History Drag cars in motion.......picture thread.

Bean Bandits at Ramona


Jim Dunn and Henry Velasco with the Winternationals class trophy


No i.d.


Classic '29 on deuce frame..


Gene Conway's "Navy Destroyer," Lions...hanging on to the roll bar brace...photo by Tom West...

 

1964

 

Lefty Little in "Big Red" at Lions, Don Prieto photo


Vic Smaldino's Fargo-headed 4-banger, at San Fernando. The car ran in the high 130s, pretty good for 4-cylinders.


This car was very competitive.


Jess Vandeventer, running what looks like a 3-71 blower. Jess set many a national record and won many a national event with this car.


Gil Hayward's "Monkey Motion" at Lions, maybe Ron McKibben driving.

 

Thanks for another trip down Memory Lane.
Jimbo

 

Lineup of gas dragsters, Pomona, 1958. This was a year after the SoCal fuel ban started. I cannot identify all the cars here, from right to left: unknown flathead, Cyr & Hopper "Ole Blue" (the '58 NHRA Nationals winner), maybe Bobby Tapia with the ScoT blown flathead in an early TE-440, unknown Ardun, blown Cadillac-powered Delta Machine sponsored car, John Bradley's blown flathead, unknown, etc, Mickey Thompson's twin Chrysler car at the end. Photo from the Hot Rod Magazine archives.

 

Boy, a young Jim Dunn is a dead ringer for son Mike Dunn today. Genes are amazing things!

 

>>>>>>>>>>>> Genes are amazing things!

Specially these new stretchy ones they sell now.

 

Hey Dave,

Jess VanDeventer had this earlier version of the same roadster at Lions in 58 and 59. It was one of the first race cars I shot on film. I was trying to get a feeling for the whole Lions Dragstrip scene, like a real Hollywood producer. The blower came after these films.

Junji

 

Great video....interesting that Jess is racing Hill Alcala in Creighton Hunter's old roadster, still flathead powered, I think, but he gives Jess a run for his money...thanks for posting!

 

Dave,
Speaking of the red, Hill-Acala Roadster, it was one of the highlights of the recent Lions Dragstrip Museum opening. By the way, it was sitting just under the huge TV screen playing some guy's old Lions Dragstrip films all day and night, until closing.

The roadster is beautiful up close and looks as good as those early racing days. It is one race car that should be available to see the history from those good old times.

Junji
Hopefully, the Lions Museum will be updated and ready for the general public very soon. I met a lot of interesting people from back in the old days and with the race cars, it was certainly eye opening. Currently, it is closed after this racers/industry only event back in June.

 

The coolest thing about the Hunter/Alcala roadster is that it is exactly as it was back in the day. Original paint, lettering, everything. A true survivor. It has not changed since I first saw it a Pomona in 1959.

 

Dean,
Yes, it stays the same,(with a new polish job) even with the original Moon Eyes, While the rest of us march on in age... How fair is that? Ha!
Junji

 

It's not, Junji!!

 

Bob Perry was from my home town. He had about a 68 Corvette wheel stander before the Army sponsored tank.

 

NHRA Nationals, no i.d. on either roadster


Driver's view from Hayden Proffitt's Chassis Research blown Chevy


Unknown Potvin-blown Chrysler car, looks like the nose came from a car hood...NHRA Nationals



Around '58, rear-engine dragsters were nothing new...


Don Montgomery converted this gasser to street use after he retired it from racing. Hope he is ok, have not heard from him recently...anyone know?

 

You had to walk around Tony Nancy's roadster a few times to really appreciate the craftsmanship, Fuller chassis.


I don't have an identification on this multi-carb dragster, but this is how it was when you fabricated your own stuff.



Caption is "Art Malone at Kingdon," though I don't remember Malone having a blue car..

 

I'm sure this has been posted before, but it is still a great shot of McEwen..


Don Montgomery's Hudson at Paradise Mesa...very early '50s, probably before Don's brother Bruce was killed (we never mentioned that when I worked at Blair's). Don started out with a hopped-up Hudson engine, but at this time, he had a Buick straight 8 in it.

Wells & McCloskey at San Luis Obispo, strong running flathead.


Bruce Woodcock in the Reath Automotive-sponsored Raker's Car Club Fiat competition coupe. This car ran high 150s as a CC, then the engine went into the Raker's AA/FD. Sadly Bruce died in it at San Gabriel, July '62.


Wells & McCloskey again, at one time sponsored by Andersen's Split Pea Soup.


Bean Bandits, in Paul Schieffer's former modified roadster. Notice how all the ridges on the body for the doors, etc., have been smoothed over, anything to reduce drag. Flathead powered here, it would later get a carbureted Chrysler, and even later it got a blower. It ran into the 1980s. Photo from the Norm Grudem Collection.


Caption is "Williams Brothers,' though it looks too dark. If it is, this car, which ran a fuel Dodge, has been found and restored. John Moore photo.


Ratican, Jackson, and Sterns gas altered at the Nationals, where it won class. It, too, has been restored, and Ron Stearns got another chance to fire it up.

 

nice stuff....hope your doing okay....that's an early shot of McEwen - with an - Argon ? set up ? When did those start disappearing seems those were the go to for many a year - ?

lwf

 

Are you I looking at the same pic? Isn't that "gooses Tirend car above? Looks pretty Hillborn to me. Must be another picture?

 

I am doing ok, thanks for asking, still hard....it looks like a Hilborn 4-stack to me, though generally this car ran a Hilborn shotgun...

 

I saw Bruce buy the farm at San Gabe. That was an ugly one.

 

I was there too, it was horrible, racing Don Yates, wish I had never seen it...

 

1959

Hey Dave,

Is the blue Fiat in my old 1959 Lions film, Bruce Woodcock from the Rakers? I have been racking my brain trying to identify that mysterious coupe, all of these years, for my films. It sure looks like the same car in a different version. Of all of the Altered Fiats in competition at Lions, this one had a lowered nose cone and body panels. Besides Bill Colburn,
1959
Almost every other Altered Fiat looked like this one, another unknown owner/driver on my films.

Take care,
Junji
Here is the only action film I have on the blue Fiat Altered at Lions.
SOUND OF THE BLUE ALTERED AT LIONS

 

Junji, It is the old Raker's coupe, back when it was blue. The two chrome items on top of the engine are tubes connecting side-draft carbs to the blower...this was Joe Reath's old engine that also ran in the Vulcan's 32 Vicky....later ran in the Raker's coupe...distinctive because they cut the back of it off and welded on a rounded section for streamlining...I think I have a picture of it running the sidedraft carb version, I'll look for it when I get home.

 

Rakers Vulcans
Dave,
Thanks for the information... I thought those curved pipes looked familiar.
Both of those clubs changed over to the top mount injectors later on in the year.

Thanks,
Junji
Now I can re-label the You Tube movie clip to Rakers Car Club, Bruce Woodcock.