History Drag cars in motion.......picture thread.

FROM WDIFL
More March Meet
Dick Goss and Jeep Hampshire recorded the first 190 mph run at Famoso-191.08 at the '63 March Meet.
Doyle Hatfield photo

 

FROM WDIFL
Dave Babler drove his Vaporizer to a runner up finish in the'69 March Meet; he lost a close one to Dunn-Reath (6.94-215.82/ 7.03-214.28).

 

The Creitz & Greer Top Fuel dragster, with a beautiful body hammered out of sheet aluminum by master craftsman (and friend), Tom Hanna. I think this might be the car Gene Coleman lost his life in.

 

Hawaiian Drags - Hawaii Raceway Park
Looks like 66 or so.

 

More March Meet 1966! The Surfers!
66 was the last year for tire smoking runs, by 67 ET's were drastically lowered by using Crowerglides and other slipping clutches. OR, just a talented foot, but very dangerous.
Photo from HRM

 

John Wilson (far lane ) vs Kenny Safford. What a cool shot!

 

Doesn't say what year PDA, I'm thinking 68? Note Larry Dixon driven Fireside Inn roadster in the front!

 

A curios picture!! I'm guessing one of Mike Van Zandt's Invader Corvettes. Nothing like a nitro fueled on fire fiberglass body being fought by a bunch of guys in t shirts! Look at the guys in the background, hands in their pockets like nothing is happening!

 

Thanks for the words jnaki and the likes from others, information is a good thing and the older I get the more I realize this when I first come on board I would see posts on here with pic off a well known car , I thought, then after reading text I would realize this guy has not got a clue to the history of the car he was posting and that just blew me away that someone could be a car guy and not know that information then it was brought to my attention the age factor I'm not saying I know it all , I don't, I was not even born till 61 but I have always been into cars and the history and trends threw the years I have collected alot of information threw reading , living and by taking part in many phases of the car world, when I post something it is not something that I just downloaded it is taken from magazines that I go threw from my collection and if I see something that I think someone on the HAMB will find interesting I will post it and that alone takes probably 20 min. for each post by the time I take the pic ,5 or so shots for each pic because of my shaking problem then edit for the best one,then if the post is something that I personally could relate to and include a little side story or info ,and usually hold back on the stories or personal connection Because I don't want to bore everyone or take up space ,but because I'm pulling it from a magazine that is right in front of me I will try to include the info the best I can....Sorry for rambling on....Like I said before we all can't be perfect .... We're gearheads... Information and history is what's going to keep the interest in cars going so if there is some younger hot rodders ,or old,that are willing to listen I don't have a problem passing any info on.... I'm just going to die someday with it anyway...Just saying...

Sent from my QTAQZ3 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

hear hear!
To some of us this is history, to some just entertainment. BUT POST SOME DAMN DRAG CARS GUYS!!!!!!!
Let's go!

 

July 15, 1967. Lions Drag Strip. Top Fuel had 94 official entries going for 64 spots.

This post was copied from Comp. Plus, July 15, 2009:

"43 years ago on this day was the greatest 1-day Top Fuel race in history. Held at the greatest drag strip of all time, Wilmington, California's Lions Drag Strip. The brainchild of farbricator Doug Kruse, this race defied all the skeptics and held this all dragster show. On July 15th, 1967, the first United States Professional Dragster Championships was held. Featuring the largest Top Fuel purse ever, every major name sans Garlits attended

Top Fuel had 94 official entries going for 64 spots. Top Gas had an open 16 car field as well as a 16 car field for Junior Fuelers. The Jr. Fuel field had the largest car count in the history of the class with 34 diggers.

The crowd was the largest 1-day crowd in the history of drag racing nearing 17,000 fans. The start, scheduled for 5:30pm. was delayed due to the volume of fans trying to get in. The first round at 6:00pm. took just 90 minutes, 32 races, no oildowns, a race every 3 minutes.

Don Prudhomme driving the Shelby Super Snake of Lou Baney won Top Fuel over John Mulligan,7.20 over Mulligans 7.99. Low E.T. of the meet was set by Larry Dixon in the Dave Zeushel tuned "Smirnoff Special" with a 7.01 flat. Low E.T. of eliminations and top speed of the meet was set by James Warren at 7.01 at 227.50mph.

Top Gas was taken by Floyd Lippencott Jr. (Bob Muravez) in John Peters Freight Train over Gerry "the Hunter" Glenn. The Freight Train shattered the Top Gas record with a stunning 7.34 at a worlds best 201.00mph. A full 3/10s quicker than any other Top Gas car in history. The next closest car in E.T. this day was the Adams & Rasmussen car at at distant 7.79.


Junior Fuel was the best ever and never equaled since in numbers and quality, the Rose-Lawson-Barres car driven by Tom Barres won the war over Frank Britt with a nice 8.34. Just to make this show was intense, that figures since Lions was the birthplace and "the" hotbed of the little nitro burners.

The race ended right about 1:00am. I'll never forget this race, got there around 8:30am. and left near 2:00am. In my view it was the best race ever at Lions among the many I witnessed. A chili tamale, a chili dog and 90+ Top Fuelers, unequaled, unmatched, at Lions, was nothing but the best. So there you have it, on this day, 43 years ago history was made at what Drag News called, and us who already knew, the sports biggest strip, the best of all time Lions Drag Strip.

Gosh I miss that place. I thank my race buddy, my best friend, my dad for taking me to this race, to this track. I am thankfull.


Top Fuel@Lions"

 

So...who won? The 'Goose. Didn't Jerry Ruth win in 68?
Always good to see your great posts George!!!

 

You are the MAN, Mike!!!!

Roo

 

HOLY CRAP! Restore that thing! Money is no object ( at least to me )!!!

 

You're right. As speeds & ET's started to improve in this time period the sidewinder design wasn't doin' what it was supposed to be doin'. The"Magwinder" was a beautiful & expensive car but I think time just passed it by. These cars were fun to watch and hear. (LOUD).

 

I bought the Cyclops from Marion(wildchild) Fairchild back about 1991 He parked it under a tree in the back of his property after he purchased Jerry Inman's Mississippi Rebel Nova in about 67 or 68. I bought the Mississippi Rebel also but didn't keep it. I will post a couple of photos

 

Marion was the second owner of the Liberty Motors Dart "the Corrupters Pup" He named it "Satan's Chariot" when it replaced the Mississippi Rebel. I drug it out of the 3rd owner Wallace Barton's back yard in Lynn Alabama in about 1994. It was named the "Winston County Twister". Long gone also.

I should add that the Cyclops started life as the Liberty Motor s 1964 dodge hemi super stock car called the" Corruptor" Marion Fairchild was the 3rd owner but the 2nd owner(his name escapes me at the moment) was a little scared of it and sold it to Marion.

 

WOW! FANTASTIC STUFF!

 

I thought I had already posted a link to my pictures from the '61 Indy Nationals but just checked and I did not.
Not many 'in motion' but a lot of pictures from the pits. If you haven't seen the original thread I hope you enjoy. And in light of some previous discussions here - feel free to copy/share/whatever and make comments!
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/indy-nats-1961-the-lost-pics-are-found.945208/

 

Thanks for reposting this link! I think I remember seeing some of these shots from when they were originally posted, but lost track of the thread and never saw the whole batch. I may have to do a little "massaging" to some of these and see if I can bring out some more of the details in these shots.

Edit to add:

Hey, it looks like I started that project a couple of years ago! I better get back to work on that...

 

This photo from an early Rockford Drag Way Mfr. Funny Car race - same day the Atlas Oil Tool Maverick was lost and thinking maybe Mickey Thompson Grand Am. Also think the race was shortened because they ran out of fire fighting stuff.

 

Not sure about Rockford but I do know that one of Mickey's Grand Am's burned to the ground at the 1973 Gatornationals. With lots of magnesium parts (including the cockpit tin) the fire was intense and eventually they gave up on putting it out and simply dragged the burning hulk to the bottom of the braking area. Butch Maas (a cool guy) was driving and suffered some burns in the incident.

 

I am sure there are a bunch of us on here who enjoy all your pictures loudbang, me being one of them. I never catch and the "double posts" or reposts of photos, I don't mind it and there are so many picture that I usually can't keep it straight anyway. I like them all. I think it is unealistic to google search every photo to give the proper credit, we are not posting on here to make profit off someone's photograph, why does the credit matter?? We are here to share memories of the way it used to be. There is a group of about 5 people on this thread ( Roo, Gary Reynolds, etc) who were around when all these cool cars were racing and know everything about them. Most of us do not!! We just like the pictures and don't care if there is a repost every now and then that we don't catch anyway! Keep it up Loudbang, Post away!

 

" Don Prudhomme driving the Shelby Super Snake of Lou Baney won Top Fuel over John Mulligan,7.20 over Mulligans 7.99. Low E.T. of the meet was set by Larry Dixon in the Dave Zeushel tuned "Smirnoff Special" with a 7.01 flat. Low E.T. of eliminations and top speed of the meet was set by James Warren at 7.01 at 227.50mph."


SO, who was driving the Fireside Inn car at that point then?

 

John Mitchell drove it a few times too when the roadster was new

 

When I get a minute to spare I will call L. D. Sr and see if he can remember--He was in my shop last week getting some aluminum to make new hood sides for his '27 roadster drag/street car. Think Super Gas but with the blown big block that ran 7.0's in his altered.

Roo

 

Presumably Al Joniec and one of the incarnations of the Batcar mustang.

 

A very nice looking 'Vette in the staging lanes.