By Richard Parks
EDITORIAL: “Regarding fuel burners, the current administration seems to grab the rules, for any class, out of thin air, without any rhyme or reason, and I think that the long-term goal is to have Top Fuel, Funny Car, maybe a doorslammer class of some sort, and have everybody else just run some kind of money bracket. It sounds somewhat outlandish, but if you read an NHRA Rulebook, you’ll see what I mean. The old Modified Production and Gas class cars were a prime example of how a couple of kids from nowhere could put together a car that they could afford, took their lumps, got whipped at some National events, learned a few things, became competitive, won some races, and moved on up. Nobody will remember their names now, but they were here, they were real. NHRA remembers none of this, and I would be willing to bet that there are few, if any at all, in the current administration, that have ever been down a drag strip in a REAL race car and have felt the effects thereof. There’s more that I could and would say, but why bother, they won’t change their ways.” Bob Small (original article shortened due to space issues)
REBUTTAL of sorts: Some have raised legitimate questions, such as, “Why do you allow content that defends or attacks organizations like the IHRA, AHRA or NHRA?” Such people, who admire, or dislike certain people also ask why I don’t defend or attack people, groups or topics. There are several replies I could make. One is that of time; if it happened today perhaps such a view would be offensive and I would answer them, but much of what we discuss happened half a century ago, or even a century, and over time, a long period of time, the anger has gone, and in fact the event is now
somewhat humorous. There are many sides to a question, and I look at all of them and use rational logic to make sense of it all. Do we REALLY KNOW what the officials have to go through to run an organization? I will start asking them and bring you their answers and maybe they aren’t so bad after all.
AND: ATTENTION SUBSCRIBERS: Several of our newsletter subscribers have informed us that our daily newsletter isn’t getting to their inbox. Yahoo, Gmail, AOL and iOS are currently updating their privacy policy and it may be ending up in spam. Please add us as a ‘Trusted Sender’ or ‘Not Spam’ so we can continue delivering the latest products and technology to you every day! This came from Epartrade, but I have the same problems too.
AND: PLAYNHRA: Odds will be released, and wagers will be accepted beginning with the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, which takes place June 7-9, 2024, at Bristol Dragway. NHRA announced today an exciting and landmark step forward for the company with the launch of PlayNHRA, an innovative new initiative that will provide fans opportunities to engage in fantasy games, gaming, and betting for NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series events. As part of Play
NHRA, NHRA’s partnerships with leading sports books and fantasy sports providers will enable fans to sign up for free and legally wager on national events and other outcomes in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. NHRA: 140 Via Verde, Suite 100, San Dimas, CA 91773, nhracommunications@nhra.com. (more later)
EDITOR: Don’t gamble away the house, wife and kids. A nickel won is enough for bragging rights.
AND: I enjoy getting the newsletter every week and I read it from top to bottom. Just one thing I would ask of anyone publicizing an event: Please say What it is, When it is, and Where it is. You’d be surprised but almost no one gets all three! The “when” part needs to include the time, too. Thanks, and keep up the good work! MARK VAUGHN, Autoweek Editor
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1) Darryl Bassani, Celebration of Life for 4/28/24. The dream crashed when Darryl Bassani was diagnosed with cancer. He fought hard but passed on February 7, 2024. A people person who loved and was loved plans were made to honor and share his incredible journey with a Celebration of Life that would be held at the Carson Center. Home of the Trailblazers Banquet that Darryl attended every year he knew everyone who went to this annual Gala and other than the fact that they did not play Jimi Hendrix at full volume Darry Bassani loved the event and people. No wind, no rain, the weather was perfect for the several hundred friends and relatives who came to pay homage to Darryl Bassani on April 28th. Much like the motorcycle show the TB Banquet that was held in the outside courtyard was filled with bikes, pictures and miscellaneous mementoes. They were all Bassani machines and pictures. Howie Zechner, howie@razvideo.com. (to be continued)
MORE OBITS: Are you trying to find Al Caldwell? Or to see if he’s still alive? I believe about 20+ years ago I had a photo customer tell me about an estate sale he attended in NorCal. He purchased a box containing my photos that had been featured in Caldwell’s Drag Race Gazette. They were 5×7 prints, the only person I did 5×7 prints was for Al back in 1965-68. I asked Jamie Jackson to help find out about Al, I do know he was good friends with Chico Breschini {NorCal racer}, Chico has passed but his son may know about Caldwell. In Parks’ newsletter it mentioned that Al was a former editor of Drag News? I thought he only wrote a column for Doris called “Northern Briefs”? One last thing, my Southern California Top Fuel Dragsters book will finally be coming out in the fall, yes, I’m dumb enough to try and do another book, this time on OCIR. Steve Reyes
STEVE: What do you know about Drag Race Gazette. I’ve never heard of it and would like to know.
AND: For the record, Al Caldwell was never Drag News editor; but NorCal’s columnist. Reyes’s story about the estate sale’s 5×7″ prints sounds like evidence of Al’s passing. Dave Wallace Jr
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2) Urban Meyer believes NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) in college football has evolved into cheating, “That’s not what the intent is.” When the NCAA can’t see what they allowed to happen, nobody can foresee what will happen. Having said that, day one I said this NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) money is going to get out of hand and cause the biggest problems NCAA Football has ever seen. Oh, what platform is the NHRA betting going to be located? How will NHRA be getting “reports” from betting platforms from all over the WORLD? Again, total pipedream. Wait until an unnamed group place million-dollar bets. See https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/urban-meyer-believes-nil-in-college-football-has-evolved-into-cheating-thats-not-what-the-intent-is/. From John Towle jtowle47@gmail.com.
JOHN: Good point. In the Wally & Barbara Parks story, We Did It Our Way, there is a reference in the 1960’s where the Federal courts expanded liability to the term “DEEP POCKETS” and that changed the way every company in America did business. Once the “Genie” was out of the bottle there was no going back to printing “AT YOUR OWN RISK” that prevented track owners and sanctioning bodies from lawsuits, however frivolous and the costs skyrocketed. The same is true with gambling. There is simply no way to stop it and now we are in that stage of trying to regulate the monster.
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3) Lions Automobilia Foundation & Museum is Proud to Announce the 2024 Hall of Fame Inductees and Event. Join the Board of Directors and founder Rick Lorenzen as they introduce the third annual class of their Hall of Fame inductees on Thursday, November 14, 2024. The Hall of Fame awards dinner and silent auction fundraiser at the Lions Museum in Rancho Dominguez, California will honor the following 8 individuals who have made a major impact on motorsports: JC Agajanian, Jack Chrisman, Steve Gibbs, Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Wally Parks, Carroll Shelby, & Bill Stroppe.
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4) From Jim Miller, Chief Historian for the American Hot Rod Foundation (Gas/Fuel wars, serialized in coming issues):
Everything changed in 1935 when Mercedes-Benz jumped into Grand Prix Racing and later published some of its “Secret” fuel mixture secrets along with the Brits with their book, Speed, and how to obtain it. At the same time Harley-Davidson Rider Joe Petrelli who was working for Howard Hughes (on his Race plane) and Art Sparks on his Champ Cars (Indy) passed on some of his doped motorcycle fuel tricks and tuning secrets. The attached list was published in Motor Age magazine back in March 1938 so studious individuals had easy access to the “Secrets” of doping. And how do you think Bob Rufi got his little Chevy 4-Banger to run 143 mph in 1940, a Methanol mix revealed by the Germans in the Floyd Clymer published Motor Racing with Mercedes Benz. Jim Miller, Dry Lakes Racing Hall of Fame member in the Historian Category Miller212.842@sbcglobal.net. (to be continued)
EDITOR: I couldn’t copy the fuel list from the PDF that Jim sent. Contact Miller and ask him to send it to you.
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5) Dave Nicholas in the Alfa Romero Giulietta he co-drove to a first-place finish in class at Vineland in 1964. Even though none of the other BARC Boys continued racing, Nicholas struggled on. He sold his MG and tried to buy Bob Bucher’s Lotus 23 Sports Racer but couldn’t raise the $5000. However, he was able to continue racing by driving other owners’ cars including Formula Vs and other production cars. In 1968 he bought another MGA in which he ran the Giants Despair Hillclimb then won in F Production Class at the Watkins Glen 100. Unfortunately, he then promptly blew the motor a week later at Marlboro. As his finances dwindled, Nicholas needed money to live on and fund his racing hobby. From: Dave Nicholas at davnik6@gmail.com. (to be continued).
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6) May issue of Vintage Metal magazine (Western Australia). On Sunday March 24, 2024, we lost a long-time member and supporter of the VSCC of Western Australia, Mike Barnes. Mike was most recently active as our Regalia Officer, a duty he performed with the help of the late Jean Atkins. Mike had to withdraw from the Regalia Officer position owing to failing health and we are sorry to hear of his passing. He will be fondly remembered by many VSCC members. Editor Bob Campbell is at robertcampbell4@icloud.com.
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7) BOOK REVIEW Corvette Drag Racing: The Golden Era, by Jim Dillon (2023). (to be serialized in the Newsletter)
The author describes numerous scenes in photographs, captions and text with racers and owners such as Bones Balogh, Hugh Osterman, “Big John” Mazmanian, Art Cordell, Dick Taylor, Bob Phelps, Mike Lenke and many more in the early 1960’s. The racers and their story pour forth in abundance and it is clear Dillon has researched the archives well. Each chapter in the books denotes a specific year with such titles as “Dawn of the Golden Era,” “The Racing Ban meets the Three Shell Con Game,” “I Broke Everything but My Seat Belt Trying to Win,” “Invasion of the Gassers,” “Pros versus Joes,” “The Sunset Falls on Stock Solid Axle Corvettes,” “Corvettes Expand on Their Track Success,” “How Long is Your Wheelbase,” “The Death Knell of Modified Eliminator,” “Vintage and Nostalgia Events – A Trip Back in Time,” and much more. Jim Dillon can be reached at jim@dillonreo.com and Gone Racin’ is at RnParks1@Juno.com. (to be continued)
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8) Pioneers take the arrows. No one knows the whole 10-year back story that made it all happen. Till now. CAN I SHOOT HERE reads like a typical Horatio Alger novel. A naive enthusiastic kid with a camera and a passion came into the game with a vision and out the other end a self-taught filmmaker. Whose groundbreaking Moto Award-winning “NITRO WARRIORS” Super Bowl of Drag Racing ’88 video nuked the drag racing world. TV races were never the same. The
landmark TV production of a Nitro Drag Race with natural nitro sounds and an abundance of Swoopies. Automotive media critics raved and credited that single production as literally changing the look of Drag Racing TV presentation. https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=hzypFSTWrOI Tge is the full unedited original 1hr show. You judge. Dean Papadeas is at
maineventvideo@earthlink.net. (to be continued).
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9) The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Class of 2025: Skip Barber (1936-) John “Skip” Barber III won 3 consecutive SCCA national titles, then founded and ran the famed Skip Barber Racing School, guiding a generation of racers, including Newman, Michael Andretti, Jeff Gordon, Danny Sullivan, Helio Castroneves and Juan Pablo Montoya. Later he became owner/operator of Lime Rock Park. Barber began racing in 1958 while a student at Harvard. He won back-to-back SCCA Formula Ford national crowns in 1969 and ’70 and a third straight title the following year in Formula B. He entered six F1 races, with a best finish of 16th at the 1972 US Grand Prix. The Philadelphia native started his driving school in 1975. It quickly became known as one of the best in the world. Skip Barber alumni have won every major American racing series, including NASCAR Cup Series and IndyCar. From: Adam Saal at SaalGoodPR@gmail.com or 321-890-2848.
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10) Goodwood members meeting races, April 13-14, 2024 (last in the series). Just before the end of the race, while coming down the front straight the 3rd gear completely locked out and fortunately for a large grassy area to the right to pull over as I did not want to have the race stopped, if the car left in a precarious location adjacent to the track. The Marshals were quick and great in responding, as they had to first check if it was only a mechanical failure. It was a difficult tow as the gear was locked in 3rd. Being late in the day for the race, we faced the chilly biting cold winds, but we were warm in our hearts that our team with the Esprit de Corp spirit prevailed, strong, proud, and intact! Ernest Nagamatsu Photographs by John Taylor, Veloce Today: https://velocetoday.com/04-23-and-how-ernie/. Old Yeller II in Peter Collins Race https://www.
facebook.com/messenger_media?attachment_id=3336245040011548&message_id=mid.%24cAAAAAFSuAe-VIqO9q2O8V3Z-GL4P&thread_id=10728540. From Ernie & Elaine Nagamatsu at etnracer@gmail.com.
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11) Gone Racin’ … Ak Miller’s Tribute. Story by Richard Parks. June 28, 2005 (last in the series on Ak’s Tribute)
Others who came to show their respects included: Stormin’ Norman Benham, Richard Miazga, Don Kanotick, Phil Hara, Johnny Ryan, Bob Keller, Mark Saxlond, Bruce Eikenberger, Jim Moran, Rory Rinebold, Eric “Rick” Rickman, Michael Rickman, Don Blair, John McDowell, Dennis Jones, James and Earlene Smith, Mike Jones, Nancy Corn, Pete and Doris Pierce, Barbara Parks, Roger Rohrdanz, Jack Gingrich, John Watt, Dan and Doris Eames, Chuck Nippress, Vic Cunningham, Wayne Phillips, Jim “Jake” Jacobs, Tim Timmerman, Mike Cincola, Bill “Whizzer Bike” and Joey Graham, Bruce Glasscock, Jim Miller, Louis Senter, Ross Haas, Rick Burley, Bob Millner, Nick Arias Jr, Randy Schmitt, John Della Porta, Sherry Watkins, Lee Wasden, Bob Wildoner, Ernie & Dion Chapman, Don Zabel, George Callaway, Jon Meyer, Duane McKinney and many others.
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12) Books and Manuals from CarTech Publishing, 6118 Main Street, North Branch, Minnesota 55056, 1-800-551-4754,
www.CarTechBooks.com. Drag Racing’s Warren “The Professor” Johnson: The Cars, People, & Wins Behind His Pro Stock Success, by Kelly Wade (reviewed by the editor). 1001 Steve McQueen Facts: The Rides, Roles, and Realities of the King of Cool, by Tyler Greenblatt. Chevrolet Inline-6 Engine: How to Rebuild, by Dave Krehbiel. David Vizard’s Chevy Big-Blocks: How to Build Max Performance on a Budget, by David Vizard.
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13) Ice Speedway Racing History: Another factor in the increasing speeds was improved tire building technology. This all came about through trial and error by some dedicated indoor ice racers. In fact, it takes many hours to “build” a winning set of tires for a champion ice racer. Around the same time the custom dedicated racing studs came on the scene racers began experimenting with inner tire liners. They would cut and install special liner tires inside their regular racing tires. Sometimes a bicycle tire is used for a front liner and a street motorcycle tire for a rear liner. These days there are special purpose-built liners available to racers. http://icespeedway.com/history_ice_racing.html (to be continued)
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14) Trailblazers Banquet – April 6, 2024. The Earl & Lucile Flanders Lifetime Achievement Award followed. Its recipient Rod Lake is truly deserving of this honor. This passionate racer and rider still likes to twist the throttle however Rod’s claim to fame revolves around his sponsorship of countless riders like Eklund, Car, Graham, Bosostrum to name a few. Not impressed try this on for size cause in a partnership with the Lodi Motorcycle Club he created in 1992 for the last 30 plus years Rod has paid the entry fee for any racer under 10 years old. Congratulation to Rod Lake. From Howie Zechner at
howie@razvideo.com. (to be continued)
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15) NHRA officials announced today that Pingel Enterprise, Inc, a longtime manufacturer of high-quality motorcycle performance parts, has been named the title sponsor for the series, which will make four appearances during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season. The Pingel NHRA Top Fuel Motorcycle Series will take place at four events in 2024, beginning with the NHRA’s national event at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago. Pingel has been a key partner for top riders in drag racing’s motorcycle ranks, including Larry “Spiderman” McBride, who set the record for the fastest motorcycle pass in drag racing history at the NHRA national event in 2022 at Virginia Motorsports Park. From: National Hot Rod Association nhracommunications@nhra.com.
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16) Sir Jackie Stewart Honored by RRDC at Long Beach. About Race Against Dementia: Race Against Dementia was founded by Sir Jackie Stewart OBE, after his wife Helen’s frontotemporal dementia diagnosis, funding early-career researchers to accelerate progress towards a cure for dementia. With over 55 million people affected globally and someone diagnosed every three seconds, Race Against Dementia is taking immediate action to drive significant breakthroughs and develop leaders in the field. Supporting Race Against Dementia can help talented research scientists continue to seek preventative treatments and cures for dementia. https://www.raceagainstdementia.com/ “I now face one of the biggest challenges of my life. I will put all my efforts into finding a cure for this horrendous illness.” Sir Jackie Stewart OBE. From: Judy Stropus jstropus@earthlink.net.
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17) Remembering Jim McLennan; courtesy of Don Smith. “My Siblings and I are blessed to say and mean that all of our uncles were warm, generous and funny men. I think we thought that was the way all families were! But when I got into high school and enjoyed some measure of popularity because my Uncle Jim McLennan owned Champion Speedway, I knew I was in a special family! What fun it was to learn math at Half Moon Bay Dragstrip even before that. No cash register to tell you how much change to give back! What fun it was to stop at The Wagon Wheel on the way home from the races where Kathy and I would pretend the cute racers were looking at us!” Jeanice McNamara
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18) SEMA thank you for allowing us to use your garage and meeting room upstairs. I’m getting so many comments and emails back about how much they liked it and when is the next event like this? I tell them it’s the SEMA show in Las Vegas the first week in November. This is a quick look at something we did with no budget attached to it. Thank God for Pocket Computers we call them. Bill Montgomery at hiddenpioneers@gmail.com.
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19) ED PINK story, written by Dick Martin 2012 (captions left in text, to be serialized)
“Jack helped me run the ’34 at El Mirage but the partnership just wasn’t successful. It was something we tried together and it didn’t work. We remained friends until the day Jack died.” That lasted a couple of years before Ed quit the partnership and went to work for another giant in the speed equipment industry. “I worked for Frank Barron, who was partners with Bob Tattersfield, of Barron-Tattersferld cylinder heads and intakes. Barron had a stock automobile repair shop and taught me how to repair stock automobiles.” To see the captioned photographs go to https://www.motortrend.com/staff/dickmartin/.
Dick Martin is at turboguydm1@gmail.com.
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20) BLAST FROM THE PAST…… From the Wally & Barbara Parks story, We Did It Our Way. JANUARY 1943 Parks remembers the SCTA during the 1940’s. “During the World War II years, when many if not most of SCTA’s members were enrolled in either the military services or involved with US defense industries, the organization was placed in mothballs. With many overseas, there was a surprising number of communications between them, mostly via the military’s APO and FPO mail services. But with the SCTA Racing News curtailed along with other activities, it was Veda Orr, dry lakes racer and wife of Karl Orr, owner of one of the early speed shops, who stepped up to offer her California Timing News (CTN), gratis, to a mailing list of reachable contacts at home and abroad.”
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21) TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 1988, SPORTS Copyright 1988/THE TIMES MIRROR COMPANY JIM MURRAY. Reprinted courtesy of Linda Murray. Dan Gurney
Dan Gurney says with a shrug. “Indy just didn’t want to do it.” Gurney is one of only five drivers who finished second two years in a row at Indy and the only one who finished second, second, third and then retired. He didn’t leave the pits, just the track. He never won there in the cockpit, but the Eagle cars he designed and built won three times. The trouble with Gurney is, he still has the look of the All-American boy on his way to football practice. They’ve never had to peel Dan Gurney off a wall or cut him out of charred wreckage. From: Jim Murray Memorial Foundation linda@jimmurrayfoundation.ccsend.
com or murrayscholars@aol.com. (to be continued)
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22) Based on victory lane hardware from Gene Felton’s vast collection, the permanent trophy commemorates the driver’s long association with the Lanier Technical College, where he helped interns in the Motorsports Vehicle Training program get hands-on racing experience. Donations in Felton’s honor can be made at https://www.laniertechfoundation.org. The 46th Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) Mitty on-track schedule offers non-stop action with eight feature races and back-to-back WeatherTech sprint races while an ample lineup of off-track activity and attractions are also part of this one-of-a-kind automotive extravaganza. Club corrals fill the Michelin Raceway infield, camping is available at every level and vendors offer amazing finds. From: HSR Communications adam@saalgood.ccsend.com.
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23) When the pandemic hit, the event moved first to Watkins Glen International, then to the Harbor Hotel in Watkins Glen, recognizing Lyn St James, Mike Helton and Richard Childress through 2023. “We are thrilled to be returning to the Corning Museum of Glass, where the IMRRC launched the CRA Award galas in 2014, initially honoring Chip Ganassi,” said Mark Steigerwald, Executive Director of the IMRRC. “We expect a significant turnout for this year’s event, based on the huge growth of popularity of Formula 1 racing in recent years, and McLaren’s progress in performance since Brown came on board with the team. The CMOG’s facility can easily accommodate a large number of attendees.” From: Judy Stropus
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24) SCTA & BNI event calendar for 2024. Always check the SCTA website for information regarding the events before attending. May 18-19, 2024 (two-day event, El Mirage Dry Lake). June 9, 2024 (El Mirage Dry Lake). July 14, 2024 (El Mirage Dry Lake). Bonneville (Utah) Speedweek, August 3-9, 2024. September 15, 2024 (El Mirage Dry Lake). Bonneville (Utah) World Finals, September 28-October 1, 2024. October 20, 2024 (El Mirage Dry Lake). November 9-10, 2024 (two-day event, El Mirage Dry Lake). rulebookinfo@scta-bni.org, 661-802-1355.
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25) I’m a friend of Allen Kuhn, who has been helping me try to find out what ever happened to Tommy Burnside. So far, we’ve had no luck, but Allen thought you might know. I’m doing a story for my blog that takes place in 1956 at three east coast races, and Tom was very much involved in all of them. But I have to assume that he left us some time ago. However, he was an early subscriber to my blog, and his account is still active. I still have his home address in Santa Rosa as well. But neither is his phone number, nor his email seem to be active any longer. And no one else seems to have a clue. So, I’m hoping that you would know. Thanks for your time, Regards, Pete Vanlaw
PETE: At one time I remember you were in my address book, somehow, I lost a lot of emails. I checked my address book and couldn’t find Tommy Burnside in it, but I do know Allen Kuhn.
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26) The World Championship ICE Racing Series offers multiple racing divisions: Youth Quad and Bike Classes. This is where the future of ice racing begins! Not only is this where the future of racing starts, it is truly a crowd favorite! These kids have the passion and drive to become the next generation of ICE racers! Racing 50cc youth bikes and 90cc (or less) youth quads. Must be 4 years old or older to participate. Google: http://icespeedway.com/history_ice_racing.html.
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27) I always check for spam, never see the newsletter there. Your last name must be poison around here. Some do sneak through the Parks Filter. Paul Chamberlain forwards the rest, luckily. [Thanks again, Paul) Thanks to YOU, too, for sharing these Hemmings items. As you know, it’s all about clicks, anymore (sigh) & paying gigs are extremely hard to come by. Could’a, should’a, would’a chosen some different career at age 14, had it occurred that magazines would run out of runway after 600 years. Then again, the six decades since would’ve been awfully boring, huh? No regrets, Dave Wallace Jr.
EDITOR: Thanks again Paul. We don’t regret at all that DWjr picked a fading career. Dave, keep writing.
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28) Real Road Racing; The Santa Monica Road Races, by Harold Osmer and Phil Harms (serialized review). The second chapter is called The First Year 1909. Santa Monica is eager to gain notoriety and the road race is just what the city fathers need. The road course was 8.4 miles long and looked every bit like a modern NASCAR stock car. There was a long straightaway on Wilshire Blvd, which had a wicked turn onto San Vicente Blvd. Three short turns on San Vicente led to a sharp turn onto Ocean Blvd and a mile run before an equally sharp turn back onto Wilshire. Long courses meant little action and crowds would often become restless. Dogs, horses and people would venture onto the road courses, creating obstacles for the drivers to dodge. Harris Hanshue won the 1909 race over 24 laps at an average speed of 64.44mph, a remarkable speed for that day and age. Bert Dingley won the light car race averaging 55.32mph. Harold Osmer is at program@
hopublishing.com (to be continued)
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29) I am bringing DRAGcartoons to Sweden this summer to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Pitea Dragway! The following events will showcase papers: Pitea Dragway (Sweden); Mooneyes; Grand National Roadster Show; Good Vibrations;
March Meet; Classic Burger Car Show (Inyokern); Lions Automobilia Museum; NHRA Winternationals; Fabulous Fords Forever; Canyon Run Car Show; Lake Hughes Antique Nationals; Irwindale Roar of the Lion Nitro Car Show; Isky Birthday Parties; Ventura Nationals; Cruising for a Cure; California Hot Rod Reunion; SEMA Show; Nitro Revival; NHRA World Finals; Don Garlits Museum; Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum; ADM Zimmerman Museum and many more events. Artwork DEADLINE September 1, 2024. PRINT READY JPEG or PDF files due by September 15, 2024. LAST CALL is
September 19, 2024. Thank you, Robin Millar, at 310-529-1831, Millarkey@aol.com, 818-842-6900, daughter of Pete Millar, King of Cartoons, Publisher, Cartoonist, Dragracer, the creator of CARtoons Magazine, publisher of DRAGcartoons, Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth and Wonder Warthog, www.laffyerasphalt.com.
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30) Dean Cusano has been in the automotive restoration world for over 45 years, is certified by Jaguar Clubs of North America to judge Concours and is a Northeast Regional Director of JCNA. He has been responsible for the restoration and distribution of more than 225 E-type Jaguars worldwide. He is the CEO of Motorsports Incorporated and a vintage Jaguar racing hobbyist. From: Judy Stropus
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31) My thoughts in writing an otherwise dream achieved, might encourage other dreamers with inspirational fortitude to believe in themselves. To also recognize and pay overdue proper tribute to the many unknown veteran racers; whose big part in growth of the sport never got ink. To point out the stand-up guys who furthered the sport and allowed a newbie to flamboyantly dance around their starting lines. To make known the basic hypnotic lure of Nitro’s hook as mesmerizing addiction to cackle sound, eyes water from sweet smells. It launched the career of an outsider inspired to show nitro as the entertainment value it has. Which home videos demanded. VSDA had to invent a “Motorsports” category for Main Event’s
videos. A first in the new VHS home video market. Dean Papadeas maineventvideo@earthlink.net. (to be continued).
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32) The link does not seem to work. John Towle
JOHN: The problem is in how I make up the newsletter. To save time, since it takes so long to put the newsletter together, I copy and paste the message and link into the format I work by. Links only seem to work by “forwarding” the link and loses its ability to take the receiver to the internet site if it is “copied and pasted.” To forward the links takes me so much longer to make up the EMAILED newsletter that it defeats my purpose. The link in the Motorsports Newsletter only works if the reader “copies” and then “pastes” the link in the browser and then clicks “ENTER.” Since most people who want to see the “linked” article will “copy and paste” into their browser, then it saves me considerable effort.
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33) Hidden Pioneers we are moving forward with the Show series called “Hidden Garages.” We shot some B-reel footage at the SEMA garage and will be editing a demo to show you soon. You may want to pay attention to this movement before it passes us all by. Hidden Garages Show Series info https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHvLVITMxfM&t=900s. Bill Montgomery & Hidden Garages (youtube.com).
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34) KNOW YOUR MOTORSPORTS PERSONALITY: Beth Paretta, Owner of Paretta Autosport and Co-Founder of WIMNA. Michele Abbate, Professional Race Car Driver, Team Owner & Aspiring TA2 Champion. Compiled from Epartrade.
NHRA Crew Chiefs Aaron Brookes, Crew Chief for Bob Tasca, Funny Car. Compiled from Epartrade.
Dave Darland, “The People’s Champ,” Darland is the third driver to claim all three USAC National Championships: Silver Crown, Sprint Car and Midget. In 2023, Darland has retired after being behind the wheel for 52 years.
Steve Phelps, President of NASCAR, joined us for the 4th Annual Race Industry Week. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, Phelps oversees all operations, competition and commercial, for the sanctioning body. Hosted by Brad Gillie from SiriusXM, Channel 90, Late Shift. From: EPARTRADE team@epartrade.com.
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35) He’s also participating in the Callout as he attempts for a double-up weekend taking on stars like defending world champ Erica Enders, who is the top seed in the GETTRX Pro Stock All-Star Callout, defending event winner Dallas Glenn and Jeg Coughlin Jr. The full Callout fields features Enders, Anderson, Glenn, Troy Coughlin Jr, Aaron Stanfield, Matt Hartford, Cristian Cuadra and Deric Kramer. From: National Hot Rod Association nhracommunications@nhra.com.
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36) June 2, 2024, La Dolce Vita: the all-Italian Cruise-In 10 AM-5 PM. Petersen Automotive Museum info@petersen.org.
Petersen Automotive Museum 6060 Wilshire Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90036.
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37) REVIEW: “FAST FORDS: 50 Years Up Close and Personal with Ford’s Finest,” by Jeremy Walton. He was on the scene when fast Fords arrived in the early sixties alongside the Blue Oval becoming serious about motorsport. He has tested almost every significant performance derivative ever since, many straight from Ford’s competitions department. From Cortinas to Capris, Escorts and Sierras, via the epic GT40s to extraordinary Transit Supervans and into the new Millennium with Mondeo, Focus and Fiesta, Walton was there. Presenting his extraordinary expertise and experience in his trademark colorful writing style, Walton puts the reader in the driving seat for a rollercoaster of exciting rides. Any enthusiast who has ever enjoyed a fast Ford will love this feast of nostalgia. www.evropublishing.com. From: jvstropus@gmail.com.
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38) With an outgoing personality, a good business sense and knowledge of cars, Nicholas took a sales job with a local car dealer in Binghamton selling Alfas, Triumphs and FIATs. This proved to be a success, but Nicholas kept his eye out for a better opportunity, one that would involve selling cars but also might lead to racing. That opportunity appeared a few years later with another local car dealer. In the neighboring town, Binghamton, there was a small BMW Dealership owned by Jiri Nechleba, well known as the best in the area for tuning cars. Dave Nicholas at davnik6@gmail.com. (to be continued).
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39) I hope my week is filled with emails. I’ll let you know the results. thanks for all you do. did you see the photo of Dan Gurney at Bonneville, which came from his son Jimmy Gurney after a discussion of the decals on my Sub (subscription?). Tim Lewis (zooterincm@aol.com).
TIM: I can’t process photographs, but can I tell the readers to email you for the photograph?
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40) Comments written by Gene Joderquist and Griff Borgeson in August 1953 about the Nitro scene in Southern California. “Consolidated Solvents Corporation has been virtually the sole source of nitromethane, the fuel which cut with methanol, has powered all the Bonneville record holders. This spring, Consolidated announced its total output was being taken over by the government. The two retailers of nitro to the hot rod sport, Wilcap Corporation (Tony Capana) and Francisco Fuels, were allotted 25 drums each for the rest of the year. This comes as a shattering blow to record-seekers and a relief to the majority who only used costly nitro because everyone else was using it. The withdrawal of nitro will chop speeds at the dry lakes and drags; the scant existing supply will be hoarded like radium, and its value will soar. But, if rodders run true to form, the obstacle will be overcome.” Sent in by supersleuth historian, Jim Miller (to be continued).
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41) The remaining NHRA YES (Youth & Education Services) events the Hidden Pioneers plan to support. 2024 NHRA
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Season Schedule. July 19-21, 2024, 35th annual Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals, Pacific Raceways, Seattle. To purchase or renew tickets, please visit www.nhra.com. From Hidden Pioneers
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42) How Leah Pruett’s Health Battles Are Faring Also, while the NHRA star stepped away to focus on expanding her family, she’s become keen on fighting for fair treatment of other women drivers who want to do the same. NASCAR’s Spire Motorsports Offers More Security for 2021 Daytona 500 Winner Michael McDowell says multi-year contract provides more security than the year-to-year deal he’d been working from since 2018. Tough and Humble: The 2022 Toyota Tundra Is Poised to Move Mountains Engineered to be an unstoppable adventure machine, the all-new pickup truck’s breadth of capability will lead you to your breath of fresh air. Autoweek at autoweek@newsletter.autoweek.com and Don Smith.
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43) CHICAGO (May 15, 2024) – A massive weekend of racing action in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series at Route 66 Raceway also means a huge collection of Top Fuel and Funny Car standouts at the 24th annual Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK Performance. “Hands-down, this is the most competitive the nitro cars have ever been,” Top Fuel’s Clay Millican said. “I lost the final in Charlotte by 0.016-seconds and that’s every weekend in this class. It’s not unusual for it to be that close in these categories. So, you’ve got to have your game face on from the first qualifying run. You have to be on your ‘A’ game every single run. The shows are incredible, and everyone will definitely see that this weekend in Chicago.” From: National Hot Rod Association nhracommunications@nhra.com.
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44) Thanks for the information. A Pipe dream at best. Betting will never be able to be regulated! NHRA nor anyone else will ever control who is betting. In the still of the night, family and friends will make bets and the driver & team won’t be able to stop them. That puts pressure on the driver/teams to go “just” a little over the line, where the danger hides. I’m sorry, I do not trust ANYONE who thinks they can control this every BAD plan to work the way they think it will work. Take a look at how the NIL money has screwed up the NCAA. That’s like saying everything on the internet is good. Keep up the good work and know I greatly appreciate all you do. John Towle
JOHN: I felt that way once and I also had qualms. What NHRA is trying to do is monitor gambling, not profit from it. They will receive reams of data to see where, when, how and who might be gambling. As emails with details become available from the Association, I will share it with readers on the newsletter. Your emails make great editorials, so keep sending them.
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45) New NASCAR in-season tournament in 2025. Prime Video also announces it will be home for the Coca-Cola 600 in 2025. NTT IndyCar series sets date for hybrid era debut. Less than a year after first test, IndyCar circles upcoming Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on its calendars. Oliver Bearman’s 2025 F1 audition set to ramp up with Haas sessions. Haas has a 2025 Formula 1 seat open, and Bearman might just be in the right place at the right time. 2024 Indy 500 entry list: The quest to NOT be this year’s Graham Rahal qualifying for the 108th Indianapolis 500 will cut one driver from the 34-driver entry list. Mick Schumacher will pilot Alpine Hypercar at Le Mans 24. Meanwhile, 4-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel left off Porsche lineup for Le Mans. From: Autoweek Racing Daily autoweek@newsletter.autoweek.com and Don Smith.
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46) Sherm Porter’s Schedule of car shows and events (fuely32@sbcglobal.net)
JUNE 15, 2024, Monterey Rock & Rod Festival 17, Saturday Show, Custom House Plaza, downtown Monterey, CA. Terry Wecker @ 831-809-6252 or www.montereyrockrod.com.
JUNE 15, 2024, Wild & Crazy Car Show, Tracy Wildlife Association & Pete Paulsen hosts, Tracy, CA. Pete 209-983-0271 or www.tracywildlife.org.
JUNE 16, 2024, 24th Garlic City Car Show, downtown Gilroy, CA. Trophies, bands, vwright@Gilroy.org or https://gilroy.org/garliccitycarshow.
JUNE 22, 2024, 28th Santa Maria Elks Club Car Show, 9am–3pm. 805-922-1538.
JUNE 20-23, 2024, 28th Woodies on The Wharf, Santa Cruz, CA. www.santacruzwoodies.com.
JUNE 21-23, 2024, VAIRFEST, all Corvair Car Show, raffle, Heritage Square Park, Village of Arroyo Grande, CA. 8am–3 pm, trophies, proceeds to a local charity. Vince 805-481-5757 or www.centralcoastcorsa.org.
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47) BILL HINES. Written by Anna Marco at anna.osr@gmail.com. Bill Hines was his own man, and he died when he decided he was good and ready, but not before I kissed him on the forehead and held his hand. He went peacefully, in his home surrounded by loved ones on Friday, May 20, 2016. For a little guy he was a giant spirit and an inspiration to us all. He was a dedicated family man, strong willed, opinionated, a man of profound work ethics, coupled with integrity, creativity, discipline, singleness of purpose, intense focus, unwavering passion for custom cars and he lived his life exactly the way he wanted to. Like many of us, I was blessed to have known him and lucky to have him as my friend. His twinkly blue eyes and grinning smile complete with half a cigar hanging out of it will be deeply missed by all. The Hines family gratefully acknowledges the outpouring of love and support that they have received. Bill is survived by his wife Lova, his two sons Mike & Billy, his daughter Tonya, ten grandkids and 11 grandchildren. (requested by Dick Martin; to be continued)
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48) The Engine Builder Hall of Fame have inducted 8 engine builders in the Inaugural selection. There are 4 categories: Pre WW-II Race Era inductees will honor Ed Winfield and Harry Miller; the Post WW-II Race Era inductees are Vic Edelbrock Sr and Ed Iskenderian; the 1960’s-1970’s Race Era inductees will honor Ed Pink and Holman & Moody; Finally, the 1980’s-1990’s Race Era inductees will include Bob Glidden and John Lingenfelter. The Engine Builder Hall of Fame Executive Committee includes Ben Strader, Billy Godbold, Jeff Smith, John Callies, Lake Speed Jr, Ron Shaver, and Paul “Scooter” Brothers. The Engine Builder Hall of Fame is sponsored by iCON, Edelbrock, Total Seal and Comp Cams.
From: Dimitri Elgin dema@elgincams.com.
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49) Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Unveils 2025 Induction Class (continued). A three-day course, said actor-turned-racer Patrick Dempsey, “changed the direction to the next chapter of my life.” Miguel Duhamel (1968-) — Quebec-born Duhamel is the third-winningest rider in AMA Superbike history (32 wins) and a five-time Daytona 200 winner (1991, ’96, ’99, 2003, 2005). As of 2024, he’s tied with fellow nominee Scott Russell for all-time Daytona 200 triumphs. Throughout his career, Duhamel won the 1995 AMA Superbike championship, five AMA Supersport titles, two Formula Xtreme crowns and the 1991 Bol d’Or 24 hour. In all, he scored 86 AMA wins, a record 40 in Supersport. He won his first Superbike race in 1990, a victory that helped propel him to AMA Superbike Rookie of the Year. He took his first Daytona 200 the following season. A horrific 1998 accident looked to end his career, but he used a cane to approach his bike at the 1999 Daytona 200. “I was thinking that I just wanted to get some points to start the season,” Duhamel said. “But I wound up winning both races — the 200 and the Supersport.” From: Adam Saal at SaalGoodPR@gmail.com or 321-890-2848.
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50) Please put this on your Motorsports Newsletter. The 2024 Bonneville/EL Mirage Rules & Records booklet, with the Performance Directory is the “yellow pages” of the LAND SPEED RACING WORLD! Still only $10. Shop (scta-bni.org). Thanks, Ron Main is at ron@speeddemon.us.
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51) DUFFY LIVINGSTONE, by Dick Martin (To see the photos go to https://www.motortrend.com/staff/dick-martin/)
Duffy Livingstone will always be remembered as the father of the Go Kart. This story, however, is about Duffy the hot rodder, a card-carrying member of the NHRA Charter Club (#156) and the Pasadena Roadster Club. For some hot rodders it wasn’t all dragstrips, dry lakes, and the Salt-a few ventured into road racing: “Land Speed Racing kinda scared me,” says Duff. “I liked sporty car racing instead.” Duffy made such an impact in the Fifties Road racing his Ford Model T, you only had to mention his name in those circles and some cultured noses went in the air. Duffy blew their doors off on a shoestring in his ’25 roadster that caused those noses to get bent out of shape. (to be continued)
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52) About the RRDC: The Road Racing Drivers Club was formed in 1952 as a way to give champion drivers a say in their sport, particularly in the areas of safety, and has evolved to serve the future of road racing by mentoring new drivers on both amateur and professional levels. The Club’s membership includes leading industry professionals, race officials and motorsports journalists, in addition to prominent racing names. In 2011, the RRDC launched a free on-line training seminar – SAFEisFAST.com – featuring RRDC members and other industry experts in high-quality videos covering subjects from physical and mental preparation to driving techniques, driver safety to car setup and sponsorship. The videos are updated regularly. From: Judy Stropus jstropus@earthlink.net.
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53) You can race on a real racecourse. Choose from a Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Corvette or Audi. Available at the following road courses. Arizona Motorsports Park, Arizona; Atlanta Motor Speedway, Georgia; Canaan Motor Club, New Hampshire; Homestead Miami Speedway, Florida; Iowa Speedway, Iowa; Kansas Speedway, Kansas; Nashville Superspeedway, Tennessee; Pikes Peak International Raceway, Colorado; Pocono Raceway, Pennsylvania; Rockingham Speedway, North Carolina. From: Rusty Wallace Racing Experience support@racewithrusty.com.
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54) During his career, Erik Tomas has interviewed some of the biggest and most influential stars in racing. This includes Mario Andretti, Shirley Muldowney, John Force, Don Garlits, Rick Mears, Bobby Rahal, Tom Carnegie, Nigel Mansell, Al Unser Jr, Dale Earnhardt, Kenny Bernstein and Bob Jenkins. Raceline Radio has won numerous international motorsport journalism awards, with Erik at the helm. Erik was a regular contributor to Inside Track Motorsport News. Erik Tomas was deservedly inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in 2020. The John Massingberd Award honours a national ambassador of Canadian motorsport in all disciplines, through his keen insight and entrepreneurial creativity. From Bruce F. Mehlenbacher, Pro Modified Racing Association (PMRA).
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55) Just a quick correction to item #46 from newsletter #20 (May 15): “To find this book, check with Doug Stokes at Autobooks/Aerobooks at 818-845-0707, and give the ISBN# 0-9659533-1-9.” If anyone was to call my favorite bookstore (AutoBooks/AeroBooks in Burbank) and ask for me they’d most likely be answered with: “Who?” I left there quite a few years back. I still try to get there for book signings (the latest was for Ed Pink’s great new bio about a month or three ago). Great place/great customers and they carry all of Harold Osmer’s great books, the people and places that make motorsports so interesting. If you’re a car (or airplane) person and you’ve not been there lately (or never been there), it’s really worth the drive: the selection is amazing, and you’ll never know who you’ll meet there. Thanks very much my friend, Doug Stokes is at stokes28doug@gmail.com.
EDITOR: That’s the problem running 15-year-old reviews, things change. Stokes gets around, working with Karting (no-go-carts from me), Irwindale Raceway and once at Autobooks/Aerobooks in Burbank.
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56) Royce Rumsey just published “Dance Car(d).” A popular euphemism for inviting one to engage in competitive battles is “let’s dance.” When it came to engaging the mid-fifties competition the 1955 Chrysler C-300 came ready to dominate the automotive “dance floor.” John Lazenby’s handsome Tango Red “drivers’ car” 1955 C-300 captured at Flight Legacy Cars and Coffee. The numerical part of the title referenced the then high-water mark for production car power of 300HP, derived from the first of the mythological ‘hemis,’ the 331-ci/Firepower engine. The Firepower 331 with dual 4bbl carbs, performance cam and solid lifters also marked the then remarkable achievement of approaching nearly one horsepower per cubic inch of displacement. Madison Ave heralded the C-300 as “America’s Most Powerful Car.” For photos and complete story go to https://roycer924.exposure.co/dance-card.
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57) Herrera dominated Chicago a year ago in Pro Stock Motorcycle, setting a host of track records. He’s won twice in 2024 and has seven straight wins dating back to last season. To continue that historic streak, he’ll have to topple six-time champion Matt Smith, former champ LE Tonglet, Angie Smith, Hector Arana Jr and Steve Johnson. Also slated in Chicago is the special Drag and Drive exhibition event. With star drivers like Alex Taylor and Tom Bailey, the standout street cars run in the 6-second range and quicker at speeds of more than 200 mph. From: National Hot Rod Association
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58) Ben Strader: After spending nearly a decade working on performance engines and EFI systems, Ben Strader started the world’s first motorsports-based training academy—EFI University—in 2003. Over the last 15 years, the courses Ben has developed have taught close to 10,000 people in dozens of countries to build and tune high performance engines and fuel injection systems. He is an expert in the theory and operation of the internal combustion engine and its related systems specializing in electronic engine management. From: Dimitri Elgin dema@elgincams.com.
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59) Appreciate this email newsletter. I think you’re doing something of value here. Are you involved with NHRA in any way at this point? Would love to connect at some point if you’re willing to jump on a call. Thank you! Wes (Wes Buck, Founder & Editorial Director, Drag Illustrated, wes@dragillustrated.com, 660-216-9779 mobile/text, 660-988-2313 main office).
WES: Glad to have you aboard the newsletter. I’m Wally Parks’ eldest son, Richard, and have never been employed by the NHRA, but they consult with me once in a while. Tell me what Drag Illustrated is like and other details that you want me to post in the newsletter.
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60) May issue of Vintage Metal. A VERY special 1979 Ferrari is coming up for auction in Monaco in May – so special that it could well be bought by the famed Italian manufacturer itself. It’s the car that gave Enzo Ferrari his last Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championship, the 312T4 that Jody Scheckter drove to victory in Belgium, Monaco and Italy to secure the 1979 title. The ground-effect 1979 Ferrari 312 T4, powered by a 3.0-litre flat-12 engine, was one of Mauro Foghieri’s greatest designs, and was the final car to help claim a drivers’ title during Enzo Ferrari’s lifetime. Scheckter, born in East London, South Africa in 1950, remains the only driver from the entire African continent to have won a Formula 1 World Drivers’ Championship. He competed in Formula 1 from 1972 to 1980, winning the Drivers’ Championship in 1979 with Ferrari. The Jody Scheckter Collection auction takes place at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on May 10 and 11. The Scheckter collection of racing cars is expected to fetch some $20 million. Editor Bob Campbell is at robertcampbell4@icloud.com.
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61) In Focus Exhibition Title: Burnout! 60th Anniversary of British International Drag Racing Festival. Exhibition Date: 20 September 2023-2 February 2025 and Location: In Focus Temporary Exhibition Space, National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.
ADDENDUM: The latest on the Exhibition at the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu, England, UK is now agreed to open to the general public September 20th, 2024, until February 2nd, 2025. This is longer than originally proposed which is very welcomed news. The museum is hoping to arrange a private view which hopefully will be at a date and time suitable for members to attend in September 2024, full details to follow. From John Hunt
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62) Chapters include the Back Stories – Making of – Stand-up Guys – Innovators – People to share a Foxhole with – Hearts and Souls – Top Ten Lists – Forgotten Nitro Heroes – Crash Aftermath – Tolls on Spouses – Provocateurs – Egoville Residents – and the inevitable NHRA Firestorms, competitive one-sided confrontations as they took place. Frequently. What kind of memoir will it be? Mostly fun with maverick vainglorious Racers, Crews, Promoters, Legends and Wannabees; and tempestuous incidents of Terrors, Daring, Crazy, What was that? It’ll be a page-turner with lots of pictures. First though, I invite you to watch any of our 40 titles converted from Original Masters to High Definition. Take a trip back, enjoy the people, fuel cars and times of 1980’s Nitro. A good primer for the memoir to read afterwards. Dean Papadeas maineventvideo@
earthlink.net. (to be continued).
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63) Blue painted Stone/Woods/Cook car. Remember these guys? Chuck Finders was driving. I shot this back in 1961 or ’62. Anyway, you can print this if you want a copy. From Pete Garramone at www.dragpixbypete.com, by way of Hal Canode.
READERS: Go to www.dragpixbypete.com to see Pete’s collection.
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64) ED PINK story, written by Dick Martin 2012 (captions left in text, to be serialized)
Ed quit Barron, opening a second Richfield gas station with a repair garage in 1956 on Pico Boulevard with one employee working for him. “When Barron decided to retire, he rented the building to me on Venice and Highland. I closed the gas station.” Ed built the business up, but his heart wasn’t in it. “I hated the passenger car business because there was always someone down the street who would do a brake job cheaper.” Ed built a small cliental with his racing engines; he liked the performance part of the business. He loaded up his pickup with the equipment in the shop and moved it to his double-car garage in West L.A. “That’s when I went to work for Eddie Meyer.” Eddie Meyer Engineering Company in Hollywood was a phenomenal and magical place of employment when Ed worked there. Eddie’s brother Louis was the first three-time winner of the Indy 500. Meyer was not just a place to work; it was a place to gain knowledge. To see the captioned photographs go to https://www.motortrend.com/staff/dick-martin/. Dick Martin turboguydm1@gmail.com.
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65) Recollections of the Last Drag Race Recollections of the Last Drag Race, written by Carl Olson. “My recollections of the Last Drag Race at Lions included much more than just winning in Top Fuel. Some of my most vivid recollections include: So many race cars that the pits were jammed to the max. There were even a few cars that had to pit along the return road, ’cause there just wasn’t another square inch of space in the pit area. So many spectators that the Sheriff made Steve Evans close the gates at around 6pm. No problem for those locked out, though; they just pushed over the chain-link fences, and swarmed in like ants. Security initially tried to stem the tide, but quickly threw up their hands and walked away. I don’t know how many fans attended the Last Drag Race without purchasing tickets, but it would have to have been in the thousands. Suffice to say the place was packed like a can of Sardines.” For the full article and photos go to http://www.
draglist.com/artman/publish/daily_stories/article_001830.shtml. Sent in by Bob Small.
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66) BLAST FROM THE PAST…… From the Wally & Barbara Parks story, We Did It Our Way. MAY 1943. Here is his story in his own words, “But nothing lasts forever and although I had reached up 15,000 miles as a tank-tester and the Ordnance Department had requested two military service deferments for me, I decided to opt for military enlistment in 1943 and was inducted into the Army in Los Angeles. … my friends were entering military services or working in defense industries — all of which was exciting, and we were young. I had a good job and with our Ordnance relations, military deferments were not a problem — but I was restless and felt the need to join-up. So, with a letter of recommendation from an Ordnance captain, I went to downtown Los Angeles and enlisted — in the Army. My induction took place at Ft MacArthur in San Pedro.”
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67) Royce Rumsey just published “Luft/Wasser Rezension.” After a full decade of phenomenal growth, becoming one of the world’s premiere Porsche enthusiast event “Luftgekühlture” finally arrived in Orange County in April 2024. The father of “outlaw” 356’s, Rod Emory brought this signature livery to Air/Water in the OC. The Orange County Fairgrounds fabled
speedway hosted both Emory’s outlaws as well as famed PPIHC Porsche liveries of Lori Unser, Ken Block and Jeff Zwart. The “OC” represents arguably the worlds the most ardent and intense venues of Porsche culture—as it’s host to one of the largest Porsche consumer markets as well as home to some of the most renowned of Porsche collectors and their remarkable collections. Accordingly, over 1000 Porsches and 11,000 Porschephiles participated in the single-day Porsche celebration. For story and photos see https://roycer924.exposure.co/luft-wasser-rezensionnbsp.
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68) Trailblazers Banquet – April 6, 2024. Before breaking for dinner, a toast to those who have left us in the last year and a wonderful video with their names and pictures was played. At its conclusion Trailblazers monthly Newsletter publisher Bill Getty said a prayer and reminded everyone that we are all mortal and sooner or later it will be us on that Memoriam reel.
One can always tell when food is on the table cause the room gets really quiet. Brought to the table by servers is much better than the old days where everyone got up and went to serving lines to get their meal. It’s still not a perfect system cause feeding 600+ takes time. Luckily salads and desert were already on each table when the great hall was opened along with two bottles of wine and a pitcher of punch. From Howie Zechner howie@razvideo.com. (to be continued)
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69) Funny Car racer John Force has enjoyed a terrific start to his 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season. The 16-time world champion has already posted one victory this season and a pair of final-round appearances, giving the team plenty of momentum heading into this weekend’s Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK Performance at Route 66 Raceway. It’s a meaningful race for the sport’s winningest driver in an 11,000 horsepower PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS as Force knows the importance of doing well in his sponsor’s backyard. =
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70) DRAGSTRIPS in the USA and Canada. National Speedway Directory, 2504 Lake Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, 60091
Yello Belly Dragstrip, Grand Prairie, Texas, 1/8-mile.
Yellowstone Drag Strip, Acton, Montana, 1/4-mile.
zMax Dragway, Concord, North Carolina.
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71) The Wally Parks Nostalgia Nationals is held on Father’s Day weekend at Beech Bend Raceway in Bowling Green, Kentucky, less than a month away. Participant registration and spectator tickets at: https://nhramuseum.org/wpnn/. The California Hot Rod Reunion is scheduled for October 25-27, 2024, at Famoso Drag Strip in Bakersfield California. Both events will feature three days of nostalgia racing, the coolest hot rods, the finest show cars and unheard-of swap-meet finds. Both locations are hallowed ground for drag racers and are steeped in 1960’s and ’70’s drag racing history. Proceeds from these events go directly back to the museum to support its daily operations. Thank you for helping get the word out about these important events. Patrick Wright, Operations Manager, 1101 McKinley Avenue, Building 3A, Pomona, CA 91768, 909-622-8562. Email: pwright@nhramuseum.org.
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72) “I came across that page during research for Hemmings.com & couldn’t resist scanning, for your entertainment. I’m glad to see that you enjoyed the two rants (in Drag News about NHRA stand on fuel). See why I was such a “favorite” of your old man? I think that he even liked YOU better.” Dave Wallace Jr is at aafueler@volcano.net.
EDITOR: Hack, cough, wheeze, sputter even when I think about the poor quality of Drag News newsprint. I’m sure Doris Herbert chose the worst degradable fish wrap so that the diatribes and slander would vanish before the trial.
AND: HOW CHEAP WAS DORIS, A WEALTHY WOMAN? Soooooo cheap that she worked a deal with the Orange County Penny Saver to pay their cost for newsprint & ink, only; NOTHING for setup or printing! You may know that Penny Saver used the smallish Drag News & (biweekly) Boat News runs to set up & tune their presses just before the weekly shopper started printing a kazillion copies in that same quarter-fold format. Thus, each Penny Saver’s sheet size & second color exactly matched the cover of that same week’s Drag News. Of course, this arrangement imposed an ABSOLUTE shipping deadline of Tuesday morning upon Herbert Publishing Company editors. Thus, Mondays that started in the weewee morning hours for me often lasted until the paper flats went into the box to the printer, more than 24 nonstop hours later. I tried never to mentally divide those hours into the piddly $120 weekly pay, rationalizing that I’d known NOTHING about production when Doris hired me, hoping that the education would pay off, eventually. Dave Wallace Jr
DAVE: I never saw the Boat News. Do you have any copies of it?
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73) Ice Speedway Racing History: Utilizing liners allows the rider to use longer threaded shanks on his racing studs. Using longer threaded screw shanks give the stud (the part that actually sticks out of the tire) more rigidity. This stiff, rigid stud “bites” into the ice surface much more efficiently thus giving the racer much more traction. Couple this evolution of tire/stud technology with the new hi-tech, much more powerful 4-valve racing engines and you can begin to understand why today’s competition hardly resembles our first races in the 1970’s. These higher speeds and quicker lap times demand the modern ICE racer be an excellent athlete for success. http://icespeedway.com/history_ice_racing.html (to be continued)
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74) JOLIET, Illinois (May 16, 2024) – Eight NHRA Pro Stock drivers will have more on the table at this weekend’s Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK Performance as they will be competing in the GETTRX Pro Stock NHRA All-Star Callout at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago. The specialty race will feature eight Pro Stock drivers in a unique callout format. Reigning champion Erica Enders sits atop the stacked group of drivers. Thanks to her qualifying effort from last season, Enders will have her pick of opponents. The other seven drivers in the Callout are, in order, points leader Greg Anderson, 2023 Chicago winner Dallas Glenn, Troy Coughlin Jr, Aaron Stanfield, Matt Hartford, Cristian Cuadra and Deric Kramer. nhracommunications@nhra.com.
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75) Royce Rumsey just published “California Gothic circa 1969.” Records, radio airwaves, television screens, and movie theaters all promoted the lifestyle paradise of Southern California in that era. Steve Foster has curated an automotive cultural collection that celebrates and includes significant icons of that era including mythical big-block Corvettes, movie cars from both Vanishing Point and Ford v. Ferrari (including a Challenger and both a Porsche and a Ferrari used in the films, respectively), a concours-winning 1967 911S, a street racing survivor Dodge Coronet Hemi, NASCAR rides of both Curtis Turner and Fireball Roberts, and a B-stock small block “Thunderbolt” Fairlane, are among other rolling memorabilia. To see the photos and full article go to https://roycer924.exposure.co/calfiornia-gothic-c-1969.
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76) From Steve Reyes at sreyes@reyesontour.com. Here’s what’s coming in the fall of 2024. “Southern California front-engine top fuel dragsters were the kings of the quarter mile. Fathers and sons, friends, and next-door neighbors joined together to build and race these cars. From 1963 to 1971, considered the toughest years to compete, the top fuel dragster became faster and quicker with new innovations in the chassis design and engine building. Southern California quickly became the place to prove top fuel racing skills as racers from all over the United States ventured to see how they matched up against those killer cars. For any top fuel racer or team to win in that era, it was truly a lifetime achievement. Many tried and failed to make their mark in Southern California.”
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77) A limited number of parade and touring lap sessions are also scheduled, offering a rare chance to drive your own car on the legendary Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta circuit. Other weekend Feature Races include a pair of B.R.M. Endurance Challenge one-hour races Saturday and Sunday, twin Sasco Sports International/American Challenge sprints Friday and Saturday and Sunday’s Global GT race for modern GT cars retired from active competition. Sports cars of all types and from all generations anchor the 46th Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) Mitty’s growing entry list, but few will bring as much thunder and excitement to the race as sone of the truly legendary Prototypes in The Cars of Japan Feature Race. From: HSR Communications adam@saalgood.ccsend.com.
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78) I was bragging to your brother David that I had an exciting early AM trip from a week with you in Corona Del Mar, as Wally gave me a ride to my home in East Los Angeles in his 1956 or ’57 yellow Plymouth with “1960 AHEAD STYLING” in large letters. What ever happened to that Plymouth? Or the ’32 Ford black roadster we would ride in, on our way to the Garmar theater in Montebello? Cousin John Ziebarth
JOHN: The ’32 is long gone, as is the ’57 Plymouth, but a clone was made of the Plymouth which was given to my brother and is now in the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum at the Fairplex in Pomona, California. I remember the GARMAR Theatre, it was huge, and we spent many a Saturday Matinee watching old movies and serials.
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79) Real Road Racing; The Santa Monica Road Races, by Harold Osmer and Phil Harms (serialized review). Chapter Three is entitled Reaching out 1910 and details the race in that year. Four classes raced in 1910, but it was Teddy Tetzlaff who won the top two races with Bert Dingley taking second place in both. Tetzlaff recorded a 73.142mph in his Lozier and won the race by nearly a six-minute margin. Chapter Four is named Coming of Age 1911 and discusses the growth and complexity of the road race. Harvey Herrick set a national record of 74.603mph in winning the top class but his margin of victory dropped to three minutes and the racing became tighter and more exciting. Chapter Five is called The Shriners Come 1912. With the Shriners, a new and improved organization takes over the Santa Monica Road Race. A $5000 purse draws some of the best race drivers in the country. Tetzlaff won his second title in a row at a speed of 78.718mph. While the race proved successful, tensions were brewing between East and West Coast racing associations. Harold Osmer is at program@hopublishing.com (to be continued)
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80) The 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for Sunday, May 26, 2024. Scott McLaughlin is the 2024 Indianapolis 500 pole-sitter after averaging 234.220 mph for 4 laps on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile oval during qualifying on May 19. Coverage on NBC begins at 11 am ET, with the race officially slated to start at approximately 12:45 pm ET. This week on MWM we celebrate Mario Andretti, winner of the 1969 Indianapolis 500, 55 years ago, at the age of 29. Widely regarded among the most successful drivers in the history of motorsports, Mario Andretti is one of only three drivers to have won races in Formula One, IndyCar, the World Sportscar Championship, and NASCAR. Mario’s 1969 Indianapolis 500 win in his turbocharged Ford-V-8-powered Hawk III, was owned by Andy Granatelli, CEO of STP. From: Jim Murray Memorial Foundation at linda@jimmurrayfoundation.ccsend.com.
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81) I don’t know anything about the status of Al Caldwell. Steve Reyes asked me if I would ask around for him and I did through the Standard 1320 and Drag Racers Inc groups. I haven’t checked my e-mail as of yet but will let you know if I get any feedback about Al. I really like your newsletter. Jamie Jackson & Jackson Bros Videos www.NostalgiaDrags.com.
JAMIE: I came, I saw, I liked (something like Julius Caesar said). Do you want to add my newsletter to your website. Let me know if you want to. It’s free to all websites.
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82) Tony Dowe was the managing director of Tom Walkinshaw Racing’s successful American operations in the late 1980s/early ’90s, running the Jaguar sports car racing programs and earning victories in the prestigious Daytona and Le Mans 24-hour events. From: Judy Stropus
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83) This Week on Cars Yeah Mark Greene interviews Aloisa Ruf, Ed Fallon, Harold Cleworth and Skip Barber. Mark has now interviewed 2492 individuals including Linda Vaughn and me. Mark Greene is at Cars Yeah, info@carsyeah.com, and he will interview anyone with a good story to tell.
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84) Volvo Cars £19.99, by Trevor Alder, 112 pages, 210 images. Each Volvo model (1945-1995) has been painstakingly researched detailing body derivatives, production changes, technical information and hundreds of photos and diagrams, plus how the ever-changing advertising was used to promote each model. Profusely illustrated throughout, this is a worthy addition to the Veloce Pictorial History series. Also in the series: Triumph & Standard, Morris, Rootes (Hillman, Humber, Singer, Sunbeam, Talbot), Rover, Austin, Ford, Riley & Wolseley, Citroën and Jaguar. From: Veloce – fine automotive books newsletter@veloce.co.uk. Veloce – an imprint of David and Charles 2 Poundbury Business Centre Middle Farm Way Dorchester, Dorset DT1 3WA United Kingdom.
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85) Darryl Bassani, Celebration of Life for 4/28/24 (Continued). Although only a handful were made the Darryl Bassani face posters Andrea Hankins created were everywhere. Well done and popular “the face” was already all over Facebook as she and Mike Maely included the poster of the pictures they took from various functions and events they had attended since Darryl passed. Time passed as friends drank, told stories and shared experiences they had with Darryl and his company. Soon the great hall was opened. No assigned seating allowed friends to sit together. Casual, easygoing the only tears at this celebration were when emotion reminded why they were there. Upon entering guests passed a large table filled with full color Darryl Bassani decals, an eight-page booklet with pictures and history and medal medallions. All free for the taking they are wonderful mementos of Darryl, Bassani company and his Celebration of Life. Howie Zechner (to be continued)
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86) Following the season-opening race in Chicago, the Pingel NHRA Top Fuel Motorcycle Series will entertain fans at
national events at Virginia Motorsports Park in Richmond (June 22-23), Brainerd International Raceway (Aug 16-18) and the finale at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte on Sept. 20-22. The category will receive final-round coverage on FS1 at each of the four stops, while Pingel will get on-site exposure at NHRA events with displays, announcements and Sunoco-vision. Riders will also be involved in autograph sessions at each of their four events. From: National Hot Rod Association
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87) KNOW YOUR MOTORSPORTS PERSONALITY: Hannah Greenemeier, Owner of Hannah Greenemeier Racing, driver of the #74 Crosslink/Kiwi Motorsports F4 car in the US F4 Championship. Compiled from Epartrade.
Paul Pfanner, Founder & CEO, RACER Magazine. Marshall Pruett, David Malsher-Lopez, Richard James, George Tamayo, Laurence Foster and Chris Medland of RACER Magazine. Compiled from Epartrade.
Autotech Driveline will present this live webinar on Wednesday, May 22 at 9 am PST. Presented by Chris Shimonkevitz, Brand Manager and Dana Clark, Technical Director. Hosted by Brad Gillie from SiriusXM, Channel 90, Late Shift. From: EPARTRADE team@epartrade.com.
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88) DUFFY LIVINGSTONE, by Dick Martin (To see the photographs go to https://www.motortrend.com/staff/dick-martin/). In 1926, when Duffy was 1 year old, he moved from Springfield, Illinois to Pasadena, California. When I asked Duffy if he grew up in Pasadena he laughed. “No, I lived in Pasadena; I never grew up.” Duffy’s first car was a bone-stock Model T 4-door sedan. “I paid $12 for it from an old lady from Pasadena. Actually, I had $8 in it and my buddy Dick Van De Veere (whom I’ve known since 2nd grade) had $4. It had been on blocks for years. The motor was frozen up when we got it, so we towed it and slammed it into gear, which broke the motor loose. It ran fine from then on.” (to be continued)
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89) Jiri emigrated to the US from Czechoslovakia and after serving in the Korean War, spent a few years working at Henry Carrol Imports where he built his reputation before eventually opening his own auto repair shop, Autosport. Jiri Nechleba was a trained master Porsche technician and highly respected for his skills. When the Porsche Factory Team raced in in the US in 1961 and 1962, they would hire him to assist the factory mechanics with their Formula One cars. Besides his ability to tune Porsches, he was known for building winning Formula V engines for a number of racers. From: Dave Nicholas at
davnik6@gmail.com. (to be continued).
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90) NHRA officials announced today an exclusive partnership with ALT Sports Data, a leading provider of cutting-edge sports data and analytics solutions. As part of the agreement, ALT Sports Data will become the sole distributor of sports betting data for NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series events, strengthening its leading position as a major operator in the sports data and betting market.
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91) 46th HSR Mitty at Michelin Raceway. The overall and Porshe class win went to Gary Stanberry who pulled off a last-lap pass in the downhill run to the checkered flag for one of the most thrilling finishes of the weekend. Stanberry led only the final few hundred feet of the race, but it was enough for the win in the 1988 #77 Porsche 944 Turbo Cup series car prepared by DAS Sport. Michael Leveque was the first non-Porsche finisher to the line in his #23 1966 Yenko Stinger Corvair. Leveque secured the Sasco Sports American division win in addition to a stout seventh-place overall finish in the 41-car field. Sasco Sports “B” International-class honors went to John Bibbo who broke through for his first HSR race win in his 1976 #208 BMW 2002 prepared by Motorsport Services and run out of Heritage Motorsports in the paddock. From: HSR Communications adam@saalgood.ccsend.com.
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92) About Mission Foods, sponsor of NHRA Major events, MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world’s leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. From: NHRA.
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93) IMSA’S TV ratings lagging despite crowd increases adding more sprint races to the schedule might boost viewership somewhat, though 1 million viewership is likely out of reach. Butts in seats don’t translate to eyes on screens. IndyCar rookie Linus Lundqvist is ready to shake things up at Indianapolis. The 2022 Indy NXT champion is finally getting a chance to show his stuff on the NTT IndyCar Series stage. F1 Miami Grand Prix sets TV ratings mark in US. Viewership on ABC TV averaged record 3.1 million viewers, a record for US viewership of an F1 race. 10 F1, other race cars being sold from Jody Scheckter’s Collection Plus: Great little Alfas, a Lancia B20, and a Porsche Ski Scooter! From: Autoweek Racing Daily autoweek@newsletter.autoweek.com and Don Smith.
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94) Episode #451 – “Engineering Insights: Understanding the Inner Workings of Differentials, Gearboxes, and Motorsport ABS,” by Autotech Driveline. This webinar will be presented by Chris Shimonkevitz, Brand Manager, and Dana Clark, Technical Director. Hosted by Brad Gillie from SiriusXM, Channel 90, Late Shift. The Zoom presentation will be available live at 9 AM PST, Wednesday, May 22nd. No charge to attend. To save your space, please click here: https://us02web.
zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Eu_lW2xUSMOOFBGKkeKMaA#/. From Epartrade.
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95) AK MILLER STORIES: Back in the early ’70’s, my dad Bernie Partridge loved to play on the water in his screaming fast hyper-light little 18′ Challenger jet boat with a Sonny Briant built 427 L-88. Back then nothing was too fast and any jet that could edge close to 100 mph was rare and frightening! Since dad’s NHRA Division 7 office was based in the Pomona Raceway tower, he told me to meet him at the nearby Lake Puddingstone boat launch after school for some fast pass tuning. When I got there, he was on the ramp and ready to go with a giant industrial cylinder of nitrous oxide laying on the floor of the boat with legendary Ak Miller onboard setting up the baseplate injection. It was crude by today’s standards for sure but that’s how performance improvements were discovered. We made a few laps while I would hold Ak by the collar so he wouldn’t fall out as he manually activated the combination of NOS & added fuel. It was like hitting an extra 4 barrel! The engine would tach some 6500 rpm with a groaning whine, occasionally sucking air as the tach would peg the needle and then grab the water again. Surprisingly never bending a pushrod, we’d stop, pull a couple plugs, adjust the mixture and go again. It’s hard to imagine doing that today. Jim Partridge
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96) Denis Sargent Jenkinson was a motorsport enthusiast and journalist who, amongst many other achievements, gained fame as navigator for Stirling Moss in the 1955 Mille Miglia 1000-mile race. He was known as DSJ or “Jenks” to the readers of Motor Sport magazine where he was Continental Correspondent for more than forty years. When the 1964 Dragfests arrived Jenks, already a fan of Sydney Allard’s pioneering efforts to introduce the sport to the UK, not only wrote enthusiastically about the events, but competed himself on his home built NorBSA motorcycle, and driving an Allard Dragon. This article was written by Tony Madgwick of the VMCC Sprint Section who became custodian of two of Jenks’ motor-cycles, including his 1965 Dragfest bike which he restored himself. Editing, further research and compilation was carried out by Chris Dossett of Trakbytes. https://eventcoveragearchive.eurodragster.net/features/denis_jenkinson/default.asp.
From: John Hunt at johnhunt.drn@googlemail.com.
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97) Book Signing @ The Roar of Lions on Saturday, June 22, 2024. “The Old Master” Ed Pink will be signing his newly released book, Ed Pink, The Old Master. Ed Pink’s gift for designing and building engines made him a motorsports icon. His handiwork has powered, among others, drag-racing superstars Don Prudhomme and Tom McEwen, Indy Car legends Al Unser and Tom Sneva, sports car heroes Bob Wollek and Brian Redman, and USAC champions Tony Stewart and
Kasey Kahne. From: Lions Automobilia Museum at info@lionsautomobilia.org.
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98) NHRA Vice President and General Counsel Alen Cisija, reiterated that though sports gambling became legal in many states in 2018, NHRA intentionally delayed entering the gambling space to ensure we could do so while maintaining the sport’s integrity and safeguard the interests of its fans. After (literally) years of deliberation, NHRA found an integrity monitoring partner in IC360 (https://ic360.io) which works with and is trusted by every single major sports league. IC360 partners with sportsbooks and uses sophisticated data models and monitoring to identify nefarious conduct. This careful process gave the NHRA confidence that gambling could be introduced without compromising the sport’s reputation or trust. If you have any further questions, I’d be happy to work with you to get them answered. David Kennedy
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99) “Automotive research uses articulated dummies to study crash effects, but today instead of articulated dummies we’re using race drivers. Gentlemen, start your coffins!” – Jim Murray, 5-29-1966
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100) From Chris Agajanian: Car set ups during the practice session the day after qualifying. At that point, the teams switch there set ups from qualifying trim to race trim. Which means how the car will be set up for race day. The race car must work in traffic, get fuel mileage, have more down force and of course, be fast. Colton Herta in the #26 was the fastest car all day until he pulled off the track to start practicing his pit stops, with worn out tires to simulate race day pit stops. Marco Andretti in the #98 was 4th fastest. (to be continued)
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101) MAY 31, 1969, Copyright Times Mirror Company, by Jim Murray, “Indy Victory Italian Style.” Indianapolis – OK, put away the lilies, and let’s hear it for Italy! The Brickyard has lost its punch. It has hung its guns and gone to drying dishes for the schoolmarm. The bull got its horns shaved. A plucky little Paisan from the donkey-cart country of Trieste traded bits with this lion of racing Friday and sent it whimpering behind a bush. Mario Andretti got off the floor to win this one. Only a week ago the Brickyard showed its teeth, and, by the time the firemen got to Mario, the car could have been put in a sack. But the burn scars around his mouth and chin should heal nicely by Christmas. (to be continued)
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