John R. Woods

[Rex Hall Jr.]

I was priveledged to have been a friend of Johns, and even more so to have been able to build some of the Konig motors he ran. I am sorry that I could not attend the Funeral, as I was in Florida for the World Championships. My deepest sympathy and prayers go out to the Woods family.

Rex Hall

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Johnny Dortch called me a couple of days ago asking about the picture of Johnny Woods eating corn...and chewing it...that was taken at the DePue Reunion. He wanted to give a copy of that to John's wife Judy. Johnny also requested that the full uncropped picture was made. Johnny was on the right side. John Riner Woods and Johnny Dortch were friends. As friends go, sometimes they drift apart as time goes on, but they remain friends. So it was with them. Johnny recalled how great their own reunion was at DePue.

It was Johnny that got John Riner Woods into alky racing. He was in his third year in college. Johnny didn't say when it was John was in college and he was talking about so much I didn't interrupt him to ask him where. John and Judy were going together then. John used to come to Johnny's house to watch and help work on motors in the basement. John ate a lot of peanut and jelly sandwiches there and at college.

After two or three years of working with John, his racing and his motors, Johhny Dortch introduced John to O.F. Christner, and from then he sent his motors to Quincy Welding.

We tracked the photo in question down to Russ Hill and will get it to Johnny for presentation to Judy Woods.

[Ron Hill]

Carol McMillan
Hi Ron,

I'm helping out a friend who has no computer. He wanted to add his condolences for John R. Woods. Here is what he wrote.

One of the saddest moments of my life was when Kenny Nicholas called and told me that John was in a bad accident and was killed.

John and I go way back before he and Judy got married when he was going to school in Ohio.

I did most of the Merc engines when he first started racing. I'm the one who introduced him to O.F. Christner.

John and I drifted apart, but remained good friends until his death. Judy was along all the time and then along came the kids
.
I'll always remember his quick wit and his love of life.
God Bless John and his Family.

The picture on this website is of John and me in DePue at the 2007 Old Timers Reunion.

His friends forever,
Johnny (Y99) and Liz Dortch (Overland, MO)

[Bunker Hill]

There was never a day in my life that I didn't know who John Riner Woods, Saint Louis Missoura was. I never really knew how close John was to my family, specifically to my dad, Russ Hill, Jr. When my dad called me with the news, regarding Jonh's death, he was as shaken as he was when he called me about my own mother's. Last night at dinner, 11/05/08, my dad was eating corn and he gleamed with pride because HE had taken the pictures of John at Depue, John's passing was a great loss to many more than Russ Hill, but I think few took the loss any harder

Bunker

[Ron Hill]

Gerry Hedlund took these pictures of Johnny!

[David Weaver]

Ron,

Any idea of the date of this string of photo's?

I guess PRO outboards have been experiencing spectacular blowover for over 40 years.

[Ron Hill]

Carl Meyers owned the "A" Looper I ran, in 1966...Carl's son was a Rhoads Scholar at Oxford about that time. When he finished at Oxford he moved to Florida to run a church.

Carl went to visit he son in Florida the year after this picture was taken. I'm going to say this was winter of 1966-67.

I do know that Carl went to Lakeland to the races and enjoyed his stay with O.F. Christner, John Riner Woods and Walt Cortouris...

Carl's stories of Lakeland are still retold in our household anytime we get to talking about funny stuff.

As Carls tells it, Johnny woods put his "B" Looper on a Collins runabout that was designed for an "A"... O.F. told Woods, you can run the boat, but WHEN YOU GO SPLAT, NOT "IF", WHEN YOU GO SPLAT, he said, you'll own the boat....

I guess Johnny got a fair start and on Lakeland's big 8 bouy course was doing well and moving toward the front......when on about lap two Johnny went "Spat". Blew the sides and deck off that new Collins runabout... Everyone laughed like hell, no one was hurt, Woods got himself a new Collins boat.....

Carl came back saying, "Everyone told him he'd go SPLAT." AND HE DID!!!

I think it was about that time when my brother statrted telling me stories about John Riner Woods from St. Louis MASSURA (Missouri)...Seems when my brother was trying to get APBA into the 1950's, if was the 60's....my brother was Senior Vice Priesident of APBA.... Which in those days meant your next step as president....But with my brother living in California, out there by Japan and all....many thought change wasn't what was needed...

Anyway, about that time, Russ and Johnny Woods became friends. Woods wanted to give APBA a million dollars.... Seems he wanted to set up some kind of a trust, that upon his death APBA would have a little trust fund....

Flash BACK a few years...

Johnny came from St. Louis and was the youngest Senior Parnter of E.F. Hutton. His grandfather had bought him a seat on the New York Stock Exchange for his 21 st birthday.

He raced Sid Carft Hydros and DeSilva runabouts... seems he once had a six boat trailer that his wife wrecked going to Lakland, not her fault...Johnny just ordered six new boats and went on racing...

At DePue Hank Green and Johnny Woods gave a high point trophy that was six feet high...Johnny Woods, Y-100 was FLASHY. He gave the ABC camerman a ride in his D Hydro at the NOA Nationals when it was cover by Wide World of Sports...Johnny loved everything about life...............

I think it was his LUST FOR LIFE that worried many in APBA when he anted to give them money. Often, the one with the most GOLD runs things, though I doubt John Riner Woods ever wanted to run APBA. Hell, he could have bought with his personal check!

APBA never figured out how to take the money, though my BROTHER KEPT SAYING TTFM...Take The _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Money....I made a rough calculation yesterday, thinking his offer on one million in 1966 would have been 10 million today. Anyway, it is only money...

I think the Lakland crashes and two OPC crashes, one with him at Havasu and one with brother Dave at Parker, made John move to inboards.

John raced Jones hydros, in the 225 class for 20 years. Many of those years were filmed by John's film company, and made into movies for each year John Raced...John sent me a copy of one year's racing, and sorry to say, I lost it...

I plan to contact John's brother soon, and see if we can get copies of John's racing life that is on 16MM films...

I'd bought a new 1968 Chevy wagon. Ordered special with afour speed and HP 350 engine. I'd put mag wheel on her and Michalin tires...In California, 1968, black wall tires were "COOL"...
Johnny came to the 1968 APBA Convention in L.A. California and wanted to hit some "TOPLESS" BARS...and see the "CITY"...

I tell John at the hotel, I'll go get my car and pick you up in front of the hotel....John gets in and says, "You got a new car with re-caps on it?" Huh? I say??? He says, "They are painted black......and you ain't got you white walls...." I say, "This is California and black walls IS COOL, in fact, these are white walls turned around..."

We get somewhere to a "TOPLESS" bar, and Woods gets out, crawls under my car to see if I've really got white walls turned around...Whatever was going on at the APBA convention that day didn't matter as we missed it...

We ended up staying at my girl friends house that night and her dog ate John's socks...We head in the APBA Convention the next day and John is wearing dress pants and dress shoes, and no socks...

In those days, the APBA Convention was pretty much APBA Officials.....I remember at the Saturday banquet, they announced the names of all 1968 APBA National Champions and ask them to stand up....After the names were read, I was the only one standing...Seemed strange, no National Champions at a Boat Racing convention....

John and I e-mailed often.....Never, ever did we not end our e-mail without reminding each other to chew our corn and use lots of pepper on everything. John, had wanted to take me slowly to the top of the National Pepper Association....With his passing, I may need to take the big step sooner.

The National Pepper Association is an old organization, I was surprised that John Riner Woods was elected Predsident at the age of 65...I'll be 65 next year, maybe I will be accepted as their new president...as it was John's wishes...

ADD: Our e-mails were mostly about his train but he was helping me with my propeller museum, of which I will continue working on!

LAST ADD: John's Personal Railroad

www.arborwayrailroad.com This railroad is all on John's property. I always figured, once he really got it finished,he'd donate it to the state of Missouri....