Words: John Gunnell Photos: John Gunnell and Linda Clark
A pair of Willys drag cars – one red and one blue – are among the hot rods in the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing (www.garlits.com) in Ocala, Fla. The Electric Blue 1937 Willys coupe belonged to Barbara Hamilton, the first woman in drag racing history to receive an NHRA license for driving supercharged cars. The bright red 1941 Willys coupe belonged to K.S. Pittman, a drag racer well known for his full-fendered gassers.
Barbara Hamilton and her best friend Nancy Leonello campaigned the 1937 coupe from 1964 to 1971. Barb was a technical writer for auto parts manufacturer TRW and a weekend racer who owned, wrenched on, drove and raced her own car.
Hamilton won the 1966 NHRA Springnationals and was runner-up at the 1968 Indy Nationals inn Indianapolis, Ind. She held the NASCAR C/Gas Supercharged Elapsed Time record of 11.94 seconds. A true pioneer in the sport of drag racing, Hamilton was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 1992.
The blue Willys was powered by a 1957 Chevy small-block V-8 that started out as a 283-cid powerplant and was bored out to 364 cubic inches. The engine was treated to a set of Novotny exhaust headers and an Isky drive system. The Willy’s lowest-ever ET was 10.10 seconds for the quarter mile and its top drag strip speed was 126.40 mph.
In the early 1960s, K.S. Pitman raced with drivers including Big John Mazmanian, “Ohio George” Montgomery, Stone, Woods and Cook in a new breed of full-fendered gasser type hot rods. Pitman actually owned two Willys racing cars: a 1933 coupe and the 1941. Both machines created many memorable quarter-mile contests back in the day.
The red 1941 Willys set the A/GS record at 10.55 seconds at Pomona in June 1962. The car is powered by a 402-cid 1957 Oldsmobile Rocket V-8 with Joe Mondello heads, a roller cam and a Hilborn 4-port fuel-injection system The motor was backed with a B & M modified Hydra-Matic transmission and posi-traction Ford rear axle with 4.88:1 gearing. In 1991, John and Barbara K. Rocca of Leesburg, Va., donated the fully-restored Willys to the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing, where it’s a standout attraction.
