Nitro

When you think about the hot rods of the 1940’s, you tend to think in terms of charm rather than violence. The sepia toned imagery of a roadster blasting down the salt in 1948 fails to purvey any kind of sense that something catastrophic looms. Sure, you realize the danger and you have some sense of speed, but it’s nothing like being on the salt today and feeling the thick air of tension caused by all the bad shit that could and often does happen.

It’s somehow easy to forget that the cars of yesteryear were actually driven closer to the threshold of death than those of today. I mean, these guys were running those charming little flatheads, right? What kind of shenanigans can one really get into with only 300 or so horsepower?

Recently, I was browsing YouTube and stumbled onto this:

I’m sure it has been posted before, but jesus god man… There is nothing like the sound of a nitro burning Ford flathead to help you realize just how nuts our forefathers were. Can you imagine what Mr. Hernandez must have felt that first time he and Vic fired their roadster?