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SOCIETY OF LAND SPEED RACING HISTORIANS |
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Some Names To Look For In This Newsletter: |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ President's Corner: |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ He (Eric "Rick" Rickman) has stabilized, however he has very few moments of understanding the world around him. His blood pressure is very low and his heart is getting weaker. There was a time that I did get him to understand that all his friends were rooting for him and it got a smile. There is talk of moving him from the intensive care unit to a convalescent home. I wish I had better news, only time will tell. I will keep you posted if there is anything new. My thanks to everyone for your support. Micheal Rickman (received Friday, November 21, 2008) |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Henry "Buddy" Fitzgerel died November 12, 2008 doing what he loved best, driving one of his prized vehicles, a 2005 Cadillac XLR, capable of reaching a speed of 100 mph in less than 12 seconds. His brother-in-law, Lloyd "Andy" Anderson, said Buddy was driving home from a Road Runners Car Club meeting in Riverside. He pulled over to the side of the road, parked and died of a heart attack. He was 67. Thursday at his funeral in Brea's Memory Garden Memorial Park, one of Buddy's special vehicles, a white 1950's Ford pickup in which he had raced and set a speed record in the late 1980's at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, was parked outside the chapel during his memorial service. Fitzgerel was born July 6, 1941 at Murphy Hill Hospital in Whittier, California. He attended East Whittier schools. As a student at California High School, he set a number of running records in track. After high school, he entered the U.S. Army in 1964, serving two years, including a stint in Vietnam in the medical corps. Never married, Fitzgerel went on to a 30-year career as supplies manager for the East Whittier City School District. His family remembers him as a thoughtful man, who cared for his mother in her aging years, sent flowers to his sisters on their special occasions and kept his nieces and nephews laughing with his easy-going sense of humor. Fitzgerel was a member up to his death of the Road Runners Car Club, which had its beginning in 1937 and held early meetings in Whittier and Huntington Park. Its emphasis was on speed trials on deserts in the west, such as Bonneville and El Mirage Dry Lake. Among the Road Runners' famous local members was the late Ak Miller, a Danish immigrant who settled in Whittier and had worked for and become close friends of the Richard M. Nixon family. He was a nine-time winner of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb. Fitzgerel is survived by sisters, Beverly and her husband, Andy, of Whittier and Susan and her husband, Jerry, of La Habra, six nieces and nephews, 10 great-nieces and nephews and one great-great-niece, and his dog, Blackie. "Buddy" Fitzgerel's funeral included a military honor guard. By Bill Bell |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jerry Cornelison sent us a website listing the biographies and history that they are compiling for their Road Runner's members. Here's the link; http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/member.htm. The Road Runners are compiling some very serious history and we urge the other clubs to follow and do the same thing. Good job Jerry. |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ We're proud to call George Barris a friend here at Hotrodhotline, he is one of those industry icons who has contributed so much with his vision and talent. There are many rodders who have admired him and his work for many years. Jack was fortunate enough to live near the famous Barris shop in North Hollywood, California in the 1960's, so he got a first hand look at the work that went on there. Happy Birthday Friend! George's birthday is Sunday, November 23rd. Jack and Mary Ann Lawford from www.hotrodhotline.com. |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fellow Road Runners and Friends of Road Runners: I'm beginning to compile some biographical information on our friend Buddy. I posted what I have collected so far to a new entry on our "Members Spotlight" page on our Road Runners website. It is a "work in progress." Here is the link: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/buddy.htm. You can access the full "Members Spotlight" page from the Road Runners homepage. I am so sorry that I did not complete a biographical interview with Buddy and get pictures of his Bonneville and El Mirage racing days and racecars before we lost him. Thanks to Richard Parks, Editor, Society of Land Speed Racing Historians, and Jim Miller, President of the Society, we have a guide that makes it very easy to complete a biographical outline. It is an easy way to share information about yourself with family and friends. Please consider completing the outline and creating your "bio." It's a nice gift for family and friends to have now and once we are gone. |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ As our visitorship grows, www.Hotrodhotline.com now has 50,000 visits a day. We begin to put a strain on our servers which are the computers that drive all of our sites. So every few years we have to upgrade to the newest and fastest equipment we can find. This week we got our new servers and we have just put two new high speed servers officially online, which will mean increased speed and efficiency for our viewing visitors. Unfortunately, there are always a few wrinkles to get ironed out so we may not get this newsletter online today. We should be all squared away by tomorrow though and then everyone should notice a big difference in speed of the site, which is a good thing. Janice has been working on the revamp of Richards Corner menu pages. Can you take a look and let us know what you think. If we need to make any changes just let us know. Here's the link http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/guestcolumnists/richardscorner/ . Thanks, Mary Ann Lawford |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Thanks for your email and sorry for the slow response...I just got home....I will join up with you guys very soon... great site, great people, fantastic sport... Rosco |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I used to work for Jack Lufkin & Ak at Ak's garage on Slauson in Pico Rivera. Jack has not been able to help. Leonard no longer works for him but I have spoken with him (although not recently). I will contact him again. Ralph Welch was with the Sheriffs Dept at that time but I have not been able to get any information from them. I'm not even sure if he is still with us. Jack Stratton seems to have disappeared! I will keep looking and asking and thanks for the help in the newsletter. Steven Thomsen |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I'm trying to locate Brett Johansen, the grandson of Howard Johansen who raced at Bonneville and the drags. Do you have an email address or telephone number for him? Thanks, Mark Brinker mark@mbrinker.com |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I just returned from the hospital after a month's stay and I don't have any Newsletters. Did I get accidentally get dropped from the list? I certainly hope not. Regards, Pat Geiger |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The following video on Gymkhana racing was sent in by Don Garlits. It is similar to the XRL and drifting series. http://video.kenblockracing.com/flash/small_player/preloader.swf?vendor_id=204&media_id=9183&bgcolor=FFFFFF&autoplay=0 |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lenny Schaeffer's Chop-Shop Customs Newsletter is very interesting reading for hot rod builders with a link to other sites and especially to H.A.M.B. at http://www.jalopyjournal.com/. See www.chop-shopcustoms.com for Lenny Schaeffer's on-line newsletter. Lenny's shop is located in Massachusetts. |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This will be the last Prolong Twilight Cruise of the year at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum on Wednesday, December 3, 2008. In addition, the Gale Banks Engineering Exhibit opens at the museum. Admission to the cruise and Museum is free on this day, but we are holding a toy drive and would ask that all those coming bring an unwrapped toy or gift for the Inter-City Volunteers, a non-profit charity group in Pomona, California. The cruise starts at 4pm and ends at 8pm. Cars on exhibit must be pre 1970 and they will be judged by our celebrity judges. There will be food, raffles and a 50-50 drawing. The Twilight cruise is held on the first Wednesday of the month from April thru December. For more info, call 909-622-2133 or go to www.museum.nhra.com. The museum is located at 1101 W. McKinley Avenue, Bldg 3A, Pomona, California 91768. Monique Valadez |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Is there any way you could relay some info on the newsletter, I would like to subscribe. Thanks for all your help. Patrick Plenge |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Great article and photos in the NYTimes; http://travel.nytimes.com/2008/11/23/travel/23Cooder.html?th&emc=th. A "virgin's" perspective during a visit with a "salt of the earth" musician who is as crusty as the playa. Don't ignore the photo show. Speedy Regards, "LandSpeed" Louise Ann Noeth |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Maybe someone posted this already and I missed it, and I haven't seen it on landracing.com. Anyway, Leno makes a few paux-pas with pronunciation and history, but he clearly enjoys ogling the machinery and getting behind the wheel. There is also some footage of the Mormon Meteor on the salt. http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/video_player.shtml?vid=835982. Chris Pile Support Team.Net, http://www.team.net/donate.html, http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/land-speed. Resent by Jack Underwood |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The release sent this morning, regarding early 2009 entry applications, contained an inaccurate hyperlink. Please use this link: www.pebblebeachconcours.net/pages/3008/entrant_info.htm, which will direct you to the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance website for additional entrant information. Jeff Green |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I am proud to announce that my book SPEEDSEEKERS has been finally published and released. It has been presented on the Frankfurt Book Fair 2008 and will soon be available in all good book stores! My dream has come true and I thank each of you who has supported me over these years and never lost faith in this project! Some people spend their entire lives in pursuit of the ultimate rush. Speedseekers leaves no doubt about why. Speedseekers is a dream come true. It all began for Alexandra Lier when she met David Perry at a truck stop near Bonneville. It was her first visit to Speed Week. A life-long obsession for fast cars, hot rods and customs was born. She's since honed her skills burning rubber with the best of them, meeting and photographing top mechanics, racers and adrenaline junkies from all over the world. All of it is captured here with extraordinary images taken on the salt flats and racetracks, and in the studios and garages of this fanatically passionate culture. Speedseekers is organized in five main chapters: History, Garage, Speed, Landspeed, and Style & Sound. Breathtaking archival photographs of legendary racers and race cars set the stage, a stunning suite of portraits of the protagonists in their private garages give the reader a rare glimpse behind the scenes. Contemporary images of today's racers and current record-holders with their wheels and their fans lend the whole book a riveting and authentic air. But it doesn't stop there. The whole world of the supporting cast is represented; customizers, painters and stripers, model builders, illustrators and tattoo artists, musicians and designers fill out this amazing collection of all things speedy. All of it told with the gear-banging prose of Kevin Thomson. Author: Alexandra Lier. Editor: Anika Heusermann Gingko Press. Release: December 2008. Price: € 39.90/$45. Format: 28 x 22. Features: 276 Pages, full cover, hardcover, silver printing. ISBN: 978-1-58423-314-5. See www.Amazon.com. Truly Yours, Alex Lier, www.speedseekers.de. |
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------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ We wanted to do something special for the 60th Speed Week, so we built a new motor, a Blown gas 426 Hemi is now under the hood. Here's the specs; a Hilborn 4 port inj., Mooneyham 6.71 blower (30% overdrive) and manifold, Indy 426-1 Legend heads, Mopar (World) cast iron block, Eagle crank and rods, Venolia 9:1 pistons, Isky roller cam, solid roller lifters, and springs, Hooker headers, Ed Pink oil pump, and pickup, stock pan modified to hold a couple more quarts of oil, Mallory Mag with Taylor wires. A hemi 4 speed is behind a McLeod dual disk clutch, and a Ford 9" in the back with coilovers, and a very stout 4 bar link suspension. We run the ERC A8C 118 octane racing gas, champion plugs, and Mobil 1 oil. We got two good runs for a best of 206 mph, at Speed Week. |
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----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Land Speed Racing Websites: |
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----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jonathan Amo, Brett Arena, Henry Astor, Gale Banks, Glen Barrett, Mike Bastian, Lee Blaisdell, Jim Bremner, Warren Bullis, Burly Burlile, George Callaway, Gary Carmichael, John Backus, John Chambard, Jerry Cornelison, G. Thatcher Darwin, Jack Dolan, Ugo Fadini, Bob Falcon, Rich Fox, Glenn Freudenberger, Don Garlits, Bruce Geisler, Stan Goldstein, Andy Granatelli, Walt James, Wendy Jeffries, Ken Kelley, Mike Kelly, Bret Kepner, Kay Kimes, Jim Lattin, Mary Ann and Jack Lawford, Fred Lobello, Eric Loe, Dick Martin, Ron Martinez, Tom McIntyre, Don McMeekin, Bob McMillian, Tom Medley, Jim Miller, Don Montgomery, Bob Morton, Mark Morton, Paula Murphy, Landspeed Louise Ann Noeth, Frank Oddo, David Parks, Richard Parks, Wally Parks (in memoriam), Eric Rickman, Willard Ritchie, Roger Rohrdanz, Evelyn Roth, Ed Safarik, Frank Salzberg, Dave Seely, Charles Shaffer, Mike Stanton, David Steele, Doug Stokes, Bob Storck, Zach Suhr, Maggie Summers, Gary Svoboda, Pat Swanson, Al Teague, JD Tone, Jim Travis, Randy Travis, Jack Underwood and Tina Van Curen, Richard Venza. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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