History Historic Stock Car Photos

If you could show the pics you have or give me some clues/ info on what you have I could try to find pictures for you. I am the painter for Bowsher racing, so I might be able to find some better pictures. There might still be someone around here who would know about it. All his boys are still around, so you never know. It would be nice to see another Boss car restored. The 1976 24 hour car is in a museum somewhere in California. Wanna hear something funny? I own the custom trailer the car was probably hauled on. Still use it today.

 

Coolest thread ever.......................

 

Skrayp, any photos you have of Jack's cars I'll be happy to post on my ARCA Back In The Day section of my Facebook page. I'm the guy who did the "Driven to the Past" column on Jack last year on Frontstretch.com.

 

Milwaukee Mile.

 

At Riverside in Jan of '70, Jack tricked Foyt into winning the race. The prevous year, Foyt had run out of brakes. So what Jack did was reverse the self adjusting mechanism so it backed off during the race. Foyt pitted complaining of no brakes midway through the race. The car went up on both sides, Jack and the crewman they called "The German" went underneath and gave Foyt back the full brakes. Foyt knew he had been had, but went on to win the race. Story and photo as told by Ford Racing's Charlie Gray. Charlie is the man in the suit leaning forward on the pit wall at the right front.

 

Milwaukee 1972. Love the dryer vent hose and duct tape for cockpit cooling

 

Awright, this thread finally prompted me to join! Especially seeing that "indybigjohn" is in London, Ky.

John, if you're still out there, do you have anything on Glenn "Crip" Bolen from Danville, KY? He was kind of a local legend, my hero as a kid in the 60's, and I'd love to have a picture. If I get any response from this posting we can explain what was special about Crip.

 

Thanks for posting those, Falcon. Buck was always one of my favorites. You know, if Kennie Childers had had just a little bit of patience, he might have had something. But switching drivers every 2-3 races does not a race team make.

 

Hey Warbird, nice shots of Bowsher cars. Would like to see some interior pics if you can find some. A photographer from Milwaukee by the name of Russ Lake, Might be in your list of friends. I am willing to buy pic's from him if you know how to reach him.
Here's a shot of my dash. You can see that it is a Holman/Moody by the "glove box cover". H/M sold the cars as kits to be assembled or anything up to race ready. I think Bowsher assembled his own using H/M parts.

 

Milwaukee was Jack's favorite track. There's a story around here about a race where Jack announced that his car handled so good at that track, that he could take his hands off the wheel and it would drive itself. There's supposed to be a picture of him doing it, but I haven't seen it. I would love to have a copy. Jack was actually employed by H/M for a while and was asked to set up shop in NC. He declined and continued to work here in Springfield, still doing work for/with them. You would be surprised at how many of their cars were built here in our shop. Its pretty cool. In fact, Chuck, do a Google search with the keywords "Jack Bowsher Boss 429" . You will find quite a bit of what you are looking for. Take a look at the 24 Hour car, too. It is 100% original. Jack sold that car ready to rock with a tank of gas in it. Its probably the car he offered you. There is another gentleman in Tennessee that we have been talking to who doing the same thing you are. I'll see what I can come up with for you.

Warbird, thank you for those awesome pictures. I've never seen those before. Would it be possible for you to send me that magazine article?

John, I've mentioned scanning some pictures from the shop so I can upload them, but things are tight these days so it will be a slow process. Could you send me a PM with your FB page?

 

May I ask where you found the car? I have been working with a guy that has a freind out east that has or had a 70' or 71' Bowsher Boss 429 car. It's suppose to have HM Tag on it and pretty rough as the story goes. It's I am trying to light a fire under this guy to find more info.

I currently own Fred Lorenzen's 1966 Holman Moody Galaxie. I found it in Nevada, IA in 2003 when I was living in Iowa. I am looking for another project.

 

Ray1969,
Where I found the Bowsher car?

About ten years ago Bob Dotter (3 time ARAC Champ) and I were rebuilding older Cup cars for Road racing and to get a series started in the Road America area. Bob started putting the word out to his racing pals that we were interested in buying cars. I got a call from an ARCA racer that wanted to sell 3 cars so he could buy 1 new car. I went down and looked at one 97 Taurus, one 94 T-bird and in a semi trailer was a 89 T-bird. I mentioned that the cage/chassis looked real old and heavy but in real nice shape. He told me he had owned the car since 1975 and it was built buy Jack Bowsher for USAC Stock car series. I bought it after talking directly to Jack Bowsher. He was suprised to hear the same guy still owned it more than 20 years later.
I have purchased a 1970 Torino COBRA that I plan on setting on the Bowsher Chassis over this winter. I will build a BOSS 429 (i'v got the nos c9 heads) but won't be doing a period correct restoration. I will be racing this car in the GTSC series with Midwestern Council Sports Car Club so plenty of stuff will be updated to meet safety standards.
Story about Mr. Lorenzen. Ever hear of a painter named Art Dexter? He called me one night couple of years ago and asked if I'd meet him for a beer. When I got there I had pizza and beer with Fred Lorenzen, Sal Tevella, Bill Lutz, Gene Marmour and a few more of Chicago lands best racers of the past. I'm A lucky man!
Art Dexter lettering my last project seen here and still for hire!

 

That's a great find. The car I am trying to get is still bodied with the Torino and still has the HM Boss nine. I have never heard of Art Dexter. I have been planning for the past two years to bring the car back to Elmerst, IL to meet Fred and have him sign the dash. Gas prices went through the room the fisrt year another obligation changed plans this year. I hope to get up there next June.

 

Art Dexter lettered many of the USAC stock cars based around Chicago, Milwaukee and northern Indiana.

 

Skrayp, shoot me your email and I will send you a PDF of the Bowsher article. It is from an old Milwaukee race program.

 

Same car, same driver, 38 years apart. Ramo Stott was our guest last weekend at Monster Mopar in St Louis. The old photo at Milwaukee, 1972. Ramo and his wife Judy were great to be around.

 

Radiodave, I've had some contact with people who knew Crip Bolen. You're right, he was an area legend. I'm trying to get some info and may photos.

Bowsher21, that's a great story. I remember Bill Lutz from when he lived in the Louisville area, and I was privileged to have a meal or two with Fred when he ran in the FastMasters series at IRP.

 

i remember watching CRIP race at the old somerset track in about 1969 until he quit racing which wasnt many more years i dont think. he ran against fats coffee, butterball, goatie littrel , mickey williams, charlie stockton, and others, i think he ran the FOX AND CROW pawn shop in danville..................

 

Dr.John, I talked to Ron Williams at Lancaster(oops, Dunn Tire Raceway) tonight, and he told me the Holland/Perry,etc. late models were allowed to run tubular a-arms, quick change rear ends, and a less restricted motor. So, they were sort of a modified with a full body. He said the Lancaster late models used the stock frame. I think there might have been a wheelbase rule.
I never really understood why full bodied Mustangs(Torrisi and Ortiz), Chevy II's(Rafter),and Falcons(Reagan) ran with the Mods, as Holland and Perry weren't paved until late'67, for the start of the 1968 season.
Of course, the Lancaster type Late Models overpriced themselves, and were replaced by "Street Stocks". When Dave Hafner sold his late model (to Sege Fidanza) and built a Modified,he said the price difference was just under 2 grand.

 

Yep that goes back to my original question....They are much more "modified" then the typical Late Models of that period....I just wonder why they were all 118" wheelbase instead of 115".....

 

View attachment 1093478

View attachment 1093479 I hope this is what you was looking for Radiodave.

 

Pssst.... did anyone else notice the Roadrunner character's image is reversed on the restoration of Ramo's Superbird?

 

Yes! And in the color photo, the wheel is white. Doesn't look white in the black & white photo.

George Sr. had the Modified in his garage at his Mobil station, a gold Falcon. I believe the number 44 was painted on it. I don't know who drove it the few times it raced.

 

Back before everyone had multi-car teams, Dave Dayton would come to the track with a "backup". This photo shows Dave in his regular # 87 and Forest Haliburton driving the # 187 backup. ARCA, Dayton Speedway, probably 1969. The photo of the day....

Enjoy,

The Oldtimer....

 

Yes, when the Ramo's Superbird was last repainted about 1990, the Bird character on the wing was done in the wrong direction. I figure he was tired of holding the helmet and had to switch wings.

Most of the time, the car ran with white Nichels style wheels, but in the 1972 photo, it has the 5-slot Clement style wheels painted blue. In USAC, you could race a Superbird until the end of 1972.

This photo below is from Talladega in April 1970. Probably the ARCA Vulcan 500 qualifying race which Ramo won.

 

Ron Williams (Evil 1) leads Dick Flaig at Perry (N.Y.) Speedway, 1973. Bob Hunter photo.


Dick Flaig, of Eggertsville, NY -- 1973. Bob Hunter photo.

 

We took the car "Vintage" racing at Montgomery Sat night, most fun I've had in years. I wish more people/tracks would get involved in this kind of racing.TB