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SOCIETY OF LAND SPEED RACING HISTORIANS
NEWSLETTER 104 - March 26, 2009
Editor: Richard Parks [email protected]
President's Corner: By Jim Miller (1-818-846-5139)

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Some Names To Look For In This Newsletter:
 President's Corner, Editorials, I heard a 3rd hand report that Lynn Wineland had died, Latest is that Lloyd Ruby is on a life support system, memorial services for Jim Deist, editing of the flashback scenes Duece Of Spades are done, contact information for Chuck Lamb?, brief bio on the Caruthers family, One story I got was Max Balchowsky was traveling back from West Virginia in the Doretti pulled into a drag strip in Oklahoma ran without unpacking and won, any information regarding a home movie shot pre-WW II on the dry lakes most likely at a Western Timing Meet, Santa Ana Drags Reunion and Main Malt Picnic, My book Crazy Horses; the history of British drag racing published in the UK end of April and the USA end of August, Mel Stultz has new program in the works, which club is THE oldest Hotrod Club in US?, Little web page telling people about the Harrell Engines book, what is the only club in the SCTA to currently have a working filmmaker as a member?, Leroi 'Tex' Smith is retiring and is selling publishing business, another founding car club of the SCTA Los Angeles Idlers car club, Idlers Car Club Members Roster, Kent Fuller once told of a drag strip at Scotts Valley, close to Santa Cruz, two references I have of Max Balchowsky at the drag races, David Enriquez’ Grandfather at the Pomona dragstrip, shots of Chuck Lamb's shop, Streamliners on the salt just made the cover of Machine Design, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Tuesday March 24 2009, Biography of Dick Wells, 2009 Hot Rod Heritage Series now in its second season.

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President's Corner:
Last Wednesday I went to a breakfast meeting of the Trompers Car Club. The Trompers were members of the S.C.T.A. right after the war and restarted a few years ago. It was a good meeting and they have a lot of fun. One of their members brought a paper bag filled with a bunch of old car magazines for the taking. There were a few left so being the typical if its free I'll take some kind of guy three came home with me. Paging through one, the January 1957 issue of Sports Cars Illustrated, I came across two articles that were really cool. One covered the exploits of the MG Record car EX 179 at Bonneville. A cool story, a record chart and cutaway made my day. The other story was even more interesting and covered Ford's secret trip to Bonneville in September of 1956 when they set 462 speed records. That's a bunch so I read more and discovered they ran three different ready to be released 1957 Fords for a distance of 50,000 miles. Holy smokes, that's a lot of miles to drive. The records set were National and FIA International over a 22 day period. The stock cars were prepped by Chuck Daigh and Fran Hernandez. The drivers were Chuck Stevenson, Johnny Mantz, Danny Oakes, Jerry Unser and George Lynch.
If you look close at the mix and the time period it's like Pete DePaolo's factory Ford race shop closed and then became Bill Stroppe's race shop with this little side-step in between. Their mission was to make all the Pontiac speed runs made a couple of weeks earlier null and void and smash the Dodge records previously set. They did exactly that. They ran 20 days straight and covered 51,430 miles at an average speed of 107.51 mph. Think about that for a minute and it kinda blows your socks off. They didn't list any of the speeds for the other records set so a little search was in order. In the third paragraph of the story they had mentioned Danny Eames name as the man in charge of the runs. Seems Ford had snatched him away from Chrysler after he had set records for them in '53, '54 and '55. With this new info, now I have yet more speed records to find. Help! A search found Eames all over the place with putting Chrysler on the map as a performance brand with their speed records. Again no real lists of records surfaced. After checking out about thirty sites with the same results, zip, a link to a Sports Illustrated story from February '57 popped up. Well I had finally found some results from the Daytona Beach Speed Runs but not the ones I was looking for, but hey, land speed records are what were after so here they are:
STOCK PASSENGER CARS (FLYING MILE)
CLASS FOUR (213 TO 259 CU. IN.)
1. Smokey Yunick, Daytona Beach, Fla. Chevrolet 102.157
2. Dick Joslin, Orlando, Fla. Chevrolet 95.707
3. James Quinn, Oneonta, Ala. Chevrolet 95.112
4. Hal Martinson, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 94.874
5. Dagmar Moore, Wyandotte, Mich. Chevrolet 94.525
CLASS FIVE (259-305 CU. IN.)
1. Paul Goldsmith, Mich. Chevrolet 131.076
2. Jesse Piatt, New Lebanon, Ohio Chevrolet 130.199
3. Speedy Thompson, Charlotte, N.C. Chevrolet 129.310
4. Ray Fulmer Jr., Saluda, S.C. Chevrolet 129.055
5. Tom Helsinger Jr., Excello, Ohio Chevrolet 127.660
CLASS SIX (305 TO 350 CU. IN.)
1. Joe Littlejohn, Spartanburg, S.C. Pontiac 131.747
2. Jim Stonebraker, Fairview Park, Ohio Pontiac 131.531
3. Dr. L. D. Morris, Mt. Carmel, Ill. Pontiac 128.434
4. Ronnie Householder, Detroit Plymouth 126.205
5. Bud Wilcox, Lakewood, N.Y. Ford 125.239
CLASS SEVEN (OVER 350 CU. IN.)
1. Red Byron, West Palm Beach, Fla. Chrysler 300-C 134.128
2. Frank Ramey, Abbeville, S.C. Buick 130.766
3. Fran Hernandez, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 130.058
4. Edward Lyons, Grayville, Ill. Dodge D-501 129.753
5. Jimmy White, Abbeville, S.C. Buick 129.683
BIG THREE (NO OPTIONAL SPEED EQUIPMENT)
1. Al Simonsen, Cambridge, Wis. Chevrolet 118.460
2. Lonnie Hilliard, Palatka, Fla. Chevrolet 115.849
3. Ned Decker, Sherwood, Ohio Chevrolet 113.852
4. Joseph Blais, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 111.836
5. Billy Ewindell, Ludowici, Ga. Chevrolet 111.768
STOCK PASSENGER CARS (STANDING MILE ACCELERATION)
CLASS THREE (167-213 CU. IN.)
1. Robert Reed, Orlando, Fla. Rambler 64.795
CLASS FOUR
1. Robert Reed, Orlando, Fla. Rambler 71.785
2. Smokey Yunick, Daytona Beach, Fla. Chevrolet 69.592
3. Edsel Massey, Birmingham, Ala. Chevrolet 69.311
4. Bobby Morgan, Chillicothe, Ohio Chevrolet 68.755
5. Beulah Cowan, Farmington, Mich. Chevrolet 68.676
CLASS FIVE
1. T. Winston Parker, Williamsburg, Va. Chevrolet 85.006
2. Tom Helsinger Sr., Excello, Ohio Chevrolet 84.586
3. Paul Goldsmith, Mich. Chevrolet 84.151
4. Erwin Bishop, Sherman, N.Y. Chevrolet 84.112
5. Speedy Thompson, Charlotte, N.C. Chevrolet 83.955
CLASS SIX
1. Jim Stonebraker, Fairview Park, Ohio Pontiac 85.308
2. Joe Littlejohn, Spartanburg, S.C. Pontiac 84.388
3. Ronnie Householder, Detroit Plymouth 83.897
4. Robert Stanclift, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 82.854
5. Al Senson, Chicago Plymouth 82.192
CLASS SEVEN
1. Brewster Shaw, Daytona Beach, Fla. Chrysler 300-C 86.873
2. Art Chrisman, Compton, Calif. Mercury 85.511
3. Fran Hernandez, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 85.066
4. Elton Lile, Hopkinsville, Ky. Dodge D-501 84.408
5. Red Byron, West Palm Beach, Fla. Chrysler 300-C 83.897
EXPERIMENTAL CARS (TWO-WAY FLYING MILE AVERAGE)
1. Wally Parks, Los Angeles Plymouth 159.893
2. Art Chrisman, Compton, Calif. Mercury 154.176
3. Fran Hernandez, Long Beach, Calif. Ford 147.059
4. Vern Houle, South Gate, Calif. Mercury 146.759
5. Karol Miller, Houston Ford 140.078
EXPERIMENTAL CARS (STANDING MILE ACCELERATION)
1. Danny Eames, Long Beach, Calif. Thunderbird 98.065
2. Art Chrisman, Compton, Calif. Mercury 93.482
3. Chuck Daigh, Long Beach, Calif. Thunderbird 93.312
4. Harold Mauck, Long Beach, Calif. Ford Ranchero 91.162
4. Ray Stilwell, Slate Hill, N.Y. '32 Ford 91.162
PRESTIGE CLASS (TWO-WAY FLYING MILE AVERAGE)
1. Ernie Walls, Indianapolis Continental 108.860
A closer look at the Ford's and Mercury's that did anything reveals an interesting story. Most of them came from the Long Beach area. DePaolo and Stroppe were next door to each other in Long Beach. The guys that prepped and drove the cars worked out of these shops and were mostly all California hot rodders working with and under the table with the factory. The odd vehicle amongst them all was the Hot Rod Magazine Special driven by our editor's dad, Wally. And again it took a bunch of guys weaned on the lakes to make it fly.

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Editorial:
   A person wrote in to discuss what to do with our collections after we are gone. Now the word gone is a politeness. I mean after we are dead or permanently incapacitated. We have wonderful records, which we dedicated our lives to creating and hoarding, but we suffer a crash, our hearts give out, our time comes and we are gone. But our possessions aren't, they are left behind with confused widows and children trying to make sense out of two bedrooms stuffed to the ceiling with parts and the inside of a garage they haven't seen in years. What are they to going to do with it? Sometimes all our survivors can think of doing is have a garage sale, giving away your prized trophies to scrap metal dealers who have yet to master the Queen's language. Is that what you want to see happen? Do you really want to see your prized possessions moved to the curb for the trash man? Now is the time to write in to me and give me your feelings on this subject.  Let's discuss what options that we have available to us. Maybe we ought to encourage one of our readers to start a business buying up collections and reselling them before the grim reaper comes.
   The fault really lies with you, the hot rodder and racer. Have you taken the time to tell your family how you want your collection of parts, cars, trophies and memorabilia divided up? Have you made your family and friends a part of this decision? What many of you say to me is that after you are gone your widow will give it to the car museums, for after all, aren't you very important? What this tells me is that you haven't given any forethought to what you are going to do, because you don't intend on dying. But all of us will meet the grim reaper and our treasures meant something to us and if we do nothing, the trash man is waiting. Let's look at the alternatives. One, your family; will they want your stuff and will they keep it in the same condition and respect that you have. How about museums; will they want your treasures? Probably not, for most of the museums have limited space and small staffs and huge budgets to meet, so they will most likely sell your possessions to collectors. Selling to collectors is not a bad idea, for they will give your collection the respect due it in proportion to the amount of money they pay to get your treasures. If you have a good income, you can donate your treasures to charitable groups and museums and receive a tax write-off. One thing to think about is this; when you pass on your pension or social security is often cut in half for your surviving widow, but her bills go up. She has to pay for the services, clean up the garage, do all the repairs you promised, but never got around to.
   So you see, these collections of yours brought you great pleasure over the years, but headaches to your family after you are gone. Some widows share their husband's love of racing and hot rodding, but others are resentful for the time that such hobbies took away from the family. I've seen some widows gleefully singing as they took the life-saving collections of their husband's to the curb to meet the garbage man. There is a history in these objects as well as value, but if you don't help your family with a bit of history and advice, they won't know who to call, how much to ask for and whom to trust. She wants her garage back and she is tired of parking her car in the snow. Even if your widow decides to keep all your toys as a museum to your magnificence, one day she will be gone too. Your Taj Mahal shrine is living on borrowed time. Sooner or later your heirs are going to look at the only asset that you have that is worth anything, your home, and junk all your photographs and collectibles and move on. "My photographs," you say, "But they're priceless to me." Except that you haven't captioned them so that your heirs won't know who's in them or where they were taken or what the significance of the photos are.  You're a lazy collector and you haven't done your job.
   So what we need to do is to make a will of sorts. Leave behind instructions that tell your family whom to call, who to trust, what to expect in the way of prices, and who gets what. Don't forget your friends, who picked you up every month and took you to the car club meetings and never asked for a dime to cover gas. Don't forget the museums and other charitable groups who can use your help. Don't forget your wife, children and family. I talk to a lot of widows. They call me because the word gets out that I've dealt with this problem before. What they say is, "HELP, I don't know where to begin." I know men don't like to talk about things, but you need to talk to your wife and prepare her for a very traumatic experience. In some cases the wives may go first and they need to do the same thing with their possessions and men, some of those quilts and doll collections are worth a mint. Don't throw them out. If you are a collector, or have a business buying and selling estates, write to us here at the newsletter and tell us what you do and how you do it. There is a desperate need for those in the business of buying and selling collectibles to explain to families what they can expect. Often a widow has to sell her home and downsize and that means collections are at risk of being tossed out. Please don't let this happen to valuable car artifacts, parts, photographs and historical memorabilia.

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Over the weekend, I heard a 3rd hand report that Lynn Wineland had died. Is this so? What can you tell me? Jean Perry
   Jean: I've heard that too and thought that someone had reported that in the pages of The Society of Land Speed Racing Historians newsletter, which I edit on www.landspeedracing.com. I checked all the newsletter clear back to December and couldn't find a record of his passing. There has to be gremlins in the computer, because I know that someone sent in a notice. Yes, according to several others, Lynn did pass away and I need a history or obituary for him. I have his book, "In Shadow of the Devil," and have been meaning to review it for the book review section of www.hotrodhotline.com for some time. Lynn was another one of those indestructible men who formed the generation that we call America's greatest. In the car culture and in the magazine business, he was one of the best and I only wish that I had tried to get him to do his biography sooner. If you have a few stories of Lynn and would like to express them in these pages, I would be grateful to do so. I called his wife, Adina Wineland, and she is having a Celebration of Life for Lynn at the Petersen Automotive Museum on April 11, 2009, at 11 AM.

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I just got the word from Shirley Boyd, who received a report from Stan Benge.  Latest is that Lloyd Ruby is on a life support system.  More news as it breaks.  Bob Falcon

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Editor's notes: I received a phone call from Kay Kimes, member of the Wheelers car club from the 1940's. He informs us that the scheduled memorial services for Jim Deist will be at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, in Pomona, California, on the grounds of the Los Angeles County Fairplex. He didn't know whether it would be an open event for those that knew Jim, or if it was a closed event for family and friends, so interested parties should call the museum at 909-622-2133 for more information about time and date. Kay also let us know that he has a video of movie footage of the Wheelers at El Mirage and at Bonneville in the early 1950's. For more information on Kay and his history in land speed racing, go to www.hotrodhotline.com, guest columnists and read his biography.

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I am very excited to announce that as of last night I am DONE editing all the flashback scenes in my upcoming Hot Rod Feature Film DEUCE OF SPADES (www.deuceofspadesmovie.com). I laid all 45 scenes on the timeline and they are clocking at about 1 hour and 40 minutes. So basically, 1 hour and 40 minutes of being submerged in the fifties hot rod era!! All of which was filmed on a ZERO budget. I was amazed at how well we were able to pull it off! Remember: The film is not done yet, I have to film the remainder of the scenes which take place in the modern days. I suspect the film total length will be about 2 hours and a half. it is, after all, a drama. Please see the latest film teaser here (incredible flagging footage) http://www.vimeo.com/3670169. FAITH GRANGER, Filmmaker. See www.deuceofspadesmovie.com, and www.theparkbenchmovie.com.

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Do you have any contact information for Chuck Lamb? Tam McPartland, would like to have his comments added to the following link. http://www.tamsoldracecarsite.net/MartinHillZCorvetteSpec9.html, Thanks, Ron Cummings
Ron: I have a Bob Lamb, but no Chuck. I will post the above message on my website. If you can tell me who Chuck knows, maybe I can find someone who has kept in touch with him.

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I don't know if I have ever sent you this information before or not. This is material from the "Doug and Roy Caruthers" page on our "Member Spotlight" page on the Road Runners website: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/member.htm. It is a brief bio on the Caruthers family. Doug was a Road Runner in the 40's and owned and raced the car that later became the Chrisman #25 Dragster. Roy is a current member of the Road Runners and lives in Indianapolis. Roy/Doug Caruthers bio: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/caruthers/roybio.htm. Pictures and more info from Road Runners "Member Spotlight" page: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/caruthers/caruthers.htm. Jerry Cornelison, Road Runners historian
Jerry: I'm not sure if you have sent this or not, but it's always a treat to receive your emails with the research that you have done on the Road Runners. I hope this will inspire others to research the history of their car clubs and send them to me to be published.

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I have been in touch with Ernie Nagamatsu over the years as well as a few of the Fab fifties group, also the Cal Club, Jim Sitz, Dorothy Iskiderian and Max Balchowsky over the years. Max tested his creations at the drag strips frequently, maybe more so than the road courses. One story I got from his brother was that when he was traveling back from West Virginia (his family's home) in the Doretti, he pulled off into a drag strip in Oklahoma and ran without unpacking and won. I'd like to document that to say the least. His brother-in-law, Jimmie (last name unknown) related to me that they spent a lot of time at Saugus. I was watching Roy Rogers and Howdy Doody when all of this was happening. I always thought I wanted to be born earlier and be a cowboy, but I think after several years researching the Fifties for info, maybe I would rather have been a California Car Junkie in the Fifties. As it is, I got to be a Flower Child Sailor during Vietnam driving around in British Sports cars. I'll keep diggin' for more later. Max's entry into Road racing with a street rod was somewhat shunned by some. However the powers that were asked him to change a few things on his car to conform. He did and the rest of the story. One of the Mid-Western track websites has a similar story I'll try and dig it up. Thanks, Tom Householder
   Tom: I'll publish your email in my newsletter and see if any of our readers remembers anything about the events that you mention. Max was one of the ultimate hot rodders and loved to pretend that his creations were all "Junkyard Dogs," when in fact they were carefully designed and built road warriors. He took his fair share of victories. I believe that many of the racers who competed against him knew that. They enhanced his reputation because it was good publicity for the sport.

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I was wondering if the brain trust has any information regarding a home movie that was shot pre-WW II on the dry lakes most likely at a Western Timing Meet. I was told about the film by Jerry Stohler and he said that it may have been shot by Freddy Lobello. Jerry Stohler and Frank Lurry both had copies of this film on VHS and both copies have been lent out to be copied. Jerry's was never returned and Frank's went to a reputable source. I have been told there are a few shots of the Sandy's Muffler Shop roadster with the number 111 on it. That would make it an SCTA event during the '41 season, this could be incorrect though. Michael Brennan
   Michael: Film is especially valuable and you should talk to Jim Miller, whose phone number is on the newsletter. I have talked to many hot rodders about being more careful in lending their possessions. Dry lakes racers are very trusting and they want to help. Sometimes the people who borrow the films just forget to make the copies quickly or assume that the lender isn't in a hurry to get the collectibles back. Sometimes they lose the things they borrow, or forget that they even have the artifacts any longer. Sometimes it is a blatant act of misappropriation. Whatever the reason, Jim and I have made it quite clear that the burden of responsibility lies with both the borrower and the lender. Boy, could we tell you stories. But that's water over the dam at this point. The worst loss that we have suffered was the wild fire that destroyed Bozzy Willis' films from the late 1930's and '40's. I've just lent Jim a box full of audio tapes and he is going to have them transcribed into text. We all lend and we all borrow. Let's hope Fred, Jerry and Frank all get their possessions back in good condition.

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SPECIAL BULLETIN: The Bill and Marie Jenks Annual "Santa Ana Drags Reunion and Main Malt Picnic" is scheduled for 10:00 AM, Saturday, April 4, 2009. The place will be in Santiago Park, along the Santiago Creek, off Memory Lane, east of Main Street, in Orange. Going north on Main Street from Santa Ana or south from Orange on Main Street, turn east on Memory Lane. Go east on Memory Lane for about a 1000 feet to the first street and turn right, which leads down into the creek to a concrete parking area. Bring your albums of the Santa Ana Drags, food, drinks and folding chairs. For more information call Leslie Long at 714-921-1814, who is the coordinator for the event. Marie Jenks started this reunion to honor the pioneers of the 1950's Santa Ana Dragstrip, where drag racing came of age. Check MapQuest or call Leslie for directions. Sent by Richard Parks, editor of the Society of Land Speed Racing Historians newsletter, on www.landspeedracing.com.

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My book Crazy Horses; the history of British drag racing, will be published by Haynes in the UK at the end of April and in the USA at the end of August. I'll make sure you get a review copy in time. Haynes North America Inc's main outlets are people such as Pep Boys, AutoZone and Advance, but that is only for the manuals. Motorbooks International distribute the other titles and I've been asked to advise them on the best distribution channels to the drag racing and hot rodding fraternity in the USA and name some key events worth attending. Our plan is to have an East Coast launch at Don Garlits museum in Florida with the book being made available via his shop, but as yet I have not recommended a West Coast launch event/venue. SEMA in Vegas is important of course, but that's October/November and the California Hot Rod Reunion is October 16-18, 2009. I also think the book should be made available via the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports museum's gift shop. Does the NHRA sell books from a store at its meetings? If not, how can I find out the names of those with concessions to sell books at NHRA meets? Hopefully you can advise so that I can pass on details to Motorbooks International. Brian Taylor, Tel - 01395-579733. E-mail [email protected].

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This is a photo I took a few years ago around February 2003. It was taken from a color enhanced video/dvd on early drag racing. I asked Ron Main about this film and he was going to look into it. I don't know who made it, but I would love to get a copy. 

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 I looked at the Museum's website and book store, but they have nothing like it. My dad loved the film and really wanted a copy, but it was not made clear if we could even get one. Would you know where it could be or who may have made it? It showed Andrew Ortega getting trophies at the strip and other old timers at the drag races.  Jackie Arnett, San Diego
Caption.
..Bean Bandits working on their dragster at a dragstrip. Place and date unknown. Jackie Arnett photograph

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I'm wondering if you might care to write a little intro about our love of hot rodding, or how things came to evolve from men like your father. Anything that might be fitting. This info below about what your father set out to do, and how it all came from love of the sport and keeping kids off the streets is powerful stuff. I'd love for you to share a little blurb, or anything you might care to share. I wish to help promote safety, Land Speed Racing, all that your father Wally and the other great Pioneers have left us. We are forever in their debt. I also believe it is time we bring hot rodding lost in car show parking lots, back onto the track. Safety, power, knowledge, and life long friendships should move from lawn chairs in burgers joints, to stands at the track! I'm also putting together some programs for each month, soon to cover stats, etc. We also have a hot rod trick of the month section, adds for babbiting, and other old time services and goodies coming!
I would love to include any of your Land speed racing news and attract more men and woman into your LSR site or invoke people to get more involved. Let me know what you think? It seems when I told hot rodders of you, your site, and your interest in letting us share what the car clubs are up to out here... peoples' ears perked up! We have a lot of respect for you and your family. I would love a short paragraph, two sentences, or 16 pages. Here is the cover of program, 1st inside page, and our logo. Not finished, but we are at least trying to get the dates out for peoples scheduling. Still working away on the programs and curating the historical exhibits within the show, while the drag strip gets run! Little something for everyone. Keep you posted on all the hap's. I've got some neat things brewing. I'll have full run of the place next year, got started too late and lost my opportunity to have more time. We'll walk before we crawl, if we have too. Mel Stultz
Mel: Send me a request when you need an intro, article or column. Give me a topic you want to discuss with your readers. Secondly, go to www.hotrodhotline.com, guest columnists, or to www.landspeedracing.com and read the previous articles, some of which you might use right away. Copy and paste the parts that you want. Give credit to Jack and Mary Ann Lawford, to the writers and photographers, and to the websites where they are located, then use the article. I've done an article on politics in racing, how to get sponsors and many more that might interest you readers. Don't stop just at my articles, but find old timers and pioneers in your area and get them to write their biographies. If they have a hard time and you can't help them, have the old time racers email a quick summary of their lives and I will edit it for you and send it back with more questions. You should always start with the writers, historians, photographers and memories in your own area first before going elsewhere for stories. The east is full of racing heritage and much of it is being lost every day. What you are doing is a service to your community that demands our respect and praise. Every street racer that gives up the streets and goes to a safe and sanctioned drag strip to race is a great victory for the name of hot rodding and for your organization. I expect members of the Society of Land Speed Racing Historians to do their biographies, caption their photographs and save and archive their memorabilia. We do not have dues or duties in our group, but we do have responsibilities to the past and to the present and future generations. Keep us informed about your progress. It is one of the most exciting projects that I've heard about in a decade.

Motor speedway logo #13
Motor speedway 3 ronburgundy copy
dates copy

Motor speedway logo #13.jpg..........Logo for the Motor Speedway, Englishtown, New Jersey.

Motor speedway 3 ronburgundy copy.jpg.....May '09 Official Program for the Motor Speedway,   Englishtown, New Jersey inaugural race."

Dates copy.jpg....................Friday and Saturday dates and events program at the Motor Speedway,   Englishtown, New Jersey.

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I recently read this in Rod And Custom magazine: "One of, if not the, oldest hot rod club is the Outriders, formed in 1932 and restricted to a membership of 50, which means a member has to almost die before you can be asked to join!" I was wondering which club is THE oldest Hotrod Club in US? I had heard it was the SIDEWINDERS... Fill me in. Faith Granger, Deuce of Spades filmmaker. See these websites, www.deuceofspadesmovie.com, and www.theparkbenchmovie.com.
Faith: I am going to ask Jim Miller this question. It's a very good question and our readers are going to have to help us out here. There was a club that helped George Wight and George Riley put on dry lakes races back in the late 1920's and early '30's. The Gophers were supposedly meeting around 1934 to '36. The Sidewinders were organized prior to the formation of the SCTA in December of 1937. So were the Throttlers, Ramblers, Idlers and Road Runners. But we don't know whether clubs were formed back east, in the south, the Midwest or the northwest for that matter. Hot rodding clubs normally have a short lifespan. They form around a neighborhood and usually one of the members had access to a garage where the young men could work on cars. These clubs were almost always restricted to men. It was one area where men could do things and not be restricted by women or parents. This was during the Great Depression and most homes had extended family members living there. I remember that my grandmother's house had three families living with her until three years after World War II. The clubs usually broke up when the members got married, started their full time employment and began to have children. Sometimes it was the war that broke up the clubs. Other reasons for the break-up of clubs were; arrests for illegal activities, changes of interests, fights among members and the decision to go into oval or road racing. When drag racing came along, a race team no longer needed a club to participate in dry lakes or other types of hot rodding activities. Drag racing sounded the death knell for car clubs. In 1960, my father assigned Barbara Livingston and Tex Smith to run the International Car Clubs of America (ICCA) in an effort to rekindle local car clubs across America and anywhere else there was interest. However, they met with indifference and lack of support and the ICCA was disbanded. The era of the hot rodding car clubs had ended.

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 I put together a little web page to tell people about the Harrell Engines book. It should come up on a Google search soon. It's not too professional looking, but it's free. When you have a spare moment, take a look at: www.HarrellEnginesHotRodding.com. I will have copies of the book in a week and will get one to you then. Roger Harrell
   Roger: I saw your site and you've done a very good job. Please keep adding to it. I will be glad to do a book review for you.

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Caption:...The new book Harrell Engines & Racing Equipment; Jim (White) Harrell & Nick Harrell, by Roger H. Harrell with Richard C. Harrell and Alec R. Harrell Carlson.

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The editor asks: Question for the day, what is the only club in the SCTA to currently have a working filmmaker as a member?

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Leroi 'Tex' Smith is retiring and is selling his Hot Rod How-to book publishing business. "I've been involved with automotive publishing since the very early l950's, now I'm going fishing! I created Tex Smith Publishing in l984 in response to the growing dearth of reliable how-to information for hot rod enthusiasts worldwide. Focus of the effort was to build a timeless library of reliable books that could be updated on a regular basis, adding, modifying, and replacing titles as necessary to reflect the hobby needs at any particular time. This we have done with remarkable success," said Tex. Contact Jim Clark at [email protected] for more information.

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I thought you may also like to post another founding car club of the SCTA. This time I bring you the Los Angeles Idlers car club members roster I have been assembling. I feel this one is very close to complete. The club had at least three club houses I know of, very possibly as many as half a dozen though. The first few club houses are a mystery at the moment, but one was located at Jefferson and Hill Street, beginning in May of 1939 and the next at 9524 South Normandie Street, beginning in December of 1940. This is possibly the last or second to the last Idlers club house. The first Idlers club member's jackets were issued in January of 1939. They were a black leather jacket with green lettering. They were visited by a representative of the Sta-Lube oil company in 1939 and that meeting lead to the offering of a Sta-Lube Trophy to be awarded to the fastest Idler club member at the next dry lakes race; which based on racing programs would have been Sandy Belond. Best regards, Michael Brennan

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Idlers Car Club Members Roster, by Michael Brennan and Richard Parks. The Idlers were one of the original 8 car clubs that organized in November of 1937 to form the Southern California Timing Association. The other clubs were the Sidewinders, 90 MPH club, Ramblers, Throttlers, Road Runners, Knight Riders and Night Flyers. Within a few months the Gophers, Velociteers and Outriders joined the SCTA. Do you know of any living members of the club?
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Baker, Bill, Early member of the SCTA in 1939.
Baldwin, Marsh   DO YOU MEAN >>> Baldwin, Bob, Early member of the SCTA in 1939.
Belond, Sandy; SCTA member in 1942. Member of the Idlers car club in 1945.
Boyd, Lupe
Bullock, Byron
Cimino, Vince; of the Idlers complained that Harper Dry Lake was too far to go to race. Opposed Vic Edelbrock on War Bond Board.  
   Replaced Meb Healy on the War Bonds Board in December 1942. He presented an Idlers Club suggestion that the cubic inch classes be
   stabilized against further changes in their rules and regulations.
Cravens, Mark
Dilley, Roy J.
Dolph, Burleigh  Pre-WWII, died, Burleigh was one of the most consistent dry lakes racers in the pre-war era and a close friend of Wally Parks
   from the Road Runners. Member of the Idlers car club in 1945. He was appointed to the Contest Board in 1947. He announced that
   members of the SCTA could be entitled to discounts on purchases of Ward tires in 1947.
Figueras, Joe, Member of the SCTA in the 1940's.
Hanggie, Bill
Jennings, Frank
Lewis, Gordon, Early member of the SCTA in 1939.
Lewis, Lloyd  DO YOU MEAN LOWELL LEWIS OR KENNY LEWIS???? Lewis, Kenny, Early SCTA member in 1940. Lewis, Lowell,
   Early SCTA member in 1938. Elected Treasurer of the SCTA in 1938 to replace Vern, Hurst. Given a badge of honorary membership in
   1942.
Ludwig, Charles
Mors, Gaines
Nairn, Jim, Member of the Idlers car club in 1945.
Russell, Eugene
Sheitlin, Frank
Thompson, George

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Do you want to use the (PW for Pre-WWII) & (DIED) or (Deceased) as we have been doing with the Gophers list to maintain consistency? I also noticed you added the SCTA member dates to the Idlers. I can go back through my sources and come up with a date for entry as a member to the Idlers and then we could have both of those dates for our data bases. I think the Idlers best years were pre-war, that is when their attendance was highest, basing this on racer turn-out at the lakes. I don't think the Idlers did well after about mid-1940, their attendance at the lakes was poor and post war was even worse, although that is when they posted some of their best runs. I see by the programs that Sandy had a preference for Russetta and Western meets rather then SCTA timing events. I wonder if that was consistent with the other Idlers?  Michael Brennan
   Michael: Yes, we will use those designations for all the car clubs. I'm not familiar with most of the Idlers car club members and that's why I didn't add that information to the list. I used the index from the book my father was working on to get the information that I added to your list. It is incomplete, but a start on a history of the club. I'm glad you are doing this, because most of the clubs have been forgotten and you have aroused the few who are left to do something. I think Glen Barrett and Jack Underwood are the historians for the Gear Grinders. Jerry Cornelison works hard on the Road Runners history, but after that it is rather weak and the other existing clubs do not have active historians, or if they do, they haven't told me yet. I'm hoping that my brother can help me finish my father's work and bring out the book he was working on before he died. If we can get it published, then a lot of your questions will be answered. Several strong clubs disappeared after the late 1940's and that can be attributed to a number of reasons. The Throttlers were the most active, but the members of that club changed their interests to oval and road racing and lost interest in the lakes. Many of the clubs were founded on a few really influential men and when they moved on the clubs would break up. The Gophers started out very strong and as you can see by how large their club was, they were a very active group and held a lot of social functions as well as racing. The Gophers and the Road Runners took every advantage at their disposal to woo away a good driver from other clubs in order to enhance their chances at winning the Points Championship for the year. When Bill Zaring left the Gophers to concentrate on his midgets and sprint cars, the Gophers sort of disbanded. Another reason for the decline and near death of land speed racing in the early 1950's was the rise of alternate motor sports, especially drag racing. My father was chiefly blamed for this, but what people don't understand is that he was actively trying to promote land speed racing at first and it was the younger generation that came of age after WWII that rejected dry lakes racing. There were too many land speed timing associations and too few racers and clubs for the sport to thrive and one by one the timing associations folded and the few members left joined the Southern California Timing Association. The big 800 pound gorilla among the dry lakes groups was the SCTA, but even that group barely survived and they did so by changing their rules and letting coupes and bikes race, which they refused to do in the 1940's. My father continued to support land speed racing all his life, but tastes change and drag racing literally swamped motorsports

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I have some photos to send you. However I will not be able to be there. Living in Ohio and all, will forward you some stuff later. Let me know who is collecting photos. Tom Householder
Tom: Are these photos of the Santa Ana Drags in the 1950's? Check out our website at www.landspeedracing.com for what we are trying to accomplish. Leslie Long is the historian for the Santa Ana drags, but he doesn't have computer access, so we have to have others receive and process the captioned photos and then find a way to get them to Leslie. Long and Tuttle's booklet, Santa Ana Drags, is reviewed at www.hotrodhotline.com and so far is the only source for historians to work with.

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 We are leaving for England the day of this fun event. Hope you are doing well, and you will come to the Reunion, we still have our booth, love to see you. Orah Mae Millar and Robin
   Orah Mae and Robin: Hope to see you soon and find out what you are up to. In the meantime, maybe I can get you to do your family bio. Below is a guideline that I use to create a mass assembly of bios. Just look at the questions and answer them as quickly as you can, then send them to me to edit as a regular email, nothing fancy. I'll put it in order, ask some more questions and send it back to you to add more. Just write it as fast as you can, don't do any research and if you can't answer a question, let it go. Have a fun trip and tell us more about it.
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a) Where did your family come from; your parents and grandparents and what did they do for a living?
b) Where were you born and where did you grow up? What elementary, junior high and high school did you attend?
c) Did you take any shop classes, while you were in school? Name your friends, especially those interested in racing.
d) Did you join any car clubs or work on or own a car, or a race car, or work as a crewman on a race car while in school?
e) What kind of jobs did you have as a young person while growing up? What kinds of hobbies and interests did you have?
f) What did you do after graduation? Did you join the military? Were you drafted? Did you fight in the war?
g) What kind of racing did you get involved in? Did you own a racecar, drive a racecar or work as a crewman? 
h) Who were some of your friends that were involved in racing with you? Name and describe them.
i) Tell us about your family, your wife and children. Were they involved in racing?
j) What kind of work did you find after you left school? Was it racing related employment?
k) Are you retired from racing? What are you doing today?

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I have some photos of Balchowsky with a Doretti at the Santa Ana strip. Would like any documentation of Max's or any other Doretti activities there.   Tom Householder
   Tom: The documentation at Santa Ana is sparse at best. Tuttle and Long clipped newspaper articles out of the local papers and created a booklet, called Santa Ana Drags, Every Saturday night! Tuttle passed away and Long doesn't have any more copies, but he does have a lot of records of the dragstrip. His phone number is 714-921-1814. Perhaps you can share information as he is always trying to gather more info. Ernie Nagamatsu is the owner/restorer/historian of the Max Balchowsky 'Ol Yeller 2. We just did a comprehensive issue dedicated to his other project, the Spurgin/Giovanine/Borgh Roadster. Contact Ernie and see if what you have and what he has are complimentary and you can thus share information. All of this research is on www.landspeedracing.com, a free site and you might find other facts there that may be of interest to you. Our basic interests are in dry lakes race cars and hot rodding, but a few of the racers got involved in sports car racing, especially the Throttlers, so I will post your comments on the Doretti in case anyone in our group has any knowledge to share with you. I checked out your website at http://www.doretti.com/, and found it to be quite interesting. Finding these old cars and restoring them is a major reason why we put out the newsletter. Another source is the Fab '50's, a group of road racing drivers from that era who work hard to keep their history alive.
 

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Kent Fuller once told of a drag strip at Scotts Valley, close to Santa Cruz, and near where he grew up. I noticed it wasn't among those on your excellent list of California drag strips. Do you know anything at all about that operation? As I recall, Fuller said it had a very short shut down, and if you didn't stop soon enough you would go over a cliff, or some such awful thing. It didn't last very long as I understand it. Bruce Wheeler
  Bruce: I don't remember it. I do remember my father taking me to the Bremerton, Washington dragstrip. We had to take a ferry ride from Seattle, and then drive up a hill. It seemed like a mountain. On top of the hill there was a dragstrip that I believe was a converted airstrip. From the timing and announcer's stand you could see just barely to the end of the dragstrip, but it went downhill from there and the spectators could only see who won, not how they stopped their cars. Or if they stopped their cars. I didn't see the end of the strip and it might have been a gentle grade or a cliff. All that I can say is that it gave you a funny chill not knowing what was happening at the end. While we were there we saw this one dragster take off, do a wheelie and bounce up and down off the pavement, then he cut back the engine and the dragster settled back down without tipping over on its back. Since the other dragster was also having traction problems and not going anywhere, the one who had done the wheelie decided to give it one more try and back up, straight towards the sky he went, in a second perfect 90 degree angle and bounced up and down off his slicks. He was completely off his rear wheels and you could see air between the tires and the ground. This time he shut off and the car settled to the ground and he just sat there, not moving. I've seen lots of weird stuff on the dragstrip, but what's the probability of a complete 90 degree lift without tipping in one direction or another, bouncing up and down, and then doing it successfully a second time? The list of dragstrips was put together by Michael Brennan. This is the 3rd list he has done for the newsletter and we want to thank him for his time in doing the research. Michael is one of those great readers that we have who spends his time and energy to do this type of researching and I want to personally thank him again. He has also sent in a list of Gopher car club members, and in this issue, another one on the Idlers car club. I've made some phone calls and added some to the Gophers list, but Michael did most of the work. I really appreciate our members who start these projects. They aren't meant to be all inclusive. None of us know everything that happened in the past and may never know all there is to know. But we combine our memories and research and make a good product that much better. Thank you for adding the Scotts Valley dragstrip to the list and please come up with more.

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I do have a lot of Doretti images from Max Balchowsky and he always loved to tell the story about having two similar black Dorettis and making a run at the San Fernando Drags with one and then coming back with the other car. I am off to Burma (Myanmar) this Thursday night for a short trip. I need a WWII Jeep and an Indiana Jones hat with a bull whip. Ernie Nagamatsu
   Ernie: If you have a photograph of the Doretti, send it along. As for the Jeep, well there's a story there to be told and you're just the car restorer to do the job. During WWII in the South Pacific, my father was assigned to the tank corp. He was a sergeant and led a crew into the jungles to recover disabled tanks, which proved to be very useful as cover for the infantry, but subject to breakdowns, mostly with the treads. They were either getting shot at or there were long lulls which proved boring to the men. He requisitioned a jeep, souped it up with a flathead engine and raced all over the area. Chuck Spurgin said he saw my father there as did other Southern California hot rodders. When the troops got to Manila, the city had been destroyed in the fighting and so there weren't a lot of civilians on the roads. Dad loved to race that jeep up and down the streets. It was said that he left the jeep there and that it was turned into a jeepney and is still run on the roads today. Now wouldn't that be a real find?

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There are two references I have of Max Balchowsky at the drag races. I don't know the results of the Santa Ana race.
   a) March 1956 Rodding and Restyling, Santa Ana Drags, Joe Wherry photo.
   b) December 23, 1956, Max Balchowsky wins in Class "F" at 103.56 mph. He beat a Corvette at 102.15 mph, at the San Fernando dragstrip. This was in the Drag News newspaper coverage of the drags, issue date December 29, 1956.  Tom Householder
   Tom: Thank you for the information on Max. Do you have photographs of the races or the newspaper that we could put on our website?

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I am sending you a photo of my Grandfather at the Pomona dragstrip. He is the one in the bomber jacket named Ricardo Enriquez or better known as Hot Rod or Rod Enriquez. Just wanted to see if you have some info on him and the car he was standing by. I knew he was very active in drag racing and did a lot of work in land speed record up in El Mirage. As a kid looking at all the awards and photo, I really am trying to see if anyone may know him or the cars he worked on and drove. David Enriquez
   David: I'm in the same boat, trying to find out information that is rapidly being lost. Below is a flyer for a Santa Ana Drags reunion and Leslie Long will be there. He's the main historian for the drags. Our Society's President is Jim Miller and he is an authority on the dry lakes and Bonneville. His phone number is listed in the newsletter at www.landspeedracing.com. Another source is Don Montgomery, who has a series of 8 books with thousands of photographs and captions, but sadly, no index. My approach is not new. What I do is call someone whom I might think might know something and after I have gotten all the information I can I ask, "Can you give me a few names and phone numbers to call." That usually leads to two or three other people and if you continue far enough you will have quite a few contacts. This much I can tell you, the information that you want does exist, you just have to track it down. I've been doing that for all my life. You can also use the newsletter. I am printing your letter, because it just might reach a person who knows something. If you want them to contact you directly, include your email address in the emails that you send me. You can use this newsletter as often as you wish. Here's another trick, after you put together all the information that you have, send it out to those on your email list and to me to be published. The more names you use, the more likely that someone will see it and refer it on to others who may know something. I also have a biography guideline to help people do their bios. I will include it below. See how much you can fill out and send it to me and I will edit it for you and publish it. Others may see the bio on your grandfather (you can include your father and yourself as well) and that may also trigger some memories. When you find something out, share it with us, we want to know more about your grandfather too.

n1053196890_30154277_7266

Caption:
n1053196890_30154277_7266.jpg..........Ricardo Enriquez, better known as Hot Rod or Rod Enriquez at Santa Ana Flats. Enriquez is in the bomber jacket.  David Enriquez photo.

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Here are some shots of Chuck Lamb's shop somewhere in Brea, California. He mostly runs around in Ferrari circles now. He formerly owned Corvette and McLaren sport racing cars in road racing. See http://www.pelicanparts.com/swapmeet_pics/ChuckLamb04/Page1.htm. See also Tam McPartland at http://www.tamsoldracecarsite.net/MartinHillZCorvetteSpec9.html. Ron Cummings

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Streamliners on the salt just made the cover of Machine Design. See http://machinedesign.com/article/building-a-1000-mph-car-0303, by Steve Mraz - Senior Editor. Sent in by Werner Schwarz and Ken Kelley
Steve: A great article on the Bloodhound. I was at Black Rock Desert in 1997 doing security for both teams. I'm glad to see that Noble is building another car. I will post your article's link here at www.landspeedracing.com.

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Thanks for the comments on the Jeeps of WWII that were jerry-rigged and hopped up by the Hot Rodders in the service. Max Balchowsky told me many stories of the Burma Campaign as he was an aircraft mechanic and he was assigned to complex tasks to keep the aircraft flying. I have Max's survival suit with the different languages on the suit in the event of a capture. I have a small English-Japanese dictionary as he was trying to learn the Japanese language and he said he was brought before a hearing as they wondered why he had the dictionary and was practicing Japanese in Burma. There is a story there about the service men that tinkered with Jeeps during the war and how they tricked out the engines with parts they had. Sounds like another story for you as you are the best in "fleshing out" good stories. Thanks for the Doretti information and the Drag Races. Of the over 55 race trophies I have from Max over half are Drag Race trophies. Most times Max would show up at San Fernando and they would open the gate for him. The announcer would announce that the Old Yeller has arrived and let him go to the staging area. He would rip off a run as he had the fastest "Sports Car Category" racer and then he would turn around and go home leaving the trophies to the other guys in the class. He wanted to just check the low end torque and gearing. Max told me that story many times. Ernie Nagamatsu
   Ernie: Just when we think we know everything there is to know about a racer or his car, some memory from someone else will trigger a bit of information that leads us into a new direction. One of my jobs as an editor is to keep all the readers of the newsletter talking, because if I do that a bit of new information will pop up here and there. A lot of the things we write about are redundant and said before and all of that can be edited out by future historians. But if I can keep the conversations going, things about English-Japanese dictionaries and Filipino Jeepneys spill out. That is a very important artifact that you preserved and I hope you will tell us more about Max. The men in the military in WWII had many beliefs. I remember a net and safety kit that my dad kept around for years. He would never get rid of it and it meant something special to him. The guys in the military remembered the Jimmy Doolittle raid and how Doolittle or perhaps it was Eddie Rickenbacker, survived a heroic ordeal on a raft before his crew was rescued. Dad used to tell me how they were taught to use the net to catch fish if they were stranded. There was a knife, some water purification tablets, fishing hooks, etc. He also gave me a bolo knife, a shortened machete that they carried with them in the jungle that a friend of his sent to him when he was stationed in Bougainville. My dad did start his memoirs and was some 100 pages into it when he died. Almost all of those 100 or so pages were about the war. It was a traumatic and life changing event for so many men and they never forgot it. I hope you do more research and stories on Max, then you have to start on your own biography. The stories about jeepneys, racing overseas and other tales show us that war is 95% utter boredom, then all hell breaks loose for the remaining 5%. It is during the lulls that the nature and personality of our military men and women show themselves and those are the stories that we hope to save

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I just discovered that the dragster belonged to Paul Leon and looks like it was Pomona for the setting of the picture.  David W Enriquez
   David: Now's the time to set out on an adventure and get all the information that you can on your grandfather, Ricardo 'Hot Rod' Enriquez. Then share it with us, because the more information that we have the more likely someone will see it and write in. I would like to know more about Paul and Hot Rod. Did they know the Bean Bandits, Dave Marquez and the Motor Monarchs, Bob Muravez and other early day drag racers? Send me everything you have on him, including some captioned photos and we'll see what we can discover.

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Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Tuesday, March 24, 2009 - Indianapolis 500 standout Lloyd Ruby, one of the most popular drivers in Indianapolis Motor Speedway history, died March 23 in Wichita Falls, Texas. He was 81. The hugely respected and much-beloved Ruby competed in 18 consecutive Indianapolis 500 Mile Races between 1960 and 1977 but never was able to pull off what had always seemed to be the inevitable victory. He led the "500" in five out of six starts between 1966 and 1971, only to have something either break or else delay him in some fashion while in a commanding position. "He should have won the '500' two or three times," 1963 Indianapolis 500 winner Parnelli Jones said. Ruby led for a career total of 126 laps, the seventh-highest number by a driver who never won. He finished 12th or higher in 11 different
Indianapolis starts, his best finish third with a front-engine car in 1964. He qualified in the first three rows seven times at Indianapolis, with a best of fifth in 1966 and 1968. Ruby won seven USAC National Championship races, including three at Milwaukee, two at Phoenix, and one each at Trenton, New Jersey, and Langhorne, Pennsylvania. In 1970, he won the pole for the inaugural 500-mile race at Ontario, California. A standout in post-World War II midget car racing in the Southwest while still in his teens, Ruby never was given credit for his proficiency at road racing. In 1959, he placed second in the fledgling USAC Road Racing series, and in 1961 he drove a privately entered Lotus in the Grand Prix of the United States at Watkins Glen, New York. Later a key member of Ford Motor Company's major international effort, he shared the winning car in the Daytona Continental in 1965, and both the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1966.
   His unlikely co-driver in all three of those victories was the expatriate, duffel-coat-wearing Englishman Ken Miles. Although they were eons apart in their upbringing, and seemingly would have had nothing in common, they bonded like brothers. Ruby was to have partnered Miles in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966 but was forced out when the light plane in which he was riding crashed on takeoff from an Indianapolis airport on its way to Milwaukee just a few days before. Eventual Formula One World Champion Denis Hulme replaced the injured Ruby, and the Miles/Hulme combination was leading in the late stages when it was decided, for public relations reasons, to "slow down" the leading car and have the twin sister car of Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon, running second, catch up to have them take the checkered flag in a side-by-side salute. Le Mans officials subsequently ruled that, because of the order in which the cars had lined up for the "run across the main straight, jump in and take off" start, the McLaren/Amon car had covered a greater distance. By the time Ruby shared the second-place-finishing Ford with A. J. Foyt in the 1967 Sebring race, Miles had died, lost in a testing accident at Riverside, California. Decades later, whenever the Le Mans incident or Miles was brought up, tears would well in Ruby's eyes. Normally so even-tempered and easygoing, Ruby felt quite passionately that Miles was the moral winner, not only because he had been leading by a comfortable margin and had slowed down in response to team orders, but that over a period of many months, he had performed virtually all of the development work on the cars. It was something Ruby never got over.
   Nobody outside of racing could ever possibly have guessed Ruby's occupation. He was casual beyond belief; red-flag situations at race tracks and the inevitable rain delays never seeming to bother him - because they didn't bother him. Once asked how he had been able to train himself to deal with such frustrations, he said that it simply never had been a problem with him. He would recall, with a grin, the long-distance "enduros" at Le Mans, Daytona and Sebring. While many of the drivers would be up all night, drinking coffee and trying to stay alert, Ruby would have a cot set up behind the pit, instructing crew members to wake him up 15 minutes before the scheduled driver change. "He was a very special man, dignified, well mannered and quiet," said three-time Formula One World Champion Sir Jackie Stewart, 1966 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year. "Not shy, but quiet, and completely out of context with what one would expect a race driver to be. A modest man. Nobody who saw him, if they didn't know, would ever imagine he was a driver until he stepped into the cockpit. And he was very versatile on the track." Mario Andretti once expressed amazement and admiration for the limited amount of time Ruby required in order to get up to speed, whether it be on a road course or an oval, during practice or even tire testing. Ruby's second time by the start/finish line, Andretti recalled, was usually a real eye-opener. That Ruby should be held in such high esteem by his colleagues should be of some comfort to his family, friends and followers. When many of the greats are asked to discuss the rivals they have most admired over the years, they tend to use discretion by declining, publicly, to name names, unless they are permitted to mention several. Privately, when pressed to pare down the list, Ruby's name often is mentioned. One veteran stated flatly that Ruby adapted to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway better than anyone he raced against.
   "A soft-spoken Texas lead foot with enormous natural talent," Indianapolis 500 veteran and American racing legend Dan Gurney said. "He was not a self-promoting type; he was humble. One of the old-fashioned guys who let the results speak for themselves. "He was a potential winner every time he got behind the wheel. A great oval racer who was also a great road racer." At a special ceremony in September 2006 in Wichita Falls, friends arranged for an overpass to be named in Ruby's honor, the surprising thing being that nothing in that town had previously carried the name of the individual most associated with it. The celebration ended up beginning early and developed into a multi-day gathering of friends and family, including drivers Parnelli Jones, Al and Bobby Unser, Johnny Rutherford, Jim McElreath and Ebb Rose. Sometimes, for hours on end, the drivers attended functions and sat at tables, signing autographs well beyond the amount of time to which most would normally agree. They never complained - not once - the main reason being their respect and love for Ruby, the man of the hour. "He was one of the most kind-spoken men I've ever known," three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Rutherford said. "If he didn't like what you did or didn't like somebody, he just didn't talk about it. That was a Texas trait." Said Jones: "A couple of years ago a bunch of us were down in Wichita Falls when they dedicated an overpass in his name. I told them, 'With Ruby's luck, this'll probably end up being an UNDER-pass.' I can't say just how sorry I am. I'm really going to miss that guy."
   It also says something of the man that with all the years of his success, and, for a while, his considerable income, he never moved away from the place of his birth. Some of his closest friends were those with whom he had grown up and gone to school. A visit to his home likely would entail a casual drive around town, cruising by the location of his old school, a malt shop or two, a drugstore and his favorite watering hole, a very
down-to-earth establishment frequented by powerful townsfolk and city officials who were just as unpretentious as Ruby himself. One would learn, in speaking with friends, that not only did he once race motorcycles, but that as a teen-ager, he had learned to play steel guitar and became an accomplished player. In later years, Ruby would do much to assist, without fanfare, in local charitable affairs, some on his own behalf and more than a few in support of his wife, Peggy. The memories of slow-talking, fast-driving Lloyd Ruby, either in a race car or leaning up against a wall, arms folded, cowboy hat tipped slightly forward and one Western boot crossed in front of the other, toe to the ground, will not soon fade.
Ruby is survived by his wife, Peggy; their son, John; and daughter, Mary Ann. Services will be at 3 p.m. (ET) Saturday, March 28 at the Wichita Falls Multi-Purpose Events Center, Exhibit Hall A. Visitation will be from 6:30-8 p.m. (ET) Friday, March 27 at Lunn's Colonial Funeral Home in Wichita Falls. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery in Wichita Falls. Written by Ron Green and Paul Kelly, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, See http://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com. Sent in by Jerry Grobe

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Biography of Dick Wells, author unknown. March 2007. Dick Wells is a friend of the family. He is one of those "always there," but hard to recognize by the public type of guys. His list of achievements is very long and he isn't through with the creative process. Wells comes on the car and drag racing scene in 1960 as a young man who felt the need to get out on the road and see America. Just as the early pioneers were leaving the new sport of drag racing, a new generation was taking over and Wells was positioned to write on and supervise much of this new age of drag racing. Besides all the jobs and responsibilities that he had in his life, one thing stands out; he was a confidant to the racing world. My father relied on Dick Wells in helping him operate the NHRA and many other businessmen did the same thing. You may not hear Wells mentioned, but his presence was just about everywhere and if he didn't make the decisions, you can bet that he helped to influence them in auto racing. Wells is one of those unsung individuals that we rarely hear about. But without him, I can guarantee you that auto racing would have turned out very differently than it did. He is that important.
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   Dick Wells began his career in the field of motorsports much the same as other Americans, when he was a teenager and got his driver's license for the first time. His interest in cars became apparent quickly. At age 16 his dad gave him the family's 1936 Chevy two-door, today known as the model with "suicide doors." There was one problem with the car: It jumped out of high gear when traveling at a normal speed, so when he and his pals were out cruising, one had to hold the floor-shift lever down to avoid having the car pop out of gear. At 16, he remembers, he simply didn't have the money to get it repaired, and at that point, he didn't have the knowledge to repair it on his own. His father had mixed emotions about Dick's interest in cars. The Chevy was polished and waxed so often that the paint was wearing through to the primer in many spots, but after an experience with his pal, he chose not to repaint it. Here's what happened: His high school friend, Dale, also had 1936 Chevy, which he decided to paint. The two 16-year-olds began on a Saturday morning, when Dale's parents left home to go shopping. Dale got out his mother's all-new vacuum cleaner with a spray-paint attachment, and they proceeded to paint the Chevy a bright blue color, outdoors on a brisk autumn day. Having no knowledge of painting, and indeed masking, the Chevy took on an odd look with blue wheels and tires, and small openings in all of the windows; the finish was akin to thick sandpaper, filled with the remnants of twigs and leaves. Dick told Dale, "The blue tires don't look all THAT bad, do they?" Dale was forlorn; he should have been frightened. Painting the car outdoors meant that the vacuum cleaner sucked up dry leaves and twigs and destroyed his mother's new prized vacuum.
   Dick favored "odd" cars. He even had a 1948 Crosley station wagon while in high school. Made sense: Very good economy. But there was a downside: it never started on a cold Nebraska winter morning. Then the upside: it was small, light and easy to push. Problems were not infrequent. His friend Paul played the tuba in the Lincoln High School marching band. On one bitter cold day, Paul asked Dick for a ride home from school…with his tuba in tow. Dick scratched his head and said, "It would have to be you or the tuba. Both won't fit in the Crosley." Paul was incensed, didn't understand, and never spoke to Dick again. The Lincoln High School football team on one occasion picked up the Crosley, carried it up the stairs to the main entrance to the school, and left it there, crosswise, so the doors couldn't be opened. The principal was angry and demanded that the coach force the team to "…put that car back down on the street where it belongs!" But eventually Dick got the hot rod bug and fixed up a black 1948 Ford two-door-lowered it, installed dual exhaust, box-style fender skirts, and added the "cat's meow" of the day: twin Appleton spotlights. Eventually he needed a good job to pay for all of the toys, and he began by working in an automotive parts store in Lincoln, Nebraska, as a stockroom clerk, then quickly moved up to become a salesman, and after a few years took over as manager. The store, Hank's Auto Store, sold auto parts and speed equipment. Later, Dick was hired by Speedway Motors, today one of the largest distributors of automotive performance equipment in the United States, and he remained there as assistant manager until relocating from his native Lincoln to the Los Angeles area.
    It was in California that he became actively involved in motorsports as a career pursuit. He was the first editor of National Dragster when it was introduced and published by the National Hot Rod Association in 1960. It was at National Dragster he began to "build" on his name as an automotive journalist. From being a staff member at NHRA, at the urging of Tex Smith, Dick became the managing editor-and later features editor-of Hot Rod magazine, then the largest automotive magazine in the world. He also served as the executive editor of Motor Trend magazine, and at Petersen Publishing Company, the publisher of Hot Rod and Motor Trend, he was eventually promoted to director of special events, during which tenure he produced various hot rod shows and races, including helping out on the Motor Trend 500 and Hot Rod Magazine Championship Drag Races at Riverside Raceway. More importantly, he produced the first and now annual trade-only SEMA Show. Held each year in Las Vegas, the SEMA Show is the only one of its kind in the world, a 1.5-million-square-foot extravaganza in the Las Vegas Convention Center. Dick's first effort to produce the SEMA Show, in 1967, working with icons Ray Brock and Alex Xydias of hot rodding fame, was made up of 98 booths, staged under the grandstands at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
    Dick was the first active president of the National Street Rod Association, and he is credited with the massive street rod movement in the U.S., the largest motorsports hobbyist activity in which tens of thousands of individuals participate by building and driving their own hot rods. He started the Street Rod Nationals, an event which today attracts upward of 12,000 pre-1949 hot rods each year to participate. The street rod parts market is now a major segment of the specialty automotive aftermarket, which includes racing equipment for drag racing, circle track racing and other forms of automotive competition sports. Wells is credited with being the "father" of today's robust street rod specialty industry segment. A footnote to his credit: Often regarded as a grudging complainer, Wells said that Boyd Coddington of Boyd's Wheel fame was the only one to shake his hand and say, "Thank you. No one else will tell you, but I know we wouldn't be in business if it wasn't for your vision and determination to build this industry."
    As an association specialist, Dick has served as executive director of several groups, among them the Performance Warehouse Association and the Auto International Association, both national organizations in the automotive aftermarket. He applies a unique creative talent to association management, specifically services provided to participating member companies and/or individual members. Mr. Wells has been repeatedly honored for his dedication and contributions to industry causes, including the prestigious SEMA Person of the Year in 1977; he was inducted into the SEMA Industry Hall of Fame in 1993. He was presented the International Specialty Car Association (ISCA) Founder's Award in 1994, and in 1996 the Street Rod Marketing Alliance, SRMA, presented him with its Industry Recognition Award. In 2001 he was among those honored with the NHRA Pioneer's Award.
    In addition to his writing skills, he has done emcee gigs in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. His spontaneous wit and humor have been applauded. He has also co-hosted a cable television show, "Rolling Art," which features unique and exotic cars, from customs to carmakers' concept vehicles. Dick recently retired as the vice president of corporate projects for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), a trade association of some 5,000 businesses in the specialty and performance automotive products field. (In the 1970s, he spent five years as the executive director of SEMA.) Mr. Wells is also a member of the board of directors of the National Hot Rod Association, a position he has held continuously since 1979. He once served as one of NHRA's delegates to ACCUS, the Automobile Competition Committee of the United States, the U.S. arm of the FIA, where he was the group's secretary. Dick resides in Orange, Calif.; his favorite pastime, outside of cars and auto racing, are dogs (he has two, Morgan and Sophie) and recreational vehicles, motorhomes in particular.

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The 2009 Hot Rod Heritage Series is now in its second season. There are 14 categories: Nostalgia Top Fuel; Nostalgia Funny Car; A/Fuel; Junior Fuel; 7.0 Eliminator; AA/Gas Supercharged; Nostalgia Eliminator 1, Nostalgia Eliminator 2; Nostalgia Eliminator 3; A Gas; B Gas; C Gas; D Gas; and Hot Rod. The 2009 NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Racing Series Schedule is as follows: April 3-5, Nostalgia Sportsman Shootout, Fontana, California. May 15-17, Las Vegas Speed Spectacular, Las Vegas, Nevada.  June 12-13, Arizona Fuel & Gas Nationals, Wittmann, Arizona. July 10-11, WCTA Fremont Reunion, Sacramento, California. August 13-16, 38th Annual Pepsi NightFire Nationals, Boise, Idaho. September 11-13, Southern California Shootout (tentative), Fontana, California.  October 16-18, California Hot Rod Reunion, Bakersfield, California.  See www.autoclubfamosoraceway.com. Bill Groak

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