EEGOR THE EYESORE / KENNY PARKS' MIDGET RACER
/
“They’ll know because it’s the only pink car on the track” – said the charismatic Kenny Parks regarding the flamboyant color choice of his racecar nicknamed ‘Eegore the Eyesore’ and for the ease of his buddies to locate his midget racecar in case he might crash and turn over.
With racing blood coursing in his veins since the 1940s, Parks made good use running the rugged dry lakes in California. Parks was a beloved character in the hot rod and midget racing scene. The birth of midget racing and the Midget Auto Racing Association (MARA) can be tracked down to Loyola Highschool in Los Angeles with its first race recorded on August 10th 1933.
Most midget race cars have four cylinder engines, average 900lbs weight, and vary between 300-400hp. With high horsepower and low weight midget racing was considerably perilous. The sport quickly caught on across the world, reaching Australia and New Zealand.
Parks worked for Bell Auto Parts for several years before branching out to open Bell Motorsports which sold Bell Helmets and Simpson safety gear. His brother, Wally Parks is famed as being the father of Hot Rodding with such accomplishments of founding the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) and serving at the editor for over 15 years at Hot Rod Magazine. Racing ran in the family.
His most humorous of racing cars, Eegore the Eyesore has a unique background to match it’s name and paint job. The #32 pepto-bismol colored sprint race was found in Hawaii by Parks’ nephew Mike Olivero. Having been built and raced on the tracks of Hawaii before coming into the hands of Kenny Parks.
Kenny Parks was known mostly for his clever sense of humor and endless appreciation of practical jokes. His Bell Motorsports business flourished and reported in Richard Parks piece “Kenny Parks - The Brother of Wally Parks” on HotRoad Online, that Kenny Parks was a successful businessman in part to “people preferring to deal with him because of his joyful personality.”
*I am looking for more history on Eegore the Eyesore’s racing wins. If you have any knowledge, please send my way!*
The Bad Blonde
aka Caitlin Shook has grown up in the mechanic shop world. Shook Enterprises is a south Texas automotive repair shop that focuses on the antique, classic, rare, awesome, and sometimes just plain hard to fix vehicles.
An avid fan of travel and adventure, she’s popped into every car MUSEUM and car SHOW + AUCTION she can along the way.
She began an arduous car restoration of a 1976 Porsche 912e at the age of 14 and she’s not stopped loving difficult cars since. Enjoy the journey with The Bad Blonde!
