I just got done watching this on my Amazon Fire TV. If you have not seen it, you need to, unvarnished with no BS concocted drama.
Hey EC, Thanks for reminding me of that old movie. I just finished watching that cool movie. The announcer said it best when he was wondering where this money comes from for the builds and rebuilds of the car parts and motors. The movie took place at Lions Dragstrip, just after we were finished with our racing days there. It is a wonder how those mysterious parts just kept showing up at our backyard garage when we were building the car. My brother was a wonder at saving money and there were only a few times when we could not purchase the top product offered. (B&M stick hydro instead of a LaSalle 3 speed) The camera work sends the viewer back to when those wide open areas seemed to rush at you as the race car went down the strip. The low camera angle made it seem like you were just skimming over the track. The dedication it took back then to have a family and compete for the top speed and e.t. was amazing. It did not hurt to have someone as talented as Gene Adams or Rick Stewart on your team. Jnaki It is one of the best movies to portray the "Race for the Records" in FEDs. Every time the action switched to the return road, it brought back memories of running across that farmer's field. The high tension electric wires over head, the crops, the loose dirt, all in the background made it feel like we were just standing there. When we were in junior high school, we made it across just to watch these early drag racers. Late nights, greasy Levis, droopy eyelids in school, race car careening toward the spectators side...Cadillac ambulance, Long Beach Memorial Hospital, etc... wow! from Hemmings: "Rick was known to ice his opponents with a hole shot off the starting line. Rick drag raced years before turning his experience behind the wheel into a stout run as the man on the starting line at NHRA national events. Rick was also the focus of one of the best 52 minutes of drag racing documentary ever made in 1965. Written by Bob Abel, shot by Les Blank, and with a soundtrack from Canned Heat, 7 Second Love Affair followed Rick and crew around the drag strips of ’60s Southern California in a journey through the apex of SoCal top fuel drag racing. We spoke with Rick a few years back about the time and the movie, and he confirmed that drag racing was in fact the hot setup then." “A typical weekend would be Friday night down at Carlsbad, Saturday night at Lions Drag Strip, Sunday from 11-3 p.m. at San Fernando, Sunday afternoon at Fontana. Eighty top fuel cars would show up to qualify for eight spots and $1,000 to win. We were just thrilled we were getting $25 or $50 a round.” "This short clip from the 7 Second Love Affair shows the hairy side of barely controlled combustion of exotic fuels. Rick lived to drive another day, but recalled waking up in the hospital the morning after as one of the more surreal moments in life. After I had that crash. I woke up at Long Beach Memorial Hospital. It was real late at night. Two or three in the morning. I was upstairs. I looked out the window and the city was on fire. So I rang for the nurse and I asked her: What did they do, drop a bomb on L.A.? She said no, uh-uh – they call it the Watts riots."
The Jalopy Journal
