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

buildy/kschou - haven't been on here for a few days, buildy, still live in NJ, but am writing this from my York, Pa. office! was in Spring Grove last night. Kschou, my dad owned 37 coupe bodied sportsman/modifieds driven by my uncle walt, that ran old bridge, and wall. my uncle also drove for the kimball bros. out of fords, n.j. in coupes. my uncle al dove his own 8 ball coupe and the pick's 207 also out of fords, n.j. later he had a #90 TQ that uncle jiggs and pete frazee drove - the nickname came from the comic strip characters "maggie and jiggs" - all the family grew up on a dairy farm in edison, n.j., where my dad (john) and i still live - my dad says the best races ever was when they were kids and used to race anything, bikes, tractors, and they'd climb on the back of hogs and have a "steepchase" around the pen! have many pics but don't know how to scan/post - rich imlay (walts son) has a ton of great pics, need to get more from him for a scrapbook that im doing for my dad!

 

Yes, at Tulsa in the late '60s I believe.

 

Hi Big John,

Small world,I live outside of Spring Grove. If you have a flatbed scanner the photos have to be scanned to a CD or dvd, or your computer. Or if you know someone who can scan them for you and burn you a disc of the photos.
Once you have that, someone on here can tell you how to post photos here on the HAMB.

 

Sweeney,

GREAT looking car! It's even the right number Looks like an Edmunds?

 

I,m a rookie with this computer B S but will give it a try. Back in the early 70s Ron Semelka from Wauseon Ohio bought a sprint from Jim Nickels [not sure on the name] of Harrod Ohio. He said it was formerly owned by Joe Barzda and driven by Jiggs Peters. Semelka ran it at Limaland for a couple years then sold it for parts. The frame ended up in the landfill.

 

Best we can tell it was built by Bob Trostle, or at least one of his guys.

 

Yes,during the Tulsa State fair,it wasn't pretty.

 

Corngrower a little competition for your Go-kart. This bike has 24 engines on it!!
aXe



you do have to look past that gal to see it, LOL
aXe

 

I believe Lux was in Clyde Gutzwiller's sprinter out of Cincinnati. Number 18?

Blacki-Suede

 

Welcome HANNA..


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Axe33... It took me a min. but yeah, I finally saw a bike in there.

Speaking of "pulling on something" DAMN that would be a nightmare to fire off!

JD

 

Rootie;
Im not sure if Wimpy was ever fast becauuse he started way back, but he sure drive some very different cars! He even drove that old Ted Blair Champ Car as a Sprinter at Bedford one year i ran there.
Very cool pics.

 

Is that Blair car the Jake Vargo hoodoo wagon? John S.

 

Here's a bit more on the Barzda Shilala car. Built by George Shilala for Barzda for the 1963 season, right after the Venezia Bros. great success in URC with their Shilala car. Never worked well. Barzda campaigned it only in 1963 with Jiggs Peters, Bob Harkey, Red Riegel, Jim McElreath, George Morris driving; best finish was a 6th in 14 races.

Sold to Bill O'Day in 1964. Rocky Fisher, Bruce Jacobi, Ralph Liguori, Bob Mathouser, Al Smith, Arnold, Harkey, Dee Jones, Ronnie Lux, Wayne Woodward drove it for O'Day in USAC 1964-1968 (not raced in 1967). Best was a 5th in 31 races.

I can't confirm who had it in 1969 and 1970, but Ron Semelka raced it in northwest Ohio "supersprint" races in 1971 (Findlay, Lima, etc.), as "Huffman's Auto Supply Special."

Photos are: Williams Grove 31 Mar 63; 2 photos from Langhorne 7 Apr 63; Fisher at Reading 1964; Arnold at Ft.Wayne 19 Sep 63; No. 40 at Reading 27 Mar 66.

 

And more on the Barzda Shilala car when Ron Semelka raced it. Photo 1: Findlay 30 May 71 (during one of the first pre WoO open competition tours); Photo 2: Lima 19 Jun 71. The tail legend says, "I may be old, but I work like new."

 

Western Pa. sprint racer Billy Eash from Johnstown,Pa. showed me some pictures years ago of one of his first sprinters. Told me it was a Shilala car.... John S.

 

No, the Blair car ran i think a big Chrysler engine. It was not that very bad Vargo Champ Car.

 

But Blair's big red champ car-sprinter was the Vargo car. Earlier Blair had a prewar rail frame sprinter (1956 and earlier) and then a homebuilt roadster-style car. All three had Chrysler engines.

 

Ok now for those who were addicted to the old Open Wheel magazine. I am trying to find the issue with the Oliver Johnson, Benson Offy Midget article in it?
Anyone have an idea which issure number it was?
Thanks for any help You can give Me.
aXe

 

This is my first post and pic's. This car set on the pole at Indy...driven by Johnny Thompson. It was restored by Classic Craft in Springfield,Oh

 

Don't have that one, aXe, but I've still got No. 1.

 

There was a picture on the wall in the office of the Vitucci salvage yard in Brooklyn NY of Wimpy Irving sitting on the track at the long defunct Deer Park (Long Island NY) Speedway with aa DAZED & AMAZED look on his face .. with the midget he had been driving FLIPPING down the track behind him.

 

Wimpey was a colorful character for sure. Not sure he ever had any success in racing,though.
Maybe way,way back before my time?

He did live through all his open cockpit cageless incidents,because I talked to him back in the 80s at Pinebrook NJ, and he told me about how he used to race with my uncle in URC......

 

Big John 37

Any way that you & Buildy (Tony) can get together to maybe scan at least a few of your pictures topost on here?

That is INTERESTING about your family's racing history!!!!

I'd almost bet that it's not a dairy farm there in Edison NJ any more.

I bet Rich Imlay has a REAL TREASURE og his Dad Walt's pictures.

I don't know if anyone here remembers old Eli Roth? He was (more or less) the official photographer for the ARDC for years & years. After he passed on I THINK I remember hearing that his (blind) wife Ula sold his collection of pictures and negatives to someone. Boy Oh Boy .. that was some WEALTH of cageless east coast midget racing history. I wonfer who has it today?

 

I`d be happy to help Big John 37 if he can come over to my place sometime,or if someone in his area can scan them for him,I can host his photos on my smugmug or my flickr pages....

 

I remember a night at the Old Bridge (NJ) 1/2 mile .. a split show .. ARDC midgets & URC sprints (I think Earl Halaquist ran both that night?) .. anyhoo Wimpy was there in an old tired sprint .. plus Wimpy himself being pretty large was quite a load for it to carry.

Wimpy didn't qualify for the feature .. BUT when they rolled the cars out for the URC feature and Wimpy of course wasn't there. ... Suddenly it seemed like everyone in the grandstands started stomping there feet in time to the shout .. "WE WANT WIMPY" .. over & over & over & over.

Needless to say .. qualified or not (again he wasn't) Wimpy DID start the feature that night!!!!!

 

Johnny Thomson (no P) In Frank Curtis (no K) car

 

Johnny Thomson again with no P in one of my all time favorite pictures, yes he saved it and I think the story goes he had fast time. He was Crocky Wrights favorite driver until Stewart came along

 

From a old "Racing Pictorial Magazine", in my collection, this was a full page photo spread.

Tough dudes back then! Sam Traylors sprint car took a beating also.

 

I have a DVD of old racing movies and it has this Johnny Thomson wreck on it. Scary looking flip.

 

Roy, I've seen video of that ride above.. It happened very quick.. up and down and back on the gas.. YES he did save it..

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Curt81.. Welcome!

This is Joshua Shaw from Cincinnati. Did I meet you in Darlington?
Glad your on here. Classic Craft is a wonderful restoration shop, and I'm sure you guys will bring a lot to the discussion!