Famous Texas Tracks, Cars, Stories and SpeedShops

Great photos. Thanks for posting

 

thanks for posting....

 

Any of you who ran out at Green Valley have any stories to tell or pictures?

 

What a bevy of cool pix, man that Green Valley looks like it was a great venue, covered grandstand and all. Is that Tommy Ivo's quad buick digger? Thanx for taking me back to a time when I was young and my beard was red. ~sololobo~

 

I wish I was smart enough to figure out how to get an 8mm movie film of the 1966 Nationals at Green Valley on this website. Its pretty rough, lots of fade outs but its the real deal. At that time, Dickey Harrell was the king of all Chevy runners, I have a pix of his car on a hauler if i can find it.
Also have the original 1966 AHRA tech manual and rules book they used.
I'm an old goat so I do tend to lose/find things.
cooger

 

The one pix showing all the rails didn't come from Green Valley---that was made at the old Houston/Galveston drag strip in Dickinson.
cooger

 

The very last photo of the Chevy panel is Butch Lake. He was Hands (August Hardcoff) brother and both the 56 shown and the panel were wrenched by Hands.

Scott...

 

Few.

 

Have a lot more photos then I thought. Just keep checking by once or twice a day. If you would bump it that would help, just so others can see it.

 

Thanks 69Chevelle!

I'm still hoping someone has photos of my car from the 60's.

It was known then as The Pied Piper 409 power. It made the rounds of Kennedale, Forest Hills and Green Valley. (I was at the last Super Chevy at GV). Tye owner at that time was Charlie McElroy of Kennedale or Mansfield TX.

When I bought it, it was painted for drag racing and had Barton's Transmissions on the side, Marylou on the roof and had white pinstriping.

 

Last bit for the night, Happy New Year.

 

This car is famous but came from Kansas. The young couple who were ambushed in it were from Dallas.

 

Great pictures! Is there a chance that you have anymore pictures of Kelly Chadwick? He's a close family friend and we're always looking for more pictures of him. He was actually my Mom's high school basketball coach in Floydada, TX. Home of Kelly Chadwick and Don Hardy. Don Hardy invented / perfected the V8 into Vega swap. I'll try and scan some pictures of Chadwick later this evening.

 

Oh the horror!! What a waist of "Deuce".

 

ttt

 

Here you guys go

 

Ill look for ya, Ill eventually have all the pics Ive got posted so you will just have to look through them.

 

. . . . .

 

Great! Great! pictures 69 Chevelle. Thanks for taking time to post them!
For all the you guys who are part of the "Department of Corrections" and "Know-it-alls" Just let these pictures speak for themselves don't try to nick-pick where they were taken!
If you are from Texas and were there like I was when all this was going on YOU will know what picture was taken at what track.
Keep up the great work 69 Chevelle and please let's have some more!

1940 Willys Coupe

 

I don't see that being a problem at all. Thanks for all the pictures.

 

Bump to the top for this great Texas thread!

My first trip to Green Valley was in 1966. I was about 12 years old and went there with my dad, brother and cousin. My dad loved racing and took us all over the Texas and Louisiana to watch drag racing and dirt track racing. My mother and dad died when I was 13 years old and these memories are some I cherish. My brother was 18 at the time and he and I continued going to drag races and dirt track racing all over the country.
In 1967 my brother and I were at Interstate 20 Raceway in Tyler, TX. One Saturday night (we always hung around the Dacus Brothers of Hawkins,TX Anglia) and we got word from James Dacus that they were loading up and heading to Corpus Christi, TX after the races that night at Interstate 20 and running at a NHRA Divsion 4 points meet on Sunday the next day. Well my brother and I decided to drive all night too with the Dacus Brothers and we arrived the next morning about 10 AM in Corpus. Dacus unloaded their Anglia and made a few warm up passes and then it was time for eliminations. First round, Dacus Brothers C/G Anglia verses Butch Lake's E/MP 55 Chevy Sedan Delivery. Close race but Butch won. Butch put it on alot of cars that day and won the meet. Damn! was this great racing. There were alot of cars there and boy was it hot in Corpus.
Butch had to win about 10 rounds to win the whole thing. I remember standing in the lanes, tired and hot as hell, Butch and Glen Self with his little six cylinder Camaro were running for all the money. As usual Butch is as hiper as hell and he's ready. Glen Self, guite, not saying a word. Butch ended up winning but boy was it close. Butch came back to pits and that old 55 was hot.............steaming and Butch gets out of the car and says I told you guys at the start that everyone here better find out how much they are paying for runner money because the top prize belongs to me and this ol' 55. Man! that Butch was a "talker" He was young then, maybe 19 or 20 years old but for the most part he could "talk the talk" and "walk the walk" Man! that Butch was my hero! He COULD twist that four speed and is still a pretty mean race car drive today. Thanks to the Dacus Brothers and Butch Lake for putting on a show that will never be dulipcated.

Hey guys! This is just one of my stories on Texas Drag Racing from the early days. Lets hear some stories from you guys.

Again, thanks to 69 Chevelle for starting this great thread and all you guys out there from Texas and other parts of the country tell your stories and post those photos.

Thanks To the Hamb and all Concerned!

1940 Willys Coupe

 

Thanks for the amazing story bud, thats the stories I want and like to hear. You always hear about the drag racing scene in California but not much from Texas, not because it wasnt big, which you can tell looking at these pics and the shear number of drag strips it was amazingly huge, its just no one has sat down and put it down or researched it and put it to video. Since I didnt get to live it, I am trying to collect everything from Green Valley I can (bought some Green Valley trophies from the late 50's) because I dont want all of this history going down through time.

 

few more for today

 

Those photos of Green Valley look like it was the track that we drove up to to watch the racing at in 1970 when my dad went down to visit us in McGregor. I can't remember how we got there but there was a good looking gal racing a new at the time Purple Hemi Cuda convertible.

 

Thanks 69 Chevelle for the great new pictures? Keep'um Coming!

Green Valley Story! August "Hands" Hartkopf from Austin, TX and owner of the original Austin Speed Shop. His car, a 1956 white, 2 door sedan, small block Chev engine backed by a four speed. Car's name, what else, Hands Hauler.
As I stated earlier my first trip to Green Valley was in 1966, Labor Day
Weekend and the AHRA Nationals. Up till this time most of my going to drag races had been to both the local tracks where I lived, those being I-20 Dragstrip located near Tyler,TX and Whitehouse Dragstrip located in Whitehouse,Texas. I-20 ran on Saturday afternoon and Whitehouse ran on Sunday afternoon so my dad, brother and I would usually go to both tracks. There we usually about 100 cars at each track and the cars were usually local, strong cars that ran well but local (with in 50 miles). Every so often cars from Dallas would come down our way.
Well my first trip to Green Valley was an eye-opener. At least 3000 cars, Top fuel had a field of 32 cars to qualify and there must have been at least 75 top fuel cars there trying to make the field. Along with the top fuel guys there were many, many gassers, modified production cars, and stockers.
I had alway heard about this guy by the name of "Hands" and his bad 56 Chevrolet from Austin but had never seen him run. He was one of the guys that everyone talked about, a legend. Well we had been at Green Valley for a while watching cars run and up comes this white 56 Chev with a very big guy driving it. Car ran like jack-the-bear and I just knew this had to be "Hands." Watched the car come back down the return road and where he was parked in the pits. I made a beeline over to where the car was parked and while walking up to the car this BIG, BIG guy gets out of the car and I stopped dead in my tracks. This had to be "Hands" Not only was this guy BIG he was wearing a pony tail! Now keep in mind this was 1966 and seeing a guy wearing a pony tail was not something you seen everday!
While I standing there in awe, a big crowd had gathered around Hands car and nobody is saying a word! The ARE watching and checking out Hands car but nobody said anything or got close to the car! I had heard many stories about Hands and how tough, mean and scary he was! Well I kept hanging around and looking at the car and some of crowd went away and I was standing at the front of Hands car and Hands is working on something under the hood and he turns around to me and tells me to hold something for him. Damn! I almost died! I did what he said and the next thing you know Hands is talking to me and ask me my name and where I was from. He even introduced himself and told me where he was from. Don't remember much after that but I do remember my fist meeting of Hands and he is one person I WILL NEVER forget. Seen Hands many times after that and I always went up and said hello to him and he did not ever remember my name but only I was "The Kid From Green Valley". I did'nt care if he knew my name, it was just great to that he remembered me from Green Valley. Let me add this, the stories I had mentioned earlier about Hands being tough, mean and scary WERE NOT TRUE! I found him to be a guy that was "all business" at the drag races but I did see him laugh many times and talk to many people, offer advice to another racer and even seen him loan a guy some parts. Hands died way to young but he was a legend then and still a legend today. If you talk to people about drag racing in Texas in the late 50's and early 60's and they say they never heard of August "Hands" Hartkopf then they weren't there!

To follow, Part 2 Story of Hands and Match Racing

1940 Willys Coupe

 

Taking this Great TEXAS DRAG RACING thread back to the top for the lunch crowd!

Come on you Texas guys let's hear some stories!

1940 Willys Coupe

 

How we roll down south. Big headers were "in".

 

Thanks for the amazing story bud, I never heard of him and thats one reason I created this thread was to learn more about this famous Texas drag strip!

 

Well I take it back I have heard of Hands, it took me seeing his face to remember. Here are some photo's of him. Apparently his car is still around and comes to car shows every now and then.

 

Thanks 69 Chevelle for the post about Hands and all the great Photos!

In your last post those are great shots of Hands and in the middle of those pictures is a photo of Butch Lakes 55 Sedan Delivery. Butch is Hands half brother and this is the car I spoke about racing down in Chorpus Christi, TX in as post that I did earlier.
The 55 Sedan delivery is alive and well in Austin but according to Butch the 56 of Hands was demolished and totaled in a towing accident in late 1966. Butch said the car was stripped of all parts and hauled to a salvage yard. Keep in mind Hands did not tow his car with a trailer, he flated-towed it with a tow bar and towing hubs. Low buck, but that is how it was done it those days. Butch told me a story of flat-towing with a tow bar his 55 Sedan Delivery to the NHRA Winternationals in 1967 to race. Man! towing that far with tow bar and then back to Austin. Butch must of had some "big stones" to do that!
Lastly if you will look down in the bottom left hand corner of the post of the Hands photos you will see a drag race flyer advertising a match race with Hands and a guy by the name of Ferd Napel who had a 55 called the Stormin Bull. Hands and this guy did a best 3 out of 5 match race in San Antonio,TX back in 1965. This is the match race I spoke about in an earlier post and I will tell that story later. Think match racing happened only with funny cars or top fuel cars? Not in Texas! Only a legend like Hands could have pulled this deal off. Hands was known all over the USA. Alot of drag racers knew him. I have film footage of Hands racing his car at the NHRA 1959 Nationals in Detroit. Now picture him flat-towing his 56 all the way to Detroit in 1959 and then hauling it back to Austin. You can bet ol' Hands did have "big stones" Ha! Ha!

More of the "Match Race" later.

Thanks for all your efforts!

1940 Willys Coupe