Just curious (Phx. hist.)

Rundle's '55 Chevy...

!

Cool stuff...here is another photo of Rundle's '55...after I saw it, just had to do one on my '40 Chevy

 

And, whose still has Blakely coupons that went towards those cactus tumblers and pitchers? Those
are worth quite a bit of money nowadays....darn it.

 

What about all your favorite Mexican food restaurants that hot rodders used to go to...like La Cucharacha on Indian School road....(The Cockroach)...GREAT t-shirts...plus they stayed open until midnight….or Ricardos..or Papagayos…?

Any more come to mind?

 

Loper's only has the 9th st. and Indian School store. Just not the same since Jonnie Loper passed!

 

APCO was great! I lived close by there and had a '40 Chevy street rod, which was done on a very limited
budget since I was just 16. Guy by the name of Charlie worked there who must have been all of 21...seemed like a really old guy to me then, but he always took a interest in me and my car and always asked about it when I came in.
Had a great machine shop in the back that you could just walk into and ask for help. Good old days...

 

How about the National Guard Armor? Dances every Sat. night...located near Washington and 52nd street.

 

Almost forgot, I was the Soap Box Derby champion from Phoenix in 1961. Racetrack was at South Mountain
Park...which wasn't really a park then...nothing like racing in the desert in July in Phoenix...woweee. Did have
the time of my life in Akron, OH at the national event, though.

 

Remember it quite well...we moved to the Arcadia area in 1957, and used to ride our bikes to it. You could sneak
in and just roam...lots of broken windows, but really cool to a kid.

 

My older brother, Mike Lowry, went to school with Larry and knew him well. Larry was a pretty wild guy
in his high school years. But I heard some great stories when he slept over and I was supposed to be
asleep...good time...we still have a mutual friend, John Powers, who I stay in touch with.

 

Couple of pictures from Jeff Smith and Roger Sharp picnic mid 70"s Fountain Hills, Dick Furney's Roadster painted By Corky

 

Some other things I've collected. Time cards from Chandler Drag Strip https://dragstriplist.com/arizona. Pretty good numbers for the late 50s. Car #86 Street Roadster? Wish I had more info to go with them. By what's written on the back of one they may have done some farming?

 

And when are you opening the Arizona Drag History Museum and Ice Cream Emporium?

Seriously, nice collection of stuff - I wish I was here in the 60s instead of KC!

 

I guess the flatbed in the poster was Jim Simpson's truck ( The Pig) Ron

 

I laughed when I read "Pre-48s ONLY & F-100s" and the flatbed is an F1...

 

I don't have anything to add to the thread but I am grateful to everyone who posts on here. I have watched/lurked this thread for a while now, and occasionally go back through it. I moved here (Phoenix) in 1998, so I missed the "Golden Age".

 

Great series of interviews on this guys YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSV7AoULooPX4Aecw-G5Krw

Latest one:

 

Arizona Drag Racers Reunion was yesterday. Having fun doing car stuff with the restrictions lifted and didn't take many pics but made sure to catch this one. Chauvin Emmons T restored to its mid 60s form with the injected Olds back in and fresh paint as it looked when named one of the best 10 hot rods of 1965 in the January 1966 issue of Car Craft. I kinda prefer the earlier candy red but still looks great. Has been well taken care of all these years by ex racer and speed shop owner Ed Smith.

 

Wow! huge honey hole of various vintage racing films on this guys YouTube channel: Chris Murphy

Beeline 1966


Manzanita 1961


Az Fairgrounds 1961


Bobby Ball Memorial 1966


Manzanita 1960s jalopies


Az Fairgrounds 1964


Bobby Ball Memorial 1961


Quarter Midgets, Glendale 1967/68

Just spent a couple hours and figured out where this track was. At about 62 Ave between Frier and Morten by the water tower that was removed in the late 80s.


Manzanita 1961 Modifieds

 

Also, not on Facebook but still managed to stumble onto this page. Tons of great pics and info.

If you're living under a rock like me and haven't seen it yet click here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/410351663171746/

 

Weekend bump for those who haven't seen the videos above.

 

Good stuff, Matt. Thanks for sharing!

 

Here's an original press photo I bought recently that appears to show what is supposed to be the worlds first double motorcycle jump by Gary Davis and Rex Blackwell at Mel Larson's Phoenix Dragway.



Text from May 1972 Racing Review. https://magazine.cycleworld.com/article/1972/5/1/racing-review.

FIRST DOUBLE JUMP

Two young Phoenix cyclists have successfully executed the world's first double-motorcycle jump, thereby establishing a new distance record. Gary Davis, 20, and Rex Blackwell, 18, passed within three feet of each other in mid-air at Mel Larson's Phoenix Dragway, in an unprecedented display of motorcycles in flight.

Starting from opposite ends of a double-ramp setup, Davis and Blackwell sped down the long dragstrip toward each other, vaulted from their respective take-off ramps, brushed by each other in mid-flight, and landed on the opposite ramps. Davis' jump measured 103 ft., 3 in., bettering by 3 in. the 103-ft. record jump of Evel Knievel. Blackwell, who experienced mechanical problems with his motorcycle just prior to the record leap, soared for a distance of 92 ft., 5 in.

The crowd was treated to a bonus when Davis and Blackwell, dissatisfied with their initial effort, decided to jump again—in an attempt to reach their goal of 107 ft.—thus bettering the singlejump world record of 105 ft. set by another Phoenix cyclist, Gary Wells.

Marking the touch-down point of each of the cyclists were members of the Maricopa County Sheriffs Department. Verifying and certifying the distances was Rick Lynch of Motor Sports, International, the governing body which sanctions such records. Lynch declared the jump a new record—a world record for double-motorcycle jumps.

 

Way Cool!

 

Just saw these pop up on the Phoenixmike58 YouTube channel.

Fresh interviews.

Albert Eshenbaugh


Ted Olson


Buddy Sampson

 

They added one more the other day.

Gil Cypret

 

Found a biography online for Bill Moxley discussed a few times in this thread. Very interesting guy and lots to read but his racing tires are mentioned from about page 74-93.
https://issuu.com/ricaart/docs/mox

 

Glad you like the videos! The YouTube channel is mine and the video interviews are a collaborative effort with Bill Goosic lining up the videos, Chris Thomson conducting the interviews and myself filming and producing the videos. We have a Facebook page you can join that has all the interviews on it. Look for "Arizona Drag Racing Legends".

Mike Bieke

 

Ebay find.

Corky's Trick Paint.