[Vansmack2]

OK, so how many of you know who Junior Johnson is? If you have any Junior stories tell then here.

My brother recently purchased Junior's old house just outside of Ronda , North Carolina. I just got back last night from visiting there. The house is in fairly good shape, but needs a little work. It is about a 4,000 square foot house. If I remember correctly there are 7 detached garages on the lot, and they need work. There are rooms there where there used to be 2 dyno testing rooms, but no equipment there. There are also 2 attached garages on the house, and my brother has plans to enlarge one of those in the future.

My brother will use part of the detached garages for his business of doing car stereo installations as well as other car electronics. Anyone that want good service from him can contact him at [email protected]. He will also use some of them as rental storage. He has someone that will be storing a boat there soon.

Part of the property that junior used to own was deeded to his former grounds keeper, and another set of garages that were for his second team were sold off separately. I met the owner of these other garages, and he is a very nice gentleman who lives in the area.

 

[mr55/56]

When real men drove real cars in Nascar.

 

[DZAUTO]

Junior was one of my favorite personalities!

 

[Greg's 56 Nomad]

He learned how to drive so well by hauling shine in his younger days.
Not sure if I ever saw him race, but he was part of a Nascar team, and I have been watching Nascar and going to races for decades.

 

[Carolina Chevrolet]

His moonshine is named Midnight Moon. He was promoting his beverage at a local ABC store and would autograph a bottle if you bought one. I live just a few minutes from Wilkes county, where he got his start.

 

[iveys57]

There were some good articles about him and moonshine running in general in old Hot Rod or Car Craft magazines. Interesting that his home track is coming out of retirement. He is a NASCAR and NC legend.

 

[Crowbarman55]

Me...I knew who he was. Drive shine all night and race the next day.
The movie The Last American Hero was kinda based on Robert Glen Johnson (aka..Junior)
Todd

 

[angs1957]

His moonshine is named Midnight Moon. He was promoting his beverage at a local ABC store and would autograph a bottle if you bought one. I live just a few minutes from Wilkes county, where he got his start.

Looks like this stuff could be used to fuel up your rides

 

[Old Buzzard]

Lots of stories/folklore about Jr.
One I like: Jr was divorced from Flossie.
He decided to get his new wife a Vette. He had the dlr deliver it.
Problem was, they took it out to the wrong wife.
Flossie destroyed it with a bat.
True? False? Who knows!

 

[HILLBILLY 823]

Lots of stories/folklore about Jr.
One I like: Jr was divorced from Flossie.
He decided to get his new wife a Vette. He had the dlr deliver it.
Problem was, they took it out to the wrong wife.
Flossie destroyed it with a bat.
True? False? Who knows!

He made an appearance at a local short track here in Connecticut back in the 1990's. I was able to get his autograph as well as Hut Stricklin's, who was driving for him at the time. Lots of cool stories about his earlier days running shine and incarceration for running a still. He was proud of the fact that he was never caught while making deliveries driving. Some of the stories about he and Darrel Waltrip, who drove for him are hilarious. He and Smokey Yunick were 2 of the really innovative pioneers of Nascar.

 

[Robert Haas]

A story that ran around a lot was about another driver back in the 1970's and Jr had a beef, the other driver said he was going to come over to Junior's garage after the race and beat JR with a hammer. So the race ends and the teams are tearing down the pits and this guy is walking over to JR's pit with a ball peen hammer in his hand. JR is told the guy is coming and he bends over and picks up a engine off a saddle type stand and puts it up on the tail gate of a pick up. The Hammer wielding boy sees this, stops dead in his tracks and turns around and briskly walks away.

 

[Granpa49!!]

Was he the guy on Hee Haw?

 

[Old Buzzard]

Was he the guy on Hee Haw?

No doubt. It was his second job. 😁

 

[mr55/56]

Pretty sure that was Junior Sample.

 

[Shadetree55]

Pretty sure that was Junior Sample.

BR549

 

[mr55/56]

BR549

We used to put that number and For Sale in shoe polish on cars in the parking lot in HS.

 

[Old Buzzard]

Jr Samples was from around here. I used to see him on occasion.
What you saw on tv was exactly how you saw him in public.

 

[Carolina Chevrolet]

I heard Junior Johnson talking about running an illegal intake manifold back in the early Nascar days. He said they ground off the casting numbers and added numbers from an approved manifold. He said he won several races with it before the Nascar officials figured out what they had done. 😁

 

[mr55/56]

If they removed all the cheaters the HOF would be empty. Like Smokey said "If you are not cheating you are not trying".

 

[HILLBILLY 823]

If they removed all the cheaters the HOF would be empty. Like Smokey said "If you are not cheating you are not trying".

I thought that quote was by the king, Richard Petty (?)