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Some Names To Look For In This Newsletter:
President's Corner, Editorials, Friday morning 10AM and I just got off the phone with Andy Anderson who had just spoken with Pat (Dan Chase's wife), Mike Kacsala made reference to The Ballenger Special which was sold at RM Hershey, The following email was sent to Joe Devine to offer our condolences but the email and the phone numbers that I had were all discontinued, You along with many do not recall that I recently completed a very long story about the innovative life of my former boss and good friend Ted Halibrand, Mike Borders will be at our January 19 meeting, Racing Clubs: Historians listed for each club, The Hot Wheels Hall of Fame at the Petersen Automotive Museum features Hot Wheels, I thought you might think this is pretty cool, Annie Burris wrote an article in the Orange County Register on the Donut Derelicts Car show in Huntington Beach, My name is Greg Lazzerini and I own Ermie Immerso's Thunderbird turbine streamliner and would like to get some information, The 9th Annual B'ville Northwest Banquet will be held on February 13 2010 at the Shilo Inn Portland Airport, For Auld Lang Syne 2009 by Chris Romano, Gone Racin'... Hot Rods As They Were Another Blast from the Past by Don Montgomer, Gone Racin'... Hot Rods in the Forties a Blast from the Past by Don Montgomery, Here's to healthy people and healthy cylinders in 2010, Winterfest drag racing festival
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President's Corner:
When one grows up around race cars you think its normal. Sometime before you become a teen you start to develop a greater interest that just the cars you've been around and start to look other places for info. In my case it was an old used magazine shop about two blocks from the grammar school I went to. This particular one was cool because there were about ten stacks of car magazines three feet high for one to look through. Even better they were ten to fifteen cents each. Once you start lugging the stuff home it never stops. Some you would keep and the ratty ones got the cool pix clipped. Naturally you had to keep them someplace and empty wooden cigar boxes seemed to do the job just perfectly. Somehow a lot of those pix still survive in my stash of junk. One thing that always fascinated me was the drawings. The futuristic cars were probably on the top of the list then. Right behind them was the cutaway drawings like Rex Burnett did and Tom Medley's cartoons. By the mid '50's Lynn Wineland's brainchild "Off the sketchpad" really got me going. Chuck Pelly's stuff blew me away and soon after that along came Tom Daniel. To bad I can't find Pelly's sketch of a B-ville streamliner to show you but a stash of old R&C magazines lets me show you a Daniel masterpiece (Click Here For JMC_986). First time I saw this one was back in 6-59 and it made you want to go out and find a shoebox and build it. The next page had this shot (Click Here For JMC_987) showing the guts. It's a simple drawing and makes you wish you were the dude in the driver's seat.
Sports cars were big then and a new magazine called Sports Car Quarterly came into my possession. Inside the spring '59 issue was this wild looking (Click Here For JMC_989) eight-wheeled LSR concept by Ron Simmons. At the time ever new racer this 14 year old saw seemed to push the envelope one more step and one thought the builders/illustrators were geniuses. Years later one found out that if you turned the clock back two decades from '59 you find the really out there land speed thinking. (Click Here For JMC_990) shows you what I mean. This drawing was made back in 1937 by a genius named Ferdinand. It had four drive wheels that were staggered. Naturally the driver sat in front of the engine that just happened to be out of a fighter aircraft. The most amazing thing about it was the wing over the rear wheels to give it some down force. It would definitely be need in this design because if you look at the basic profile of the car it's shaped like a wing and that means take off when you get to a certain speed. Eight more designs were done before one was settled on and the car was actually built. It never ran do to a little thing called WWII but the final version made use of ground effects and had inverted airfoils on the side of the car some 30 years before they became mainstream. Oh yea, the geniuses last name was Porsche.
The last shot in this story (Click Here For JMC_991) takes the do it on paper on step further and shows a model of an LSR machine in a wind tunnel. Note the rear stabilizer fins and the use of clay to do some changes. Before the advent of a rolling-plain tunnel they made a dupe of the model and mounted it upside-down for balance. The strings/wire supporting it were attached to sensors so they could record loads as the changed the cars relationship to the flow of air just like they do today. By the way the car is an Auto-Union from '38 whose concept was originated by that Porsche dude again by this version was developed by Eberan-Eberhorst. Yep, stuff from back in the day offers up some interesting concepts and beat the slab-sided runners of today in the beauty department any day. Maybe in a few decades some of today's wild concepts will be looked on as being way ahead of their time like Dwayne Vance's "Facepeeler" belly-tank (Click Here For DVC_001) so get out those scissors and start cutting.
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Editorial:
Recently I have received several requests from people that they need the help and assistance of the auto racing community in order to forestall the downsizing or the outright closing of race tracks, museums and other car related events and activities. A large museum in Cleveland is selling off their car collection in order to pay down a very large debt taken on by politicians and museum staff before the recession began. In another instance a famous and dearly loved country fairgrounds racetrack is being bulldozed down and will probably be replaced with some other usage that generates more revenue. Most people ask, "Why is this happening to us. Don't we deserve our place in the sun too?" The answer of course is very simple, "Yes, you do." But what they are going to get is not what they deserve and to some extent it is the fault of the racing community. The crass answer to this loss of our heritage is often summed up in two words; money and politics. The racing world is loathe to discuss politics and stingy when it comes to money. We don't want to get our hands dirty by squabbling with other groups who are groveling for the politician's ear and the taxpayers' money. How did we get into this mess? Well it happened long before we were born and most of you don't want to know. You don't want to care about the historical aspects nor spend time away from racing or your other pursuits in life and that is precisely why you are losing your heritage. I've spent enough time listening to the gripes to know that you have plenty of energy when it comes to moaning and groaning and no energy to join the picket line.
Since I write the editorials, I really don't care if you decide to stop right here and go look at some other TV show or go out to your garage and tinker with your toys. My job is to present the arguments, provide the solutions and to create dialog. It is up to you to act or to go back to what is most pleasant and less aggravating. I get this all the time, you want what you once had, it is being taken away, and isn't there someone other than me who will take care of it for you. In a sense you are right and we call these people leaders. They are very rare. A leader is one who will organize and carry on the cause and never stop. A leader is one who is on the job 24/7, every day of the year, until he dies at his desk. I know, because my father was such a man and my brother and I paid the price for his leadership in that he was gone all the time, serving the racing community in a never-ending series of problems. Right up to the day he fell and broke his hip he was working to help racers and the racing community. I've seen the emails and letters that he was writing. We have correspondences from the 1930's right up to his passing in 2007 and he was "on the job" all those years. We have leaders who will serve a year, maybe two and some for a decade or more. But a real leader is one who pushes everything aside, even his loved ones and concentrates on the cause. A real leader has blinders on and can only see the goals and problems of the group that he leads. When people come to me and say, "We have a problem and need to get the word out," the first thing I ask them is, "Who is your leader." That tells me a great deal about whether you will succeed or not.
The next issue is, "Who are the followers?" A good leader needs willing and able men and women who will follow his lead and who will put in the time and effort that a group needs in order to prevail. My father was blessed in this regard. He knew many men and women who would work around the clock to help him serve the group. These followers were loyal and trusted people who could be counted on getting their assignments done, no matter how long it took. But they were not leaders and they knew it. They had other commitments in their lives and at some point they would resign and follow other paths. But while they were active they were the soldiers that the leader needed to get the job done. When my father was with the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA) he had such men as Ak Miller, Mel Leighton, Thatcher Darwin, Bozzy Willis, Julian Doty, Jim Lindsley and others who faithfully carried out their duties and assignments. Later when my father founded the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) he counted on Barbara Livingston Parks, Ak Miller, Pete Petersen, Carroll Shelby, Steve Gibbs, Bud Evans, Eric Rickman, Chic Cannon, Bud Coons, Shirley Bunce, Marilyn Lachman, Dallas Gardner, Tom Compton and many other men and women to help him solve the problems of a huge racing league. It takes competent men and women to follow and implement the programs, otherwise a leader is helpless.
Beyond the leaders and the followers are the large number of fans, family and friends, all of whom give some part of their time, effort and lives to helping the group. These people come and go and yet they represent a huge reservoir of good will and donated labor which every group needs in order to be successful. The cumulative work of family, friends and fans cannot be underestimated. The leader and the close followers cannot succeed without this huge group of dedicated people. When all is said and done, the structure of the group will clearly tell us if you will attain your goals or you will fail. It's not hard at all to talk to the leaders and their supporters to see whether they stand a chance of succeeding or not. The quality of the group determines the outcome. I was talking to Jim White, owner of Motorsports Direct near San Diego, California and he told me about a group that he joined. Jim is involved in the automotive industry and racing world and volunteers a lot of his time to civic and support groups, along with his wife Fran White. He told me that in many car clubs there will be a hardworking leader, a few dedicated followers and a large number of members who simply come for the parties and activities. These lackadaisical members will ask for the t-shirts, hats or other memorabilia for an event, promise to pull a duty and then won't show up. They won't pay their dues, join in the work details or do what their jobs require of them, yet they are on the rolls and it costs the club time, effort and money to babysit them.
Unfortunately, a great number, perhaps as much as 50% of the group is composed of what we like to call "dead weight," in an organization. I've met these men and women. They talk a great deal and draw the attention to themselves. They disrupt the flow of the meeting and you can't count on their help in a crunch, or for that matter, at all. The group spends almost as much time monitoring their behavior as in taking care of the work load that they have to carry out. These needy people also go on and on about how "uncaring" the group seems to be about their needs, forgetting that they don't return anything to the group themselves. The club hesitates to remove these members from the group because these hangers-on always give such promise of future potential. Jim joined a group of "go-getters" from other clubs and they formed an association dedicated to get things done. All were leaders who could also follow orders and anyone who failed to fulfill his duties was asked to leave. They achieved fantastic results in their community. Now that we have discussed what your group needs in the way of leaders, followers and members, let's look at why we tend to fail.
It all started long before you were born, in the year 1829, the year Andrew "Andy" Jackson was elected to the presidency of the United States. Previously to that the country was mostly rural and the government was simply a part-time, almost voluntary organization. Men were elected, passed laws, turned the power over to a small bureaucracy to run the country and went home to their farms and businesses until the next term of Congress. Jackson changed all that by adding his supporters to the bureaucracy of government and creating a spoils system. It got progressively worse until today the government taxes and borrows at a rate greater than all other countries and nearly as much as every country combined. When you concentrate money and political power like that it has a tendency to cause focus groups to congeal into a form of business and try to get their hands on some of that corrupt money supply. If you look at the 1970's, perhaps 60% of all charitable and civic groups did not exist. If you go back to the heyday of racing in the 1950's, about 90% of all groups did not exist. If you go back to the 1930's, close to 100% of all groups that exist today were not even a dream in the eyes of their believers. Each and every group that exists today is taking money from the chief tax collector and draining the system dry of money. This is the money that you and your racing organization depend on to keep racing.
At one time in the past Americans simply died of illnesses, diseases or accidents. We didn't think much about why we died, it was simply a sad fact of life. Today just about every disease, social ill or lifestyle has a group and that group demands money and support from the Federal and state governments. Why are they selling off the cars in the Cleveland museum? Because other museums or causes in Cleveland are better led, have angrier followers and a mob of upset people ready to vote out the politicians unless they cave in to their demands. Why is a racetrack on the county fairgrounds in an Oklahoma city being bulldozed? The reason is that the officials need to raise more revenue and provide goodies for people in their area who are more of a threat to them politically than are the racers. It all comes down to power and racers often cede that power to others rather than fight for what they want. I admit, it's hard to fight city hall when groups representing Cancer survivors are your adversaries in wanting that tax money. Is racing a better and wiser use of tax supported causes than Cancer programs? Yes, there are some very disgusting groups out there that make us wonder why the government supports them over us. But the vast majority of groups that the government supports are the same groups that we also support.
We also fail to look at the problem from the perspective of the administrators themselves. We are so selfishly concentrated on what racers want that we don't see what government bureaucrats are facing. The demand for their services, time and money is growing each and every year. Yes, HIV and AIDS programs and support groups have been around for two decades or more, but various environmental, ethnic, racial and social groups are growing exponentially each and every year. In fact, that's the main cause why American auto racing is declining. Every year we face new groups with new demands for time, money and support and the government simply cannot cope. It must borrow money to add to what it takes in by taxes in order to satisfy the demands made on it by new groups that arise and threaten to withhold their donations and votes to our political candidates. Every year the battle gets harder and harder to fight because there are more "enemies" fighting for that money. The Cleveland museum and the Oklahoma fairground's race track are but two casualties in a war fought over a dwindling supply of money and political power. Auto racing just doesn't have the numbers to effectively win these battles and the governmental administrators know that. They are placating the larger and more serious groups and letting the smaller, weaker groups fend for themselves as best they can. When it is in the government's interest to support racing they do so; such as Fontana's (California) NASCAR oval and Pomona's (California) dragstrip.
If you want to win back your museums, car show venues, oval and drag strips then you have to fight to win and that means you have to beat the Boys and Girls Club, the Boy and Girl Scouts, the local environmental groups, Cancer and other groups concerned with debilitating illnesses. You have to take on Black and Hispanic groups who want the land to build their monuments to their heroes. You have to fight against civic groups for the money that they also need to fight social causes like hunger and homelessness. People ask me if NASCAR is a threat to drag racing and the NHRA. I always tell them that a bigger threat to drag racing is "every single entertainment and sports activity," because every time a dollar is spent on the circus, a video game, TV and movies, it can't be used for auto racing." Everybody wants that rare and important dollar, or that vital vote of the politician to see that their sport or activity is safe and secure. We are not the only one's seeking to save our history and heritage. When the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum opened in 1998, what people forget is that it took the building used by quilters at the Los Angeles County Fairplex. Yes, we caused quilters in the area to lose a very valuable venue site to show their beautiful quilts. The Fairplex administration looked at the revenue that the quilters could provide, then at what auto racers could generate and gave the lease to the NHRA. Do we feel sorry for all those quilters left with no place to show their artwork? What more can I add that that. It's a war out there among a lot of groups looking for space, money and the political support for their groups to survive and if they are to survive they have to run the weak out of town. For all too long it has been the racing community that has been the weak sister and if that is to change, then you have to find those leaders and followers that I mentioned and get organized. Politics is dirty and disgusting. You either get down in the mud and struggle or you find some other sport.
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Friday morning, 10AM. I just got off the phone with Andy Anderson, who had just spoken with Pat (Dan Chase's wife). The hospital did a couple of brain scans in the last two days. In the second scan, they could see one of the tumors was getting larger in size and decided to go in and remove that along with the other one that they had started to treat with radiation. So, he went back into Boston (where they did the first operation) and sometime yesterday, last night were able to remove both. Sounds like one of them was rapidly growing and putting pressure on the part of the brain that controlled his motor skills. He is in ICU and they won't know for a week or so what the final outcome will be and how quickly Dan will get his motor skills back. Leaving this on a positive note, he is alert, he is able to speak, and he was able to make a fist with his right hand (which he could not do 2 days ago), so things sound a lot more positive then they did on Wednesday. Baron Hazen and Gil Coraine
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Mike Kacsala made reference to The Ballenger Special which was sold at RM Hershey. I am assuming he spoke of one of the many Ballenger cars that raced at The Indianapolis 500 in the 1950's. I wonder which car he was talking about. Lee Wallard drove the Ballenger into Victory Lane in 1951, and became the first driver, of more than 20, to roll to a stop in that prestigious place on Halibrand Cast Magnesium Alloy Wheels. As far as I know that particular car is still in the Indy Hall of Fame Museum. The twin to that car which was crafted later in the season was on displayin the Donnington Park Museum in England when I saw it last in 1990. The Donnington is the worlds largest collection of open cockpit, open wheel racing cars. It fills several buildings one of which houses examples of every McLaren Formula One cars that have ever been built.
Two places, in addition to The Star Public House in Bentworth, I always visited when in the UK were the museum at Brooklands (the worlds very first purpose built racing circuit) and Donnington Park. Donnington is located 100 miles north of the M25 Beltway that surrounds London. On one visit, I made the drive back to London in slightly under one hour! I was passed twice; Once by a Lamborghini and later by a Ferrari. It is a shame that the Crawford Museum is in such trouble. I visited the facility several years ago and was amazed at the aircraft collection they had, but then I discovered the Crawford connection to Thompson Products, who sponsored the main event race at The Cleveland Air Races in the 1930's and 1940's. On that visit I also toured the Ford Plant Two Engine manufacturing facility UNESCORTED! They had just finished tooling up on the 2.5 L DOHC V6 that went into the Cougar and Contour cars. The machining and final assembly was totally automated. Incredible!
Bob Falcon
Bob: Can you tell us anything about the land speed cars that are on display in England. I understand they have Campbell's and Noble's cars, as well as others. They really know how to create excellent libraries and museums in England, but then they have a National Trust which takes over any historic place whenever that place is in financial jeopardy. We don't have such an institution here.
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The following email was sent to Joe Devine to offer our condolences, but the email and the phone numbers that I had were all discontinued. So I am putting this into the SLSRH as a public tribute to Phyllis Devine whom I admired greatly and wish the racing public to know.
To Joe Devine:
The Parks Family wishes to extend to you our condolences on the loss of your wife and the editor of The Alternate. My late father, Wally, my brother David and I, have admired the way Phyllis set out to save the history and heritage of racing. She even let me write a few articles for the newspaper. It was a first class project and those that took the paper stood loyally by her side as Phyllis labored to bring it out every month. I had email and phone conversations with Phyllis on a few occasions and she impressed me with her desire to bring facts out into the open and have a serious discussion about our rich American car racing heritage. She was fair, honest and kind. We will miss her and her way of editing The Alternate. I hope that you can continue to publish The Alternate as it is a fitting testimonial to a wonderful lady. We wish you the best, Richard Parks and family
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You, along with many, do not recall that I recently completed a very long story about the innovative life of my former boss and good friend, Ted Halibrand. Ironically, Phyllis Devine published two episodes of the piece beginning with the June 2009 issue of The Alternate. The second installment ran in the July issue and then Phyllis was hospitalized. Her intent was to run the story in all the issues that were required, as a serial. The July issue left off at 1951, so there were several more years of interesting projects to discuss still to be reported on. I assume that if Joe Devine decides to continue with publication of The Alternate he will pick up where Phyllis left off in the Halibrand piece. It's a good tale and one that really needs to be told. Ted was a true racer and was diligent in his goal to make all forms of motor racing the safest it could be. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Bob Falcon
Bob: You might have told me and I forgot. Jim will tell you that I'm a most forgettable person, pun intended. I suppose that's because we try and cram all the history that we can into what minds that we have and we just cannot hold all the data. He is constantly reminding me and I do the same for him. I tried calling Joe Devine, but both phone numbers that I had were disconnected. Phyllis emailed me before she died that she changed her email address from TheAlternate to RacePaper. I sent an email to Joe today to offer my condolences and to ask him the status of the Alternate. I truly hope he continues publishing The Alternate, but it is a difficult situation for him. First, it was Phyllis' personality that made the little newsletter work. Secondly, all print copy media publications are dying on the vine and corporations are downsizing their magazine brand names, consolidating them into a single name. Third, readership of The Alternate has never exceeded 1000, or so Phyllis told me once, and it is an older group of people and they lose subscribers every year to infirmity or death. Finally, the ads in The Alternate have never been much and so the newspaper is constantly stressed for funds to operate. But if Joe can overcome these problems and keep it going, then I am really happy to see this wonderful little paper survive against the odds. It isn't just The Alternate, all the websites and magazines that I have written for, save the Hot Rod Hot Line group has had trouble keeping me on their staff, even though I work literally for free. It's a tough market out there and has been for a decade or longer. Robert "Pete" Petersen sensed that and sold his publishing empire at the height of the demand for print media groups. After that, its been a long, hard downhill road for all print media companies. But you should write anyway, regardless of who is out there to publish, because the internet can distribute what you say far broader and more comprehensive than the print magazines ever could. I will publish whatever you send me in the SLSRH newsletter at www.landspeedracing.com. What I suggest is that you allow one to six months exclusivity for the magazine that commissioned you to write for them, unless they have a contract that calls for a longer time. Once that exclusive period has lapsed, you can send a copy of your article to others to publish. Since www.hotrodhotline.com is my largest publisher, they get an exclusive that goes a bit longer, from 6 months to a year, but they do allow me to send my work on to other on-line and print media magazines if they are not competing head to head with that publication for the same audience. I try and give the Lawford's extra consideration, because they do so much for the hot rodding community. The advantage of sending your work to more than one source is that it attracts a wider and more diverse audience and after all, we write so that people will know what we know. There isn't any payment except the satisfaction of knowing that people care about what we care about. I've only had two people refuse to send me their articles because we had no budget to pay them. In both cases I understood and commiserated with them and said that if they rely on their writing to make a living that it was perfectly alright to look for another publisher who could pay. There aren't many, I can tell you that. I will take anything and everything that you write on, especially all the information that I can get on Ted Halibrand. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.
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Mike Borders will be at our January 19 meeting. Please review his supplemental plans try to be at this meeting. Mike is flying in and would like your help in setting up the "MOJAVE MILE." See www.mojavemile.com. Thanks, Ron Main
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Mile Shootout racing is coming to the West coast. Standing-start, flat out speed, as fast as you can go in one mile. In conjunction with the Mojave Air and Space Port, a private airfield in Mojave, California, we will host the first ever Mojave Mile Shootout event on March 6, 2010. This facility features a 12,000 foot runway which will allow for very fast speeds (250+ mph) and a comfortable braking margin. Since Mile Shootout racing is already very popular in Texas, the Midwest, and the East Coast, we look forward to being the premiere site for Mile Shootouts in the West. While the premiere of the Mojave Mile is scheduled to be a one-day event, future events will be 2-3 days long and will attract up to 300 participants. The Mojave Mile will be open to both cars and motorcycles, and, as the event grows in popularity, is forecasted to be held multiple times per year.
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Racing Clubs: Historians listed for each club
Eliminators................................................................none
Gear Grinders...........................................................Glen Barrett
Gold Coast Roadster and Racing Club.......................none
Gophers.................................................................. ..Michael Brennan
Hi Desert Racers.......................................................none
Idlers........................................................................Michael Brennan
Lakers......................................................................none
LSR.........................................................................Mike Cook Jr
Milers.......................................................................none
Road Runners...........................................................Jerry Cornelison
Rod Riders...............................................................none
San Diego Roadster Club..........................................none
Sidewinders..............................................................Ron Main
Super Fours..............................................................Roy Creel
Throttlers..................................................................Michael Brennan
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The Hot Wheels Hall of Fame at the Petersen Automotive Museum, features Hot Wheels. full-size and die-cast cars, original models, wooden patterns, injection molds and drawings of original vehicle designs. Come and be a part of the Petersen's "Pit Crew." New Docent Training Class will be held in the fall of 2008. For an application or more information call - (323) 964-6358, email [email protected], or visit www.petersen.org. Chris Brown
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I thought you might think this is pretty cool. World's smallest running Chevy V-8 motor. He did it all on a Bridgeport milling machine. After viewing all of the pictures, be sure to catch both of the film clips of it actually running. Google; http://www.moyermade.com/chevyV8.html. Victor Enyart
Vic: Miniaturization might force the sanctioning bodies to include a whole new list of racing categories. While people scoff, just look at those extreme sports that the kids are into. Once the nations youth went out to sandlots and played baseball or football. Today they play with video games or make crazy jumps on bikes and skateboards. Who's to say that LSR might one day become a sport dominated by miniature race cars and motorcycles? Weirder stuff than this has happened.
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Annie Burris wrote an article in the Orange County Register on the Donut Derelicts Car show in Huntington Beach, at the corner of Magnolia and Adams. The car show is spontaneous and there is no organizer. It has been going on for more than 15 years, every Saturday morning and a few cars even show up on Sunday. See http://www.ocregister.com/news/cars-226679-derelicts-beach.html.
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My name is Greg Lazzerini and I own Ermie Immerso's Thunderbird turbine streamliner and would like to get some information, pictures or anything else. [email protected]. Thanks.
Greg: I'll post your request to the Society of Land Speed Racing Historians newsletter and see if any of our readers can help you. I would also like to offer some suggestions, the same ones that I give to everyone who writes in and asks for help.
a) Be aggressive in your search. If you wait for people to respond, you won't get very many answers.
b) Start up a phone tree. Call those you know who have any knowledge of the car, get what you can, then ask the person you are talking to, "Can you give me some phone numbers and names of anyone who you think might know something." Not only will you have more people to talk to, but the word will soon get out that there's a man (you) who is looking for information on Ermie Immerso.
c) Go to the Grand National Roadster Show, third weekend in January, at the Pomona, California Fairplex, a rich source of hot rodding and dry lakes racing. While there, ask people at the show about the people who used to know Ermie. His car won there.
d) Get all the information that you have then write to us and to other blogs and tell us what you know about Ermie and the streamliner. You might think this is silly, since you want information, but this is a very effective tool to use. The more you tell us the more you trigger memories in people. It's called code words. I've talked to many people and they've just shook their head and said, "I don't remember." Then I keep asking more questions and finally ask the right one and the guys will say, "Oh, that, I know all about that." You've triggered their memories. Never give up on a source, just keep asking questions.
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The 9th Annual B'ville Northwest Banquet will be held on February 13, 2010, at the Shilo Inn Portland Airport, 11707 NE Airport Way Portland, Oregon 97220. The cost for this year's event is $48 per person. After February 2nd the cost goes up to $55 per person. There will be a registration limit of 150, and by pre-registration only. There will be no "at the door registration." We are having a flower and cash drawings for the ladies in attendance. Check or Money Order payable to: Glenn Freudenberger, 11113 37th Drive SE, Everett, WA 98208. If you have any questions send me an e-mail at [email protected], or call 425-337-4558. Cell phone number is 425-422-6944. I'll get back to you within 24 hours. Doors open at 5PM. The featured speaker is will be Bret Kepner from ESPN TV. He has covered drag racing for both networks but he is just as passionate about Bonneville. Plans are not completed yet for Friday or Saturday extra events. Shilo Inn reservation number is 503-252-7500 in Portland and the National number to call is 1-800-222-2244. We will have a block of rooms held for us, after December 24th, at a reduced rate. I suggest you call the Portland location, 503-252-7500 and be certain to mention that you are affiliated with the B'VILLE NORTHWEST REUNION. This rate covers several days before and after the event. If you make a reservation before January 6th, I'll assure you that I can guarantee the reduced rate after you get there. Refund policy; Up to February 5th all but $5 will be refunded. I must have the written request in my hands by February 5th. After February 10th, no refund will be possible. Thanks, Glenn Freudenberger
Glenn: I slightly revised your email. The way you send it is colorful, large and small type and suitable for sending to individual people, but it won't show up that way in newspapers, magazines or e-zines. Also, CAPITAL letters take up too much space and look unprofessional, although I do allow some Capitalization, as you can see above. You said it well, but the basic flaw is that you send out notices too infrequently. The rule of thumb that I use is this, once a month email notices for the first six months, and a snail mail letter at around the 3rd month prior to the event. Two months prior to an event send out one emailer every other week. The last month prior to your event you should send out a mass mailing every week. In between, phone calls as needed. I do this for several reasons. The more emails the harder it is for people to forget. They may buy a ticket, but fail to show up. Secondly, the more you send a notice around the more "buzz" you get going and when people start to talk, that's all free publicity. Thirdly, promoting an event is often the job that is overlooked and you should get your group in the mindset that when you hold an "Annual" event, that your PR group never stops working. Don't send out the same email, but try and vary the content. Talk about the people who have shown up in the past and who are going to show up for this event. Tell people in your mailings about special things that will occur. Always leave a little unsaid to get your audience curious. Since you only have a month or five weeks to go, send out an email once a week now. Make it simply, just an email, because it takes a lot of editing to take what you send me and make it "print ready."
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The Jalopy Journal has this excellent video about Bill and Bob Summersand their Goldenrod Streamliner. See the following website at:http://www.jalopyjournal.com/?p=7069. Sent in by Ron Main
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For Auld Lang Syne 2009, by Chris Romano.
They are already testing stock cars at Daytona, the prototypes will spring to life for the 24 Hours, short track racers will head to New Smyrna. So prior to kicking off motorsports 2010, a pause to reflect on those who left us in 2009. 1967 NASCAR Rookie of the Year and 1966 winner of the Firecracker 400 Sam McQuagg died at age 73. We lost Jack McCoy at 72, a multi-time Winston West winner, together with journeyman 60's and 70's NASCAR entrant Dick May. We also lost Benton Woodward, Jr., former NASCAR driver at age 79. In short track racing we said farewell to Lou Blaney, sprint and dirt modified star, and the father of Dale and Dave. Former Carolina Clash champion Ed Gibbons died at 46 in traffic accident. Matt Hawkins, just 21, died of an accidental gunshot. He was an ARCA and USAR winner, and Southern All Star Super Late Model champ. Former Nationwide series driver Kevin Grubb, 31, took his own life. His career ended after being banned by NASCAR in 2006 for substance abuse. Alex Beaumont, 1988 Late Model champion at Delaware International Speedway, died of heart failure at 55. Wayne Patterson, Late Model champion at Southside Speedway and two time South Boston champ, died in a road accident at age 60. Frank "Rebel" Mundy, NASCAR pioneer and AAA stock car champion in 1955 passed away this year at 91.
Midwest veteran George Anderson died at age 80. Pat Wohglemuth, Sr., a champ at Flemington and Morristown, left us at age 74. South Carolina dirt late model competitor Phillip Seifert died suddenly of cancer at age 30. Jack Reilley, the 1965 Baer Field stock car champion passed on this year, as did veteran ARCA owner Bobby Jones, at 62. At 76 veteran dirt late model owner Raye Vest passed on. He had been car owner for Rick Eckert since 1995, and was a fixture at World of Outlaw events. For years John McCarthy manned the pits at Star Speedway in New Hampshire, and he left us this year. Rupert Porter, founder and promoter of Anderson Speedway in South Carolina, died at age 73. Mike Johnson, former owner and promoter of 311 Speedway and Ace Speedway in North Carolina died at 64 after a long illness. If you grew up around racing in New Hampshire and Maine then at some point you were a Stub Fadden fan. He thrilled crowds for decades running NASCAR North and keeping the youngsters honest. The hometown legend died after a lengthy illness this year at age 75. Joining Stub was another New England legend, Ernie Gahan, the 1966 NASCAR Modified Champion who barnstormed throughout the northeast with the best of them.
It was a tough year in open wheel when we heard that Larry, "Rice-a-Roni" Rice lost his battle with cancer at age 63. A racer of the old school Larry was USAC midget champion in 1973 and Silver Crown champion in 1977 and 1981. In 1978 he was co-rookie of the year at the Indianapolis 500, sharing the honor with Rick Mears. He went on to a successful career in broadcasting and insurance, and I had the privilege of working with him at Seekonk many years ago. He was truly one of the nice guys. Larry is joined at the Golden Speedway this year by "The Rube," Lloyd Ruby. The unluckiest man at Indy, Rube entered the race 18 times and was always fast, but never first. Other victories on the champ car circuit graced his career, and he was no slouch in sports cars, winning the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring. Bob "Caveman" Christie, an 8 time Indy starter died this year at age 85, while Danny Kledis, who drove in the 1946 Indy 500 for the Granatelli brothers died this year at 92. We lost Big Jonathan Byrd all too soon at age 57. The jovial cafeteria owner fielded a car for years at the Speedway for genuine heroes like Rich Vogler.
Jim McWithey, a four time entrant in the Little 500 and a two time entrant at Indy in 1959 and 1960 passed on this year. Roy Bryant was a two time IMCA Sprint champ, a Belleville High Banks Hall of Famer, and a four time entrant in the Knoxville Nationals. Fellow Knoxville veteran Earl Wagner, a Knoxville sprint and supermodified champ and a National Sprint Car Hall of Fame member passed on this year. Just 16, talented mini-sprint racer Christian Stover was killed in an ATV accident. Veteran northwest midget driver Harry Stryker, Sr., died this year, as did Don Carr, 87, a veteran IMCA big car driver. Walt James led CRA sprint cars for a long time and passed on this year. Billy Wilkerson, the 1967 and 1970 CRA Sprint Car champion left us, as did two time UMRA TQ champ Robert Nichols, Jr., who died at 46 in a motorcycle accident. Nine time Pennsylvania Sprint Car champion Jim Nace left us all too early at 55. Veteran sprint car engine builder and owner Loren Woodke died this year at age 84. Gordon Betz, veteran AAA and USAC official died at age 91. And let's not forget Art Rousseau who left us at age 87. Art was a legend in sprints, cutdowns, and supers in New Hampshire.
Crocky Wright wrote what many considered to be the definitive midget history in the US. The author, motorcycle daredevil, and racer passed away late this year at age 91. There are a million Crocky Wright stories but my favorite is when he took a tour bus around the Speedway, sightseers and all, at racing speed. It was the shortest tour bus driver employment ever at Indianapolis but I'm sure Crocky thought it was worth every minute. Road racing lost Bill Scott, accomplished Formula Vee racer and Summit Point boss this year. Larry Miller, who built the beautiful Miller Motorsports Park in Utah, died at age 64. Longtime sports car entrant Harry Brix died at age 62. Paul Hacker, 1975 Car and Driver Showroom Stock Sedan champion and long time SCCA racer left us, along with Donna Mae Mims, H Production SCCA national champion in 1964, who passed on at 82. Teddy Mayer lost his brother Tim to the sport in the early 1960's, but went to work for Bruce McLaren, guiding that company after Bruce's death in 1970. He went on to work for Roger Penske for 20 years, and died this year at age 73.
Across the pond perennial British entrant Jackie Epstein died at 74. Six time British Hill climb champ Tony Marsh passed away at 77, as did Roy Lane, four time MSA British Hill climb champion at age 74. Tony Maggs raced in the junior formulae and Formula One in the 1960's, retiring to become a game warden in his native South Africa. He died this year at age 72. Pete Arundell was a two time Formula Junior champion, graduating to become Jim Clark's team mate at Lotus. A devastating Formula Two crash at Reims effectively ended his career, and he passed on at age 75. Formula Three and Formula Ford team owner Joe Tandy died this year, just 26. Jean Sage led Renault to Formula One and sports car success, and was a pretty good driver in his own right. He died this year at age 68. Swedish rally star Ingvar Carlsson died at 62. And let's not forget Frank Gardner, who famously said he never wanted to be the fastest race car driver, just the oldest. He made his name in touring cars, but was among the few who Porsche called upon to tame the fearsome 917. The garrulous Aussie died this year at age 78.
Tom Wheatcroft single-handedly resurrected Donington Park, bringing Formula One back to the circuit for the first time since the 1930's. He amassed a priceless collection of vintage cars, and lent a hand to so many young drivers, most notably the ill-fated Roger Williamson. Suffice it to say an era ended with his passing this year. The straight line set lost pioneer Chet Herbert this year at 81. He was the father of NHRA star Doug Herbert. Former land speed record holder Robert Pierson died this year at 82. The sport did not take a year off from tragedy this season. Carlos Pardo, NASCAR Mexico driver, was killed in a horrific crash in a race at Pueblo. Chad McDaniel was killed in a midget crash at Knoxville at age 34. He led USAC/SMRA standings at the time. 2007 SCCA E Production champion Thomas Thrash, Jr., died in crash at Road America at 48. Henry Surtees, son of 1964 World Champion Big John died in a freak Formula Two crash at Brands Hatch, just 18 years old. John Schulz was killed in a modified crash at Red River Valley Speedway in North Dakota at 47. Ikey Dorr, 56, had a fatal heart attack during a Super Street Stock event at Speedway 95 in Maine. Mechanic Dennis Frank, 48, was killed when he was struck by a sprint car at St. Francois County Raceway in Missouri.
Rudy Ramos, 62, died when thrown from his 1958 Corvette in a crash at the Kauai Raceway Park drag strip in Hawaii. Steve Bowers, Jr., was 49 when he died in a modified crash at Thunderhill Raceway in Iowa. Charlie Webster, was killed at age 38 in a Stock Car crash at Oxford Plains, in Maine. Ronnie Marcum, 53, was killed in a freak drag racing crash in the pits at California Speedway. Alan Burgess, 54, died of burns when his Porsche caught fire at an SCCA event at Daytona. Richard Shafer died at 66 of injuries sustained in an SCCA hill climb. The fourth estate lost Dick Beebe, publisher of the MARC Times for 47 years. NASCAR reporter David Poole, who covered the sport for the Charlotte Observer, died suddenly this year at age 50. Stew Reamer founded the RPM promoter's workshop and newsletter, and he leaves impossible shoes to fill. Veteran photographer Steve Snoddy left us this year, while the midwest drags and sprints lost photographer Bob Hesser at 46. NASCAR lost two of its best when Dick Thompson, the long time public relations director for Martinsville Speedway died at age 74, and northern PR director Bob Paulin passed on at age 62. Phyllis Devine, who kept the vintage racer flame burning with her little publication The Alternate, died this year after a long illness.
Thom Ring's excellent Shorttrack Magazine fell victim to the economy, ceasing publication. Greed, stupidity, and the economy wasn't kind to race tracks either. The city of Birmingham, Alabama, decided they didn't want to be in the race track business any longer and shuttered Birmingham International Raceway after 95 years. Nashville shut down the Fairgrounds, as did the State Fair at Oklahoma. Dover Downs International pulled the plug on Memphis Motorsports Park. And a way of life came to an end with the closing of Manzanita in Phoenix. Watching the sprint cars there was as close to heaven as most of us may ever get. And what will we do without Robert "Barnrat" Devaney. A New Hampshire character in the mold of Mo Tweedie, Barnrat raced supermodifieds in the golden era, and founded the V6 Super division at Hudson International Speedway. He died this year at age 67, of cancer. Lew Boyd, racer and publisher, recounted the story of Barnrat's Last Ride on his web site, coastal181.com. Barnrat's family gave another legend, Pete "The Travelin' Man" Fiandaca his ashes for one last time around Hudson. Peter, sporting Barnrat's old number, 222, won his heat and finished fourth in the feature.
At 97 Marvin Rifchin passed away this year, and with him a lifetime of race tire knowledge. Founder of M&H Race Tires Marvin was racing royalty. He was a good friend of Don "Big Daddy" Garlits, and you can find his handiwork in the Smithsonian. But Marvin was most at home at a street stock race or with the NEMA midgets. He could give you a durometer reading by pressing a pencil eraser to the tire tread. Racer Max Papis said this year that "life is about the stories you tell." And so, as ever, while we shed a tear at their memory, I ask that you remember their stories, the stories we shared with them, and, oh, how they lived. We raise a glass to them all, for Auld Lang Syne. Joyeaux Noel, Bonne Annee mes amis. - Chris Romano. In addition to Chris' wonderful salute, let me note these racers and racing folk who left us in 2009: Several drivers who raced in NASCAR in earlier eras left us in 2009, three of them Georgians: George Alsobrook made 18 starts from 1958-1962. He passed away at 75. Ken Spikes made 15 of his 16 starts in the 1964 and 1967; he died this year at 74. Bob Burcham was a top short tracker who made 36 starts at NASCAR's top level, 20 of them in '74. Burcham, a member of both the Georgia and Tennessee racing halls of fame, passed away at 73.
Gutsy Joe Caspolich graduated from the short tracks of Mississippi' s Gulf Region and survived a severe accident in his debut in the '57 Southern 500 to make 7 more starts, all of them on superspeedways - including the first race at Charlotte Motor Speedway - and three more of them on the same Darlington Raceway that nearly claimed his life. Caspolich passed away at 79. Virginian Phil Good made 8 starts between 1984 and 1987 and passed away at 54. Jack McCoy still has more wins than any driver in the history of NASCAR's Western series and began his career at Stockton 99 Speedway before moving into the stockers, where he won two titles. McCoy chronicled his fascinating life and racing career in the book "Racing's Real McCoy" and was hoping to do a book covering the history of NASCAR's Western series. Jack died at age 72. Vic Irvan is sadly better known as "Ernie's dad", but beginning with Hardtops and winding up with Late Models, he raced 26 years on California dirt tracks from 1952 through 1978. He excelled on the Watsonville- Merced circuit for the unique NASCAR sanctioned Sportsman division (winged open wheeled cars featuring bodies such as Corvair station wagons!), where he won more than 60 features over a nine year span at the wheel of his purple circle 9 car. We lost Vic this year at 79.
Bill Osborne was one of the "Big Four" who dominated the Southern California NASCAR Late Model Sportsman circuit from '73 through '76. Osborne also raced in NASCAR's Western series, made some starts in NASCAR's top series (including Rockingham, NC) and Trans-Am. Not as big a winner as the other three - Ivan Baldwin, Bill Spencer and Chuck Becker Jr. - the fact that he drove as teammate to Baldwin and Spencer speaks volume about his abilities. The mercurial Baldwin would not have tolerated a slouch in one of his cars. When the money was greater at San Diego's Cajon Speedway, the team of Spencer and Osborne switched their racing there and set records. Now, they're all gone, except in the memories of fans that can still see the four flying in formation in a trophy dash on the tight quarter at Orange Show or the banked half mile of 605 or battling in any combination for a main event win at those same tracks or in open comp races at other tracks. Bill Osborne was 62. Fred Steinbroner was an early star of the California Jalopy Association and also an early stock car star in California. Steinbroner passed away at age 83. Likewise, Billy Wilkerson started out in the jalopies before moving on to super mods and the CRA sprints. The '67 and '70 CRA champ died at 82.
While they rarely got out of their area, the West Coast short track scene lost San Jose Hardtopper and owner Merv Furtado at 87, Orange Show Speedway stock car fans remember Gary Headley, who died at 67 and San Diego area race fans remember "Barney" Barney racing open wheelers with the San Diego Racing Association at Balboa Stadium and Cajon Speedway. "Barney" was 86. Ron McGee raced super modifieds at San Jose, NASCAR stocks at Ontario and Riverside and later took the same Chevrolet Laguna and ran it on Bay Area tracks (even dirt!). He passed away at 61. Ollie Prather owned sprint cars and champ cars. He died at 89. Marshall Hansen owned CRA sprint cars and stayed involved in the sport with his son (I also believe he was related to midget Hall of Famer and Indy racer Mel Hansen). Midget racing lost one of its last links to its pre-WWII era when Judd Pickup, the inaugural Rocky Mountain Midget Racing Association champ in 1938, died at age 94. Cliff Spalding was an open wheel racer out of Washington state who won 5 USAC National Midget features between 1959 and 1962 and finished 11th in points in '62. Spalding passed away this year at 80 years of age.
Leo Wyrsch was 92 when he died this year, having spent a life in the sport from helping son Richard to co-promoting the legendary West Capital Raceway dirt track in West Sacramento, CA. Bob Blood raced super modifieds at the same West Capital Raceway in the early 70's. He passed away at 70. The sports car world lost Charlie Kolb, who raced everywhere from Daytona, Nassau and LeMans to Southern U.S. airfields. Kolb died at 85. Super Vee racer Peter Kuhn, who made 3 CART starts, died in a body surfing mishap at 54. Internationally, Oswald Karch, 91, drove in the 1953 German GP. Gino Munaron drove in 4 GP's in 1960. He died at 82. Jackie Pretorius was a successful South African racer who made three starts in the South African GP. Sadly, he died of a heart attack days after being beaten by intruders in his home at age 74. Ian Gordon was a mechanic and fabricator who left his native Australia to work with Frank Gardner, Peter Revson, Pedro Rodriguez and in F1 and Indy Cars (with All American Racers). He died at 67. Peter Bryant was a mechanic and designer who was involved with several teams and best known for his work on the titanium Ti-22 Can-Am car and Team Shadow Can-Am cars and chronicled his career in the book "Can-Am Challenger" died at 71, days after enjoying the "Legends of Riverside" gathering.
Behind the scenes, Jerry Van Dyke, 74, announced and worked at many Colorado tracks and was founder and former chairman of the Colorado Motorsports Hall of Fame. Colorful "Dutch" Holland resurrected racing in the northern California town of Ukiah in the 80's. "Dutch" passed away at age 75. Earle Brucker Jr. ran Cajon Speedway for many years before turning the track over to his sons. A photo of Brucker Sr. doing a last walk around the closed speedway (http://public.fotki.com/DollarDave/mr_bruckers_final/) as it was being disassembled in August of '05 brought a mist to the eyes of any San Diego race fan that spent many a Saturday night at the 3/8 mile oval. Brucker passed away at age 83. And lastly, Altamont Raceway - recently known as Altamont Raceway Park - the track that has died a dozen deaths, may finally have been shuttered for good. The 1/2 mile and 1/4 mile paved ovals witnessed many an interesting event in it's 43 years, ranging from Parnelli Jones winning a USAC National Midget feature and USAC Sprint wins for A.J. Foyt and Bobby Unser to regional legends in NARC Sprints, NASCAR Super Modifieds and NASCAR Grand National West to the Rolling Stones ill-fated "free" concert that featured many legends of rock & roll. Eternally windswept and blazing in summer, noise complaints from a couple of persistent neighbors (and the economy) may have sealed its fate a final time. To anyone whom I've missed, apologies and thanks for your participation in our sport. You all deserve a salute. Jim Thurman, Mojave Desert, California.
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Gone Racin'... Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past, by Don Montgomery. Book review by Richard Parks, photographic consultant Roger Rohrdanz
One of Don Montgomery's earlier books is called Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past. Don raced his cars at the dry lakes and on the early drag strips in Southern California and his love for hot rodding never waned. He developed friendships with other drag racers and hot rodders that gave him the ability to mine a great treasure trove of photographs and memories from his fellow racers. His reputation for quality books and honest writing opened doors for more stories and photo collections and Montgomery found it necessary to produce more books. We can only hope that hot rodders from that long ago era continue to provide Don with more stories and photos and encourage him to continue to write more of his excellent pictorials. Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past is a hardbound book with 160 pages on high quality, glossy-waxed paper. The book measures 9 inches in width by 11 < inches in height. The dust cover jacket is Montgomery's standard red, white and black cover and enhances the style of the book. Always keep the dust cover jackets in good condition. Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past was written, edited and published by Don Montgomery Press and the ISBN# is 0-9626454-1-9. The first printing was in 1989 and the demand for the book was so great that a second printing in 1990 was followed by a third printing in 1994. All 304 of the photographs in the book are in black and white and the quality is exceptional, considering their age. Montgomery provides a great deal of text to tell the story of hot rodding in the 1930's and '40's and beyond. His writing style is straightforward, crisp and informative. To find this book call Autobooks/Aerobooks at 818-845-0707, the gift shop at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum at 909-622-2133, or the author.
Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past is dedicated to the hot rodders of the past and the street rodders of today. The book contains an introduction by the author, an acknowledgment, eight chapters and a section on the author. It lacks a bibliography and an index. Many writers of hot rod books decide not to include an index of names in the mistaken view that pictorial coffee table books are meant to be looked at and not studied. Over time, these books become extraordinarily valuable as historical texts and the lack of an index truly harms their worth. Indexes are purely clerical functions and the time it takes to create them are well worth the effort. Montgomery makes an effort to separate his many books by giving them different titles and emphasis, but it is almost an impossibility. Each book covers basically the same topics as he uncovers new photos and interviews new sources from those by-gone years. This is perfectly fine, as the more that Montgomery finds, the more history he saves. While each of his books cover the same subject, they are all capable of standing alone as a separate history. The list of contributors to Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past is impressive. Some of the better known hot rodders and racers are; Dean Batchelor, Don Blair, Jack Calori, Chic Cannon, Norm Grant, Holly Hedrich, Creighton Hunter, Kong Jackson, Dave Marquez, Roland Mays, Frank Morimoto, Bill Phy, Bob Pierson, Jack Plymell, John Riley, Bud Van Maanen, Alex Xydias and Don Zabel. Many other noted hot rodders also contributed photos or stories to this book. Many of these contributors have since passed on and the record of their deeds in hot rodding may only exist in these pages.
Chapter one is called Hot Rods and discusses the term and where it originated. Many hot rods were called Gows or Gow Jobs. Another term used was 'hopping-up' one's car. A hot rod was a stock car that was customized and altered and the powerplant enhanced for greater performance. Chapter two is named Engines and goes into all the different types of equipment and engines used by the early hot rodders. The most common powerplant used by hot rodders was the Ford Model T 177 c.i. engine. Parts makers included Cragar, Winfield, Riley, McDowell and many others. Gradually the V-8 engines began to show their dominance. Chapter three is titled Roadsters and discusses how the stock coupes of the day were customized and altered to make lightweight, topless and fenderless roadsters that were sleek and fast. Roadsters were the models by which the generation of young people in the 1930's and '40's were known. Ignore the fact that roadsters provided no protection from rain, heat, cold or the elements. Roadsters were the in-thing of that day and age. Chapter four is entitled Coupes and Sedans. A reaction to the roadsters set in during the late '40's as young hot rodders began to exert their individuality and hop-up coupes and sedans. At first the car clubs and organizations refused to allow coupes and sedans to participate. The Russetta Timing Association formed to let coupes and sedans race at their events. Gradually, a grudging acceptance of coupes and sedans broadened the views of what hot rodding was all about.
Chapter five is called Modifieds. Modified roadsters, sedans and coupes meant that they were not simply altered by removing parts or adding them, but totally customized by adding or subtracting length or moving parts around. Cars became narrower and longer as the stock bodies were made more streamlined and aerodynamic. Chapter six is named Streamliners. The ultimate design in modified cars were the streamliners. Unique in appearance and aerodynamic in shape, they riveted the hearts and minds of land speed racers. Low and sleek, some of the cars were built in bullet shapes and others kept a semblance of the roadster look, while other streamliners followed a sports car flattened appearance. Chapter seven is titled Track Roadsters and discusses the hot rods that were involved in oval track racing. It wasn't unusual at all for young people to adapt their cars to go to the dry lakes to race, then return home and compete in a race at the local oval racetrack. Specialization in racing was not as common in the 1930's and '40's as it is today. Hot rodders participated in all times of activities. Chapter eight is called The Early Drag Racers and tells about the beginnings of a new sport that would alter and modify hot rods beyond anything ever conceived before. Montgomery ends his book with a short autobiography of his life and why he chose to write his series of books on hot rodding. Hot Rods As They Were, Another Blast from the Past is a great addition to your library as a history, pictorial and coffee table book. Gone Racin' is at [email protected].
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Gone Racin'... Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past, by Don Montgomery. Book review by Richard Parks, photographic consultant Roger Rohrdanz
Another great book in the series by Don Montgomery is Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past. This is a hardbound book measuring 9 inches wide by 11 < inches in height. There are 144 pages in the book and it is composed of high quality glossy-waxed paper. There are no color photos as the subject matter dates back to the 1940's. There are 12 charts giving statistics and points standings and 285 black and white photos. Some of the photos are grainy and hard to see while other photographs are exceptionally well done. Montgomery cannot be faulted for the quality of the photographs since they came from many sources. What the author has done is to find and publish some very rare photos of a period of time that defined the golden age of automotive racing and experimentation. Some of the photos are extremely well captioned and tell the story all by themselves. Other captions are sparse or non-existent, which is a problem for the readers who are looking for their friends or relatives. Another disappointment is the lack of an index, which serious scholars will find to be a detriment in their researching. Otherwise, Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past is another fine example of the editing, writing and researching that Don Montgomery puts into his books. Montgomery's books all have the same format, with a red hardbound cover and a white, red and black dust cover jacket. Pay extra attention to the dust cover jacket because it enhances the look of the book. Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past is self-published by the author and was first published in 1987, republished in 1989 and 1993. Copies can be obtained from the author by contacting him at 760-728-5557 or at Autobooks/Aerobooks at 818-845-0707.
Montgomery writes the introduction, the acknowledgments and the seven chapters. This is a one-man operation and the author is very good at what he does. Montgomery has a driving desire to record the history and heritage of hot rodding and car racing. He specializes in dry lakes time trials, drag racing and the street rod culture, because that is where the hot rod saw its greatest glory. In fact, hot rodding has never gone out of fashion and is even as popular today as during its heyday of the 1930's and '40's. Montgomery is respected by the old time hot rodders and this is why he is able to dig deep into their archives and memories. He is respected because of his attention to detail and accuracy. He accumulates stories and photographs until he has enough to create a book, which he likes to refer to as his "hot rodder's photo albums." Montgomery provides enough text and captions to help the new reader along. Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past is a pictorial, after all, and it helps to have a background in hot rodding in order to fully grasp and appreciate the variety of the sport. If you are new to hot rodding, or are young and never had the opportunity to see the dry lakes or the old drag strips, then buy all of Don Montgomery's books, because taken as a whole they truly explain the history.
Chapter One is called The Prewar Years and discusses how the hot rodders went to the dry lakes of Southern California to test their hopped up gows against the elements and each other. Gows is a term for hot rods popular in the 1930's. A newspaper reporter first used the term 'hot rod' to express his ideas of what these new and fascinating cars were like. Hot rod was used as a pejorative put down and came to define a wild, out of control teenager's street racing car. Gradually, the term hot rod changed in the minds of the public and earned a begrudging respect. Today the term gow is almost forgotten, while the lowly hot rod has risen in esteem. Chapter Two is named The Great Years and discusses how World War II shut down racing and the car culture while millions of men and women went into the military. After the war these young people returned and created a stronger and more vibrant car culture than ever before. Hot rodding expanded past the street rod and dry lakes car. Chapter Three is titled The Clubs and Montgomery discusses how the local car clubs formed, competed at the lakes and on the streets. Chapter Four is called the Dry Lakes and discusses the racing that took place there. Chapter Five is named the Hot Rod Shows. Hot rodders were gaining pride in their custom creations and were beginning to see the commercial opportunities opening up to them. The 1948 Hot Rod Exposition at the National Guard Armory, near the Los Angeles Coliseum, became a huge hit and soon thereafter there were hot rod shows everywhere. Chapter Six is entitled Hot Rod Magazine and discusses how this seminal newsmagazine put hot rodding on a new level of respect. Pete Petersen and Bob Lindsay brought out the new magazine, with Wally Parks as editor and the photographers and staffers included Don Francisco, Bill Burke, Racer Brown, Tom Medley and Rick Rickman. Chapter Seven is called The Survivors and is pictorial with no text. Hot Rods in the Forties, a Blast from the Past is a must for your hot rodding library. Gone Racin' is at [email protected].
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I wanted to give everyone a heads up that on Sunday, January 3, 2010 at 11:30AM, a new series I'm hosting and producing will be making its debut on Fox Sports Net called, "The NHRA's Greatest Races." A press release from the NHRA will be forthcoming, but for those who don't receive press releases, I thought I'd use this board to help spread the word. I've been working on making this project happen for quite a while and this past summer, I finally was able to put all the necessary pieces together between my production company, the NHRA, and Roger Burgess of ProCare RX, whose great support and primary sponsorship helped make this possible. I have exclusive access to the immense Diamond P tape library which now resides at NHRA headquarters and includes literally hundreds of tapes archiving all of the national events and bonus races produced for television by Diamond P for over 30 years. The first 13 episodes of the show include some truly historic events in NHRA history such as the 1978 US Nationals featuring Prudhomme and McEwen's Funny Car final just days after Tom's son, Jamie, passed away from leukemia. The 1982 Springnationals where Shirley and Lucille Lee raced in the first all-female Top Fuel final, and the 1984 Gatornationals where Joe Amato debuted Top Fuel's first mega-wing designed by Tim Richards.
What makes these shows so special is that you'll see and hear the great Dave McClelland and Steve Evans as they called the races, provided commentary and storylines, plus see many of the greatest legends in the sport's history: Bernstein, Prudhomme, Beadle, Force, Garlits, Muldowney, Hawley, Glidden, Shepherd, Amato, Ormsby, Oswald, Bradley, Meyer, Dunn, etc, all in action just the way we saw them when the Diamond P shows were first aired in the 1970's and '80's. Plus, you'll see many of those drivers comment on those races in interviews conducted recently, reflecting on those performances. And my buddy, Bob Frey, gives some great historical perspectives on all the races with his usual knack for telling a great story. I hope everyone will get the word out on the series since if it's a hit, there are many, many more races I'd like to bring back for another 13 week run.
One footnote: Due to the blizzard we were socked with last weekend up here in the northeast, we are running a little behind in getting the first several episodes of the series to the network. If it doesn't debut on the 3rd, look for it a week later on the 10th at the same time. From Bill Stephens
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Here's to healthy people and healthy cylinders in 2010............Happy New Year ! to all. Courtesy of Don Roberts
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Winterfest drag racing festival. Courtesy of Don Roberts
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