Well, the "Hayseed" was/is a fuel injected/4 spd car. Was driven on the street until the local law intervened a couple of times. Doug decided the strip was the best place for it, and began the transformation into C/MSP. he ran the car at Sanford, ME dragstrip, which was an airport runway, that the New England Hot Rod Council operated for a number of years. After a long run drag racing, he left the sport. The car today sits in his garage fully restored to show condition.
WCD Although I lived in SoCAl for 16 years it ran a bit before my time there. For whatever reason the car seems to ring a bell with me and there is a bunch I like about the car. I do not know if it ran at Indy in the 67-69 era but that era I found to be magical. There was almost too much at those big meets that you would be on sensory overload. You mention about the trailers and it was a great time to see these cars on the open trailers. I remember Indy and everywhere you looked at motels and neighboring parking lots there were hundreds of great looking drag cars on trailers and the crews working to ready the cars for the next day. Very few of the big boys even had enclosed trailers except for some of the rails as I remember. The only way I can describe that era is that it was magical and it never will be recreated. Memories of drag racing during the sixties is something that will continue to put a smile on my face till they lower me in the ground. The other car pictured above I have noted here and there its past but it was a pretty cool car. It started out as a Woodward street racer with a 421 Pontiac built by George Delorean and handled most of the guys on Woodward back in 1963 before it was converted to a full time drag car. It was a pretty successful racer and ended up winning Indy in 1969 (albeit with a new owner then-George Foltz). The guy driving the car in the pic above was Bob Schaeffer who had a shop in Detroit where he made the Jomar stud girdle. Bob was a pretty decent engine builder. He built a pretty stout 427 for the 56 Vette we ran although my buddy grenaded it before we really got to see how strong it ran and there was no fault in Bob's abilities, strictly a screw up on my buddies part. There were many strong running cars from California but the Midwest Auto guys off of Woodward ran some really strong winners for sure. Three of the their 56/57 Vettes won at Indy in 67,68 and 69. Then there was Wally Booth and Dick Arons and Kanners and Maskin etc. Good times. -Jim
Thanks for the welcome. Have had some great times racing at "Maple Grove" in 1994/95 with Team New England.
Belvedere65, thanks for the info. I will have to keep my eyes open in different records etc. By show condition does that mean as a drag racer or as a car converted back to stock?-Jim
.....these threads kill me, hard to forget the 59, 61 and 68 I owned back in the early 70s. Someday............ If anyone ever gets a line on one "reasonably" priced (ya right) that they don't want to jump on, PM me.
Belvedere65, thanks for the latest pics, those are great and are reminiscent of many scenes in the parking lots. Although to each their own I would be lying unless I pointed out I would rather see the car in the Hayseed livery as opposed to stock-just me. Dreamweaver there are still projects out there at reasonable prices. I have bought a couple for peanuts lately although my buddies in my car club tell me that my projects can only dream of being complete cars. If I can live long enough they will be nostalgia drag cars. It is like a sickness where these nightmares call to me for rescue.-Jim
Have it in my library of HR films.......always got a thrill out of the vintage vette and the 56 shown briefly in one scene.
I really wanted to buy this one, but seen it to late. Just got pictures of it and it was gone.I really want to build a straight axle vette. Anyone want a nova??
EVEN NICER !!! THIS CAME OUT AFTER I SOLD MINE.PROBABLY WONT HAVE IF I HAD SEEN IT FIRST ! THIS IS WHAT I WANTED TO DO WITH IT
Some good looking Vettes. Really like the Wes Auto Body car. Would like to hear more on this car. Here is a pic probably on the west coast. It appears that Charlie Wilson's Vicious Vette is in the background. Any guys know the car in the forefront-Crower 62?-Jim
Here is another local car. Set of 4-6 inch I-beams or straight axle would give this one the "proper stance".
Ill try to get this straight. This started out as Rob Blasingames 55 Chevy Street car. It had a 327- 365HP crate motor,4 spd with a Pontiac rear. His father (Ross Sr) got together with Wes Callahan (Wes Auto Body), and turned into a strictly race car. It started out running Modified Production, than turned Gasser running an injected small block with a B&M Hydro. Now Rob went out and bought a 56 Corvette to replace the 55 for his street car. When Rob went into the service, he parked the 56 Corvette. At this time, Wes (Auto Body) and Ross Sr decided that a Corvette would be better suited for racing, and they bought a 57 Corvette. They took the motor and many of the parts out of the yellow 55 Chevy and put them into the 57 Corvette (including the Pontiac rear end).This car was painted yellow and had Wes Auto Body painted on the sides of the car, with prepared by Blasingame on the rear fenders. Once Rob returned home from the service, Rob and his brother Ross (who is a fellow member of the Strokers ) decided to turn Rob's 56 Corvette into a race car. They installed a Z28 302 in it along with a crossram manifold, 4 spd and a Pontiac rear, and to add to the confusion, painted the car yellow with a black vinyl top, (looking much like the Wes Auto Body 57 Corvette) ,but this one had Blaingame painted in the coves. So, after 40 years I find out there were actually two yellow 56-7 Corvettes ! Next time I see Ross, I will see if he has any idea what happened to both Corvettes and the 55 Chevy. All I remember is these two cars, along with the Hayseed really influenced me. I bought a 57 Corvette in 1971 for $750.00! No motor, trans, pretty much an empty body, although it did come with a hardtop. I put a 301 in it, Muncie 4 spd, set of 4:88 gears, set of 6 inch I-beam spacers to raise the frt end and a set of Tubular Automotive fender-well headers to finish it off. All it needed was for me to finish the body work and paint, but I wound up swapping the car for a 57 Chevy Gasser . Not one picture of my 57 Corvette, but I do have one of the 57 Chevy, the original Quick Trip ( the name my current 55 Gasser). Sorry for such a long post, but if I didnt get this down tonight, itd be all mixed up tomorrow.
I know its the Tach but at first glance I thought "What the hell, this guy is drinking a cup of coffee as he launches" What Talent!
Very funny ! He actually is one hell of a driver. I should have mentioned that Rob was the driver the 55 Chevy, and the 57 Corvette. When he left for the service, a young man by the name of Eddie White took over the driving chores and that is him "drinking his coffee". Ed is still actively racing today. Here is a pic of his 65 Corvette at NE Dragway. Saw him break into the nine's at one of the Nostalgia Events last Oct(track officials were not to happy with his sub 10 sec run....). For years he drove this car to the track, ran 10 sec times, and drove home. 406 small block, and has owned this Corvette a long time (maybe 25-30 years ).
Great stuff Baron. Not only the pictures are great but the background helps fill in some of the pieces. So many of these cars had a story. Pretty cool on these cars-Jim
THANKS BARON GREAT STUFF !!! PS I WOULD NEVER FIGURED IT OUT IT WAS THE BULTER WHO DID IT O SORRY THAT WAS ON HITCHCOCK PRESENTS... YOU MUST HAVE A GREAT TIME GROWING UP WITH ALL THAT AROUND YOU ... NOT TO MUCH DOWN HERE .
The Jalopy Journal
