J.Ukrop submitted a new blog post: The Hunt for “Purple Haze” Continue reading the Original Blog Post
Could this car have actually ran in gas cl*** with no front brakes? Also looks like the front axle centerline is pushed forward in the wheel opening, does that make it an altered? (that might just be an optical illusion though, not sure).
The lack of front brakes would take it out of the legal gas cl***es and put it into the altered cl***es, but a lot of strips were sloppy about that if it wasn't a NHRA points meet. If they were running ET brackets, that wouldn't matter.
Great catch. You are both very much correct. By 1966, the Gas cl***es were starting to wane in popularity as Funny Cars hit the scene. I have a not-so-cropped version of one of the photos that has an AHRA tower in the background—they were known for being a little more lax on the rules than NHRA.
Part of the problem will be that there are quite a few Purple haze drags cars out there. I found a A/F and A/FD and a -70 Challenger all with that name, but not the '55
Purple haze all in my brain Lately things, they don't seem the same Acting funny, but I don't know why 'Scuse me while I kiss the sky
Quote: Sold to someone on the South Shore/Quincy area around ’69/’70 as a rolling ch***is I suspect and would therefore say it was sold as a roller or a complete racecar without engine and transmission.
See post #6. You'll also get Jimi Hendrix, a Gene Winfield custom and a brand of marijuana, a**** others.
My dad Arty Nolan was friends with Billy Douglas for years, and spent a lot of time at NED mostly wrenching on Bob Tardugno's Roman Rat Nova FC. Billy got a 69 Camaro after the 55, and called it Purple Haze also. We had a drag photo of it on the wall of my dad's body shop in Methuen.
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