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

Looking good! Any idea on how you are going to shroud the driveshaft?

 

That was GREAT! Thanks for the heads up. I saw a lot of race cars that I remeber watching growing up! that Ed Griffiths car is DAMN INTERESTING! I'll post a picture of it for everyone. Good conversation piece.

ALSO!! I'll go against my own rules here and post a picture of a Latemodel. The Stricker #68 car. That made my day! My dad lettered all those cars, and I would get to go with him. They had a banked Dirt kart track carved out in the back field and we'd bring my kart and I'd run a million laps while dad painted.. BUT!! a few of the cars, the one below for sure, I helped dad by filling in the white and the black on the numbers. I was eleven years old. We have a picture of me staning on the cowl lettering the roof numbers. Good memories..

 

Josh; Where was the super mod pic taken? It looks like Larry Dickson with the Long Bros. Trevis in the background.

 

I was thinking of using an 'agricultural' propshaft u joint cover,but at the moment can only find covers that are good for 1500 rpm......these look trick,and if I can get one that will spin 3000 rpm thats what I will use.

 

Josh,
That had to be one of the early down tube cars. And you sure can see what the driver was doing when he was driving! They need to take off all the side panels on the midget and sprint cars of today so the fans can see what the drivers are doing!
Jim Graybeal

 

jimg12, I agree, get rid of all the side panels. Denny Z

 

We used to tape cardboard to our upper arms to help with the dirt clods hurting so much but at least the fans [who pay the bills] could see what we were doing and thanks for agreeing with me.
Jimg12

 

Thanks guys - very cool information! Saw that pic and had to forward it over to Pinner's B&G (Oswego supermodified board). So many cars are no longer around that it's seriously cool when one of them turns up.

And after a couple of months of on & off reading, I'm FINALLY caught up. I think I may have a pic or two of early sprint cars at Shangri-La (Owego NY) in my archives - when I find them I'll post them.

 

"YES" .. or IF todays drivers think they are a necessary evil "on dirt", make them out of lexan or some other see through material. ....

I recently asked someone of the modern era why they also have them on "dedicated" asphalt cars? (Today we have seperate cars for both dirt & asphalt.) .. The answer I received was that (on asphalt) they give the car an aerodynamic advantage. .. My reply was .. 'OK!!! What if nobody had the side panels on asphalt, then everyone would have the same disadvantage.' .. To which I got a vacant, blank stare.

Don't get me started on wings and how I feel with todays cages, very containing safety seats, high hood cowls, etc. .. how I feel that a wing could potentially trap a driver in a car, after the wing crushes down and distorts in a flip .. a car that could potentially go on fire!!!!!

 

Gene ..

No we didn't stay for the banquet.

We had hit the road at 5 AM in order to get there fairly early (plenty of folks already there when we arrived) and it was a long drive back to approx. the mid point of this island .. plus, Sunday night traffic on the George Washington Bridge and the INFAMOUS Cross Bronx Expressway is HORRIBLE more times than not (you can actually sit for HOURS in that traffic), so we regretably left shortly before the banquet.

Yes sir .. next year for sure!!!!!

 

I agree next year at Stan`s! I`m already looking forward to it. Will stay for dinner next year!

Also,anyone have any IDs for these early Big Cars? I thing I see Ted Horn in one or two photos.

http://www.williamsgrove.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=35345

 

Ive got a problem! I`m missing two sprint cars, one is the first sprint built by the Cook boys. They were last stored up in Vestal N.Y. Someone Called Ben Cook and told him he either bought or was to buy the first sprint he built and a CAE. when Ben told him that I own the car he became very evacive.
Ben is not sure of the guy`s last name. It is either Allan Kestish or Kulish or something similar
Folks I need help finding this person !!!

 

AMEN to that Jim
PK

 

The worst thing anyone can do with someone dealing stolen property is let them know that you know. Good luck Stan. Hopefully you find the guy(s). Can he get the guy's number from his phone bill?

 

Here is a Line drawing I did for a sponsorship "pitch". If the team land the sponsorship, I'll post the colored final.

But, untill then enjoy.

I know it is an "ugly" new fangled car, but it is what it is.

 

butch that picture was taken on the front stretch of eldora speedway

 

I drove a "no side panel" winged sprinter until 1994. Only got whacked 1 time on the right forearm At Sharon. Drove the rest of the feature left handed. I rolled the same car one time at Lernerville- The wing completely surrounded the cage on both sides. I was trapped for a little bit. The fireman stood right by the inverted car, which was leaking alky slightly,with his extinguisher pointed into the car,til it was righted,and the wing peeled away to allow me to escape. I don't know what scared me more; the fuel leak or the extinguisher!........John S. P.S. It was my first rollover, too!

 

Folks,
Thanks to this site we may be able to resolve my problem. Some of you fine folks have given me the info I need to contact the person who has the cars and I will try to settle this disaster with him.

 

Hi Buildy,
I think Chitwood is in the Riverside car, but can not I.D. the others. Some nice looking cars!

 

Hi - The gentleman you're looking for is probably Alan Tatich. His family's been involved in local racing for years (they had a wild looking Mustang bodied dirt mod at Five Mile Point back in the 1980s) and he has a few old sprint cars - check 'em out here (please note that the webmaster should be contacted prior to reproducing or reposting any pictures from on the site):
http://www.midstateantiquestockcarclub.com/tatich18.html
http://www.midstateantiquestockcarclub.com/tatich53.html
http://www.midstateantiquestockcarclub.com/tatich55.html

 

Hi Joe, the Chitwood #2 car is the O'Day Offy. The track is the Lebanon Fairgrounds,
& pix #5 & #7 are of Mark Lights Miller. THis is the car Vic Nauman drove when he
& Chitwood tangled in turn #4 in 1941. It was a match race setup by Richwine.
mlight9.

 

This is a seriously good thread, here are some shots of my midget. I bought this car from Ed Goff around 1990. I believe he built it along with a few others. I ran it for some years with ACOT (Atlantic Coast Old Timers). When I first got the car it only had the number 41 behind the seat on both sides. A good friend of mine down here in Southeastern Connecticut hand painted all the other lettering in honor of my father and his brothers who loved the midgets. In a weak moment when I may have been dazed and confused I sold the car to a guy in Michigan. I kind of forgot about it until one day when I was sitting in the dentist office and I opened up the October 2006 addition of Automobile Magazine and saw this picture of the car as the main shot for the article on the Michael Dingman collection. Root canal would have been less painful at that point. Anyway, thought you might like to see the car. I don't know if it still is with them. The article describes it as a "1938 Huff Midget", but like I said earlier Ed Goff built the car. Jim M.

 

Hi Guys , maybe a bit OT as it is not technically a Sprint car but ran on both dirt and asphalt down here in the 50's and 60's.Thought you might like to see it as a comparison.
I have owned it for 38 years and this is about its 4th major re-furbish.
Built in 1953 using a discarded MG-TC chassis and our local GM version of the Chev stovebolt 6 called a Holden and only 138 cu in.15:1 on alcohol and British SU carburrettors for about 200HP with 94" wheelbase and drum brakes .Cart springs on all four corners.Comfortable and quick enough.
Roll bar is a modern addition to satisfy local regulations.
Cheers Greg

 

Shangri-La Speedway, Owego NY, opening day 1946:





First pic from the builder's daughter's collection; second pic from my family photo box. Some of the drivers persent included Hank "Grandpa" Gritzbach, Eddie Gallione, and George Bouley. My dad is directly below the large tree on the right, pushing the white sprint car onto the track.

 

VERY COOL BAKES! Thanks!

Welcome to all you new comers. Good lookin and interesting rides your posting.

I was flipping through an old CARTOONS this morning looking for something and saw this.. Thought ya'll get a kick out of it!

 

Close enough for me. I've always had a soft spot for the old f/e Aussie/Brit specials, Austin 7 racers, formula juniors and the like.

 

The second picture (car #28) shows the Harvey Kreiser/Hal, mostly driven by Vic Nauman, the next (car #73) is the Jerry della Torre/Hisso, mostly driven by Len Duncan, then (#2) comes Chitwood in the Hank O'Day/Offy, #9 the Mark Light/Miller and a few action shots of the Chief and Lightie. I can only guess about car #49, but don't want to go out on a limb...

The next two pics show Ted Horn, the first with Doc Gerner (??), and the second watching Chitwood prepare to get into the O'Day, car #7 is like #49, not sure what it is...

 

Hiram Hillegass built Miget and sprint cars in Allentown, PA. I once owned the car that lucky Loux drove to a NARA championship in 1952.

1) This is a picture inside Hiram Hillegass's shop in Allentown, PA probably in the late 40's, early 50's.

2) This is a copy of the Hillegass parts lists with prices.

3) This is picture and some info on the Hillegass I once owned. Chassis B6.

4) Another picture of Chassis B6

Joe

 

Diggin' it!!!

Josh - W/r/t the #21 Indy car I was wondering about from McConnell's barn a month or so back, looking through the indy car results from that era it looks like it was driven by Cale Yarborough.

 

Bakes, I dont know which post you are referring to when mentioning Cale Yarborough driving the #21 at Indy , but here is his ride for 1967 (at least at the beginning of May)
It is a quad cam Vollstedt and was mildly crashed by him in practice.Vollstedt finished the Sister car instead of chasing the repair on this one ,pulled the engine from this one and re-numbered the second car (originally #17) to #21 and that was the car he started in.
Mine is the car run by George Follmer at Riverside for a good top 10 placing whereas the Yarborough Indy ride was driven by World F1 Champion Jim Clark , who tagged a valve and did not finish. He was killed in an F2 race shortly after at Hockenheim
Cheers Greg