Lawrence Dean “Larry” Crist

1931 – 1952

 

 

Photo from the Tommy Madison collection

 

Larry Crist of Garden City, Kansas is shown above in the “Black Panther” Hal on June 8, 1952 before the UMCA big car races on the half-mile dirt racetrack at the Cloud County Fairgrounds at Concordia, Kansas.  Crist had a nice lead on the third lap of the second heat race when his steering gear jammed.  The car crashed into the fence on the east turn of the racetrack and then flipped over the banking landing upside down.  Crist was treated and released from the local hospital.  Charlie Lutkie of Wichita, Kansas took Murray Earl’s #27 D. O Dreyer on to win the six-lap second heat race.

Crist competed in at least two other UMCA sanctioned big car races that year.  At Oakley, Kansas on July 19, 1952, he won the trophy dash but suffered engine failure and had to drop out of the feature event.  The following day at Oberlin, Kansas, he placed second in the second heat race behind Mickey McCormick.  Crist went on to finish sixth in UMCA points in 1952

 

Larry Crist is shown above in the “Black Panther” on the outside of the racetrack before he took the lead from Pete Folse in the former Gus Schrader Offy #5 during the second heat race at the Cloud County Fairgrounds at Concordia, Kansas on June 8, 1952.  That is Andy Anderson trailing Crist - Photo from the Don Radbruch collection