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

Jimmy Oskie 2009 at Knoxville, Iowa

 

I think that's a Stanton that Peter had. I see him at the races now and then. Great guy.
Is that you in your avatar? Did it go over?

 

David Caid a sprint driver from Tucson was killed at El Centro in '61. Dave was my grade school to high school close friend. We crewed for Hank Arnold in the '50s. I still run "in memory of David Caid" on our ASCS sprint. Anyone have any info on David? Pics, details of the crash?

 

Bill, are you aware of Buzz Rose's book , Racers at Rest, about drivers who died in racing? There might be info in there. www.roseracingpublications.com

 

Thanks Jerracer I'll check. Bill

 

Yep I bet you are right that was a Stanton that Peter drove, good to hear he still alive and kicking.

Yes that is me in my avatar in Captain John's car which I'm pretty sure was a Maxwell chassis but since I've been wrong so much maybe I should stop guessing. And no I didn't go over but I did bend both rear wheels on landing.

 

Funny thing, Dave always said he'd not make it past 21 and he was right. Here I am an old fart of 70 years typing on this stupid computer after flying 5000 hrs in single engine,single seat fighters for 30 years. You can't tell me that luck isn't the biggest factor.

 

Thanks for your service...
PK

 

Enjoyed most of it PK. Now if I could buy the car in your avitar I could scare the crap out of myself all over again!

 

Tony is still at it but nowadays you will find him running with the WRA guys. Lost his hand in a sprint flip with Billy Allen in San Jose in '72 if my clouded memory is correct. Oskie often shows up at the WRA with the J-ram Chevy, beautiful car if he'd wash and maintain it. Only 4 bar hank Henry ever made. Maybe somebody has some pix of that.

 

I think Tony's accident was at Santa Maria. Got his hand out of the cage. If MY memory serves, it was this incident that led to the development of arm restraints by Bill Simpson.

 

I always thought it was amusing that two drivers raced in California during the same time frame with nearly the same names; Tony "the tiger" Simon in SoCal and Anthony Simone (translated from Italian = Tony Simon) in the North. Two more disparate personalities don't exist. Tony is about as laid-back and approachable as you can be, and Anthony...
Anybody ever hear about the infamous push-broom incident at Madera? It was at a SuperMod race so probably O.T. for this forum, but with everyone's permission I'd be happy to tell the tale.

 

Buying the car... you, me, and about 1,000 others. Don Smith beat us all to it and now it sits in his museum. It's been restored with a 255 Offy, but I think the last Offy in it was a 270. If I'm wrong I hope someone lets me know. I'd love to see more pics of it myself; it looks fast just sittin' there.
PK

 

Anthony was a little out of control on the track I seem to recollect his nickname being the Fresno Fruit Fly

 

Have you seen this account?

http://www.motorsportmemorial.org/focus.php?db=ct&n=6339

 

A daily dose of Ascot pics

Dean Thompson in the Bruce Bromme car
Not 100% sure if it's Shuman in the Western Mag car but that seemed to be the consensus earlier but I don't remember Shuman wearing that kind of helmet.
Billy Beavert in his dads sprinter.

 

That might be Jimmy Boyd in the Western Mag car.

 

PK,
When Bobby Grim drove for Hector he said that they ran a short stroke 270. If I remember he said is was around 250 but after Bobby left I do not knoe what they ran. Last time I saw the car at Tampa it had a Chevy with zoomie type hesdders on it and looked and sounded awflul. Putterball was driving.
Jim Graybeal

 

Shoe didn't always drive the W.M. car, but frequently, esp. at Ascot.

 

Well, since nobody said no, here's the Simone-Madera story, to the best of my recollection;
Seems Anthony got spun out in the Main, and somehow gets pushed off going the wrong way on the track. The starter doesn't see him and throws the green, but the yellow comes out before chaos ensues. Simone is summarily black-flagged and storms into the infield, unbuckles and grabs a push broom off one of the tow trucks. He marches out to the apron, spots the fellow who spun him out and chucks the broom tail-first towards the cockpit like a javelin! Luckily he missed.
As I recall the intended recipient of Anthony's spear-toss went on to win the main and pulled up to a stop on the front stretch, where Anthony attempted to "congratulate" him. The guy smartly refused to take off his helmet or get out of the car. The crowd went totally nuts and things got so heated the promoter shut the track lights off so nobody could see to start a riot.
In later years Anthony Simone's T-shirts prominently featured a push broom in full flight.

 

No I hadn't Indy..Thanks. We raced our modified at El Centro a few years back and I assumed it was the same track..Dave was on my mind all night.

 

The track in El Centro is only part of what they used to run. The front straight and turns 1 and 2 are still used, but it is now more like a third mile instead of the half it used to be. If you can access google earth you can navigate to the track and see the outline of the old turns 3 and 4. A warning though, i started going all around the country finding tracks and consumed lots of time.

 

Really cool story here on Shane Carson. Quite a few more too.

http://www.coastal181.com/nlm-working-April-2005/tearoffs-0.htm

 

Great story- thanks. We could probably start a whole new thread with Simone stories!

 

Was looking through my pics I took at the Legends of Ascot a few years back trying to find one of Oskie's J-Ram car but all I could find was this one with Gary Ponzini's Hank Henry car in the forground. Gary ran this car in CRA in the late 60's. Oskie's car is right next to it.

 

I need a bit of help or direction if possible. I have a pair of Halibrand "lobster" calipers. I have them at The Brake Man in Camarillo, Ca. Warren Gilliland is the owner and was a protege of Bill Airheart. He worked with Airheart when they manufactured teh lobster for halibrand. I took them to him because he realy is a brake guru and knows his stuff. Here's the problem, after going through them there is a small square seal the is leaking and Warren can't find any one that has the seal any more. Each caliper takes one each of these seals. He found someone that will tool up for the seal but won't build any until there is a 1000 unit order. I only need two, so I might reluctantly become the master supplier of those seals with only a scant 998 left over from my overhaul. Soooooooooooooo, does anyone know of some one that might be hoarding these seals? Or, does anyone need theses seals if i am forced to purchase the run so that I can get mine back into operating order. Any Help would be appreciated. One friend said that he THOUGHT that somebody in New York state had some but couldn't remember the name at all.

 

deucemac, Contact Jerry Day (Ram Race Cars) @ Renton WA.
He has complete new seal sets to suit. I picked some up from him while in Seattle a couple of years ago. Don`t have his phone number at the ready but if you can`t find him PM me & I`ll look it out.

 

Great Ascot pics! I have been waiting for awhile for CRA or NARC pics from the good old days. Thanks to all of you.