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

I think you are correct. Hmm, seems like we've been through this before with the Creitz car.
One thing for sure, I can't rely on my memories anymore!

 

A dragster from across the pond I believe.

 

Any relation to Bobby Davis Jr who ran sprint cars out of Memphis?

 

Gary,
Great video, thanks for the heads-up and the GREAT pics !!!!

 

Great picture, Paradise Mesa...back then cars were recognizable...Bean Bandits yellow dragster (who knows what powerplant, they ran flatheads, Ardun, blown Buick, Studebaker, etc......)...orange '34 behind it is Frank "Ike" Iacano, with GMC power...he ran everywhere...Paradise Mesa, once a WWII landing field, could not compete with Santa Ana, and now there is no trace of it.

 

The bottom pic is Lee Pendleton's Allison dragster from Ohio. My dad crewed on it and built the fiberglass body. Final version is in my avatar.

 

Glad I'm not the only one who doesn't like Bruton's dog and pony show!

 

Built by Louie Senter of Ansen Automotive, to be driven by his nephew, Leonard Harris. Tragically Leonard died at Lions testing the Firestone Realty car, and never got to drive it. It was one of the very few Packard-powered dragsters, homemade blower manifold....wonder what ever happened to it?

 

Before the Pulsater, there was this gas car that Nye Frank built along with Dick Harryman, who put his gasser Olds in it...Mickey Brown drove, later died at Lions driving the Adams and Scrima gas Olds with a spooled rear end.
I know these photos from Drag News are pretty fuzzy, but they have not been posted before...

 

Another fuzzy photo, but not a lot of pictures of Gene Mooneyham's 554 in the pre-dark blue days...was running an unblown Chrysler in this race, March 1958. The Boudanian Brothers would later run a gas altered Fiat powered by a blown Desoto, from Visalia, CA. The Stamp Memorial meet was held to raise funds for Howard Stamp, who died at Bakersfield when his injected Chrysler dragster crashed. Rod & Custom had featured the construction of Howard's dragster in a multi-part series called "The Dragster," but did not note that Howard would die in the car soon after it was finished. At the Stamp meet, Bill Crossley took top time at 162, but the boys from Tucson, AZ, the Speed Sport Roadster, took top eliminator.



These guys, from Cypress, CA, dominated the gas altered class in the late '50s. Car was red and gold, well engineered.



Before they became two of the most famous A/GS racers in the country, they just raced for a trophy at Lions (LADS was Lions Associated Drag Strip). Tim Woods had come to California from Montgomery, AL, and gotten into the construction business. Jr. Thompson ran a McCulloch blower on his Chev, and was very hard to beat in the B/G class. Later Woods would form Stone, Woods, and Cook (but you already knew that!)


Before his appearance at the Smoker's first meet in '59, Garlits raced at this meet in Houston, beating the California cars of Jack Ewell, Romeo Palamides, and Red Case...this was after his controversial 176 run in late '57, lots of racers doubted the accuracy of the clocks in Florida, but after Garlits beat Emory Cook at Alton IL and then won this meet, the doubters became fewer.

 

John Drane from Poplar Bluff Mo. in his Opel has to spot Raymond Coveys I/Gas VW from Sedgwick, Ark. six car lenghts at George Rays. Notice George in the upper right corner. This probably late 60s or early 70s
John is still drag racing he now runs a four cyl with a turbo class
Raymond still has the VW he makes it a point to get it out and makes a pass at Georges once a year, most of the time it is at the George Ray Birthday race.this is the only time he takes the car out.

 

Eddie Pike in the Pike and Son S/S Dodge from Lepanto, Ark.. Eddie started racing at a very young age,and was a small person, he had to sit on a pillow to drive. He had to have a note from his dad to race his first time at George Rays
Eddie passed away a few years ago.

 

Larry Stanley of Paragould, Ark owned this 440 Mopar powered Dragster in the near lane. This is at George Rays in the mid 70s. I dont recall who was in the other dragster

 

This 55 belongs to Billy Smith of Batesville,Ark.
This car started running at George Rays in late 60s and is still owned and driven by Billy. Judging by the hoodscoop this picture is from the late 70s I saw the car run at Newport Dragstrip this past Oct.
Billy is still running the high revving small block with a 4 speed

 

This was Ken Perementer s last race car. It had a injected Hemi on Nitro. It ran at George Rays in the mid 80s. The car is still a regular at Georges with a diffrent owner and drivetrain.
Ken retired several years ago, moved up in the mountains. His main means of transportation is his Harley. I stop by and visit with him ever so often

 

I know this probably not Hamb friendly, but it is a piece of History.
This is my daughter Sherry in the white Camaro at the old MIAMI-HOLLYWOOD track in FL.
This was at "THE LAST DRAG RACE" in 1992
This track ,like so many others was lost in the name of progress
MIAMI-HOLLYWOOD MOTORSPORTS PARK 1966-1992

 

I would like to thank my wife Judy who 40 some years ago started taking pictures and knew that someday I would enjoy looking at these pictures with some of the old bunch and recalling how Drag Racing use to be.
I hope some of you enjoy this as much as I do
Bob

 

i have some cool video of george rays taken in 64. the track was fairly new then. the races were flag started then and a guy with a flag on a pole at the finish line judges who won tipping the pole to the lane that won. its like a ball boy at a tennis match crouching down on the edge of the track. i wish i knew how to post this footage its priceless. george rays is the best. brett kepner went down there and did a whole tv show on the place. he was blown away. rip george

 

Speedy. I enjoy your pics and the history very very much! Thank you for sharing them. Mikey.

 

I took the black and white shot back in the 70s, if you search for Saint on here there's more stuff

http://www.ukdrn.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=108&p=33774&hilit=saint#p33774

 

Commuter was based on Mickey Thompson's Harvey Aluminium Special which came to England in 1963, MT flew over with the USAF and left the car in England

http://www.ukdrn.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1112&p=26509&hilit=harvey#p26509

 

Thanks for the info.

 

This picture is a bit new for the site but I couldn't resist especially based on an earlier comment made about - "more rear engined funny cars than I remember". John Force's first funny not only rear engined but a side winder to boot...complete with chain drive. Roy Mehus had it built then sold it to Force. Pretty sure this one ended up at the sand drags as well. (Obviously the pic is a Steve Reyes photo - hope you don't mind me borrowing it)

 

According to the '70s Funny cars site:
"The Volvo P1800 Funny Car of Leif Dabach, Janne Carlsson and Borje Holmgren began life in 1973 as a stock steel bodied altered running a Chevy 327 on carbs. By 1974 it was a fully fledged flopper with fiberglass body, home built chassis and 454 nitro burning Chevy. It appeared in England at Silverstone racetrack in June 1974 along with fellow Swede Bjorn Andersson and England’s Dennis Priddle in his STP Avenger. Lack of traction kept the cars in the eights but Priddle found enough grip to claim the first of many English Swedish Funny Car encounters. (Photo by Alan Currans; text by Andy Barrack)"

 

Again, according to the '70s Funny Cars site, Force's car was built by Jack Chrisman complete with chain drive that regularly spit out links and got him banned from Irwindale!