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

Gary Cagle Lion’s Dragstrip 1959 SOUND



Hey FR,

Great photo of your dad's fabulous Yellow Herbert Cam Special FED. I had never noticed that, even after watching my own films over and over. But I checked the recent SOUND film and behold, the big squirt at :06 to :08. Thanks for the digital recording, it just made it seem like I was right there no more than 20 feet from the staging. It was very loud… no telephoto lens at the time.

Jnaki

Now, I will have to go back over my films to check out others for those cool, small things that made the early dragsters and competitors so great. Thanks for posting the photo of your dad’s FED. It was one of our favorites, every time we saw it run.

Check out the color coordinated small, custom made aluminum tank in front of the top blower pulley. It certainly was a record setter and super fast FED.

 

This car has been found and verifyed by the original builder. Its awaiting more pics/info before restoration

 

I owned this car early 90's and raced it during the early days of NDRA. sold it to finance a new build since it would no longer pass spec. would love to get it back

 

In Ky Michealson's Top Gas car. I voted for Pat.

 

The early NDRA days were bitchen--I helped Dan Horan several times with his 150" Top Fuel car.

 

In the first NDRA Top Fuel race in 86 @ Fremont, there were only 4 of us. Jim Davis, Sammy Hale, Pierre Poncia, and me, all 150" or shorter. The cars (being old) had a great look, and were exciting to watch. Wonderful memories !

 

Partial to the Hemi...I own the car, my dad constructed it.

 

The Odd Couple AA/GD...

 

I'm sure Buster has seen them all...
R.I.P. Buster....

 

Hello,

There was no getting around the fact that the Chet Herbert Cam Special with Gary Cagle at the helm was intimidating. The bright yellow FED turned heads anytime, in the pits, on the starting line or blasting down the dragstrip.
March 1959
Our weekly attendance at Lion’s Dragstrip paid off in droves as we were able to see plenty of action from the top racers in So Cal. The Gary Cagle/Herbert Cam Special was one of our favorites. I wanted to get a good shot of a high powered run, so I was able to get inside of the gates from the pits to take a starting line film of the yellow FED making a push car start up, staging and blasting down the dragstrip.

Jnaki
Drag Cars in Motion
Lion's Dragstrip 1959-60
Gary Cagle Herbert Cams total


Sometimes it pays off to run a Chrysler motor for the top speed record in drag racing.

Gary Cagle original sound
Thanks, @FuelRoadster

December 1959

 

Tom Nicklin post on FB.

 

Flaming Frank Pedregon...

 

That car just says "I'm look'n for a fight, any takers".

 

With the nose section, on a trip to the NW.

 

“ALMOST GROWN”


Hello,

Bobby Tapia and the Tapia Brothers were names in hot rodding and drag racing from a long time ago in So Cal. The photo posted shows the Injected SBC motor, Isky cam, Joe Hunt Vertex Magneto and a first edition of individual side header pipes to push the exhaust out and beyond the driver’s compartment. The name of the fast SBC powered dragster was “ALMOST GROWN.” THE “AL” is visible in the b/w photo above.


We all got a start somewhere in the early days of drag racing

The small, low slung FED was not one of the big Hemi supercharged motor race cars. But, it put on a show for everyone to enjoy weekly in their own class and eliminator runs. In looking back, it was probably the precursor to the junior fuel class FED race cars. Thank you for the memories and up/close and personal adventures from some wayward kid at Lions Dragstrip in 1958-60.

NOTE: Some kid in a red Pendleton shirt being up close and personal with the Tapia Bros sleek Hilborn injected SBC FED (filmed by James Nak)

Jnaki

Tapia Brothers Total




https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/lions-drag-strip-in-1959.1073655/page-2#post-13885573 Tapia History from Dr. Richard Tapia

In a note from brother, Steve Tapia, here are some highlights:

Robert “Bobby” Tapia passed away on May 2, 2020, in Boston, Mass. He was 82 and died after several massive strokes over the last month.

Born in Santa Monica, California in 1938, Tapia was one of the drag racing’s most formidable competitors in the sport’s early days. He began drag racing in the 1950s. His first taste of major success came racing a ’57 Super Stock Chevy at the drag strips in Southern California. It was in that class that his rivalry with Tom “the Mongoose” McEwen began. In 1957, Tapia won the weekend’s competition in the Super Stock class 13 weeks in a row at the legendary Lions Dragstrip in Long Beach, Calif.

Later, Tapia raced a small-block Chevy-powered D/Gas class dragster that was constructed in his parents’ garage in Torrance, Calif. That car earned the nickname “the Giant Killer” after upsetting Art Arfons’ legendary Green Monster aircraft engine- powered land speed record-challenging car in a July 1959 match race at Lions. That same year, he won 50 out of 52 Middle Eliminator races at Lions. He made Lions’ “Standard 1320" list of record holders three times in 1958. He raced dragsters, including Top Fuelers until 1961 when he was drafted into the U.S. Army.

After being honorably discharged from the Army in 1963, Tapia came back to Southern California and raced Top Fuel dragsters exclusively. He drove for car owners Tarrant & Woodruff, Don Prieto, Don Madden, John Harbert, Ed Donovan, Larry Stellings, and Chris Karamesines. During this period, he continued his rivalry with Tom McEwen and was one of the few drivers who could claim to have bested the rarely beat Greer, Black and Prudhomme Top Fueler driven by Don “the Snake” Prudhomme.


As posted earlier, the Art Afrons Green Monster was now delegated to exhibition runs. In the back of everyone’s mind a friendly competition between the two drag racer’s times that were similar in E.T. So, there was a race between the quick Tapia Brother’s small SBC injected motor FED in a match race against the Green Monster. The Mailliard/Chrisman Sidewinder or Kenny Lindley/Don Hampton’s “Misfire” would not be a fair race, so the small SBC motor dragster from the E.T. time sheets was selected.

Everyone thought the blasting Green Monster would just stomp the small SBC dragster. But, as some had predicted, the quickness off of the starting line gave the advantage to the Tapia Brothers and Bobby Tapia led from start to finish. Much to the cheering of the local So Cal fans and racers.

In discussing the race between the so called mis-matched race vehicles, Dr. Richard Tapia told me that everyone was nervous and afterwards, excited for the results. Here is a photo he sent me to commemorate the event at Lion’s Dragstrip in 1959.

Tapia Bros Collection

The Tapia Brothers' injected SBC dragster did beat the Art Afron’s Green Monster. It was called: "Bobby Slays the Green Monster." In 1959 in a highly publicized match race, Bobby Tapia in the Tapia Bros SBC race car called “Almost Grown,” beat Art Afrons in the big Green Monster #11.

 

Jnaki you are like a drag racing encyclopedia (do they even have them anymore). I really enjoy your commentary.

Pat

 

Hello P,

Thanks for the nice comment. My brother and I literally grew up at Lion's Dragstrip from 1958-61. If we counted, every Saturday for lunch it was hot dogs and Cokes. Every Saturday for dinner, it was chili dogs and/or tamales until late summer 1960. It must have been in our upbringing, despite my mom hating every minute of it. "It is not a good place to be, those cars make too much noise, etc." (after hearing them from our front porch) But, memories and old films/photos make life enjoyable, just because, we were there.

Our experiences were similar to others across the nation. And, thanks goes to our dad and my early interest in cameras and movies. We were able to record and remember those moments as part of our lives.

My original family is now gone, but their memories sparkle every time I remember a story or two from that history of growing up in So Cal. (Specifically, Long Beach and now Orange County.)

If our granddaughter or son ever gets a hold of the digital files, then it is laid out for them to go back in our family history... just to see what good old grandpa did as a kid and 20 somethings.

Jnaki

So, thank you for enjoying reading my posts of the recollections from So Cal and hot rods, drag racing and the early days of growing up in Long Beach.

Memories are a great thing...

The Sidewinder with real 1959 Sidewinder SOUND.

This project was one of the best memories of that time period. Every time I hear that sound, it all comes back flooding my brain with years of films and memories.

Thank you for your nice comment !!! It is much appreciated.