The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America recently honored a famous racing Utahn, known for putting the Bonneville Salt Flats on the world map.
SALT LAKE CITY — At the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America at the famed Daytona Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, a new name imprinted on a plaque is now hanging on the wall.
"The history of what went on on the salt flats with automobile racing was a big deal. It's worldwide," Williams said. "This is history. This is automotive history here," Williams said. "Every one of these cars has a story and made the world a better place for cars." But the engine isn't what makes the machine so big. Ab Jenkins, the man who drove it, made that race car famous.The Mormon Meteor III is seen at the Price Museum of Speed in Salt Lake City on March 10.
Jenkins II, who is named after his grandfather, described how Ab Jenkins made a name for himself, to the point that automobile manufacturer Studebaker hired Ab Jenkins full-time.In the 1920s, Ab Jenkins' fame would grow when he carried out long-distance stunts, like racing his Studebaker against a Union Pacific train from Salt Lake City to Wendover, and from New York City to San Francisco.
The salt was much cooler and didn't destroy tires, Williams said, creating better, safer conditions to race in. Jenkins II said his grandfather was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Ab Jenkins' faith drove him in the way he lived his life. He described how his grandfather refused to advertise for liquor or tobacco companies because he didn't want to influence young people in that way.The Mormon Meteor I would morph into Mormon Meteor II with the addition of a Curtiss Conqueror airplane engine.
Ab Jenkins' son and Jenkins II's dad, Marv Jenkins, who also became a racer, fought to take ownership of the Mormon Meteor III from the state so he could lovingly restore it.
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