Toyota Land Cruiser Association Hall of Fame

by Tony Twiddy

During TLCA’s 30th Anniversary in 2006, the TLCA Board of Directors initiated the TLCA Hall of Fame to commemorate and forever recognize key individuals and businesses who have played pivotal roles for the association over the course of its history. We are pleased to introduce you to the first six TLCA Hall of Fame members.
Bob Garrett

Bob Garrett kicks off the inaugural TLCA Hall of Fame list with being credited for starting TLCA Ventura County, the first Toyota Land Cruiser Club in 1976. Bob later hatched the idea of an association of clubs which became the Toyota Land Cruiser Association. Many credit Bob with being the founder of the TLCA, although Bob would tell you it was everyone involved at the time who made it successful.

Bob was born in 1946 and grew up in Turlock, California. Bob had a great time in high school and played football for 3 years. Bob’s father, Robert M. Garrett, moved his wife, Helen Marie (Gadker) Garrett, and Bob and his sister Tonia to Fernley, Nevada, where Robert was deputy sheriff for Lyon County Nevada for many years. Bob attended the University of Nevada at Reno for a short time before returning to southern California. He worked at various jobs while completing more college until going to work for Stokely Van Camp in Oxnard, CA, starting out as a fabricator before becoming plant engineer. Bob started his own business in 1993, Garrett’s Sierra Machinery, Inc.

Bob notes that his work has him traveling much of the time, which is rough on relationships. That might account for his “single” status—he has been married several times though. Bob is also a lifetime NRA member and still owns his FJ40, just recently completing a Ford reverse pinion rear end and 205 transfer case in it. Bob sees himself and George Rice returning to Rubithon in 2008! Bob takes great pride in his adult daughter, Christine, who is a mother of two grandsons and office manager for a surgical practice. Bob is blown away when he looks at TLCA and sees so many people continuing to work so hard to keep it alive and growing.

Today, Bob is still running his own business and working on his FJ40, which he says never seems to end. He has also completed a 1966 Nova restoration and spends lots of time riding his Harley Davidson. Bob lives in Yerington, Nevada, and looks forward to taking more to enjoy life and spending more time with his family and friends.

Earl Warden, Jr.
Earl Warden, Jr. was born and raised in Placerville, California. He grew up doing many miscellaneous jobs and crafts—handyman, mechanic, plumber and was a self-proprietor as a young man.

He began working at Stancil’s Toyota in 1954, then “the number one Toyota dealership to sell Land Cruisers in the United States.” This is where Earl developed a passion for the Land Cruiser and four-wheeling with his family. He worked at Stancil’s for 18 years until he opened his own four-wheel drive repair shop in 1972, “across the street from his former employer.” When Earl opened Warden’s Auto Repair in Placerville, he employed and taught his mechanical skills to four of his sons (and now even his grandsons)—and has passed on his work ethics and morals.

Earl has made a difference and influenced every person that he and his family have ever had any contact with. He is a pioneer, a legend in building and modifying Land Cruisers, as well as an avid four-wheeler. He is a very generous and giving man and has taken that love and passion to Montana where he and Vivian (his wife of 50 years) retired in 1988.

Earl is very proud of his children—5 boys and 2 girls. He also has 10 grandchildren and 2 brand new great grandchildren—identical twin girls born to Jason (grandson) and Julie Warden. Land Cruisers and four-wheeling with his family and friends have been Earl’s passion for over 52 years.

George Rice
George Rice’s father, William, was born in Burbank, California, and raised in Oxnard, CA, where he met fellow Oxnard resident Christine, who later became William’s wife. George was born in Oxnard in 1946. George’s 87 year old mother still lives two doors down from where she was raised.

George recalls his first car was a 1957 Chevy—he immediately swapped out the 6 cylinder for an 8 cylinder. This sweet car was stolen from the high school parking lot and not much was left when it was found. His next car was a Corvette, and George again swapped engines. George replaced this street car with a 1965 Jeep just before being drafted to serve in the Army Corp of Engineers.

In 1976, while performing another engine swap, this time on his 1973 FJ40, George recalls Bob Garrett stopping by to talk Land Cruisers and about starting a four wheel drive club for Toyotas only. This idea appealed to George, who previously belonged to the local Jeep club, and that is how George came to be one of the original members of TLCA Ventura County. George recalls being very active in the club for many years and holding many offices including President, Vice President, Safety Officer, CA4WD representative and being voted member of the year in 1976 and 1977.

One accomplishment George is very proud of is having his FJ40 selected for the feature article “Bad to the Bone” in the 25th Anniversary addition of Four Wheeler magazine in February of 1987. The article was about the ground-up restoration he had done on his 73 FJ40 and included many photos, one with a clear shot of his TLCA Ventura County logo. George also notes that his club involvement helped define his personality with regard to public speaking and leadership skills, which he attributes to his success today as a business owner.

George still lives in of all places… Oxnard. He has been married a couple of times but has no children. His current engine swap is a 1967 FJ45 he bought some time ago with Bob’s help. His plans include a full frame-off restoration, spring over, Ford 9”, Turbo 400 to 205 transfer case and, of course, swapping in that Chevy 350 V8. His goal is to have it completed in time to join Bob on the 2008 Rubithon run.

Looking back, George is very proud to have served in the early years of TLCA. Most importantly, he notes that he got to meet so many people and made so many friends, including his very special friend, Bob Garrett.

Jim Sickles
Jim Sickles is the youngest of three Sickles children who grew up in Portland, Oregon. His mother, Miriam Sickles, is alive and well today at 90 years of age. Jim graduated from high school in 1963 and then served in the United States Navy, seeing action in Vietnam aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Bennington, loading rockets and bombs.

After the service, Jim married his sweetheart, Pat, and they soon had a child, Jim Jr., in 1968, and then Cherise in 1971. In 1969, Jim became Parts Manager at Downey Toyota and soon purchased his first Land Cruiser, a 1970 FJ40 with a sticker price of $3,300—which Jim got for $2,800. Jim instantly became a four wheeler, wheeling every trail in California—and selling parts and accessories to enhance the Toyota Land Cruiser’s ability. This led to the rumor that Downey Off Road Manufacturing actually began in the back room of Downey Toyota in 1970.

During the mid-70s, the influence of the first strictly Land Cruiser club in Ventura County began spreading the birth of other Land Cruiser clubs, primarily on the west coast. Jim recalls calling a special meeting of all Land Cruiser owners and clubs during a CA4WD convention, and explaining the advantages of them forming an association. Jim explained that while there would be benefits for him as a businessman, he in turn could offer the association opportunities and assistance, such as providing his company’s Land Cruiser logo for their use. Jim recalls the new association working so well, he had to soothe some CA4WD ruffled feathers. There were those who mistakenly thought he might be trying to draw Land Cruiser owners away from CA4WD membership.

Downey Off Road Manufacturing didn’t grow substantially during the 70s due primarily to their small customer base, which was relative to Land Cruiser sales. This all changed in the 80s, when Toyota began producing 4WD pickups and 4Runners. Downey took advantage of the new larger customer base by upgrading its facilities, equipment and sophistication. In 1983, Toyota Motor Sales USA asked Jim if Downey would sponsor the new factory off road racing team. They did—and for the next 10 years, Jim went racing in Baja and the USA deserts.

Jim notes the many accomplishments in his career include inducting James Garner and Parnelli Jones into the Off Road Hall of Fame during his tenure as President of the Off Road Equipment Association (OREA); chewing up an overly arrogant plaintiff’s attorney while winning a lawsuit against Downey; producing the first ever smog-legal header; reaching 100% perfection with his Land Cruiser fuel injection system (considering the aggravation it took to get there); racing and pre-running with Ivan Stewart and his family; and the many enjoyable hours spent with his family and his sweetheart, Pat.

Currently, Jim’s toys include his pride and joy FJ45 and a very radical (and very unassembled) 1927 Ford Lakes Roadster. Four wheeling has taken a back seat to new product development at Downey, Jim’s new golfing hobby, and the 3 gold medals Jim’s choral group has recently taken in international competition! Jim thinks he might be near the age of retirement but he is not ready to exit until he can be assured that the Downey name, reputation and legacy will continue.

Gary Bjork
Gary’s father, Jon Bjork, was originally from Maine, then met his California born bride, Arlene Cumbra, during his tenure in the service. Gary was born at McClellan AFB near Sacramento in 1952 and grew up with two brothers and two sisters. His interests as a young man included cars (he raced a Triumph TR6 in the SCCA races on the east coast) and he began a lifelong fascination with electronics and computers.

Gary’s first job was working at the 7-11 before moving up to that of a busboy for a restaurant which is probably still there at the corner Watt and El Camino in Sacramento. Gary joined the Navy in 1971 at the peak of the Vietnam War. When asked why he would join during those tumultuous times, Gary recounts the Draft was still in effect and his number, based upon birthday, was extremely low. He chose the Navy as opposed to being drafted and a 6 year stint eventually found him aboard one of the world’s first nuclear powered submarines as an operator.

Gary met his first wife, Penny, and married her after his time in the service was over. They parted ways shortly after Gary’s son Christopher was born. A year later, Gary met Barbara and soon they were married. Barbara worked as a nurse at the same plant where Gary worked. Together they raised Christopher, David and Dennis with a love of the outdoors and spent many days on the trails in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Unfortunately, Barbara passed away in 1999. A few years later, Gary met Lucinda and they married in 2004.

When looking back, Gary is happy that he was able to work with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District and get through the operator training program, culminating in his career choice of nuclear operator. This is the origin of his nickname, Nightlight. It was very difficult, and when looking back, Gary is proud of passing the required courses. After the nuclear power plant closed, he continued on with the local power utility in a “dream job” as a Senior Electrician in the Fresh Pond office which services all the hydro powerhouses in and around the Rubicon/Crystal Springs basin.

Gary is also very proud of his efforts related to TLCA. He recalls purchasing his first Land Cruiser, an FJ55, in 1979 and helping form a TLCA Chapter as a charter member of Toys on the Rocks. He later purchased his trail rig FJ40, which saw many TLCA events, and later a classic FJ45. Gary notes it was like jumping in with both feet when asked about volunteering for TLCA. Most TLCA members across the United States and abroad know Gary for his years as Managing Editor for Toyota Trails or later when he founded the Land Cruiser Mailing List. The LCML is credited with thousands of connections between folks around the world that have the Cruiser addiction and is even credited with a few marriages.

Recently, Gary has been courageously battling a serious illness but the outlook for full recovery is good. He just purchased a new FJ Cruiser and is looking forward to retiring within the year so he can get more involved with four wheeling and TLCA activities, the sport he has always loved.

John & Melissa Fulton
John and Melissa each had been married with children prior to their marriage in 1971. John, who was born in Valparaiso, Indiana, in 1941, had been previously married and has a daughter named Donna (who now has a family of her own). Melissa was born in Harvey, Illinois, in 1937 and was married after graduating in 1955, when she had her son Mark and daughter Dianna. Mark Fulton and Dianna Fulton Hendrick also have families of their own. After graduating in 1959, John spent 4 years in the Air Force before being discharged and spending another six years in the Navy Reserve.

John and Melissa bought their first Land Cruiser in 1971, a brand new, green FJ40. John was a mechanic at the time in Northridge, CA, and Melissa was a bookkeeper. They spent their spare time in the desert east of the Mojave where Melissa’s brother Chuck lived, exploring Red Rock Canyon and all points east.

Upon moving to Oregon in 1971, they continued exploring. It seemed they couldn’t get enough of the outdoors! They sold their Cruiser prior to returning to Ventura County in 1974 and in 1976 they bought Soupbone, a 1974 FJ55, cream and tan in color. They installed a full roll cage inside and a hard-charging Chevy 350 under the hood. John knows how to build great engines and Melissa loves to race! The name Soupbone came from a cartoon dog painted on the sides, running to catch a soup bone hanging by a rope from the side view mirrors. There was also a cute chick painted on the hood and no, it wasn’t Melissa—just looked a little like her and when they did club car shows in malls, John would paint a bikini on her.

John and Melissa answered an ad in the local paper from a guy named Bob Garrett, who was looking to start a Toyota Land Cruiser club. They became charter members of the TLCA Ventura County and both John and Melissa held offices within the club. Melissa became the editor of the original Toyota Trails. The first meeting was in January of 1976 and everyone was driving FJ40s and giving the Fulton’s a hard time (in fun) because of their FJ55. TLCA Ventura County joined CA4WDA and became very active, including Melissa serving as Chair of the 1985 CA4WDA annual conference—and she spent 3 years on the Hungary Valley SVRA Advisory Committee. The Fulton’s also wrote articles for and about TLCA and TLCA events for Four Wheeler magazine, had their club rigs on the cover a couple of times and always spread the word about TLCA.

The Fulton’s sold Soupbone in the mid-80s and bought a completely renovated FJ40, which got the obligatory Chevy power plant. By now John had been a commercial sea urchin fisherman out of the Channel Islands, and had later gone into construction. Melissa had gone to work for Raytheon in 1974, which turned into a management career position, allowing her to retire in 1989. Today they live in Lakeport, CA, on the shore of Clear Lake. John is semi-retired from construction and Melissa has been in the Chamber of Commerce business since 1990. Since moving north, they have never returned to the Rubicon and actually got out of four wheeling as a recreation. Although John sold the FJ40 about 4 years ago, he still has two he is planning on rebuilding some day.

Both John and Melissa savor their memories of the great friends and great times they had with TLCA—strangers who later became good friends, and in doing so, launched an association. They recall the many campfires they sat around while talking about their vision of TLCA. John and Melissa want to tell all their old friends, “Thank you to everyone who followed and made those dreams come true.”

Marlin Crawler
Marlin recalls growing up very poor. While his father, John Czajkowski, was an electrical technician, Marlin remembers his dad having many short term jobs because upon hearing the second Polish joke, he would often quit on the spot. John was originally from Holy Oak, Massachusetts, but found himself in California after WWII and met his future wife, Alice, from College Place, Washington, one day at church. John and Alice were married in 1953.

Marlin Czajkowski is one of three sons, his older brother Stanley living in Sonora, CA, and his younger brother Paul, who lives in Challenge, CA. Marlin was born in 1955 in Glendale, CA. When asked to describe himself as a young man, Marlin recalls “a clunky, zit faced child from a poor family.” Marlin specifically remembers wearing his older brother’s clothes during his school years at the Seventh Day Adventists High School in Glendale. He was never good at sports and spent most of his high school years working various jobs at the school to help make money. Marlin notes that growing up poor helped define who he is today—working year round and repairing anything that was broken, as opposed to buying a new one.

After graduating high school, Marlin went to college at Pacific Union College in Angwin, CA, where he studied Industrial Arts with an emphasis on automotive repair. Originally Marlin’s goal was to be a teacher. He graduated in 1975 and just missed the draft. Marlin met his wife, Christine, during high school—she was his best friend’s sister. Marlin married Chris in 1975, shortly after graduation and taking a new job. Their first child, Crystal, was born in 1978, and their second child, Mike, was born in 1980.

After graduating from college and shortly before getting married, Marlin took his first job outside the school as an auto mechanic. Nine years would pass before he opened Marlin’s Automotive and Truck Repair on January 1st, 1985. During this time, Marlin purchased his used 1980 long wheel base Toyota truck in September of 1983, and joined the local Toyota club, Madera TLCA. He loved the little truck but wished it performed more like the Toyota Land Cruiser, which was heavier and crawled better. Burning the clutch through Little Sluice frustrated Marlin and he remembers wanting the little truck to be more respected by the dominant Jeep, Land Cruiser and full size trucks on the trail.

Right around the time Marlin was talking to Danny Warden about an adapter for an SM420 transmission conversion in his little truck, Marlin discovered the Icelandic Crawler, a combination of transfer cases mated together enabling superior low gearing. Paying cash, Marlin purchased the first unit sent to North America in April of 1995. Marlin recalls it was very difficult to assemble the unit and took him quite some time. While many incorrectly believe he created the concept of stacked transfer cases, Marlin notes he simply engineered the adapter and made assembly easy, affordable and effective. Now his little truck had the extreme low gearing to make even the most challenging trails look easy. Marlin’s goal of seeing the little truck respected had been completed.

In 1999, Marlin Crawler went full time and separated Marlin Crawler from the automotive and truck repair business. Marlin Crawler now employees 14 people and is allowing Marlin himself to spend more time on what he feels are the two most important tasks—meeting his customers and working on research and development of new ideas and products.

Today Marlin is as busy working as he was in college. The work ethic installed as a young man is prevalent today, as evidenced by his busy schedule. Striking a balance between work, family, event attendance and new product development is always a challenge, but Marlin remains as dedicated to his goals as ever.

Photos courtesy of Tony Twiddy and the TLCA archives

From : http://tlca.org/trails/2007/0506/halloffame.shtml