Grumpy Bill Jenkins "fuelie" Corvette?

Anyone know if Bill Jenkins ever ran a fuel injected Corvette in the late '60s? Or how about a Jenkins prepared 'vette?... Rumor is that our '57 lost out to him driving one at a '69 nationals event but I cant find any reference to him piloting or wrenching on one.
-Thanks, Dean

 

I'll check with my dad- used to know him back when his nickname was "Jiggs"... guess that's why he became "Grumpy"

 

Here is the original cartoon character of "Jiggs" from the '40s or '50s. I wonder why Jenkins was called that???

All that is missing is a cigar, and a note pad.


I went to the US Nats every year then, and don't remember Jenkins having a Corvette. I know he had the P/S '69 Camaro, and I believe a SS/C '69 Camaro. It might have been a customer car.

 

I remember his L-79 Chevy II and lots of Camaros but no Corvettes.

 

Grump had a couple SS/C Camaro's, 67-68. He never ran a Corvette though Im sure he tuned a few in his time. Was Larry Lambardo's Buckshot Corvette Jenkins tuned? He won class (more than once Im sure) 1968-69. Ran F/S His Corvette was a 58 - 60 body.

 

I'm with Tommy.

 

And a vega

 

speaking of grumpy....here's a camaro model that i built as a spoof on the grump. this is an original issue deals wheels zzzzzz-28. it was in bad shape when i got it, and there were chunks broken out of the body.

 

Our '62 409 station wagon beat a Jenkens prepared Corvette for the C/S win at the Nationals. It was 1964 as I recall. The Corvette was owned by a couple of Italian brothers from Pennsylvania and had never been beaten prior to the final run for the class win. It was a fairytail ending to a month long thrash that saw the wagon make it's first full throttle/4 gear run against the Corvette. The previous rounds were decided when the driver put such a hole shot on the competition that he was able to make a granny shift into 3rd for the wins. A shifter adjustment before the final run made it possible to make the 2-3 power shift for the first time.
The wagon was used for hauling kids to school one month prior to the Nationals win with a 250 hp 327/Powerglide combination.
Fun times back before you needed a kings ransom just to compete in stock class racing.

Frank

 

LOL! I think Jiggs is already equipped with a cigar. But Grump needs to get rid of the bucket hat he usually wears and switch over to one of them fine lookin' top hats like Jiggs'!

 

Weird! Cragars on the front, and Supremes on the rear

 

so ?????

 

Back in the mid 60s I raced a 64 Fulie Vette. I was in the heat of S Florida and ran 12.40 and 115.49. A similar Vette setup my Jenkins ran 11.96 and 109. A few years later in about 1969 I met Grumpy at the Gator Nationals and asked him about the Vette. Since I used my car for transportation The lowest gear I ever used was a 4:56. Since the Vette he setup was a dedicated race car he told me it used a 5:13. I figured since I was way faster but slower in ET the difference was the gears.

 

15 years between drinks, that's pretty good.