Bob, remember taking Steve Johson for a ride from Bud's shop one night? Cops chased you back to Bud's lot and we all hid in Bud's shop.....no freakin windows for viewing what's going on with your Vette and the Cops outside. The Cops were gonna impound the car, and we planned on taking it to the track the next day. After playing Possum forever, we all came out of the shop, prolly around midnite to see the car was still there. Carl(?), a guy that lived in one of the shops, had a tow business and knew the law pretty well. He told the Cops to call the watch commander, and you'll see you CAN'T tow off private property, or some shit like that
Hey Bob, how about the time a metro car was following you so you headed for a freeway ramp. I lot of guys had scanners back then so you could listen for the cops. You hit the ramp and nail it. You could hear the cops on the scanner saying, "Holy crap! This guys leaving us like we're going backwards!!!". Next thing, a helicopter lights you up.
Back in the early 80's a buddy of mine and I built a 61 ford pickup with a warmed over 428, C6 and 4:56 gears. The truck was lighter than you would guess and we left it in it's rusty light blue patina glory. We used to hang out at a church on Portage avenue and if there was a race to be had it was held on Portage avenue or we took the long trip out to Brady road. The victim was a guy with a 75 Camaro, 350 headers, carb etc. Lots of talk. Long story short the old farm truck kicks his butt. The following week we're at the dragstrip with the beast and as luck would have it, we are in the lanes opposite the same guy. His car runs a one legged 15... something and we rip off a 13.10. We later got the truck into the 12's before we lost the trans and ran out of money. That truck is still around somewhere.
This wasn't a street race but it was grudge night at LACR. My buddy has a '65 Chevy Malibu 2 dr wagon. It was a test and tune session for the car. He's standing there with his son when a couple of guys walk up and ask him if he wants to race for money against a '59 El Camino. He turns to his son and says, "What do you think?". The kid yells, "$100!". So my friend turns to the two guys and says,'You heard what he said". The guys agree to run for a $100. They are a couple cars from the start when my buddy starts putting on his firesuit. One of the guys asks him what he is doing? He tells them he needs to wear the siut with the class he runs. The guys just hand him the money. The wagon looks pretty stock except for the 9" slicks and roll bar. It runs in the 10:00 range with a 434 sbc and powerglide...........
Rick: I remember going to see Chuck's Chevelle with you. I believe it ran a tunnel-ram. Not all THAT common in "street" cars in that time period. I also seem to remember the discussion kept shifting to your ex-wife & away from car stuff - but what are friends for, eh? LOL I don't remember much about accelerating up the on ramp getting away from the metro cops. Did they have their red lights on? What kind of ticket did I get? It must have been a doozie!
Groucho: Yeah, I remember that one. Steve Johnson sure was a back-seat driver. After the cops started chasing us he got REALLY hyper, yelling TURN HERE, NO DON'T GO IN THERE, CROSS OVER THERE, etc. He was a nervous wreck. I was pretty flexible since when running you've got to be open to various opportunities as they present themselves. When I went to turn in to Bud's he yelled WHAT ARE YOU SLOWING DOWN FOR! I said something like "Go Greyhound and leave the driving to us". It doesn't have the same effect telling it now, but it sure was funny as hell in the car at the time. I remember Steve and I hiding in Bud's bathroom in case the cops started going door to door in the mini-industrial complex. You're not trying to get Steve in trouble with his sponsors, are you?
The metro guys didn't have a red light on. You said that you didn't like cops following you. The memorable thing was, you said the helicopter lit up your car like daylight on the freeway.
A couple of guys I knew had a red '68 Firebird that had a stock 402 bbc with headers and 3:73 gears. For some reason, that car was fast only at night. They ran the "California Comet", which was a solid 14:0 car, on Burbank and Balboa. After the race, the Firebird wanted to see how many cars they could give the Comet. At 10 cars, it was an even race. One night, they race a '67 El Camino and won by 10 cars. That morning, we drove out to Irwindale to run the car. I ran the same El Camino and could barely beat it by a car. We made several runs with the car and couldn't get out of the 14's. It had a cast iron intake with a quadrajet, no cam, no convertor, only a shift kit and posi, but it sure ran good at night.
Well here is one of my stories. I know i have forgotten many over the years. But a few years back me and some buddies decided to take my 1967 Camaro up north of the San Fernando Valley and do some racing. we set up a race west of Bakersfield with a 64 Nova with a small block. A Friend i know thru racing circles. we showed up at Jeff's ranch(Guy with Nova) around 11:00am and unloaded the car off the trailer and drove to a farm road about 1 mile or so away. The Nova is a small block and so is mine but he is on Slicks vs my ET Streets. His car had run quicker than mine and he agreed to give me 1 and the go. Turns out the slicks were old and he blew the tires off trying to keep up with me and i beat him by quite a few car lengths. So back to the farm we load up thank him for the race and head North to Vislia where a Friend had told us there was a local spot where the Street Racers meet. We get to Vislia late afternoon hook up with some racers that were having a BBQ at a park. after the park we head over to my buddys house and he gets on the phone trying to find me a race. After sittting for like 2-3 hours its 9:00 pm he gets ahold of a guy with a 1971 Vega that has a Mopar 440 engine in it. come to find out it is been seen at Bakersfield raceway running 9.90's it is tubbed, wheelie bars, wing, chute etc. so i tell my friend i want 5 and the go for low dollar. because now i am itching for a race and i don't care if i lose i just want to race after coming this far. So we wait until 11:30pm and head over to the spot that is out in some grape vine fields. We get there just as a pair of cars are taking off and the staring line is filled with people. turns out the Vega was already there and saw me pull in on a trailer. so i walk over and am introduced to the guy with the vega i ask him if he is ready to race and he says well your on a trailer i will only give you 3 and the go. I tell him that on motor my car is only running 11.40's which was not far off and that i didn't think that was fair. That i might as well give him the money now. So he said well forget it. I think about it for a few minutes and watch some more races and walk back over and say alright 3 and the go. We fire up the cars pull up to the line and the and i am about ready to do my burnout and the kids Son knocks on the window and says your car sounds fast 3 with a flag is all we will do. I am now thinking what a bunch of pussies they have a 9.90 car that is afraid of a 11.20 car. So i agree and as he walks away i tell my buddy that is going to pour the VHT for my tires to turn on my bottle. I do my burnout. he does his, the flash lite comes on and i drill him off the starting line, he spins i hook and beat him by 3-4 cars. the Kid and his group's jaws drop and he says that doesn't look like a 11 secound car. so we watch some more races and eventually the Vega group walks up and wants a rematch. So i agree to 3 with a flashlite again. So we line up I wait for him to start his burnout and i do mine. I back up and i am waiting for the starter and they start another burnout. It turns out they end up doing 2 water burnouts and one VHT burnout. So i get a little nervous my tires are going to get cold so i tell my friend i think i should do a dry hop. he says no you will just grease the tires. I don't listen and do a dry hop. Now they are ready the starter comes out and he is close enough that i can see his finger move to turn the lite on so i nail it when the finger moves, the car drifts slightly for 75 feet and i look in my mirror after i get the car going straight and the Vega is right on my ass coming slowly. i shift 2nd gear at 7800 rpm and stay on the button. and he is still creeping up now he is at my rear tire. we rocket down the road torward the finish line he is still moving his head lites are at my door handle. I see three people standing by the side of the road and from what i could tell (it's almost slow motion now) i was going to be there first but it will be by inches. We fly past the people and i think i have won again. i let off the gas turn around and go back to the 3 people and ask them who do they think won. I figured it would be good to get the locals to help make a close call regarding the outcome of the race, when one of them looks over and says i don't know the finish line is another 50 feet down the road where the last row of vines are. I am thinking oh shit i lost. the first race i was so far ahead i let out early. So i drive back and tell him some day i would like a rematch. About 20 minutes later the cops show up everyone scatters and we go to a shopping mall parking lot trying to get another race. now it is like 2:00am my friend gets ahold of a guy out of Tulare with a 69 Camaro and he is down to run but has to change his plugs. so i wait and wait and almost leave, when at 4:00am he shows up . we go to a spot in a tree orchard on the other side of town and run heads up. i beat him by 2-3 cars and we decide to call it a nite. we pull back into the SFV as the sun is coming up, very tired but big smiles on our faces.............anyway that was one little road trip that sticks out in my mind i'll never forget the guy saying "the starting line is 50 feet down the road" hell of alot of fun.
Yeah, his name (aka) was Randy. His partner was Dutch. Randy's wife got into an accident with no insurance. She gave the car to the other driver.
March 7th, Santa Paula Airport. Anyone going to the Brotherhood of Street Racers car show? I found it on www.socalcarculture.com
Not so much a story, but did any of you guys race a dude in a 68 camaro that looked like a p.o.s. but ungodly fast? Guy was named Jeff Purcell.
Here ya go. One Wed night, I was parked at the Jack'n the Box on Van Nuys Blvd watching the cruisers parade by. I had my '65 Chevelle parked on a side street. I see a red Vega station wagon with a V8 crawling along with the rest of the cruisers. I yell "RACE" and the Vega pulls into the side street. Their from Simi Valley so I walk up and ask if they want to race my Chevelle. We agree to a heads up race on Van Ness and Saticoy. So a bunch of street racers follow us out to Bursh Gardens. I'm in the #2 lane and the Vegas in the #1. The starter raises his hands then flags us off. He runs over to my car and saids there's a couple of cars coming out of an alley way behind us. I look in my rear mirror and as the cars pass under a street light, its 2 B&W LAPD units (yikes). I slip the clutch on my Chevelle and pull forward to get outta Dodge. Suddenly, both B&W's accelerate, turn on their red lights and pull me over. Meanwhile, the Vega is driving away. I figure I'm safe until the cops start inspecting my car. I'm on slicks. Oh well, it's a pain but a fix-it ticket. One cop asks if I was going to race. I say, na, just spectate. I was going to the finish line. After the inspection, they hand me a parking ticket for being too close to a fire hydrant. I told them they were the ones who told me to pull over (nothing like fanning a fire). They said, too bad. When I leave, I drive up the street and lo and behold, the Vega is waiting. They ask what happened? I told them I got a parking ticket. I still want to race to pay for this ticket. We head over to the VA Hospital and got the race off.......Oh, I won and paid for the ticket!
A slow night, and we are at Woodman & Saticoy hanging out. Chevy Ray and Rick Penneton cruise up in Ricks 66-67 Olds Delta 98 I think. A huge 4 door. They work out a Race with Marys 67Gto. I think Rick got one car, they leave and it looks pretty close. On the way back Mary gets on it, and a car pulls out in front of her, she swerves but clips the car. Then out of nowhere LAPD hits the lights. Rick comes back Ray gets in the back seat and they are gone. When Mary comes back l/f fender smashed, and ticketed. I was told Rick won but dont know if he collected his winnings
Not too many pictures of street racing out there, so I thought you guys may like this one.... Taken out of the gun hatch in outback Oz on the way to the last ever 'Skippy' Ex, we lost. Doc.
Heading to lumber city on Sepulveda in my 68 roadrunner,had this v8 pinto that kept picking on me, all the wat there. We finally get in front of lumber city and stop. I thought I was going to get my ass handed to me, him with a small car and v8. We both got on the converters and he left a little before me, when i hit 2nd, i pulled about a foot ahead until he shifted, we were even i hit 3rd and stayed about a foot ahead. After that I thought damn, this old thunder chicken aint dead yet. 0ne week later I burned a hole in a piston using my first unit.
Great stories, you guys. Something tells me that if you L.A. revheads were racing in the early '70s we probably used to see each other at the late night street wars around the San Fernando Valley...
Here is a picture of the urban legend? Tim Kemblowski 65 Dart of Simi Valley. It had a aluminum rod 340 with a old Racer Brown straddle type roller cam, with a tunnel ram with a hidden nitrous unit. I heard the car did go 10.80? no one really knows..i heard it got beat by a 4 wheel drive blown chevy truck on a marked off 1/4 on the Simi Freeway. I unfortunatley bought it and put the motor in a 72 Duster.
street racing is bad ass if you are smart about it and know how to drive your car. I do have to say sometimes you can get lucky from almost killing someone or being the one that is killed. Although i am a big street racer its almost an every saturday night activity for me.
One night, behind the Bank of America on Van Nuys after midnight, a '70 Challenger pulls into the lot and parks. The Challenger sounds good so I pass looking for easier prey. After a couple of hours, no ones racing, so I wander over to the Challenger to see what its got. I hear a kid talking about the Challenger and it has a 440 in it. Oh well, easy come, easy go. I ask the kid if he wants to race the Challenger against my '65 Chevelle. He says sure, but he wants to see the engine. Now the Chevelle has 327 badges but it has a 454 so I tell the kid, "You got me! Its got a 396!". The kid says, "Oh, what kinda of gears are you running?". I tell him 4:10's (its actually 4:88's on slicks). The kid says he needs car lengths because he has 3:23's. Here it goes, I ask how many he wants (figuring 8-10). He says 3 cars. (WooHoo!) The kid goes to his car, backs out, puts it in first, hits the gas and the car jumps. Its got a pretty good converter. I'm thinking maybe I bit off more than I can chew. I've never seen this kid before and I've never seen the car run. We head over to Clybourne on the back side of Burbank Airport. The cars lengths are marked off and we line up. We do our burnouts and dry hops then stage. The hands point, go up, then drop. The front of the Challenger rises as I side step the clutch. My slicks bark and I make up 2 cars lengths before the Challenger is moving. I hit second gear and mash the throttle. By now, the Challenger is hooked up and motivating but I'm slowing creeping on him as I whined out second. I power third gear and I really start freight training the Challenger. I pass the Challenger and look over my right shoulder. I'm about 4 cars lengths ahead when I shift to 4th. Now I'm backing off the throttle just to keep the 4 car lengths. The finish flashes by and I've won. I never saw that Challenger again..............
The car was a '65 Dynamic 88. It had a .030 over Badger piston /TRW Ramco ring set 425, a 280(advertised duration, I didn't even know what "@.050 was back then)/.480 Camonics Hyd with adjustable push rods. The stock heads got a mild port job, and the intake was a swapmeet Torker. 750cfm Q-jet and dual 2 1/2" exh with turbo mufflers and stock exh manifolds. Original Turbo 400 with a B&M shift kit and chrome pan I found at Pick-a-part for $12.00 and a C&O 11" converter. Ray and I welded the spider gears together and it had a 2.92:1 rear gear. I ran L50 x 15 Caldwells and 600 x 15 pizza cutters on steel wheels with 57 Chrysler full hub caps screwed to the rims so I wouldn't have to take them off at OCIR. It weighed 3905 lbs with me in it after I gutted the crap out of it. It ran 14.13 @ 99 mph the first pass ever at OCIR and a best of 13.67 @ 103. I left @ 1000-1200 rpm, shifter @ 6000 from low to second and ran out the back in 2cnd at 6-6200. The race with Mary I think was heads up, but I got the move. After we had cleared the finish and I was slowed down nearly to legal speeds, I noticed a parked cop car on the left with its lights shut off. As I passed him (crapping my pants), I watched in the rear view to see if he was coming after me. To my astonishment, Mary had pulled a U-turn (illegal) and stood on it becaused she was pissed about getting beat. When she got to the "finish line" mail box at the side street a car pulled out making a left and she side swiped him all in front of the cops headed her way! Poor gal lost 3 times in about a minute or two that night. I definetly had a "Lucky horse shoe in my ass" that night. Here is the really funny part. All the money and time I spent on that car, my '66 Post Nova sat with no attention. How many of us have wasted the time and money on our parts runner instead of on our main car.
Here's mine, kinda short. I had a 74 Nova in high school that I did a lot of work to. One night while cruising I met a girl and wanted to "hang out" with her but had to ditch my ride-less buddy. I gave the buddy my keys and told him to "behave". A few hours later a few cars found me at the local "submarine races" and informed me my car was in impound and my bud was in jail. The chick drives me everywhere trying to find out what was going on and I finally find someone who seen it all. My rocket scientist buddy decided to go race another Nova that had been hounding me to run and got busted. The cop was going to give them both tickets until the driver of the other Nova tried to run. The idiot turned into a trailer park with only one exit and got hemmed up! The saddest part was when they impounded the cars they put the straps to mine and scratched it up and put the rust bucket, hillbillied nova on a flatbed! Had to go get my friends Dad (yeah, he was ticked!) and bail my bud out of county jail. Went and got the car the next morning and my bud polished and buffed until I was happy. I was ticked but it was the talk of the town that summer! That's my race story and hell, I wasn't even there!
The Jalopy Journal
