photos and post them. It was the closest I ever saw him to flipping. I don't know how me managed to pull it off and still keep going when he came down.

[Frank Volker]

This is sad news indeed. It was always a pleasure to talk with Phil at the races and during his visits to Quincy Welding. Anyone who thought Phil was handicapped was probably never on a race course with him. He was a fierce competitor and a class act in every sense.

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

There were only two things that really attracted Phil's attention other than Jeanie, their business, and "PJ Jr" their small white poodle they had when we first met. One was racing (of various kinds and I will elaborate when I get the pictures I need for that post) and the other was a good meal, preferably steak, potatoes (did not matter if mashed or baked) and a good salad. When Phil, Jeanie, Eileen and I made the annual trek to Lakeland in the spring to escape the cold mid-west winter, we had a favorite place to eat in Lakeland, that most born prior to 1960 and appreciated a great meal would be familiar with north of town called "Foxfire".The food was delicious and the salad bar had all kinds of goodies including fresh boiled shrimp, so if you went hungry it was your own fault.

At the funeral service I was reminded of Phil's appetite when reading his "autobiography", which was written when he was in the 6th grade, I assume for some type class project. He started at the beginning (at his birth) and it was very well written and detailed, especially for someone of 11-12 years old which he probably was in 6th grade. The last several paragraphs were very telling and informative, as they covered the two things he was most interested in at the time, and stayed so for many years. He stated that "I loved racing from the time I built my first soapbox derby car and raced it, but the only thing I liked better was food", end quote. I thought that was very accurate, and reflected Phil's taste's (no pun intended) for most of the rest of his life.

One particular year Phil and Jeanie were not able to break away from the business come Lakeland time and were unable to make the trip. During a phone conversation prior to Eileen and I leaving for the race, he made the comment to be sure to have a steak at the Foxfire for him as they were not making the trip. Eileen and I made the visit with another couple (don't remember who now but it is not important to the story) and had the usual big meal that was served there with the portions bigger than most folks could eat in a sitting.
I have already mentioned Phil's quite large appetite, and one of the things he used to do while waiting for everyone else at the table to finish was watch closely to see if you were going to finish your plate, and if he noticed hesitation like you were full and there was still a nice piece of steak left, he would say "are you going to finish that", and when you said no his fork would appear over your plate, the leftover steak would find it's way to his, and it would be gone very shortly. This happened with most unfinished portions of the meal by the others at his table, and I can truthfully say I never knew anyone that could put it away like he could and remain without any excess weight for his height.

Since Phil was not present we all thought he would be appreciative of a gift from us all, that would indicate we were thinking of him and missed his ability to not waste any food. When we all finished our dinner we requested a "Phil" bag for all that was left, found a box suitable for shipping, and sent it "slow mail" to Phil at the cleaner' office. About 6-7 days later the local mail delivery person came into the shop with the box, holding it at arms length because of the smell, and made the delivery. I got an immediate phone call regards the meal, and we all had a good chuckle about it for many years after, but his appetite never diminished much up to the last time we had dinner with him which was a couple of years ago.

[Pitboss]

Bill.. Sounds like he was a tough competitor as well as a man who dealt with a terrific obsticle. I just cant imagine the effort it took to drive in that condition. Hats off to him!

If I remember correctly, that Midget Car racer with a similar situation was Mel Kenyon. I could be wrong, but was also was a guy who "made do"..


Pitboss 77

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

Pitboss:

It was indeed Mel Kenyon who was Phil's hero. I had forgotten his name as it had been many years since I had heard it. He was quite a race car driver in his own right, midget, sprint car, and Indy cars.

And you are correct, he (Phil) was a very strong individual, in many ways. One of, if not the toughest individuals I have ever met.

[Danny Pigott]

I never knew Phil personaly but I saw him at a few races . I always admired him for still racing after what happened to him. A lot of people will quit the first time they get hurt in a boat. His desire to still race under those conditions were really something. There was a guy named Fred Mason that raced SEBA that only had one leg. I can remember seeing him in those days , George Tayor may remember more about him.

[Allen J. Lang]

Dan, did Fred run a Johnson SR on a old Neal hydro in SEBA?

[Danny Pigott]

Al for some reason I think he did have a Neal or Filinger , I don't know where he lived but i am sure he came to races at Beaufort SC .

[Allen J. Lang]

Dan, will have to dig through my pictures. I have a photo of his rig.

[Donald]

Indeed, Fred did have only one leg, he had a prosthetic leg which he took off when he was in the boat. As I remember he was from Savannah or some place close and ran a PR, because I didn't have to compete against him. This was in the mid fifties and we ran only in SEBA races.