Dempsey Wilson was one of those guys that Auto Racing needed in the late forties through the mid- sixties men who could drive anything and make a living at the edge of the sport. He operated Dempsey Wilson Racing Cams, which refurbished camshafts in Hawthorne, CA. Born in Los Angeles, California he started driving but a 5th at an AAA Sprint race at Carrell Speedway got him a ride in the Woestman Bromme Chevy for the Inaugural AAA Champ Car race at Del Mar by the Sea, a famous horse track. Dempsey made it in only to be bumped by Mack Hellings a star of the time. This race was famous for the death of very popular Rex Mays. Dempsey went back to the wars, driving Sprints, Midgets and Stock cars. He won twice at Gardena Stadium, once in an AAA Midget race beating Cal Niday and Johnny Boyd, Rodger Ward was fast qualifier and a year later a NASCAR Pacific Stock Car race at the same track. He came to the Speedway in 1956 tried the Parks/Hunt Silnes Dirt Car, a sister to the one Rutherford raced at Trenton, and the Martin Brothers couple year old Frank Curtis designed Dirt car that Al Herman put in the 500 in 1955. No luck there but he did make the Arizona Fairground at Phoenix show qualifying 13th and finishing 12th driving for friend, magneto guy and TWA Flight Engineer Joe Hunt. With his Cam business beginning to take off he spent most of his time driving Stock Cars on the West Coast with a 2nd at Saugus, CA his best finish getting beat by Troy Ruttman. In 1957 Dempsey came back with the Martin Brothers and with no luck and really didn’t drive due to business until the end of the year. Drove at Riverside in a Stock Car finishing 8th with Jerry Unser winning, and then drove a Midget at Riverside coming home 7th with Johnny Tolan winning. He went to the new Trenton date in 1958 proceeding Indy in Karl Hall’s new Curtis Roadster Offy and qualified 8th and finished 10th doing 44 laps in this very short field. At Indy he took a flyer on the Curtis but settled in the Sorenson 1956 Kuzma Roadster Offy and started 32nd took some damaged in the accident but soldiered on to 15th losing a clutch 377.5 miles in. He made the Mays race and spun out on the 25th lap in the Curtis with 20s all around. Failed to qualify at Langhorne but drove relief for Elmer George. He made the Milwaukee 200 in a Kuzma Roadster and got hit by the spinning Gene Hartley who was 9 laps ahead of Dempsey and 5 down to the leaders. He went to Trenton in the Curtis and ran all day and finished 12th. He made both the Sacramento and Phoenix race with an 18th and an 11th. In 1959 he qualified 4th for the only appearance of Indy Cars at Daytona and spun out and survived. He messed with a NOVI and Pete Salemi’s car and missed the 500. He made Langhorne, Milwaukee 200, Phoenix, and Sacramento with a 12th at Phoenix his best effort. In 1960 he drove the Bryant Heating and Cooling Kurtis 500G after messing with the NOVI again, the same car Malone made this year’s race with. Dempsey started 33rd because he didn’t qualify. Jimmy Daywalt did 26th and felt the car wasn’t safe and Dempsey took over and moved back by rule and lost the magneto 11 doing laps in and scored 33rd. On the “trail” he made both Milwaukee races with an 8th his best finish and overall, Syracuse and Trenton. In 1961 after finishing 6th in a Midget race at Ascot Park to Foyt, Wayne Weiler and Parnelli Jones he went to Indy with Lysle Greenman and his 1958 Kuzma Laydown Roadster and started 30th and came home 11thall 500 and joining the 100 Mile per Hour Club. He made a fair share of the “trail” races and had two 12ths in 100 mile races. In 1962 he ran only at Indy in the same car but missed the show. In 1963 he started out for Lysle Greenman but found he wasn’t going anywhere and took over the Vita Fresh car and qualified for what turned out to be his last 500. He ran all day and duplicated his 1961 effort. In 1964 he only qualified for the Trenton Spring race and tried two cars at the Speedway and found no speed. In 1965 Dempsey tried to make the 500 again for Gordon Van Liew but in his Rear Engined Edmunds but with no luck. Dempsey did make a Sprint car show at Reading, won by Johnny Rutherford. At PIR he took delivery the McManus Halibrand 65/Ford and this car would stay with Dempsey until he sold in June of 1969 and it got involved in a tragic accident at Continental Divide in a SCCA Continental race. From PIR in 1965 until Hanford in 1969 he made a total of 6 starts. After the Trenton 300 in 1969 he was diagnosed with leukemia although thing looked up on April 23th, 1971 he died at his home. Dempsey’s grandson, Seth is now racing stock cars, showing that Grand Dad’s influence hasnt faded and the family also runs a successful racing laminated tear-off business.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 02:28:00 +0000
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