WOW!!! Great photos! He really knew what he was doing. It's so fantastic to find new photos of the early days. Thanks to his family for digging them out and to Ryan for broadcasting them!
It is always nice to see these early hot rodding pictures. Check your stuff on the no. 197 roadster - I believe it is Mal Hooper who is best known for the streamliner he ran several years later. You probably already identified the roadster next to the So-Cal streamliner as George DuNah's flathead Cadillac powered machine. The driver in the Earl Evan's tank appears to be George Bentley. He usually drove it - he was a true hot rodder who ran some very fast roadsters. Good stuff - Don Montgomery
Don, I thought it was Mal Hooper as well and very well could be, but as you will see in the next article, Mal was representing another car that day... I guess he could have had two at the event... In any case, I don't know that I have ever seen that car before. Looks very well constructed. And yeah, that's DuNah's Cadillac powered car... More on that one later as well...
What a wonderful find! I've been looking at published photos from old lakes and Bonneville events for 50+ years, and I can count on one hand how many times I've seen a completely new stash turn up. Many thanks!
Wow what a score! I feel honoured to be a HAMBer and privy to this little known storey and photographs. Bob really was the rite man at the rite time. It's a shame for his work to become known only after his death.
would of loved to have been there to see history in the making. great photos and story. thanks Ryan, and to Bobs family for sharing with us.
These pictures are the best! Those times seem more special now. You just wonder what it was like to be at the flats with those who were at the beginning of their infamous legacy. Wouldn't it be great to sit and talk with any of those guys ??? Keep up the great work digging up those old pictures, looking forward to the rest......later in a book??
comepletly amazing pictures and story.... I am really looking foreward to pt.2 The HAMB is an amazing place!. Thankyou .
Thanks for the great post! I have seen this lakester for years and years... but I have never seen a color picture of it. Anyone know or remember the colors? I'm itchin' to do a rendering of it.
WOW! What a trip back in time. Thank you Ryan, this is why I read the HAMB every day. Thanks to Gwynn and Dave for saving these photos and sharing them with us. Thanks especially to Bob Roddick. These early images preserved an important part of the history of hot rodding. Taking good photos back in the day was no easy thing. The cameras were not easy to use and you didn't drop your film off at the one-hour photo lab. We are really fortunate that Bob Roddick took his camera with him.
Awesome job. Waiting for round two. Thanks to all involved for getting his memory out there for all of us to read. Jon
It is always a joy to see vintage Hot Rod photos. Thanks to Dave & Gylnn also to Ryan for doing a great article. A Historic Archive seem like a better idea everyday.
Awesome. Thanks to the Roddick family for sharing this and to Ryan for writing it up. I can wait seven days for an update, instant gratification just isn't very satisfying anyway. Gives me time to savor the details.
Ryan , you made my day !!! can't get much better than this , and there is more to come .... unbelievable !!!
Thanks to Don Montgomery, I can confirm... Car #197 is actually the same car pictured above it at Ray's shop (13c). It was owned and driven by Malcolm Hooper.
It's this stuff that drew me to the HAMB family. To me, this is what the site is about. Thanks Ryan and Roddick family for sharing, it keeps me comin' back. But ya know......that "SBC's... let's see 'em" ranks right up there...NOT!!! Keep 'em straight up 'ere Ryan. Yer posts and articles always brings 'er back to center. Class in my book any day.
brilliant just briliant the pics are excellent i liked the garage one and wanted to see a bit more detail so i played with it a bit hope no one minds but somethings are a little clearer looking forward to part two