Just curious (Phx. hist.)

Another quick thought - I was down at Go-Kat-Go yesterday and Christain was showing me his latest find... a 35mm projector! Not to damn expensive either.

 

My 1st wife was born there as well as both our kids. I lived there from '67 to '84. Ex-mother-in-law graduated from Phoenix Union, as well as her brothers. Ex-wifes youngest uncle used to race at Manzanita back in the day. Her great uncles owned Peabody Garage on 51st just north of Grand Ave.

 

I got three or four of 'em that I would love to sell! Complete with pedestals, lamp houses and tables. We used them up until Dec of last year when we upgraded to digital equipment.

 

thats a great idea... coyotedav@aol.com .....

calling them now !!! thanx... dave

 

Knew Joe Rundle well as friend, customer (at both Speed Groceries on Mill and University) and later on Apache and Priest. I know he moved to Payson but have not heard about him in years.

Lots of drag racers from that area - Jack Stewart, Al Handy?, Bud Pickens, Tim (Century Auto Parts)

 

Posting brought back days of racing Beeline, Mel Larson's Phoenix Dragway and Tucson Dragway. Also races at Chandler airport, El Mirage airport and unlimited nights on Central. I must have gotten over 50 tickets - saved by a great lawyer downtown who knew how to get me out of them - I put his kids through school. Midnight drag races on Kyrene Road with 125+ cars!!!

Other racers from Tempe I recall - Doug (68 green vette)(became an actor on tv was on Welcome Back Kotter) Nelson Nieschulz - 66 Chevelle, Bruce Ormsby - 66 Olds 442, Larry Walton (ASU football and Detroit Lions) - 70 Challanger. Dave Workman (Red Maverick) Bud Pickens -55 chevy - greatest carb guy, Tim from Century Auto on Southern - 57 Chevy, +++++ so many more. Oh, one more - the guys from Staywell Auto in Mesa.

I spent time at Von Dutch's shop - off of Scottsdale Rd. near J.D's . He built a wild Olds Toranado with a jewel turned dash that was unbelievable. His machine shop bus incredible.

If anyone has more please email me at FourSpeed@aol.com - What about the U.D.I. on Apache and Rural?? Great hotrod hangout. Cruzing Central from the Library to Camelback - What great times!!!

 

I know Steve Kafka is resroring the Vov Dutch bus.

 

Old posting was looking for the name of the speed shop on South Central near Southern - That was J and J Speed Shop owned by Jim McCormick. He raced a blue camaro in either Super Stock or Hot Rod.

 

I knew Joe Rundle well - sorry to hear he passed. One Speed Shop you missed was J and J Speed on South Central owned by Jim McCormick.

I bought my first Edlebrock manifold and 780 Holley from him while he was wearing his grocery apron in the store on University and Mill. Two regulars at both the grocery store and the speed shop on Apache and Price were Bing Winsor and a guy just called "Tubby".
Joe had a counter guy "Rich Roach" for years.

 

I remember the speed shop on southern and Central to be one of the service centers? wrong?
Bud Pickens is still around, runs his own repair shop just north of Lopers in Mesa.
Yeah, I cruised Central too in my GTO most every night of the week.
Before me, my older brother had a orange 69 Judge with a black 'glass tilt front end, 428 with roller cam, 400thm, 4.88 rear. That was around '73. Many people told me years later how that car would be wheelstands on central.

Also, Rundles in Tempe was on Apache at Price (ne corner), not Priest.

Here is me at Beeline, 1970 AHRA Winternationals. This shot at the top end of the pits near, or just past, the finish line with return road behind me.



Lots of good memories for sure 'downtown' as we called it.

 

More Beeline, 1964.




Deleted from YouTube.

 

Cool video clips but, it is not 1964, it is parts of the '65 AHRA Winternationals. Some may already know this but, this was the debut of the altered wheelbase mopars.
I have this video in its entirety, wirth getting a copy.

 

And another from 1974, not the best quality though.

 

Also, I figured out the address to Desert Dust mentioned in posts 5 and 81 was 340 north 2 ave. The building is probably long gone though.

 

I just found some 8mm movie film I shot as a boy at Beeline winternationals '72-3 era. JJ, Garlits, etc Its not the greatest but, I am glad I have it. I do remember taking 4 rolls total but, so far, have found 2 of them. I watched them on my Fathers 50s era 8mm projector just like I did as a kid.

 

Here's some 50s Phoenix hot rods in another thread. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=7539569#post7539569

 

Lots of info and pics on Steinegger and Eshenbaugh here: http://deansgarage.com/2011/steinegger-eshenbaugh/

Also a veeerrry cool 20 min. long home movie at the bottom of the page with gobs of vintage drag racing, the majority of which looks to have been shot at a converted Arizona Army airfield along with one or two other locations and some big names from the early 60s.

 

Bump for the weekend. If you havent already checked the video out in the above link, you really should.

 

Thanks Matt,
That was cool.

 

See ya at the track Spike.

 

Cool Matt! Lots of familar faces on those. I think the first six minutes is at the Perryville strip, and maybe during the rerun of the NHRA nats that were rained out earlier at Cordova, Ill ('57 or '58?). I swear there was just a couple seconds of Calvin Rice's car on screen who was top elliminator at that deal. A particular thing that jumped out at me (other than knowing Steinegger on sight!) was at 4:45, two '27 roadsters run off. Pretty sure from the old pictures I have seen that the blue one on the near lane is the car that became John Evans current street roadster. The other was a the twin engined Triumph bike at 5:15... Just 'cause I'm stupid for them. I'll have to check, but i think I saw Ron Olmstead a time or two. I'll have him watch when he is over next.The Batch after I'm pretty sure was Deer Valley. That would be after the '60 Ford wagon push car. After that it looks to be traveling stuff from around different tracks in the country. I'll ask paul when I see him next. Thanks much for posting man!

 

Here's one more, found it on BANGshift.com.

Fast foreward to 4:35

 

Some neat Carl Grimes images and info found here. http://deansgarage.com/2011/carl-grimes-wild-wagon/

 

Bob's Big Boy being built. Try saying that 5 times fast.

 

That's awsome! I look at Bob's now and think, "man, that was less than six blocks from my house"... Why couldn't this city leave things the hell alone? I have never been in another town in my life that ever had four different buildings on one corner over a thirty year span (32nd and Thomas, sw corner). Does anyone remember Helsing's from Osborn and Central or Camelback and Central? Both were still extant when I moved down here in the late eighties. Now one is an Applebee's and the other a Walgreens...

 

I've been gone a while but I think Bob's was on the N.E. corner -

 

Yep, sure was. It came down about '83 or 4 or so. I got here in '88 after living in Scottsdale and Tempe, and they were just putting the finishing touches on the douch bag sky scraper the replaced it.

 

Ah yes ! 2 of my hang outs. Wish I had a dime for everytime I went to each. Bob's sometimes 2-3 times the same night . Helsing's after the bars closed to eat and sober up some.

 

Film clip of racing at Arizona State Fairgrounds 1930, here:

http://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675077339_car-crash_Willard-Prentiss_driving-car_people-run

 

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