i'll tell you about one that changed my life. this is cool. i met a old guy named tommy chapman in lavonia georgia about 15 yrs ago. he was the vp fuel guy or somethin at a race i was runnin over there. he saw the decal of the engine shop that did my stuff on the side my car & casually asked how well i knew those old bastards. when i told him i worked there....twice....... he knew i'd heard all the stories & we just started talkin. he was a racer from back in the late early 50's too. i asked him what it was LIKE back then to race. he said' somebody died dam near every week". he went on to tell me about this guy died here cause of this & that guy died over there cause of that. he said "every time somebody died we got smarter". "it wasn't "if"somebody was gonna get hurt or killed it was "who" was gonna get it". you laugh & think they were crazy back then, what with no safety equipment & mechanical evolution just starting. i'd never realized the price these guys paid for just the thrill of it. no big money. nothing. just shits & giggles. i felt like i owed that old guy a thank you for the price they paid so i could race safer that day. next time you meet an old timer in his late years......thank him
I love it when I'm lucky enough to run into one of those "Old Hats", who, for lack of a better description, are walking, talking, encyclopedias of Hot Rodding History! For the record, the nastiest SBC I've ever owned had a set of dual quads and a 4-speed behind it! Oh yeah, and a 4:11 posi rear end to boot!
Yep. I bought it in 88 and sold it in 95. A guy in Fort Worth has it now. He hasn't changed a thing on it. Here it is with dad before the Muddy Water NAts , when NDRA was still in tact.
great old pics!!!! to help 'get you in' print one of his pics on a full 8.5x11 and take it to him.....you'll be right in there!!! maybe even print the thread... grandpa is funny about letting people borrow ANYTHING- even his grandson- but when i borrowed about 2-3 pics, i printed him off some large ones and that opened the door for the rest.... keep em comin!
The Jalopy Journal
