Motorsports Newsletter 12/11/24
By Richard Parks
1) EDITOR’S CORNER: The newsletter was created to allow others to keep up with news that isn’t always reported, such as obituaries, lost friends, out of the ordinary events. It is meant to be enlightening and fun; sort of like the 1930’s bulletin board at Bell Auto Parts where my Uncle Kenny worked, and my father would check before heading out to Muroc or El Mirage dry lakes to go land speed racing. The newsletter is not in competition with X, Facebook, websites or any other social internet programs. In fact, it is there to promote other groups and a way to keep others and myself, who cannot get out as much as we would like to, busy. Please use it as a help for your projects; the newsletter is not commercial and never takes donations or paid ads. Notices about your work, what you or your company does, schedules, etc are all welcome.
READERS: I am going to take a week or two off to rest my hand. Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, and Season’s Greetings with family and friends. Your Editor
AND: All links in the newsletter need to be copied and pasted into your browser in order to work.
2) REMEMBERING OUR LOST FRIENDS DEPARTMENT:
Lee Fike passed away some time ago, Phil Grisotti found his obituary online. Lee and Joe Stocker ran a roadster at Bonneville and El Mirage back in the day. From Jim Snyder
JIM & Phil: Can you send me the obit and any info, so that I can add more on Lee’s racing career.
3) Cruisin’ with Cord Episode 7 – Winter Sports. Go to gr44xjs.
4) Mission Foods HSR Sebring Classic 12 Hour, Pistons & Props, presented by the Alan Jay Automotive Network, at Sebring International Raceway. The four overall Run Group winners came out on top after nine hours of non-stop competition Saturday and three more Sunday afternoon for a symbolic 12 hours of racing paying tribute to the legendary 12 Hours of Sebring sports car race, which will be run for the 73rd time next March. Englishmen Nigel Greensall, and John Emberson and the Foxcraft Racing 1970 #15 Chevron B19 ran with the support of the Atlanta-based Vintage Racing Company team in Run Group A and overall Group A/B win by a full lap. Adam Saal at SaalGoodPR.
5) I think you may enjoy this. I’ve been digitizing Andy Southard’s archives, and I’ve recently got back movies he made since the early 1950’s and been putting them on YouTube. Go to: https://youtu.be/v8qnMRIcqGE?si=ZwoueaXSeTYxQoQe. Trent
Sherrill at trent.
TRENT: How many have you uploaded to Speed&Kulture so far?
RICHARD: I’ve loaded over 10, and I’ve been putting together a new batch of videos that I recently got back from the digitizer. About to load 1964 Bay Area Roadsters/Eureka Rod Run. Trent
6) This Week on Cars Yeah Mark Greene will interview Ginger Baker Rust, and Whit Montross. Mark is at info.
7) Officials announced today that Clinton Snead has been named the new NHRA Director of Engineering. Snead returns to NHRA from Toyota Racing Development, where he served as senior engineer. He worked with Top Fuel and Funny Car teams to improve on-track performance, as well as developing and maintaining the NHRA tuning program and engine simulation programs for the nitro teams. Snead previously worked as associate engineer at NHRA from 2013-2015. He returns to the Technical Department and will help lead the team that oversees on-track competition and safety. From: nhracommunications.
8) Did you know that there is a program you can upload to your computer called DRAGON. This allows you to talk to text instead of type so you can rest your hands. Anna Marco
ANNA: My brother gave me the DRAGON App and I used it but spent more time correcting mistakes than simply typing things out. I have no idea why DRAGON couldn’t understand me, after all I speak HOT ROD very well. I copy and paste a lot of material and that helps a great deal.
9) Officials from IMSA and Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) announced today the IMSA Classic invitational race that will annually showcase the sanctioning body’s more than 50-year history beginning at next month’s 63rd running of the Rolex 24 At Daytona, January 23-26, 2025. The inaugural IMSA Classic will feature cars from the first three decades of IMSA sports car racing from 1973 through 1993. From Adam Saal
ADAM: Did I mention that IMSA has always been extremely kind to drag racers, NHRA and myself. Great group that IMSA.
10) The Lions Automobilia Museum held a Christmas Party to see Santa Claus. Admission was one toy for the toy drive. Helping Santa was Ed Iskenderian, Marvin Graham, Ed Pink, Gary Densham, Shirley Shahan and Robert ‘Bones’ Balogh. Lions Automobilia Foundation 2790 E Del Amo Blvd Rancho Dominguez, CA 90221
11) Collector Car Corner: Cars We Remember. Big Dodge rumors and some history about the beloved brand, by Greg Zyla. (to be serialized) At the drags, none could compare to the "Ramchargers," a group of Chrysler engineers who took to the quarter mile in a fashion that has yet to be matched. Their "Candymatic," red and white striped 426 Hemi Super Stock Dodge Darts, along with sidekicks “Lawman,” and “Color Me Gone” were terrors on the drag strip. On the street scene, drive-ins were crowded with “Six Pack” Challengers, Coronet R/T 440s, 383 and Hemi Super Bees, and Mr Norm’s Grand Spaulding special 440 Darts. Greg Zyla is a syndicated auto columnist and welcomes reader questions at greg. (Continued)
12) Dave Wolin will do a book signing at Autobooks in Burbank, California, on Saturday, December 14, 2024, from 11am-3pm. Dave is a writer and auto racing historian with books on Ascot, Fifty Years of Speed: The Long Beach Grand Prix and Riverside Raceway (volume 1). Autobooks/Aerobooks is located at 2900 W. Magnolia Blvd, Burbank, CA 91505, 818-845-0707, www.au
tobooks-aerobooks.com. Dave Wolin is at Racing History Project, Box 5578, Bakersfield, California 93388.
13) "Toyota, which has 12 championships, more than 200 wins, currently partners with six NHRA teams, through Toyota Motor North America arm, is getting out of the business of NHRA drag racing after the 2025 season. Toyota, which has been in the series since 2002, provides its NHRA teams with tow vehicles, along with engineering, technology and trackside support through TRD USA, which will continue through the balance of the 2025 season. Toyota partners with AB Motorsports (Antron Brown), DC Motorsports (Alexis DeJoria), Kalitta Motorsports (Doug Kalitta, JR Todd, Shawn Langdon), Ron Capps Motorsports (Ron Capps), SCAG Racing’s Top Fuel program (Justin Ashley) and Torrence Racing (Steve Torrence, Billy Torrence)." For the full article by jtowle47.
14) Simca and the Ford V8-60, by Bob Campbell, editor of Vintage Metal, Western Australia. (cont’d in the next issue)
Apparently, Sydney Allard was convinced of the benefits of the Ardun heads and there were a number of Ardun heads produced in London. Allard’s production cars were fitted with Ford V8s as standard and the Ardun heads would have produced a useful power boost. Arkus-Duntov returned to the USA where he worked for General Motors, becoming known as the Father of the Corvette and helping develop the small-block Chevrolet V8 that took over from the flathead Ford as the hotrodder’s favourite. In Detroit, Chrysler were developing an engine based on a 16-cylinder aircraft engine and a 12-cylinder tank engine that were intended for use in World War II. The war ended before the projects were complete, but the work done was not lost. It was incorporated into a new V8 engine for Chrysler cars and trucks, the original Chrysler Hemi V8, introduced in 1951. (cont’d)
15) Lead Writer Diego Rosenberg is a native of Wilmington, Delaware and Princeton, New Jersey, giving him plenty of exposure to the charms of Carlisle and Englishtown. Though his first love is Citroen, he fell for muscle cars after being seduced by 1950s finned flyers—in fact, he’s written two books on American muscle. But please don’t think there is a strong American bias because foreign weirdness is never far from his heart. With a penchant for underground music from the 1960-70s, Diego and his family reside in metropolitan Phoenix. From: Diego Rosenberg diegor at The ClassicCars.com Journal: Your daily dose of steel, rubber and soul.
16) December 5-7, 2025. Historic Sportscar Racing (HSR) Pistons and Props – Sebring International Raceway, Sebring, Florida Adam Saal SaalGoodPR.
17) Books from Dalton Watson Fine Books at www.daltonwatson.com: Imagine too!, by Patrick Kelley. Meister Brauser: Harry Heuer’s Championship Racing Team, Tom Schultz. Mid-Atlantic Sports Car Races 1953-1962, by Terry O’Neil. Books from Dalton Watson Fine Books at www.daltonwatson.com.
18) Books on Mark Greene’s Cars Year website mentioned by those appearing on Mark’s Podcast.
Mike Dale – Modern Times, by Paul Johnson, and Shackelton, by Roland Huntford.
Torsten Gross – The World is Flat, by Thomas Freedman.
Sani Ronan – DayWorld, by Phillip José Farmer.
Ron Carlsten – Books by Don Montgomery.
Ed Fallon – The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, by Victor Hugo, The Man-Eaters of Tsavo, by J.H. Patterson, and The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, by T.E. Lawrence.
David Lichter – The Stoic Challenge, by William Irvine.
Rick Schad – Sex, Drums, Rock ‘n’ Roll: The Hardest Hitting Man in Show Business, by Kenny Aronoff.
Chaya Milchstein – Mechanic Shop Femme’s Guide to Car Ownership: Uncomplicating Cars for All of Us, by Chaya Milchstein.
19) Start racing today with NHRA Street Legal. From: updates. Worldwide Member Tracks –
International Circuit Gate 255, Gulf of Bahrain Avenue, Umm Jidar 1062 Sakhir, https://www.bahraingp.com/.
Motor Town Drag Strip 40 King Fahad Bin Abdul Aziz Rd, Ali Sabah Al Salem, Kuwait, https://kmt.kw/racetrack/drag-strip/.
Yas Drag Racing Centre Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, UAE, https://www.yasmarinacircuit.com/en/products/track-hires
20) Big Four Ferrari 857 Sells at Pebble Beach (serialized in coming issues, November 2024 issue of Vintage Metal magazine). 0588M was then bought by Chris Renwick, an English dealer based in Los Angeles. Renwick took the car back to Europe. The Ferrari then passed to Sir Anthony Bamford then returned to Italy where it was acquired by Count Bobily (Luigi P Rezzonico Castelbarco of Imbersago, Italy). In June 1973 Corrado Cupellini drove the car at the Le Mans historics. Cupellini arranged the sale of the car to Jean-Claude Bajol in 1997. Bajol drove the car sparingly as it was in need of further restoration. In 1982, a Los Angeles attorney was offering the engine and gearbox of a so-called ‘Super Monza’ out of Australia. A close inspection of the Australian engine discovered that it was engine number 0588M, the original engine from the 857S. The engine and gearbox were sold to David Cottingham of DK Engineering in the UK. Bob Campbell at robertcampbell4.
21) Key factors that will influence our ability to reach our target market include securing partnerships with school districts and administrators; developing programs that align to state educational standards; garnering parent and community support;
obtaining funding to facilitate broader roll out. By laying this groundwork and demonstrating strong outcomes, we are confident we can progressively expand our reach in public high schools, ultimately impacting millions of students across the country. Hidden Pioneers is at hiddenpioneers.
22) VSA (Vintage Speedcar Association) Newsletter of NSW (New South Wales, Australia) issue #247 October/November 2024. Our Combined Vintage Speedway Club Picnic Day and Christmas Party was a successful event. We had concern during the lead up with a poor weather forecast, but the day was fine and storms as usual arrived, but only after the day was done. Congratulations go to Craig Dawson for winning the Restoration of The Year trophy. The Australiana Pioneer Village is a great and interesting venue. The staff could not do enough to make our day enjoyable. We intend to return there sometime in 2025 for a simple picnic day (without race machines) and enjoy life. Thank you, John Bush, for your continued support of our club. Bush’s Meats have the best sausages, and meat products. From: John & Maria Green at ajkake.
23) For more information, please visit www.HSRRace.com. For race schedule, entry lists and ticket information for this weekend’s 10th HSR Daytona Classic 24 Hour, please visit the official event page at www.HSRRace.com. From: Adam Saal
24) Burnout! 60th Anniversary of British International Drag Racing Festival (continued). The event was attended by members of the British Drag Racing Historians who contributed much information for the exhibition and a host of different people from within Drag Racing. Alan Allard, (son of Sydney), Alan’s wife and two son’s Gavin and Lloyd. Alan drove the Allard Chrysler dragster and the Works Allard Dragon dragster at all six rounds of the 1964 Drag Festival. The Allard Chrysler is permanently on display at the museum, and we were treated to the firing up of the dragster just outside the main museum building within view of the Exhibition. Other invited guests included Derek and Pam Metcalf who built their own dragster ‘Wombat’ and raced it at the final round of the festival at Blackbushe. John Hunt is at johnhunt.drn. (cont’d)
25) A Hidden Garages production, from Hidden Pioneers. Kid reporter Jeremiah Fennell never gets starstruck. Go to
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTJ5CtO3lf4&t=5s.
26) 2025 NHRA LUCAS OIL DRAG RACING SERIES SCHEDULE: NORTH CENTRAL DIVISION
Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park: April 25-27, 2025.
Summit Motorsports Park: June 18-19, 2025.
Summit Motorsports Park: June 20-21, 2025.
National Trail Raceway (SPORTSnationals): July 9-10, 2025.
National Trail Raceway: July 11-12, 2025.
Beech Bend Raceway Park: August 22-24, 2025.
Worldwide Technology Raceway: October 1-2, 2025.
Worldwide Technology Raceway: October 3-4, 2025. From: nhracommunications
27) We are looking for Ak Miller stories. Here are some that we have collected.
Ak made it a lifetime goal to help others. Many people at the Tribute came to pay their respects and to tell Ak how much he has meant to them. Jim and Steve Shaw edited film of Ak’s career and made a video that was riveting to watch. Marilyn Miller donated the food and beverages for the guests. Robert “Pete” Petersen, Mr Hot Rod Magazine, Jerry Kugel and others donated funds to help put on the tribute. Ed Justice Jr, president of Justice Brothers Car Care Products, put on a magic show that kept the audience enthralled, except for his dad, Ed Sr, who knew all the tricks. George Barris came to pay his respects and to note that “the car culture has really come along.” George had just finished his own car show and auction in Hollywood in conjunction with Debbie Baker to raise funds for cancer research. Barris returned to the podium to talk about the days when he and Ak traveled the country on behalf of the Ford Custom Car Caravan. It was a time when the greatest car engineers and designers met with the best of the hot rodders and racers like Ak. (source: George Barris June 28, 2005)
28) Books from Dalton Watson Fine Books: The Silver Ghost: A Supernatural Car, by Jonathan Harley. Why Not? The Story of the Honourable Charles Stuart Rolls, by David Baines. Jaguar E-Type Six Cylinder Originality Guide, by Dr Thomas F. Haddock & Dr Michael C. Mueller. See: www.daltonwatson.com.
29) Books and Manuals from CarTech Publishing, 6118 Main Street, North Branch, Minnesota 55056, 1-800-551-4754,
www.CarTechBooks.com. How To Rebuild the Small-Block Mopar. How To Rebuild GM LS-Series Engines. How to Rebuild Any Automotive Engine. 4.6L & 5.4L Ford Engines: How to Rebuild. Automotive Wiring and Electrical Systems.
30) BLAST FROM THE PAST…… From the Wally & Barbara Parks story, We Did It Our Way. 23 SEPTEMBER 1949
Clay D. Blair, Jr wrote from Time magazine requesting photographs from the recent Bonneville Nationals and published them with commentary. Wally Parks fumed over the depiction of his friends and their cars and how Time portrayed them; he wrote a rough draft, rewrote the response to Blair and angrily sent it off. It would not be the last time he turned his wrath on a media that maligned the car culture. Nor would it be the last time that Time magazine would irk a segment of the population with a trivialization of their beliefs.
31) Thank you for all the shout outs of our Race Industry Week! For every single session we’ve interviewed over the past 4 days, we released articles with some of the interesting info from every interview. Just wanted to let you know if you were interested in any of the news! You can find them in our news section: https://www.epartrade.com/admin/industry-news/. Reed Kneski, EPARTRADE
REED: I find Epartrade to be very interesting and informative. Thanks for the compliment.
32) Wally’s stories: courtesy of DRIVE Magazine, by Wally Parks (to be serialized in coming newsletters). I AM A CAR NUTarticle written for DRIVE Magazine, by Wally Parks.
I took my shot at the dry lakes, running my ’25 Chevy 4 cabriolet at 82.19 mph on Muroc in 1932. And I was among the founders of SCTA (Southern California Timing Association) in 1937, as a Road Runners Club charter member. After World War II, when SCTA had been moth-balled for the duration and following four (he meant three) years of military duty in the South Pacific, I was SCTA’s first elected post-war president. And in 1947, I left my job as a test driver at the GM assembly plant in East L.A. to become SCTA’s general manager. In the next two years we produced the first big Hot Rod Show as a public relations venture in the L.A. Coliseum Armory – which was the inspiration that started Hot Rod Magazine. In 1949 I moved to Hot Rod as its first official editor, then solicited and received permission for the presentation of SCTA’s first Bonneville Nationals, on the famous salt flats of Utah. As editor of Hot Rod in 1951, I used its pages to announce the formation of the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association), which with 80,000 members is the world’s largest motorsports sanctioning body.
33) Happy Holidays! I published 2 new screenplays (my 7th and 8th) that will be selling in bookstores: 51 Reasons to Ask 51 Questions, and Soylent Caravan, and also a new video on YouTube, with the title Clandestine Transporters: Unconventional Delivery, by Paul D. Escudero.
PAUL: Happy Holidays to you too. Readers: If you enjoy science fiction then check out long-time motorsports fan at bookstores or on-line. Paul’s first life was exciting and now he’s using what he learned in his Sci-Fi novels. He’s been involved in everything that has a motor and goes by rail, water, road, dirt or air.
34) Officials announced today that Evan Jonat has been named Senior Vice President of National Events. Jonat, who is based out of NHRA’s San Dimas, California office, has been Vice President of Live Events since 2018, first joining NHRA in 2007 as a Field Marketing Manager. Jonat has played a pivotal role in creating an enjoyable, one-of-a-kind experience at NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series events. Jonat is a graduate of the State University of New York College at Cortland, where he received a bachelor’s degree in Sports Management, as well as a Master of Science degree. In addition to his role at NHRA, Jonat is on the NHRA Wally Parks Museum board and a board member of ACCUS (Automobile Competition Committee for the United States). From: nhracommunications.
EVAN: Congratulations on your promotion.
35) Health tips from Mary D. Welch: If you have chest pains that radiate in the arm and jaw, with stabbing in the chest and heart. To survive a heart attack when you’re alone, here’s a tip: cough repeatedly and strongly! Deep breaths before every cough. Coughing should be repeated every second until you arrive at the hospital or until your heart starts to beat normally. Deep breathing provides oxygen to your lungs and coughing movements boost the heart and blood circulation. Women have additional and different symptoms. Often have indigestion and tightness across the back at the bra line plus sudden fatigue.
MARY: Thank you for the tip. It’s also important to have a general physical once a year and if heart problems are in your family ask for a heart EKG. I lost my brother from a massive heart attack, and he was only 63.
36) Mission Foods HSR Sebring Classic 12 Hour, Pistons & Props, presented by the Alan Jay Automotive Network, at Sebring International Raceway. In Run Group B, veteran HSR competitors Kenneth McKinnon and Predator Racing broke through for their first Mission Foods HSR Classic victory. McKinnon co-drove the Predator Racing 1972 #01 Porsche 911 RSR to the victory with longtime teammate Mike Bruns and Predator coach and co-driver Charles Espenlaub. The #01 took an overall and Group B win in Saturday’s opening race segment and backed it up with another overall win in the third round. Adam Saal at SaalGoodPR.
37) NHRA YOUTH AND EDUCATION SERVICES PROGRAM IS BACK! AT THE 2025 Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals Friday March 28, 2025 (Deadline to Register and Receive a Free Race Ticket is Wednesday March 26th at 3:00 PM PST) Hello Educators, Parents, and Chaperones: I am very excited to invite you and your school to what will be one of the most rewarding educational programs of this school year. The NHRA Youth and Education Services Program makes its return to In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip on Friday March 28, 2025. John Baadilla, Director, National Event Marketing Operations, NHRA, jbaadilla. Sent in by: Hidden Pioneers.
38) Hi Richard. A Merry Christmas and a Happy New year to you and yours, and to all of your subscribers. The new magazine is at https://indd.adobe.com/view/aa53d9fa-3e3e-4ddc-9c9e-db57e7ebd31c. You can see that our new clubhouse is near completion, that’s my friend Ron Fabry seeding he front lawn on page 1 of the magazine. With the warm weather and a bit of water, the lawn is already coming up. Must get on with sending the magazine out to my list of friends and acquaintances. The list is growing, which is probably self-inflicted. I keep offering to send the magazine to people who help me with information or who express interest. All the best for the festive season, Bob Campbell, Editor of Vintage Metal, Western Australia.
BOB: Thank you and we wish you and all the Aussies from Western Australia a wonderful "Summer" Christmas. Those who have seen the clubhouse are envious. What a swell place to hold meetings and then go racing on the nearby grounds.
38) Bill Montgomery brings some Hidden Pioneers to San Diego High Schools Virtual/Zoom on YouTube at https://www.
hiddenpioneers.
39) Race Industry Week – Day 4 has interviewed the following: Alex Palou, Mike Hull, Scott Dixon, Barry Wanser, Chip Ganassi Racing, Will Kinsman, Goodwood Festival, Gene Crouch, Cameron Gray, American Flat Track racing, Jay Frye of INDYCAR, David Salters of Honda Racing, Mo Murray of Ligier, Jonathan Applegate, Josh Smith of Mazda, Ryan Sage, Formula Drift, Brett Root of IMCA, Levi Jones of Eldora Speedway, David Vodden of Thunderhill Raceway, Lauri Eberhart of Laguna Seca, Chuck Aksland of MotoAmerica, Paul Pfanner of Racer magazine, Joe Tripp of Speed Sport, Judy Kean and Francisque Savinien of Epartrade. Hosted by Epartrade, Racer and Speed Sport, Jeff Hammond, Brad Gillie, SiriusXM channel 90 Late Shift, Ralph Sheheen, Mike Kerchner, Laurence Foster, Chris Medland, David Malsher-Lopez, Richard James, George Tamayo, Mark Glendenning, Taro Koki, and Joe Castello of WFO Radio. From: team.
40) Tickets are now on sale for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals, March 27-30, 2025, as NHRA celebrates 65 years of the historic race next season at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. From: nhracommunications.
41) VSA (Vintage Speedcar Association) Newsletter of NSW (New South Wales, Australia) issue #247 October/November 2024. Bankstown Paceway demonstrations ARE on our events calendar for 2025. A tentative date of March 29th will be the first event. Planning is underway and we will again meet with Paceway management in coming weeks. Get your cars and safety apparel in order now! Our committee, technical gurus, and members will be asked to put forward thoughts on reviewing our year cutoff date for roll bar/classic cars in response to some recent requests to register cars which are of similar specification to existing registered cars but have build dates beyond our current cutoff date of 30th June 1983. That is effectively a cutoff date of 41 years ago. From: John & Maria Green at ajkake.
42) Books on Mark Greene’s Cars Year website mentioned by those appearing on Mark’s Podcast.
Joshua Minson – Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson.
Jake Wolf – The Dealer, by Jim Ciardella.
Genevieve Armendariz – Self Compassion, by Dr Kristian Neff.
Richard de Cabrol – Silmarillion, by JRR Tolkien.
Ransom – Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill, The Bible, and The Strangest Secret, by Earl Nightingale.
Karen McClaflin – Caste, by Isabel Wilkerson, and Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer.
Ethan Gibson – Can’t Hurt Me, by David Goggins.
Rich Kenney – The Right Stuff, by Tom Wolf.
Yuliia Lobodiuchenko – Marina Abromavic, by Marina Abromovic & Katya Tylevich, and books by Giles Chapman.
43) Big Four Ferrari 857 Sells at Pebble Beach (serialized in coming issues, November 2024 issue of Vintage Metal).
Now Cottingham had driven 0588M around the block while it was owned by Chris Renwick, so he planned to reunite car and engine. He approached Jean-Claude Bajol with the intention of buying the car, but he was reluctant to sell. Eventually, in January 2011, the car was sold to Cottingham, and a total restoration began with the intention of returning the car to its John Edgar specification and livery for the Goodwood Revival in 2011, where it ran at the front all weekend, qualifying on pole and leading the race until an oil pressure problem caused retirement on the last lap. 0588M was housed in a collection from 2012 until being entered in the Goodings auction at Pebble Beach. It is a fantastic example of mid-1950s sports racing technology with unique and beautiful Scaglietti coachwork, matching numbers engine and a remarkable history, having been raced by many of the top drivers of the era. Bob Campbell at robertcampbell4.
44) Wally’s stories: courtesy of DRIVE Magazine, by Wally Parks (to be serialized in coming newsletters). I AM A CAR NUT
article written for DRIVE Magazine, by Wally Parks.
With growing problems of street racing and few places to run safe events, I assembled the NHRA Safety (Drag) Safari for a three-year tour to introduce and demonstrate organized drag racing from coast to coast. In 1955, finalizing the Safari’s second tour, we presented drag racing’s first National Championships, in the central US at Great Bend, Kansas. Following years saw the event staged in Kansas City, Oklahoma City and Detroit, beamed at the auto industry’s participation, which launched the muscle car era. By 1963, I was the Editorial Director of all five Petersen automotive magazines, and I left that premium job to assume full-time administrative duties as the founding president of the NHRA.
45) Established in 2004, Prime Motivation Expo is a fun, innovative, interactive strategy, which promotes a positive message to disconnected youth to stay in school and focus on future personal and career-oriented goals. Motivating youths to further their education and seek career-tech education as a possible career path may help lead them towards a path of self-sufficiency and reduce the number of out-of-school, out-of-work youths. Prime Motivation is a tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Hidden Pioneers is at hiddenpioneers.
46) BLAST FROM THE PAST… From the Wally & Barbara Parks story, We Did It Our Way. 7 JANUARY 1950 Walt June
Walt June was a member of the Nite Owls from Riverside, an SCTA member and an old friend from the dry lakes. He wrote to my father concerning an article in Mr Magazine Inc. June didn’t include the whole magazine, and it may have gone out of print, so it is difficult to give an honest impression of the magazine. Walt June has a poor opinion of Mr Magazine, “… is a cheap scandal sheet – but a lot of people read it.” The title read, “MENACE on the road; teenagers toy with murder with souped up hot rods and motorcycles.”
47) Simca and the Ford V8-60, by Bob Campbell, editor of Vintage Metal, Western Australia. (cont’d in the next issue)
The Chrysler Hemi was developed over the years. In 1955 it was fitted to a new model, the Chrysler 300. The 331 cubic inch engine developed 300 bhp, the most of any production car in the USA at the time. Installed in a luxury coupé, the engine provided great performance, and it seemed to Carl Keikhaefer, the man behind Mercury Outboards, that they were the ideal cars for Bill France’s ‘strictly stock’ NASCAR racing and the equivalent AAA (later USAC) stock car class. Keikhaefer persuaded NASCAR to accept the 300s with manual transmissions even though the car was only available with a 2-speed automatic. The automatic would have slowed the cars, but it would also have cooked itself under racing conditions. In later years the 300 ‘letter cars’ had a manual transmission option listed, but the 1955 cars did stretch the strictly stock description a bit. (continued)
48) The 2025 NHRA Youth & Education Services Program is a FREE program that focuses on the importance of goals and continued education; additionally, it allows students to learn about and explore various career opportunities. Students are presented with career, educational, and scholarship opportunities from our official NHRA YES Program Partners: FORD, Gerber Collision & Glass, and The United States Air Force. All students, teachers, parents, and chaperones are invited to receive a free race ticket for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals event held in Pomona, California at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip on Friday March 28, 2025. This ticket will give students the opportunity to observe the same real-world scenarios discussed in the videos applied live and in person. John Baadilla, Director, National Event Marketing Operations, NHRA, jbaadilla. Sent in by: Hidden Pioneers.
49) Vintage Metal magazine (www.vsccwa.com.au), October 2024-Issue #391 of The Journal of The Vintage Sports Car Club of Western Australia. 1: Silver Wings (continued).
In 1927 the Chrysler was bought by Perth Chrysler dealer Billy Attwood who planned to set new speed records with it on Lake Perkolilli. In August 1927, Attwood and co-driver Arthur Colliver set new Australian speed records for 1000 miles and 24 hours on a circular course marked out on the lake. By that time the engine was enlarged to 4.4 litres and the car was ready to dominate racing at Lake Perkolilli until the advent of the lighter Ford V8 and the shift to round the houses circuits that were a bit tight for the big Chrysler led to its dropping down the field. Bob Campbell, Editor, robertcampbell4.
50) RACE INDUSTRY WEEK produced by EPARTRADE, RACER and SPEED SPORT soared to new heights with an elite group of more than 75 speakers representing almost every form of racing. The following will be at the PRI Show; United Engine & Machine, booth #1251, Green Hall. AED Metal Products, booth #5159, Yellow Hall. Magna Fuel, booth #401, Green Hall. Impact Racing, booth #3529, Yellow Hall. JD Squared, booth #5649, Machinery Row. Dyers Top Rods, booth #1904, Green Hall. C.H.E. Precision, booth #1537, Green Hall. Altronics booth #1439, Green Hall. From: team.
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