Saw the re-created High and Mighty at B.G. this weekend. Many of the surviving Ramchargers signing autographs, pretty awsome! I also see my pic didn't post, oh, well, this was my first attempt.
O.K., so let's see if I understand this...I've been bested by a beatnik, and if I ask how you did that I wouldn't understand anyway. Zat about cover it?
He was pulling into the staging lanes when I took the pic! I heard a funny discussion between two of the crew in the pits after they had warmed it up yesterday and drew a huge crowd. One guy says, 'let's put cones around the headers so no one touches them and gets burned'. The other guy says 'if they touch them once they'll know not to do that again'. The other guy says 'what are we going to do when the lawyers get done with us'. Then they put cones around the headers to keep people away. How sad, that we have to even consider people being so ignorant, unresponsible, and lawsuit driven even at an event such as this. But it's life in America today. Anyway; super cool car to see in person, no I didn't take more pics of it. I was thinking of going back today and take some more.
Ugliest race car ever built? Maybe; but being a Mopar guy it'd be close for me between that and any tri-year Chevy. I was looking at it and was just amazed at some of the technology it used that the rest of racing didn't catch up to unitl the 1970's.
Being a Mopar guy too (building a 47 dodge bidnes coupe) I would agree that tri-5 are pretty are not my cup of tea either. They used some crude materials, but they were way ahead of everyone else with the concepts they were coming up with.
It is a recreation; they never tried to hide that. It sure looks the part though. If HAMB is about traditional, this has got to be the Holy Grail; not pretense like so much of the stuff floating around out there. ("nostalgia" cars running aero scoops as an example)or Arnie "the Farmer" Beswick running what is for all intents and purposes a modern day pro stock chassis with an old Tempest body, give me a break! I have no interest in disguised modern cars with old bodies; I like the real thing; or at least a good representation of it.
Now there's an idea. I didn't talk to them, they were swarmed with people when they fired that thing up in the pits...but I'll bet we could find them betwix now and then.
Still looks wild today .. Just think how it must of knocked them on their asses then Awesome Mopars Rule !
Thanks for all the comments and am hoping for more. Just got her back home and spotted this board. This reproduction has a lot of the original parts and is built to old drawings and pictures from the Ram Chargers (original club before incorporation) even had some of them help. The car is built by C.E.M.A. members, see: http://www.cemaclub.org
Chop Shop what happened with the radiator hose Saturday? The car sounded great until the gusher....Also what was the problem with the trans Friday? I was really looking forward to you guys making a clean pass this weekend. I heard it was a fresh engine. Have you guys ever dyno'd the current engine? The car is great!! Keep up the great work!!!
Not a hose, blew rocker bolt out and contaminated the engine. The trans problem was with the clutch linkage alignment, got that working. Sorry for the poor performance but we just got the machined block on Tuesday, motor in the car by Thur night then drove all night to be there Fri morning. should have put someone in the trailer to finish up.
all righty then! hamb drags? there's plenty of folks from the detroit area coming down, just follow the pack...
Would love to but not this year. See us at: 28th Annual Mopar Nationals National Trail Raceway Columbus, Ohio also 2008 Woodward Dream Cruise. Money is tight and no sponsors for road trips, T shirt sales only pay for part of the fuel bill.
Here are some of my favorite pics of one of the most toughest cars ever built in my opinion, I actually love the earlier photo when it still had the rear quarter panels still in place. BTW there is a DVD called Mopar Madness that I bought from Wally-mart (for only $5!) It's got the High&Mighty on the cover and a little bit of modern footage of the reincarnation., I think it's the best part of the DVD. Also at 5:10 on this Ingenuity in action video you can get a quick look at it. <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="<A href="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xpq4CZAFS_k&hl=en"></param><embed">http://www.youtube.com/v/Xpq4CZAFS_k&hl=en"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Xpq4CZAFS_k&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
The H&M II is the reproduction of the first run car that cost $300 to build in 1959 the white car came in 60 when they got some sponsor cash to buy better parts, paint and stretch the fenders.
The Jalopy Journal
