Folks Of Interest RIP ... Woody Gilmore

From 1963-1966 that grandstand at Lion’s was my home away from home. Nothing beats the glint of polished magnesium, the colors, the sound and the flames of a front engined fueler in the night mist at Long Beach. Nothing. And whose talents brought that excitement to us? Heroes like Woody Gilmore.
Godspeed Woody, you’ve left an incredible legacy that many of us will never forget.



Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

wow....what a list of who's who.......

 

In the last year of the sixties I had a friend ship/job
with a local fabricator in this area (New Orleans).
The fellows name was Bill Farmer. He was a very talented race car builder and worked on and constructed many ch***is and such for local racers
Also noted traveling pros who came into this area.
Bill also built and drove a bb/gs corvette for a local
owner. One day he told me he was going to California
to work for Woody Gilmore. I hated to see him go
as he had taken a liking to me and decided to let me
work for a small wage and teach me his craft. I helped him close up shop and he was gone. I never heard from Bill again and wonder if any of you California fellows knew of him or how he made out on the West Coast?

 

Sad to hear. Built some beautiful FEDs.

Sent from dumb operator on a smart phone

 

Woody Gilmore (left) with Carl Olson (in the seat) & Mike Kuhl (right)
​

 

Damn he was a great racecar builder. RIP Woody. I also had a 150 in Woody car with a gas burning blown Ed Pink 331. So sad to hear this.

 

Early '50s - Woody Gilmore & his first Hot Rod


Circa 1958 -Vacaville Drag Strip (at Vaca Valley Raceway)
Woody Gilmore sits in the new dragster that he & Paul Sutherland built.
Driver Paul Sutherland turned 156 MPH the first day out with this car.​

 

Circa 1966 photos of the first RCE dragster with fully "Independent Front Suspension":

Woody Gilmore with the independent front suspension he designed.
The front end was fabricated from 4130 chrome moly steel tubing.
All of the 18 spherical rod ends used are highest quality 4130 heat-treated steel.
The rod ends alone cost $300.



Steve Carbone tries the car on for size (without body panels)



Carbone in the ****pit (with body panels installed) as Woody Gilmore looks on



Suited-up dragster pilot Steve "The Mandrill" Carbone & ch***is designer Woody Gilmore

all images by Fred Enke​