SOCIETY OF LAND SPEED RACING HISTORIANS |
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Some Names To Look For In This Newsletter: |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ President's Corner: |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editorial: |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Evelyn Roth just informed me (May 29, 2009) that Will Scott is back at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, for exploratory tests and possible surgery. See www.oilstick.com, obit and illness page for more details. Our best wishes go to Will for a speedy recovery. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Saturday June 6 10AM - 2PM. Lou Hart and Friends. See the famous Yeakel Top Fuel Dragster and meet some of the drivers who made history. Lou will also be signing his new book Kings of the Quarter Mile. Saturday, June 13, 10AM - 2PM, Hot Rod Garages. Meet author Peter Vincent and Builders - Bill Vinther, Cal Tanaka, Pete Eastwood and Don Small. See some of their fantastic cars. Bring your own. Saturday, June 20, 10AM - 2PM, meet the legendary George Barris. He will be signing his new book Cars of the Stars. Barris cars will be on display here at the bookstore. Tina Van Curen, Autobooks-Aerobooks, 3524 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank, CA 91505. 818 845-0707, and www.aerobooks/autobooks.com |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The SoCal Chapter of the Society of Automotive Historians presents: 27th Literature Faire and Exchange, Sunday June 28, 2009 8AM - 3PM, at the NHRA Wally Parks Motorsports Museum, Los Angeles County Fairplex, 1101 W. McKinley Ave, Gate #1, Pomona. There is free admission and parking for spectators and buyers. Vendors and sellers pay a small fee for their space rental. This is Southern California's largest venue for automotive paper: owner's manuals, books, advertising, posters, automotive art, magazine back issues, photographs, current magazines, pins, badges, event programs, sales brochures, models, small collectibles and memorabilia. If it is paper, you may find it here! No car or car parts allowed, this is not a car swap meet. Plan on visiting the NHRA Museum while you are there. Bob Falcon |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Bob Wanner and I are the fellows who are putting together the LSR event in Northern Maine this summer. Bob wanted me to touch base and tell you a bit about our effort. We're each car guys of course, Bob has a Honda Insight with a much massaged turbo motor. Perhaps you know the car is very aero and light, and has the potential to go very fast indeed, well north of 200. I'm a more traditional guy with a few homemade Fords in the garage. The racer is a '27 F/B Street Roadster with a 2.5 Ford 4 cylinder, again turboed, etc. Each is pretty much our first effort with Speed cars. My affliction was caused by attending Speedweek too many times. Long story short, we became pals pretty much because of the LSR email group, and thought about finding an alternative to the long drives to the Salt and even Maxton, which is a difficult drive from the Northeast. Also, I'm self-employed with a family, so I wanted to be able to change and subsequently tune my car with an air/fuel meter versus the expense of dyno time. We found the folks in Northern Maine very receptive to what we proposed, even though I don't think they know what to expect. Actually at this point we don't know what to expect either! The runway is huge and in good shape. It was last used militarily during Desert Storm in the early 1990's, and while not used (except by an occasional private aircraft), the surface is maintained by the Loring Development Authority, an Agency of the State of Maine. At 700' above sea level, the size of the place has got a lot of people thinking their vehicle can go faster there than anywhere, and they may be right. Bob Wanner did some high speed test runs to confirm the viability of the surface. That is our total experience with speed at the place. While vehicles should have suspension, the surface did seem fairly flat at that speed. In the meantime we're nailing down a long list of things we think we'll need. The Maxton gang has been absolutely fantastic and will continue to help us a lot it appears. Northern Maine is very beautiful that time of year, the farms are lush and active, the people friendly and on the ball. So while there aren't a lot of LSR cars in these parts there are a few, and there are plenty of motorcycles that can be made race ready without a great deal of effort. Our goal is to not screw up so badly so as to provide that there will be a second event on 2010. There is an endangered bird involved, and the weather up there isn't the greatest except mid-summer (when it's only sometimes o.k.), so we have no plans to move beyond a one event season. Please let us know if you have any questions for us, and wish us luck! Again, the folks involved are all first rate, and that almost always assures success. Thanks for your interest and good wishes, Bob Jepson, Milton, Massachusetts |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ After reading the note from Phyllis McNeil, I wonder if you would ask her if she would like to drop me a note about Karl and Veda Orr and I will respond with some thoughts when I was a regular at the Orr's Speed Shop and their home. Bob Falcon |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editor's notes: I had a nice conversation with my cousin, Mike Olivero, whose father was Laurence and then he gave me his cousin's number. I called and spoke to Bobby Olivero who lives in the Southern California area. Bobby retired from sprint car racing in 1984 and told me that he rarely sees a race these days, but he promised to work on his bio and that of his father, Tony Olivero. Bobby also told me about his time working with my uncle Kenny Parks at Bell Auto Parts. I hope to have his bio soon at www.hotrodhotline.com. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ It looks like the BLM has approved our testing to be conducted at Black Rock between July 5 and July 12, 2009. The Air Force decided that we could run at Edwards Air Force Base if we paid a fee of $24,500 for the privilege. Additional fees would be charged if we needed any support from them. We would have to provide an aviary consultant to oversee any migratory bird pathways in case our shelter interfered with said birds. We also would be required to employ a zoologist to keep track of the desert tortoise in case one gets onto the lakebed. We would not be allowed to use our aircraft radio because it might interfere with their radio transmissions. Wolf Air, who films our runs from the air, would not be allowed to land their aircraft on the lakebed unless approved through the Pentagon. That one is a laugh because Wolf Air films aviation projects at Edwards on a regular basis. In addition to all that, we would not be allowed to transmit our run data from the NAE to our wireless ethernet towers to the base station because they fear that the transmission of data could interfere with satellite communications on the base. I guess the real mission of the Air Force bureaucrats at Edwards was to find any excuse to say NO. Well I hope the Steam Car guys have fun. Ed Shadle |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chop-Shop Customs, owned by Larry Schaeffer is located at 235 D Salem Street, Woburn, MA 01801 USA. To receive their newsletter and see their projects go to [email protected]. The newsletter carries some of my articles. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum contact information taken from their website: |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ From the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum calendar of events on the internet: |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Golden Hawk LSR Project, see www.goldenhawk.ca, (or click) http://goldenhawkproject.blogspot.com/. Randy Pierce |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ I do have a blog on www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk, but any mail would have to be bumped through to me by the site operator. If you want any comments from Americans who have read the book you might contact Bob Keith or Carl Olson. [email protected]. Brian Taylor (editor's notes: The following comes from the website www.theaccelerationarchive.co.uk) |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Gale Banks will be on hand on Saturday May 30 and Sunday May 31 to help celebrate the grand opening of Pep Boy's first-ever dedicated Speed Shop in downtown Los Angeles. Manny, Moe, and Jack (the world, of course, knows them better as the Pep Boys) are combining the old-time feel of a traditional speed shop with the latest in performance products and accessories at a location designed to serve southern California auto enthusiasts with all they need in performance for their rides, from muscle cars and hot rods to sport compacts and imports to trucks and off-roaders. Customers will be invited to check out all that the Pep Boys' new Speed Shop has to offer during its official grand opening celebration on May 30 and 31. Gale Banks, President and CEO of Banks Power, the leading manufacturer of diesel and gas performance products will be there in person from 11AM to 1PM both Saturday and Sunday to meet customers and to talk about the Banks Power line of performance products that Pep Boys will be carrying. Banks is well-known in the high-performance world for having pioneered innovations, techniques, and systems which produce both power and efficiency. His championing of the use of twin-turbochargers on both gasoline and diesel-fueled engines fostered a whole industry, his long-time personal mantra of "guilt-free performance" ringing clearer as each year goes by. A member of the SEMA Board of Directors, Banks was recently honored by being named by the Automotive Hall of Fame as a recipient of a 2009 Distinguished Service Citation. Enhancing the "visuals" at Pep Boys, Banks will be bringing along one of his record-setting Sidewinder Duramax-powered drag racing machines. The Banks Sidewinder Chevy S-10 Pickup recently went into the record books with at scalding 7.77-second/180 mile-per-hour run at the Speedworld Dragstrip in Whittman, Arizona, making it the quickest/fastest diesel-powered drag racing pickup truck on the planet. To create their new Speed Shop, Pep Boys loaded up its larger-than-average store on Washington Boulevard in LA with hundreds of performance-related products that until now could only be found online or at independent specialty shops. The new store is located at 1200 West Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles, and will be staffed by Speed Shop professionals, experts who really know their performance products. "We're thrilled to open our first Speed Shop, this enhancement of our business is a natural fit for Pep Boys," said Pep Boys' Senior VP of Merchandising and Marketing Scott Webb. "There's a high demand for specialty performance products like those that Banks Power offers, and we're excited to combine our retail automotive knowledge with our service expertise to make this Speed Shop a truly one-stop-shopping experience for all of our enthusiast customers." The two-day event will feature custom cars, performance vendors showing their products and food and entertainment will be available. Gale Banks was in the speed shop business very early-on in his life, starting his own "CP's Auto & Marine Parts-Racing Engines" in Lynwood, California in 1960 at the young age of 18. Banks' shop was the place where high-performance enthusiasts could get their hands on the latest and greatest in "go-fast" hardware as well as take advantage of Banks' hot rod knowledge and keen engine-building skills. Banks' "First 50 Years" in the business were recently acknowledged with an ongoing 3,400 square foot exhibition which opened at the Wally Parks NHRA Motor Sports Museum in late 2008. Banks Power is the leader in the design, testing, manufacture, and sale of complete high-performance engine and braking systems for both diesel-and gasoline-powered light trucks, SUVs, and motorhomes. Located in Azusa, California, the organization is squarely focused on the future of fuel economy and performance through technological innovation, world- class engineering, and intense product testing. The company celebrated its "First 50" years in business in 2008, and, in January, Gale Banks himself was awarded a 2009 Distinguished Service Citation by the Automotive Hall of Fame. www.bankspower.com. Sent in by Doug Stokes and Ron Main |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Fountain Valley Car Show will be held on June 13, 2009 at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley, California and Roger Rohrdanz and I will be there to cover the show and to interview the pinstripers. Ron Henderson's The Lady Dragon will be the featured car. For more details go to http://www.fvcarshow.com/. Also featured will be Von Hot Rod and the Pinstripers. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Editor's notes: The following correspondence was received in response to the letter sent out to us by Ken Berg, concerning the finding of a museum willing to archive the history and records of automotive racing in Southern California. While the SLSRH is not a blog, it recognizes that this subject is vital to our work and so it will allow the comments. Hopefully this will help us to find a museum that would archive all the records of hot rodders, racers and car guys rather than to see these sources lost forever. One caveat of advice, museums sometimes have sharing provisions between and with other museums, but sometimes the artifacts end up in vaults and are rarely seen, so it is important that we check carefully before consigning our collections to any facility. Neither the editor nor the Society of Land Speed Racing Historians has taken sides in this debate. Part of the problem is the sheer enormity of it all. There are hundred of thousands of hot rodders, car racers, car racing fans, officials and interested parties who have house and garage full of memorabilia. To save it all would take a thousand Smithsonian Museums and untold numbers of curators, docents, directors and researchers. But at least we have a culture and a history right in front of us to save and it is up to us to do so, or watch our heritage fade away in front of our eyes. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Costa Mesa Speedway; June 6, 13, 20, 27. The dirt is flying again around the track with the return of the Costa Mesa Speedway. Amateur afternoons, kids' nights, sidecar racing and more are scheduled. See http://ns.ocfair.com/ocf/Calendar/calendar.asp. From internet message |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Santa Maria Speedway, Santa Maria, California. See www.santamariaspeedway.com, for schedule of events and dates. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is hardly a hot rodders show, but Michael Shaw sent in a link showing some of the posters that will be used to advertise the show at http://www.pebblebeachconcours.net/pages/3017/Photos.htm. One of the photos shows Roland "Rollie" Free at Bonneville on his motorcycle and he is in a bathing suit lying flat on his stomach. It's an excellent shot which today would not be allowed. |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A lot of old time hot rodders, young & old, had a great time at our gathering last Saturday (May 30), and we would like to publically thank everybody at Autobooks-Aerobooks in Burbank for hosting our event. Our intent was to discuss hot rodding from the 1930s through the mid-1960s using our book: Harrell Engines & Racing Equipment: Jim (White)Harrell & Nick /Harrell as a point of departure. Obviously not many dry-lake-racers from the 1930s dropped by, but drag-racers from the 50’s & 60’s had a great time remembering some of the best times of their racing lives. For instance, Jim and Pat Berardini came with much of their memorabilia, and Leslie Long joined others in reliving the 1950s at the drags. Rod Larmer brought some of the great photos he took in the early 60’s of the Harrell/Borsch altered, and Rod McCarrell brought several volumes of his photos from the drags during the 60’s & 70’s to share with all of us. I’ll post more of the photos of the get-together/book signing on the www.HarrellEnginesHotRodding (http://www.harrellengineshotrodding/) web site where others can see what Harrell Engines & Racing Equipment has been all about since the 1930s. |
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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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