History Drag cars in motion.......picture thread.

I'm sure it's already been posted.

But it's a really good one!

 

More from the George Klass Collection; he adds new photos almost every day, this is an outstanding set, if you haven't looked through it, and love early drag racing photos, get into it now!



Not sure who owns the digger, looks like it is Cad-powered, I think the drag strip is Santa Maria, with all the trees in the background, very early, guessing mid-50s?



Tommy Larkin at the big end, this shot captures a lot about the '60s, tires distorted and almost off the rim, still smoking!



Art Chrisman, far lane, in the now-famous #25, I think that Holly Hedrich is in the near lane, looks like Paradise Mesa.


Mickey Thompson, crude body, but a slingshot pioneer, around '55. Mickey ran an Ardun in this version, later went to a Chrysler and a streamlined body that covered the rear wheels.



The Greek, think this is Riverside. It could be the '60 meet when Chris and Garlits challenged all the top California fuelers, last rounds Greek beat Ted Cyr and Garlits beat Chrisman's Hustler, then Big beat the Greek in the final. The next week's Drag News headlines read "The Rat Takes the Cheese!"


Vance Hunt's Garlits-chassis, not sure who was driving, J.L. Payne maybe. When Vance came to the west coast from Texas, you needed to max the nitro load, he was a racer!


Koulan and Brown blown Olds fueler, track might be Fontana.


Arizona guys, need help on this one, Lord's car club, I think that Red Greth and Lyle Fisher (and maybe Don Maynard) were involved in this fuel flathead car prior to the Speed Sport Roadster??


Think this may have been posted before, Charles "Scotty" Scott's SBC fuel car, PBY strut frame, the late Mike Snively drove. Scotty was one of the great Ardun guys who towed this car into Colton the first day I and Phil Brown ran our own Ardun powereed TE-440. Scotty knew Arduns and did a lot to help a couple of 19year old dummies to figure out how to make it run (so did John Bradley).



Hustler at Bakersfield, 59. Art had blown the front-mounted blower and damaged the body work, so this version with a brand-new Weiand top-mounted blower ran in bare metal at the first Smoker's meet. Later beat Tony Waters for top fuel. Notice Hank Vincent's "Top Banana" in the background.



Garlits with his wedge gas-powered car, during the NHRA nitro ban.



Singer-Miller blown Lincoln gas-burner from Texas, won the '59 NHRA nationals, beat the Hollish bros. Bantam coupe in the finals. Engine by Karol Miller, famed for Bonneville speed records in a '56 Ford, Rodney Singer drove.



Zeuschel, Fuller, and Prudhomme, won Smoker's meet ('60?), beat Gotelli in the final, I remember that Prudhomme still work a Tony Nancy leather driving suit then.


Dean Turk, in the Woudenberg Pontiac fueler, from Mesa, AZ. One of the better running Pontiac fuelers, ran Chrisman in the final round at the first fuel meet at Pomona after the fuel ban ended.



this was the later version of the Mickey Thompson digger above.



And racing Calvin Rice at the first NHRA nationals (Rice won, and went on to win top eliminator)

Ok, enough for now...George, THANKS for this site, and thanks for letting us copy from it!

 

Lee, that's close, good work! It was a little darker, sort of a bittersweek orange, think Bear Customs in Inglewood painted it.

 

John Wenderski...

 

Turning into the pits from the return lane, at "The Pond".

 

As long as we're posting "pointy" cars, here's a couple.

 

Matches your pointy head Larry... (Mask and injector were his own design)

 

J.R. Bloom, Arizona, Buick straight-8...didn't he also manage an Arizona drag strip?
Note Alladin Plating, seems they sponsored most Arizona drag cars, note below:



Think this is the Goosic Bros. fuel roadster, carburated sbc, bright orange, saw it run at Henderson...note Aladdin Plating on the engine cover



And on the Steinegger and Eisenbaugh fueler, here at Ramona. I think that this is the run that ended in John Wenderski's fatal crash.

Again, from the George Klass collection

 

Yes, that is Big John's last run. He staged way off to the right to avoid the oil dry in the middle of the lane. He got a wheel off in the dirt at the top end and that was all she wrote.

 

that twisted launch was common for X-frames...

 

Rich Venza photo at Island Dragway about 1962.

 

I think Chadwell still has one of those EH fuel injectors . . . . .

 

John??

 

I know I'm gonna get blasted because this is not an old picture or an old car, but I'm old and the car and I are in motion.

Wilson Motor Sports photo.

 

Art Linkletter's AA/FD. Anybody know the story here?

 

The Guedel and Holland dragster as explained below.

http://www.competitionplus.com/drag-racing/news/14370-art-linkletter-had-drag-racing-connection

Roo

 

New shot from George Klass of a classic drag race. Gene Mooneyham in the 34, running a fuel flathead at this point, racing Don Montgomery ("Rockerhead" on the HAMB), running a fuel GMC, Colton, '54 or '55 (?). Don won. Both cars would later run blown fuel Chryslers. Mooneyham's coupe has been restored, but I think that Don's remains missing.

 

"New shot from George Klass of a classic drag race. Gene Mooneyham in the 34, running a fuel flathead at this point, racing Don Montgomery ("Rockerhead" on the HAMB), running a fuel GMC, Colton, '54 or '55 (?). Don won. Both cars would later run blown fuel Chryslers. Mooneyham's coupe has been restored, but I think that Don's remains missing."

Right on about the two cars, but as far as Colton (Morrow Field), I don't think that track was open in '54 or '55. If I remember, Colton opened in '56 and closed in '60.

Like everything else in my life, I'm willing to be wrong about this...

 

I have some from Windsor dragway not taken by me as that track was closed down long before I was born. although the strip still exists today and im trying to get my hands on it





I have more if I can find them

 

please do post more windsor shots, one from '69...

 

George, you could be right about the start date, but it was open into the mid-60s, I first raced there in '62, and again in '63. It was a fun place to race, informal, no professional cars...but the track was SHORT, and once you ran off the end, there was a small dirt hill and on the other side...a cemetary! Return road was pretty cratered...I think it closed partly because Fontana took the competition, but miss it...today part of the site is a Sam Sneed golf course, you can still see the old track sides.