History Stock-S/S-F/X 1959-1966

The name of the Firestone tire rings a bell Bob. Interesting.
Joel

 

Matt,
The Board Walker Comet was the ex- Don Reider-Tom Masano Motors car driven and tuned by George Weiler. If I'm not mistaken the Board Walker was a fellow whose name was Walker. There is an early 1966 issue of SS&DI magazine that featured a S/S-F/X meet at Atco and in that feature was a shot or two of the Comet when Walker ran it.
The car has been restored to it's 1964 colors and has run in some N/SS meets a few years ago.
Joel

 

This shot is from a young readers book I used to have ... Stock Bodied Cars for the Drags or something like that ... my apologies for not recording the title. Ed Schartman at Dragway 42 in Ohio. I believe this car later became the Stu Evans White Tornado car. Mark?
Joel

 

The butyl tires thing triggered a memory. This pic is from 1965. Taken at what was to become one of the most famous gas stations in automotive history. The 383 Plymouth was very fast for its time and ran Bucrons at the strip instead of slicks.

The guy in the doorway is Mike Keener, now a semi-pro drag racer in an early Camaro, but the station is the infamous Sunoco station on Woodward Avenue in Birmingham, Michigan that was Ted Spehar's and later Jimmy Addison's.

Addison's Silver Bullet '67 GTX street racer was built there, as were many Chrysler factory street racers. The Chrysler Direct Connection crew worked out ot that station nightly. Dick Maxwell, John Bauman, Larry Shepard, etc., even Dave Koffel and Hemi's dad, Tom Hoover showed up frequently.

I worked there in 1970. I remember lots of cool stuff going on there...all paid for by Chrysler.

Bill Stinson

 

Joel,
I have that book! See pic. You are correct, it was the Earl Evans "White Tornado". The car and aluminum still exist, but they have been separated for a long time.
I believe Jack Bleil has some great photos of this car. I have been unsuccessful trying to contact him.
Mark

 

Interesting! Any more shots like that from the time?
Joel

 

That's the book Mark ... mine was an earlier (I think) edition with a different cover but same content. Not bad history and it was a young readers book too.
Last I heard Jack B. was selling resto car decals, think I saw mention of it on a Google search. The contacts I have are old I guess. He has ALOT of good photos. I have at least one of the Stu Evans car that he shot. He also has alot of Dyno Don Chevy stuff from '61, The Kentucky Colonel '61 and many other '62-3-4-5 shots from Presque Isle in Erie, PA and some NHRA Nationals shots from '61 with Dyno Don.
Joel

 

Here is Jack Bleils e-mail addy. jackb@access995.com
Jack lives south of Pittsburgh and I usually see him at Canfield every year selling his decals, pictures and die-casts. If the e-mail doesn't work, I can give you his phone number.

Dan

 

I thought this shot was kinda cool. Dyno's '62 Belair car in Calif. either in the early am or the late pm (probably AM). There's no water on the ground so I'm guessing the car was full of inside condensation. I wonder if he slept in it overnight?! If not, I wonder what caused all the moisture on the glass?

 

Great to see the 62 Biscayne 409 / Tom Jacobson picture.
(ex-Butch Leal)
The car is in the NHRA museum. "Old Blue"
was one of the long line of Blue 62's Tom & Linda raced.
(Tom has a brand new,fresh '62 ProMod version too !)
Great Racer, Great Guy !

 

Not sure if this was posted before. I took this 2007 at the museum.

 

Joel,
Do recall the J T&J Ramcharger car out of Paterson, NJ ? If so, do you have any photos of it? It was a '63 Plymouth, blue with flames on the front fenders. I have some VHS tape of the car running at Island in '63. Bob

 

I don't have any shots Bob but here's a poor one I pulled off the Island Dragway site when they used to have an oldies page.
Joel

 

Would love to see that video Bob. My pal Jim Amos Bee-On-Video does a great job with vintage film and video. He offers alot of great vintage footage ... no goofy R&R music, but well researched information and sound. He has a site but I don't have the link just now.
Joel

 

Interesting Verne! Alot of good Nicholson shots showing up. It doesn't look like Pomona, stands are too small?
Joel

 

Good to see you here Wally, welcome.
Can you shed any light on the origins of the late Jack Schaffer's cars?
Joel

 

http//:beeonvideo.homstead.com"]www.beeonvideo.homestead.com[/URL]

awesome stuff

 

Hi Joel,
The Harrell built chevy 2 was reported to be in NE Pa. ?? ( I really don't know)
Sad ending for Jack..way too early.
There are people in York that knew Jack well..
I always see them.


This is a very interesting thread Joel.

Larry Davis and Charlie Morris books , Jim Amos Video's/ DVD's ,are "Must Read" for some of the people here. (in my opinion)

 

sorry this doesn't click right on..
do a search "bee on video" , click on it.

 

http://beeonvideo.homestead.com/

 

Welcome Wally!! Glad to see you here. Share some stories of your Z-11 with us!

Verne

 

My apologies ... looking at some 1962 NHRA Winternational shots ... the stands/bleachers were low back then so this Nicholson '62 car could be from that race.
Joel

 

My mistake ... falling apart here ... the ex-Schartman Z-11 car was run under EARL EVANS banner, not Stu Evans as I wrote. I hesitate to post pro photographer's pictures ... that said, attached is a Jack Bleil photo of the car "The White Tornado". See Jack's email in a previous post. He has some great pictures for sale.
Joel

 

Dyno Don at the Hot Rod magazine meet, Riverside, CA 1964. Source and photographer unknown.
Joel

 

Phil Bonner at the 1966 NASCAR Winter Championships, Deland, FL. Bonner won this meet. Love that car. I believe it got it's roof whacked off after it was sold.
Source and photographer unknown to me.
Joel

 

Hi Verne,
Truly one of my favorite Race cars ever...The Z-11
I often think of 1964/early '65.
Great days.......

( however , "the best was (is) , yet to come" )

 

Gene Hinson Insurance '63 Plymouth. From a program Five Flags Drag Fiesta in Pensacola, FL.
I believe there was a Gene Hinson '62 Pontiac running in the Carolinas prior to this Mopar.
Moon discs were run on at least a few S/S cars in the South in those days. I've seen pictures of the Black Trash Z-11 with them, this Hinson car and even the '62 Impala that Ronnie Sox drove on occassion.
Joel

 

Race Artist, Bonner was always a favorite of mine, even though we were Mopar poeple. He came to Dover with the baby blue car. Ten inch wide slicks; pulled all four wheels off the ground in first AND second gear. What a car!! First sedan I saw run in the tens.

 

He was always a favorite of mine as well. A great guy too ... have seen him many times at nostalgia meets over recent years. I recall reading about when he and his Georgia Peach came up to Dover. That car existed virtually unchanged for the following years after '64-5. Two successive owners just re-lettered it ... a rare thing for these cars in those years as you know.
I was just about to post a Bonner picture taken by George Cureton at Cecil Co., MD in '64. Note over the rear fender that Phil is talking to Ronnie Sox ... pointing out the shortened wheelbase maybe?
Have any pictures of that day at Dover?
Joel

 

This shot has a little mystery about it anyway ... I have some pictures/scans given to me (from my friend Bobby Watson) that are from Emmett "Snake" Austin's collection.
Both cars are '63 cars but is this 1963? The '63 Ford in the far lane sure looks like Phil Bonner's Al Means '63 Ford. The Mopar with the twin scoops looks like early '63 Southern style. I have no clue on who it may be, but Austin did have a '63 Dodge at one point along with his Ford. Anyway ... the '63 Ford looks to have a teardrop hood on it which didn't come out until the T-Bolts arrived on the scene. The scans aren't labeled, don't even know the track. Is it 1963 or 1964, who're the racers ... the track? Anyone ... Bobby?
Joel