ARMOND HOLLEY (1934-2005)
Story By: Duane De Puy
I first met Armond Holley back in 1973. At that time I was production manager
for Lakewood Industries, manufacturing safety racing equipment such as bell
housings and traction bars. The boss brought this skinny hill billy into my
office and said "Give him something to do."
So we put him to work as a tool and die maker. He did a good job for us,
except that he had to have Fridays off and would come in late on Monday, cause
he was racing!
Seems as though Bill Port needed a driver for his 4 wheel drive rear engine
supermodified and had called Bill Hite, the builder-engineer. Hite recommended
Holley with "This guy will win for you, Bill." And win he did, the first nite in
the 55 car, Armand won the feature at Lorain County Speedway. That was just the
start of it as he won a whole bunch more at almost any track that he went to for
Port.
One night he won the Australian Pursuit Race in three laps. You know what that
race is about, they line up the ten fastest qualifiers single file and give them
the green. If you get passed ...your out. Well John Lemmo, promoter was so
impressed that he asked Port if Armond could do it in two laps.
The next week Armond was fastest qualifier again and with a silly grin on his
face he did it in one lap. He passed four cars through turns one and two, two
more on the back stretch and coming off turn four, he had all four tires smoking
as he beat the rest to the flag. He did it with no more than 358 ci when 400 and
458 was commonplace.
Then there was the time at Sandusky when he got the black flag for running
under his time...and he was the fastest qualifier. After an argument, he got
paid for first.
But this bit is not only about Armonds escapades in the supers but about the
experiences I had with him in other venues.
First of all Armond was a top notch tool and die maker and he did a fine job
for us at Lakewood Industries. We also used him as a test driver for our
products. One day we were at the Ohio Department of Transportation Test Center
running tests on traction bars. We just about burned the tires off a Mach I
Mustang and as we were leaving for the day Armand says "That 7 and a half mile
high banked track is calling me, we just got to get on there!" So despite my
protests he turns onto the track and puts the pedal to the metal.
Well to run the high part of the track you had to be doing around 140 mph and
the Twanger wasn't up to it. But he was determined to do it! So here we are
racing around that track wide open and with the tail hanging down.
Scared the hell out of me! But all Armond could do was ##### that the car wasn't
fast enough.
Another time, a good buddy and I were going to run a car at sprint car race
at Buckeye Speedway. We needed a driver and I asked Armond if he ever drove
dirt. "Yeah a couple of years ago" he says. So we haul this brand new untried
car down to Buckeye where there were over a hundred tried and true sprinters all
ready to go. After practice, he qualifies in the top twenty and makes the
feature.
Lining up for the feature, the twist-lock safety belt was hanging up and
wouldn't release. Armand is getting impatient and itchy because I couldn't get
it fixed. "C'mon, c'mon he hollers they're lining up for the featch." I told him
gimme some time. He asks "Do you have a pocket knife?" Yeah I told him. "OK if I
get in trouble, you come running. Push me off!"
Unfortunately he had to drop out due to overheating. No shaker screen, but he
had that car right up in the front of the pack after twenty some laps.
Armond loved to race, but he wasn't foolhardy. He also had some of the most
picturesque speech you ever heard. He asked me to go with him to a race at
Sharon Speedway when it was still pavement. Some guy had bought Ports 4 wheel
driver and wanted wanted him to drive it. Well the car just wasn't right for
him. After we had worked on it for a while, Armond says "NO, My Momma didn't
raise no dummies, this things fixin to hit the fence and I ain't going to be in
it. It's as scary as taking a crap off a slanty tin roof backwards"
Sure enough the other driver put it hard into the fence.
Unfortunately, Armond never made it to the big time, but if he had I would
have loved to go with him. Because he was that kind of a guy!.
The following is from Tony Martin of Pensacola, FL
Armond's name is still revered along the Gulf Coast by anyone who saw him run on the Speedway Inc. Supermodified circuit during the mid-late '60s. I was fortunate enough to see him race at Five Flags and Mobile Speedways while stationed here in Pensacola with the Navy. Not only was he very successful here but in the northeast and Ohio. He won in midgets with the ARDC & NEMA, Supermodifieds, Modifieds, and Late Models.
I am aware of some of his major victories such as the Fiesta of Five Flags 200 (Pensacola) which was a major Supermodified event and forerunner to the World 300 at Mobile. He also won a 100 lapper at Fulton Speedway (NY) in a supermodified and the Thompson Speedway Icebreaker in a midget. He ran NASCAR Grand Nationals and participated in two Little 500s. He drove for famous car owners New Englander Skip Matczak and Alabama's Bill Hite. It was in Hite's rear-engined car that he claimed a track championship at Lorain County Speedway (OH) where I understand they once docked him a lap and he won anyway. He was also a regular at Sandusky and Oswego.
Armond passed away last Wednesday after a long illness. He died in his sleep and I believe he was in Longwood, LA where he lived the last time I talked to him. A memorial service was held in Columbus, MS where he was raised. His son, Armond Jr. lives in Michigan and races IMCA-type modifieds.
Armond Holley was born June 2, 1934, and passed away, July 13, 2005 at Columbus, MS
