by Kassie Hughes
HEMINGWAY, S. C. — Most of the men and women in racing today have followed in the footsteps of their fathers or grandfathers, but for Marion Cox, he paved the way for many small town mechanics.
Cox grew up in the small town of Hemingway (SC), and although his family was into farming, his heart craved for something different. In his teen years, he read a book titled “Souping Up The Stock Engine”, which was the beginning of his love for racing. Before he opened his engineering garage, Cox went to Nashville Auto-Diesel College in Tennessee and then spent more than two years serving in World War II. Once he settled down, he fell in love with a girl named Nina, who soon became his wife.
His passion was for the heart of an automobile…the engine. He would rather spend time behind the scenes than in the spotlight when it came to racing. The only time he was behind the wheel was when he would drag Nina to Daytona Beach, Fla. for the “Measured Mile” competition on the well-packed sand of the Atlantic Ocean. He would run against the clock at speeds of more than 120-miles-per-hour to quench his need for speed. There was no prize money at the time, but the certificates given to him for his wins against high-dollar competitors was enough to open the eyes of many people who turned to him to build engines for their cars. [click to continue…]
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