High School,San Antonio,66 to 68, lunchtime was the time to line up the match racing for afterschool. Me and Albert Neilsen would stage out in front of the fire station on West Ave. my 55 and his 57, the firemen used to honk us off. Or we would go to "Little Green Valley" which is now a stretch of Thousand Oaks Dr. The Thomas Bros. Speed Shop used to trailer cars out there, BB 67 Corvette, 421 Tempest, Edgar Becks 57 "The Fugitive" Victor Camerons BB 55 Chevy...course, its not safe to do that kind of **** anymore...
I did my share back in the 80's and then again a few years ago (for old times sake) I ran a 71 nova w/355 back in the mid 80's that went 13.0's at the strip on radials & a full 2" exhaust That was quick for an olded car compaired to the new GN's & mustangs. then a few years ago I was running a 87 mustang w/347 that went 9.98 on DOT's & a full 3" exhaust, and I was one of the slower cars out there running??? I sold the stang and went back to my dragsters, some friends of mine still run on the streets with there 7 & 8 sec cars (nutz!). how times have changed heres a link that is about 8 months old of a street race, I am not condoning the race or what took place, but you have to admire the power of this car to hook on the street as well as the skills (balls) of the driver to stay in it. http://videos.streetfire.net/search/big+dre/0/wm/2aee2f41-5d59-48d1-9624-03ca7c2648fc.htm
That little video gave me goose bumps it reminds me of my high school days. I ran an 86 mustang 347 stroker with a 200 shot of NOS ,that car was fun but I love my new toy 98 Z3 roadster.
I used to street race regularly, late at night on designated areas in the middle of nowhere. I street raced for 10 years while we had no dragstrip. All the time. Careening through traffic and neighbourhoods isn't my idea of street racing, the kids nowadays watch these "fast and the furious" stuff and think that's street racing.
He apparently figured out how to get it to hook up. Even if he doesn't get caught for drag racing a judge may consider that a jack rabbit start.
I raced locally and with the Orange Co and LA Street Racers in the 70's, so obviously I'm no angel, BUT...... what's being done today (and in that video) is just plain idiotic. Looks real cool pulling the wheels but break one axle and you're wiping out 20 or 30 of your close friends. I see alot of dumb*** punks today that don't realize life isn't a videogame with a reset ****on.
Back in 1972 I was just out of the marine corps. There was a used car dealer that would fly to sales and auctions,He'd take a couple of us flying and we would drive cars back to Omaha for him.We would each have a tow bar and could get four cars home easy.Payed a little and was fun. One day he calls me and my buddy Gene and we flew down to Kansas City with him.We hung around for several hours why him and the other dealer went to dinner and talked buisness.When they got back he gives each of us a set of keys and tells us he needs the two corvettes when his lot opened in the morning.So we drive him back to the downtown KC airport.It was around 11:00 when we left him.It had took us about 2 hours to fly down so we were going to top that on the way home.Gene had the 70 big block and I got in a nice smallblock 67 coupe.Real pretty silver blue,nice car. Back in 72 there wasn't an I 29.Two lane Missouri hyways,what a blast. Dark,curvy, two lane blacktop.Bridges that narrow the road to one lane.We drove those vettes as hard as they would go.The big block had a lot of legs but the tight twisting hyway gave the advantage to the smallblock.We were flying,made a pit stop in Mound City,had a cup of coffee than back out on the road.the only thing that slowed us down that night was an owl that looked as big as a dog killing a rabbit.It was so into the kill we stopped and watched him for a minute or so before he'd give up the road,Those two vettes ran side by side switching back and forth.We pulled into Omaha and went to the bar.They close at one.All the bikes and kids were still out front.We missed last call,but only by minutes.The sounds of those two cars sitting there,ticking as they cooled down plays on my ears.The ticking makes me think of a good friend long gone. There is also the time the Georgia State Patrol clocked me at 95 with my brake lights on.I was driving a 57 chevy with screwed up floor linkage.The patrollman asked how much I had on me.I told him $85.00,he said that was a coincidence because thats what the fine was.I paid him, he got back in his car,I put it in what I thought was reverse,let out the clutch and backed square into him.Crunch.grind,grrr err,got it in first and boogied out of there.Hell he already had all my money.then there was the time........
My buddy Robbie had a Camaro years ago that'd "leave" like that on the street. They put this piece of **** together with a pretty stout Rat, but otherwise junk parts. One of the junk parts was a driveshaft from the parts pile that was about 8-10 inches too short if i remember correctly. Anyway, they beat the firewall back (i'm laughing just thinking about it) with a sledge hammer until the eng/trans would meet the driveshaft which was bolted to the rearend. Then made motor mounts wherever the motor ended up. They'd beat on it, try to put the eng/trans in, pull it out, beat the **** out of it some more, etc. What a piece of ****. But the ****er'd stand up on the bumper
Ya think? LOL! I had my times...Axle knows (heh heh)... My weapon of choice was a '63 Polara with a 12.5:1 440 and a Max Wedge top end (I still miss that cross ram)...good for high 11s, which was pretty quick in the '80s. I don't go looking for street races anymore. But if I'm in one of my 'fast' cars, and some punk is revving on me at a stoplight...and there's no one else around...I might possibly be tempted to uphold my gearhead honor...and teach him a lesson. Now, if his girlfriend is with him, and he's driving an import...well, all bets are off. I'm ****in' going for it. I can't lie on here. Too many people know me. Besides, I might be able to afford the ticket now. ~Scotch~
Street Racing circa 1967 country syle: We hung out at the poolhall or (horror of horror) a bar and somebody would start dissing somebody else's car. So off we'd go to a quarter mile VERY narrow bridge in the middle of nowhere. Me with my mildly built 272 Ford-o-Matic '55 Ford, my buddy's '61 Tempest with half the body totted off but a fresh slant 4, another buddy with a stock '61 Lancer, a 6 banger '55 Chevy plus whatever other cars might be around. Lot a big parentally owned Buicks, Olds's, Rambler Cl***ic's, Plymouths, Galaxies and a sweet but stock '62 283 Chevy a buddy owned once. Everybody would race everybody else, the trick being to keep your car from bashing the bridge's siderails. I won more than one race by crowding the kids in the family iron because my '55 already had a bridge induced Darlington Stripe or two... But I had the **** shocked out of me when after I jumped the pretty '62 out of the hole....4:11 gears copped from a wagon in mine, the '62 pulled up on me! I leaned his way just a trifle and he didn't move! Evidently he was willing to sacrifice the side of his prized possession Chevy he polished daily to beat my beat up Ford. This was the only time I backed off. I didn't care if Daddy's 6 cyl '64 Fury hit me or the bridge....that was Junior's problem and I imagining there was explaing to do... Old Art had a buncha' fun teasing me afterward, never got a nick in that Chevy that I ever saw but it was good natured ****. BTW, we stationed two cars at the far end of the bridge to signal all was free and this road was in the middle of nowhere. The iron frame bridge has long been replaced and I doubt the local kids have ever raced there. UN-American Grafittically, yours, Jan
used to do it alot back in the mid 80's.. had a great time. That vid of the malibu actually scared me some.. seeing those wheels up in that crowd.. (that too serious of a car for that many people standing in front of the starting line....) but WOW I think Scotch's theory of todays stoplight action is dead on. except you forgot to yell over at the kid and tell him his girlfriend goes home with the winner. (that always scares either the girl or the guy...) makes then think twice.. Damn, think I will go beat on the sedan some...
i use to in the mid 60's in my mustang, every nite as a matter of fact!! lived for that ****! I still do, i'll race anyone next to me at a light who wants to race, i kinda get a kick out of blowing off, rice burners & mustangs. I go up to Lake george every year for the Adiron**** nationals & stay out late cruising Canada street & dragging anyone, BUT theres some wild cars theres so its a bout 50/50 on me winning!!lol JimV
I have to agree with Crazy here, I used to race a little, nothing to brag about, but I was not doing it through neighborhood streets nor in the city period. I used my head and common sense. I live with these rice burner **** tards on a daily basis. There are several down my street, who think they are GOD and fly up and down my narrow residential street. Just yesterday 2 of there we dragging side by side, down a street thats not even an 1/8th mile long with cars on both sides ****tered down the street, and kids playin in the yard. This goes on several times a day and throughout the night. I don't want to sound like a jack***, but I do and will scream, yell, cus, ask them to slow down at the top of my lungs, and yes I have even been a ****, and called the cops, and have had 2 arrested, and their price rice burners impounded. Hell they even try to race an old jeep cmanche pick up (you know the 6 cyl unibody looks like a small cherokee). he has been busted so many times you think he would give up. Anyhow my point is there is a time and place for street racing, and our neighborhood streets are not them. If one of these jack***es wrecks, and kills my kids or damages my property, I will be beating his *** to death with my bare hands, then I will piss on his face when I am done. I did not mean to go off on this thread, bc I do love to see a good heads up street race, but just not like these movies are making it look like its the place to do it. I'll get off th soapbox now, happy racing
In the late 60's after I graduated from high school I did a lot of street racing, there was a 1/4 mile marked off on a road just outside of town. This posed no problem to anyone because this was a rarely used piece of road. As with most young ones, I also did stop light to stop light racing as well. Not smart at all. This stoped for me one night as I nearly ran over an old man that stepped off a curb in front of me. It took me a long time to shake the **** out of my pants after that
If you've never read any of my stories of racing and raising hell in the midwest (Iowa & Nebraska) on the HAMB, then check out my books...two of them. "Bangin' Gears & Bustin' Heads" and "Fast Cars, 4-speeds and Fist-fights"...not only were there drag races on the darkened two-lanes...but fist-fights after a race...and chasing trains...and riding the rails on a motorcyle...have you ever heard of "rat-racing"...??? Check it out...I'll autograph it for you... Available from my web site...or the HAMB cl***ifed ads...search for "Read all about it." R- "This has been a non-political adverti*****t"
Never weas safe just safer when there weren't as many cars or kids in the road. I still do the stoplight thing on occaision. But unless its a real race its usually over by the other side of the intersection. Either I lost or the other guy. If its a real race it won't happen in town period.
From 1990 to 1997 I street raced every Friday in the summer. I had two different cars during those years and I spent every Tuesday and Friday at “Test and tune” at Detroit Dragway and the rest of my time working on my car to make it faster. It’s kind of funny when I look back at video tapes from Detroit Dragway that most of the cars that were there on “Test and tune” nights where the same guys I was street racing. I still have one of the cars, a late model T-Bird, sitting in my parents garage. I haven’t driven it much since I got into Hot Rods. Luckily other than loitering tickets, I never got busted. I only stopped cause the scene was getting bad and they closed Detroit Dragway so it wasn’t as convenient to test the car. I still occasionally get into a race going to and coming home from our Friday cruise nights if someone strokes me. Gus
I street race a lot of soccermoms in minivans. These babyfactories poke along 15mph under the limit, until you try to p*** them. Then it's ON. I ran one girl to 70mph trying to p*** her. I won't put up with that ****, right or wrong. Other side of the coin, I wouldn't really race out here, because as soon as you get a car moving, another minivan is pulling out directly in front of you. I think they all have CB's, and co-ordinate on how to screw with traffic.
Philadelphia street racing was on city streets(we all lived in the city) front street was the place when I was racing in the 80's.People would stand in front of the two cars and wait for the start and fan out as the cars raced toward them,it was scary pedal to the floor heading straight into a crowd.Thank god nobody fell when I was running.
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