LAS VEGAS — Ann Kelsey-Daugherty and Mary Kelsey-Ritchey, daughters of the late John Kelsey, have taken over management of vintage tire distributor Kelsey Tire Co. following the death last September of their father and company founder.
A native of Rochester, Minn., John Kelsey founded the antique and classic tire distributor in the early 1980s after initially going into business as owner of a car repair shop in Camdenton, Mo.
In 1986, he secured a business relationship with Goodyear making Kelsey Tire the exclusive distributor of Goodyear-brand tires for antique, classic and vintage cars.
In the succeeding 36 years, Kelsey's bond with Goodyear deepened year after year, making him and his company an invaluable partner of the Akron tire maker, according to Keith Buckley, customer engineer at Goodyear and the company's liaison with Kelsey Tire.
Along the way the unassuming business owner was befriended by some giants of the racing world, including five-time Formula 1 champion Juan Manuel Fangio of Argentina, whom Kelsey met in the early days of his business when Goodyear made most of the vintage tires he sold at a plant in Argentina.
Kelsey rarely missed a SEMA Show (and before that, the annual NTDRA conventions) during his three-plus decades in the business. His booth often was the gathering place for the industry, Buckley said.
Kelsey's business acumen and dedication to the industry earned him a place in the Tire Industry Hall of Fame, inducted in 2009. His headstone — he's buried in East Akron Cemetery, across the street from Goodyear's former headquarters on Market Street in east Akron — bears the words: Tire Industry Hall of Fame Inductee, 2009.
