The Race of Gentlemen, 2015

More....

 

Kohler.... If I can't beat you fair and square... I'm forcing you into the ocean... Lol

 

Oh boy ! It's f--kin on .


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So many cool entries! Here's mine mocked up..

 

She's just about done

 

I am going to have to add TROG to my bucket list. HRP

 

That car looks great Jerry!

 

Craftsmen Tools Race Of Gentlemen Promo>
This year’s Craftsman Restoration Rollout: Made To Race 2015 is all about the handcrafted, vintage car. Craftsman is teaming up with the Oilers Car Club to build a Ford 999 inspired beach racer for The Race of Gentlemen (TROG) in Wildwood, NJ.

 

This scares me just a little bit.

 

Sure wish I could make it this year, but will have to wait until next year and the 3 window is done. But I sure will be watching here on the HAMB

 

I was counting on you, Dennis!!

 

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Very cool.

 

Alright you sonsabitches... Almost done!

 

Oh boy , lots of superchargers this year. We won't be hitting seagulls we will be sucking them in ha


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Via Craftsman Tools> For this year’s Restoration Rollout, Craftsman Tools are partnering with the Oilers Car Club to build a Ford 999-inspired racer for The Race of Gentlemen (TROG). The Oilers are the self-described group of freaks responsible for bringing dozens of pre-war hot rods to the beaches of Wildwood, New Jersey every October
Made to Race: Meet the Crew Building the Craftsman Ford 999 Racer
Many call the Race of Gentlemen “Mel’s little brainchild.” One of the defining features of the race is how it seemingly spontaneously comes together. There is only a 15-minute meeting and a few text messages exchanged beforehand. Those close to Mel say his goal is to turn the race into a traveling circus. According to Sean, “He’s an alien… whose greatest skill is matching people who will work well together.”Mel started to build cars when he got sick of partying and playing drums in punk rock bands. It wasn’t until he was 26 that he got his first job sweeping in a garage. His fascination with the past comes from a belief that “we’ve given up as a country… I think Middle America is happy with the way things are. Good things happen when you’re not happy and push yourself to do and create something…these days everything is disposable. Just filling up the landfills with garbage.”When asked about TROG, he says, “It’s not about the rivalry and the winning to us. It’s so much fun. We like to make fun and bench talk and tease and stuff.”His first car build was restoring a 1930 Model A. He bought the body not knowing anything about cars.


Sean started working on cars when his uncle got him a Go-Kart that didn’t have a motor in it for Christmas. He “liberated” an engine from the family lawnmower to make it go. From there, he learned through “blissful ignorance.” He didn’t even have a torque wrench or stand when he built his first engine. He now runs Red Star, a shop in Rhode Island that restores antique cars and motorcycles, where, “slow and expensive work is our specialty.”In his mind, “the prettiest things about cars are minimal… good engineering is the simplest way to do something that works the best.” He’ll use this ideology to guide the build of our racer, which when complete, he expects to be, “The most terrifying 50 MPH anybody has ever experienced… it’ll be really, really fast 0 to 45, but then the kid on the moped will ride away from you. It’s going to be a hoot.”When asked about TROG, he says, “We’re big snobs… but chill enough to realize this is foolish,” and, “we’re the freaks in the freak kingdom.”His first car was a 1964 AMC Rambler, in which he rebuilt the floors, fuel pump and carburetor.


Max has been building motors for 15 years. When he was 16 his Dad asked, “Hey, do you want to drive?” When he replied yes, his Dad said, “Alright, let’s put this car together and get with it.” Since then, he has continued the legacy of H&H, a family business started by his Dad that’s been in the same spot since 1972.He’s the mad man linking two Model T engines together into one 8-cylinder engine that will power our 999-inspired racer. Machining two engines to be identical, then connecting them is quite the feat, particularly when you consider how little is in print or online about working with Model T engines.When asked about TROG, he says: “It’s the cool factor, it’s not the speed factor. It’s just being out there having fun with vintage old toys.”His first car was a 1968 Cougar with “way too much motor for a 16-year-old kid.”


Unlike most gearheads, Bobby doesn’t come from a family of wrench-turners. He started working on cars at 16, and couldn’t afford a “fixed” car. Instead, he got a “running project, where things constantly needed fixing.” He spent the next three years teaching himself how to keep the car running.Bobby has been in many racing clubs, and joined the Oilers a couple years ago. He coordinates races across the country, and is responsible for curating the aesthetic of The Race of Gentlemen.His first car was a 1957 Chevy. The ‘50s car boom in California during the ‘80s inspired him to pick it out.

 

Craftsman Tools Made to Race: 10 Facts About the Orginal Ford 999 Racer

The history of racing in America can arguably be traced back to one car: the Ford 999. That’s one of the reasons that the racer we’ll take screaming down the beach at The Race of Gentlemen will be modeled after the 999. If you’re not familiar with this primitive race car, here’s a primer:
1. The 999 was Henry Ford’s second foray into auto racing. In 1901, Ford raced against Alexander Winton as a way to generate publicity for himself and to attract investors in his burgeoning auto company.
2. Henry Ford worked with bicycle racer Tom Cooper and a team of assistants to build two nearly identical racers. One was painted yello and dubbed 999. The other was painted red and named Arrow.
3. The 999 was named after the Empire State Express No. 999, a type 4-4-0 American steam locomotive which had set a world speed record of 112.5 mph in 1893.
4. The cost to build the 999 in 1902 was $5,000. In today’s numbers, that’s more than $120,000!
5. The 999 had none of the comforts we’ve come to expect from cars today. There was no suspension or seat belts or even a windshield. And in place of a steering wheel the 999 was controlled with a pivoting metal bar. The car was said to spew oil all over the driver.
6. The 999 was reportedly too fast and too furious for Henry Ford to race himself. Instead, Ford recruited bicycle racer Barney Oldfield, who had never driven a car before, to race the 999.
7. Mr. Ford eventually took the wheel of the 999. In 1904, Ford drove the 999 on an ice track carved into Lake St. Clair’s Anchor Bay. He reached a speed of 91.37 mph and set a new land speed record.
8. When the 999 refused to start two weeks prior to its first scheduled race, Ford sold the car to Oldfield and Cooper for $800. Ford did, however, retain right of promotion and publicity for the car.
9. Racer Dan Gurney took the 999 out of retirement for one last ride in 1969. On a blustery day in March of that year, Gurney leaned into the cold wind as he took the 999 around the Ford Motor Company’s high speed race track.
10. The 999 is the oldest vehicle in the Motorsports Hall of Fame. But, actually, the vehicle on display in the Motorsports Hall of Fame is a duplicate of the original, commissioned by the Ford Motor Company for the 1966 World’s Fair.

 

Awesome insights! Well done Oilers!

 

The Race of Gentlemen | Vintage Car Restoration | Craftsman Tools Made To Race 2015 Promo

Who is that Gentlewoman in the video? This outrageous machine will be driven by Jessi Combs (American television personality, racer and metal fabricator who appeared from 2005 to 2008 on the Spike show Xtreme 4x4) making her the first female race driver at Trog. (Although there are few more women participating this year.)

 

Making way on mine see you guys there

 

Cool! Check out Pete's ride from the torrnados. He has a very similar car to yours. Will be sweet to see them race.

 

Looks like someone needs a little help to keep up with them 4 Bangers!!

 

The new mill........oh boy.....oh boy......


Thanks Joe!!!!

 

Should go pretty dam good in the coupe.



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Just ran the #67 TROG entry at Selinsgrove Speedway this past Saturday. We're running the piss out of these old parts here in PA! Running with Kowalski's #23 and #3 and Suhr's #44 (prior TROG car). See ya'll in Wildwood... just a few weeks away!

 

Oh man , I love that shit.


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Looking good! cant wait!

 

Rooms Booked, tank is starting to take shape.

 

That's hott! I wanna race ! See you on the beach.

 

stalled out a little but got back on it, body got a little more refined from the last time i did body work on, i was tired of the 36 grit sand scratches! got all the extra firewall holes filled up too, basically all ready to paint (prime) also rounded up 2 more 81s today to perch atop my evans elephant intake thats going on the motor.