The Cowboy's Last Ride

Reading 3Wides Message Board initiated this Senior Moment reflections on soon to be "Hall of Fame" driver, Leon Manchester. Several great photos were posted with remembrances of the "Cowboy" and some of his strong rides which included his Dodge Hemi powered Modified.

As a teenager during the mid-fifties, I watched a live rodeo each week on a local T.V. station out of Philadelphia. Originating from Woodstown, New Jersey, that Cowtown Rodeo is still in operation after 5 decades, presenting a weekly show in the summer months. From watching this weekly show, the name Leon Manchester soon stuck in my mind. No matter what the event was, bull riding, bronco horse riding etc., whatever, Leon Manchester was a contestant and usually the winner. In 1955 he was the Overall Champion by being the number one cowboy in 3 events and second overall in 2, for the season. He was one of the very few who did all 5 events.

The thing that really stuck out in my mind was that whenever a rider's name was announced they always gave their hometowns. Usually it was from some "Cowboy/Western" sounding place like Waco, Texas, Tulsa, Oklahoma or Okeechobee, Florida, making Leon's Paulsboro, New Jersey really stick out!

It wasn't until a few years later that at Flemington Fairgrounds I was surprised to see Leon Manchester in a stock car. Not remembering the year exactly, It was his first "ride" there and in the white number 1 sedan, I recall. Let's just say "over extended" would be a polite way to describe that first outing. Exciting? YES and Timid? NO. Just like the horses he rode before, you knew it wouldn't be to long before he would show it who was in charge!

After few seasons and many "front ends" Leon became a consistent runner and a potential feature winner which did at Reading and Nazareth. Always looking for the "edge", even today people remember the twelve car with the radiator in the trunk, the experimental top wing and the "sleek" design of his number 7 coupe.

To be competitive at the regular tracks he ran required two cars because each track had its own rules for what you were allowed to run. He initiated a group of car owners to form a association called Tri-State to work towards unifying the rules at all the speedways. In 1972, after two years of "giving it his best shot" which included promoting Harmony Speedway as an association, the group disbanded.

In 1972, along with becoming involved with the building and operating of a new speedway in Bridgeport, New Jersey, Leon built a new modified to make an "all out" effort to go back and race at all the speedways he had boycotted or who barred him during the previous two years. He set in his own mind to have fun and see how much the rules were now going to be enforced. Enter now the picture showing the remains of that "dream machine". The first time out was at Middletown, New York where he qualified for the feature and then loaded the car up on the trailer after failing to meet minimum weight. In Manchester style he explained, "sure I was light, real light, I just wanted to see them use their scales for the first time this year!"

His second outing was at Lebanon Valley, New York, where he was running in the feature. The car was well under control when all of the sudden it veered in to the fence and started a violent end-over-end roll half the length of the straightaway. The cause of the wreck appeared to come from a fault weld on a purchased speed part. After an "over-nighter" in the hospital, Leon returned home to concentrated on the building of Bridgeport. He never stopped work even with a broken arm, he wouldn't allow them to set, and two completely red, blood shot eyes!

The photo shows crew member and friend "Wasy" Lind looking over "The Cowboy's" last ride.
Senior Moment By: Russ Dodge
 

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