Features VINTAGE SPRINT CAR PIC THREAD, 1965 and older only please.

The rest of the set. The last one is cool. On the back it says "First turn of the first main event of the 1941 season, Gilmore Stadium."

 

Hey Dean,
Thanks for more Kurtis-Lowe History.
If Ryan is monitoring this thread, I think your family story in racing is worth a big writeup by him on the Home page.
Got any stories about the Kurtis sports cars ? Specifically the Bill Stroppe Flathead- powered 500S that he used to beat the Ferrari's in 1953 ?

Thanks Again,
Tom

 

In 56 my younger brother got a KK 1/4 midget for his birthday. Summer of 57 we took the race cars on vacation to my parents home town of Lincoln, Nebraska, and ran some mid west tracks on the trip. In Kansas the local cars were somewhat behind west coast cars in engine development. No body even knew what menthanol was. They let my brother run because he was running in the B Modified class on gas. When they clocked me at almost a second and a half quicker than their "hot dogs" they only let me make "exhibition" laps. In Lincoln there was no 1/4 midget track, but they had a 1/4 mile dirt track they ran a 1/2 midget show on. When the local promoter heard a hot dog 1/4 midget was in town he wanted to stage a match race with me and their # 1 driver. 1/4 midget tracks were 1/20th of a mile, so dad had sprokets air freighted in that bumped my cars top speed to about 75mph. I practiced the day before the race, and damn, that little car flew! Felt to me like I was running Indy! The night of the race, the 1/2 midget driver came over and told dad "don't worry, I won't run too close to Dean, he won't get hurt". Turned out he was right. Our race was for 4 laps, but they threw the checker at 3. I had over a straight away on him! The track announcer interviewed us after the race, and the poor guy was speechless. That was a cool summer.

 

What a great story Dean. Can you tell us the differences between a 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 midget? I know my dad's TQ midget had a Crosley in it.

 

Good stuff Dean.. Thanks!


Well, I'm all packed for Louisville. The trailer is kinda tight. The grey body is on a frame. The floor and any other availible space is PACKED with Vintage Hot Rod parts to sell in the swap meet. I filled it with a truck load from dads after this picture was taken, including 8 more tires..

Check it out.





JD

 

I think it was supposed to be the TQ's were 25% smaller then a full midget, the 1/2 midget was 50% of a full midget, and the 1/4 midget was 25% of a full midget. The 1/2 midgets in Lincoln in 57 were running 15 cu. in Cushman scooter flathead engines. Our 1/4 midgets ran a 7.5 cu. in. Continental flat head.

When we were in Williams grove in 87 this littls Crosley TQ gave me all I wanted in my V8-60 midget. What a screamer. They claimed it turned 9500, and I believe it. I chased him about 8 laps, and couldn't get around him. I seem to remember the sign said the car was a multi time eastern TQ champion.

 

Attention Y'all...

Back on the first page of this thread, I posted this picture of Ted Horn sitting on the pit wall with a #3 Big car.. A fellow reader is looking for more info and pics on this car to possibly build a replica. I found it on the inernet somewhere.. I don't remember.

Can any of you help out while I reserch it also.

I'm assuming its a Miller cause of the look and maybe Miller's name onthe pit wall..But, My miller book is at dads..


Thanks,

JD

 

I just found this info on the car above... but no more pics.

The picture was at:

Vanderbilt Cup Race, 1937

Heisler Notes: Ted qualified for the July 5, 1937, 300 mile Vanderbilt Cup at Roosevelt Field, Long Island, NY., in the Mike Boyle #3 257 CID Miller built by Myron Stevens. Ted did not finish the race. He was scheduled to drive his Indy Miller Hartz car but it was a no show according to race historian Carl Sweigart. This car would later appear in the 1940 500 and was driven to a 7th place finish by Frank Wearne.

(I am assuming they mean the car above.. finished 7th at Indy in 40')??

Race Historian Bob Schilling has another interpretation: "This car was built for Harry Hartz by Curly Wetterroth in 36' becuase Hartz's front drive would have been useless on dirt or in a road race. It was a four-spring rear drive. George Connor drove the car at Goshen in 36' and told me that it had an oddball transmission, but he didn't elaborate. In the picture, it appears to still be in Hartz's color scheme of French Grey with a dark Blue number."



Well, its a start..??

JD

 

Here's Harry Hartz in 1926... Correct guy, and the right number on the car.. But nope.. not the correct car..

 

Damn... Harry was a stud!

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Just some more neat pictures from the same era..

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This car is in Cincinnati right now, being restored.

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Tommy Milton

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A.D. Trowell at the old Devils Bowl

Rare racing footage from the '50s of A.D. at the old Devils Bowl
in Dallas, Texas.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wr1KElntM2o

For more stories, photos and a rare video of the old Bowl, check out the latest issue of soupupmagazine.com

www.soupupmagazine.com

Don

 

While we're trying to keep this post "Modified and Jalopy" Free.. I will say, "Very NEAT picture!.. But coolest of all, Check out the GOOD LOOKING black 32 Roadster with whitewalls in the background!"

(Upper left right behind the drivers head)

Thanks,

JD

 

Another "NAME THAT DRIVER AND CAR"...


Anyone tell me who is in the Black #2 here racing under Tommy in the "Miracle Power" car?




Thanks, Joshua Shaw

Tony George maybe???

 

Eddie Sachs in the Cheesman OFFY

 

super picture........

 

SHIT!! Your right, That is the Cheesman Offy. Are you sure it Sachs.. (Cause I don't know) I Hope it is!!

Zakira's has this picture hanging in there engine room. Its 3x4 FEET!! Well, They shot it with a digital on a tri-pod in high rez, (not this picture) and I had 5 Copies made The same size..

But I didn't know the driver.

We are 99% sure its Reading Pa. but... It is no doubt the Miracle Power car.. I'm just assuming thats Tommy in it....??..

Thanks.

JD

 

I worked on that car when Paul Leffler owned it...... If its not Sachs, its somebody wearing Sach's helmet. Sach's had the smallest head I've ever seen. Jr. Dryer has one of his old Shoc Shel helmets and I've never seen anyone who could get it on their head.

 

Excellent!! Thanks.

JD

 

The original Cheesman(the one in the picture) was destroyed when Bobby Black drove it, upside down, over the turn 4 wall at New Bremen in '64, but there was a spare new Pankratz frame. Leffler built up the new frame with a chevy engine and it became the #16 Dunseth Chevy. This was the car that Jud Larson died in at Reading in '66.
A "restored" Cheesman Offy appeared a few years ago for sale. Hopefully, it was restored, using the old #16 Dunseth car, but I don't know for sure. I believe it is owned by Tom Malloy in Calif.

 

http://www.artemisimages.com/detail.aspx?photomode=3&categoryid=4231&photoid=cn02191


http://www.artemisimages.com/detail.aspx?photomode=3&categoryid=4231&photoid=cn02190




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The tall wood posts on the guard rail makes me think it may be Williams Grove 3rd turn, "Beer Hill". I don't remember Reading having posts like that, but the Grove did.

 

Very Possible.. I'd sure as hell take YOUR word for it!

JD

 

Clair Fuller raced during the 30's and 40's, mostly in the Michigan area. Once he was pronounced dead
after an accident only to wakeup in the morgue the next day!

These photos are from the Clair Fuller collection. For more of this story and pics check out:

www.soupupmagazine.com/issue02/page15.html










Enjoy!
Don
www.soupupmagazine.com

 

JD I am not sure of what this car is but I would not believe it to be "Baby". If I had to hazard a guess I would probably side with the Bob Schilling interpretation. As a Ted Horn fan you would know he drove the front drive Hartz #22 at Indy in 36. If you look in the Ted Horn biography written by Russ Catlin there is a Lytle photo of the #22 car Ted drove at the 36 Vanderbilt and that car and the car above have some similarities (there is also a pic of the car at speed). If this pic is 1937 then I would say his #22 mount for 36 was a bit shorter wheelbase, although that is a guess. I reread Catlin's account but the problem is as much as I enjoy reading Catlin's accounts, they are as much folklore as fact so I would not take what Catlin writes in the book as gospel. The car above though has some similarities to the Boyle 7th place finisher at Indy in 1940. The car though does not appear to be Miller in my estimation. The brakes and engine throw me a bit. Would make a great car to copy but I believe if you dig a bit deeper you will find the car may have been a tad more pedestrian than the front drive Hartz Miller and may be a bit easier to copy as well.

Great era although I have to watch how far I go out on a limb as I may be a bit more familiar with the cars of the teens, especially the OHC cars. If you need a copy of the pics in the Horn biography let me know- Jim

 

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Without doing any digging I would say this is a late 30s car. It has the look of a Myron Stevens built car. Similarities to a Miller are because Myron Stevens worked for Miller. It is mounted with dirt tires and the pic looks to be taken on a dirt surface. It has a 4 cyl. engine which could be either an old Miller or a new Offenhauser. I'll dig when I have some time.

 

Here is a pic from the Ted Horn bio labelled Ted in his Vanderbilt Cup car at Roosevelt Raceway 1936. The cars appear to have the same grill but the #22 on hood side seems to show maybe some different sheet metal and a different position of exit on the exhaust. The other car is Harry Hartz- Miller built front drive that Horn drove to a 2nd at Indy in 36. Quite a different animal.

As to Myron Stevens, I always have felt he has not received the attention he deserves as part of the great Miller team. He was the only member of the team that actually drove any Millers in competition. When the National Auto Racing Historical Society was in existence they produced a video of Myron Stevens fabricating a track nose from scratch when he was in his eighties. Great stuff and occasionally I pull out the tape and have a look see again. He also signed some of the reproduced blue prints of the Blackhawk, one of which hangs in my shop. I have not looked at the tape in awhile but if my memory serves me he built the headers from a flat sheet and said his first set took him 80 hours, which he later trimmed down to 40 hours. The other pic is Stevens in the back left corner hammers in hand on the LSR Blackhawk. -Jim

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Vint...318QQhashZitem130242802711QQitemZ130242802711

 

Saw that also, not a bad price, assuming the I&O and QC isn't junk.

Back in the 70s I had some chassis blue prints (from Steve Smith books IIRC) that were kind of a CAE knock off and from what little I can see in the pics, that looks quite similar except for the bolt on cage.