SOCIETY OF LAND SPEED RACING HISTORIANS
NEWSLETTER 125 - August 25, 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, Long time hot rodder and good friend Cliff Beecher from Atkinson New Hampshire passed away last night, I came across your website and hope you can help, Autobooks-Aerobooks, On Saturday (August 29, 2009, starting at 10:00AM) there will be a Bean Bandits reunion and car show, I received word that Joaquin Arnett won't be able to be at the Bean Bandits reunion, I keep seeing this guy's name (Lee Chapel) so I reached into my dad's (Bud Miller) bag of memorabilia and came up with this, New email address for Don Pennington and Don Pennington Studio, Sandy Belond’s Pre-War Roadster Gains Long Awaited Provenance, Burke LeSage and Gail Phillips sent in the announcement on the Gold Coast Roadster & Racing Club's 17th Annual Gas-Up Party and Dry Lakes Racing Hall of Fame induction ceremony, I am looking for the following items for my Hall of Fame Museum, The Morgan in the picture is running on very tall skinny wheels and tires on the beach at Daytona so I'm assuming he was engaged in a speed record attempt of some sort not a sports car race, Checkered Flag 200 Car Show and Family Fun Day Petersen Automotive Museum, Subject: British Steam Car Team on Course for World Record Success, Recently I published a Commentary and Feasibility Report on the subject for Drag Racing at Willow Springs, The results for Road Runners participating at Speedweek 2009 are now posted on the Road Runners website, We have lots of pictures up from Bonneville and some videos, I'm working on an article about stock car road racing in Southern California during the 1950's, August 17, 2009. RE: Postings and Emails: "Speed Week 2009 RESULTS", While Ron Main, George Poteet and the Speed Demon Team were racing at Bonneville, a derogatory remark was posted without their knowledge or authorization, Editor's notes: The following biography was done by Tom Bryant and it is one of the most interesting bios that I've had the pleasure to assist in capturing, Random Photos

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President's Corner:  
   I just got back from Bonneville Speedweek. This was the biggest ever event held at the salt with over a thousand runs and kept us workers jumping from sun-up to sun-down. To start on a somber note we lost Barry Bryant and the Tom Thumb Special on Sunday, August 9. At the four mile he was doing 226 plus mph. Just before the five the car got sideways, took off and that was the end for both. We've got pictures and video but will never know why the car got out of shape. We Have an incident review team that analyzes everything from spins to crashes and use this information to upgrade our safety requirements. In Barry's crash we found that the old military seat belt latch he used failed. There are tremendous forces involved in an accident. Let's look at G force. An acceleration/deceleration of 1G equates to a rate of change in velocity of approximately 22 mph for each second that elapses. If your buzzing along at 240 mph and run into something and take a full second to stop your at about 12 G's. If you weigh 180 pounds you now weigh 2,160 pounds. If you take that second and make it a tenth the G's and weight go through the ceiling. A normal person can handle 5 G's vertically before they loose consciousness. Horizontally we can handle 12 to 17 G's. Think about this when you're building your next ride, the butt you save may be your own. There was so much happening and so much work it was hard to capture everything so here are just a few pictures and captions from Bonneville to show you some of what you missed. Enjoy. Jim Miller

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Editorial: 
   Nuts and bolts; some explanation on how the newsletter is constructed.  The newsletter is not a blog, but is similar to an op-ed piece with a rebuttal. Blogs are unedited responses to the topic at hand, other reader's opinions and general responses. Often the blogs are defamatory, nasty, curse-ridden attacks on people or events. Very often a blog doesn't even make sense, has poor grammar and spelling and is meant to hurt or injure a perceived enemy or party in a dispute. Some blogs are more benign than others, but the overall emphasis of a blog is that they are free of any restraints or editorial corrections. The Society of Land Speed Racing Historians happily receives the emails, phone calls and letters from its members and the general public and is lightly edited. But it is edited and I know the difference between Stet and Dele and will use the blue pencil to decide what stays and what doesn't. The content of all mail has to have a purpose. That can be to inform, to correct what was incorrect, to teach and to edify. Sometimes an email will simply be a question and that affords Jim Miller and me the opportunity to answer it in public. Often, that question will have been raised before and answered, but I will allow it into the newsletter and answer it again. Why? Redundancy. Cars are built with redundant safety features built into them and I do the same thing with the SLSRH. To make sure the point gets across; I will often repeat the question. Case in point, if you don't want your email published in the SLSRH, then you need to tell me. Write on the subject line in CAPITAL LETTERS; DO NOT PUBLISH, or THIS IS CONFIDENTIAL, words to that effect. Sometimes I will write back to you and ask you; "Do you want this published?" But sometimes I'm simply too busy and will make a snap decision to publish or not to publish. If you come back and say later on, "That was private and you didn't have my permission to publish that," then I'm going to tell you that what you put into an email becomes PUBLIC, unless you TELL me that you don't want it printed. 
   How many times have we talked about this subject of keeping your letters private and each time I tell you the same thing; TELL me! It's that easy. Just type in PRIVATE, or CONFIDENTIAL or DO NOT PUBLISH and I will honor your requests. One more thing; if everything you do is private then you aren't doing the SLSRH or me any good. We are into saving history and if you don't add what you know then you are simply hanging on, deadwood so to speak. Write your bio and caption your photographs and then share them with us.  In this issue is a public retraction and apology from a reader. It has to do with an email that was sent out and it caused some hurt feelings and after reflecting on what he said, he re-sent another email with a retraction and an apology. This email was NOT published in the SLSRH, only the retraction and apology. Jim Miller and I do the same thing here at the SLSRH when we make mistakes. That is the common courtesy that we owe the public, even though other people who use the internet would never think to apologize for their mistakes. The SLSRH tries to be a scholarly newsletter and we will always post retractions and apologies where necessary. You may not have received the first email from this party and therefore you may not understand his retraction and apology. The point is, we are all capable of mistakes and lapses in judgment and when they occur, we want you to know that we work hard to fix that which was errant in the first place. In another instance, photographs of the Barry Bryant crash were sent to me and I decided not to publish them. I could have, because this is a historical journal and the crash is, or soon will be, a part of our heritage. But a crash is a nasty piece of business and I've seen my fair share of them and losing friends and fellow racers. It is too soon to be publishing these types of photographs. Time needs to go by, families and friends need to heal and grieve. Someday I will allow photos of the crash, but not now. The SCTA has decided to do exactly the same thing and will not release the pictures for the general public. It's an editorial decision and I hope that you'll understand my reasoning behind it. HOWEVER, you may see those photographs on the internet because other sources have sent them in to the websites. Neither Jim Miller or I have sent these photos in or will do so.
   Jim called and told me a bit about the 60th Annual Speed Week and how much progress has been achieved and how the sport is starting to grow again. He also told me about the sadness of the Bryant crash and fatality. Most of us have lived through tragedy and it has humbled us and made us respect the safety patrols and the volunteers who go out of their way to make the sport safer. Some years there are no injuries or deaths, and at other times we lose loved ones. By most standards, land speed and straight-line racing is very safe. You don't see things like cars bumping other cars like they do in oval track racing. There are no dangerous curves or road course impediments that you see in road racing. We don't have to deal with endurance issues and exhaustion as they do at Lemans.  But that does not mean that land speed racing is totally without peril and straight-line racers know that at the speeds we achieve, that danger, injury and death are always constant companions. I was there, close to the very beginnings of the Safety Safaris and patrols. Well, not exactly when they formed, but a decade later and I saw how these dedicated men and women help to keep accidents to a minimum. It takes a combined effort on the part of inspectors, officials, patrols and the general members to make our sport as safe as it is. And yet, we lose sometimes and those that we lose are so very valuable to us. The Association will go back and check what happened and try and find a reason and pass rules and regulations to keep such an accident from occurring in the future. But when all is said and done, we will keep racing on the salt and dry lakes because it's what we do.
   On another issue, I receive wonderful snail mail letters from Ernie Nagamatsu, Burke LeSage and others and in many cases I should include these letters in the newsletter. They often speak of the past and have historical importance. Ernie and his team restore wonderful and authentic racing vehicles and Burke is a person that I go to for information about land speed racing from the early '50's to the present. But it takes a lot of time to retype snail mail letters and make them an official part of the SLSRH record. I try to encourage the readers to use only email, or at least make it the bulk of their correspondences to Jim Miller and myself. There are times when a phone call or US Postal service letter is appropriate and I try to take accurate notes and type in a summary of the events. Where you can, respond in an email fashion, because it really speeds up my work. I also have about 20 bios that I've started with some of our members and while I try and respond within a day or so, many of the biographers are slow to return their stories. Many have kept me waiting since March. I know that you are all busy and building and racing your cars is your number 1 priority, but I am going to bug you a bit and force you to refocus. We are losing many of our older members and they have not written their bios or captioned their photos. I don't have a lot of time and neither do many of you, so schedule some time, find the unfinished bios that I sent you and get to work answering my questions and send back to me to finish editing them. The deadline for the SLSRH Newsletter is every Tuesday. Sometimes I can take what you send me on Wednesday, but I don't guarantee that I will be able to do that every time. Please send your work in to me on time or risk not having it go in the current newsletter.

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Long time hot rodder and good friend Cliff Beecher from Atkinson, New Hampshire passed away last night. As some of you know, Cliff had been quietly fighting very aggressive cancers for the past few months. Cliff has been a member of the Massachusetts Street Rod Association for about 29 years, and is one of the dedicated nine behind the Gearhead Gathering. He contributed greatly to both groups and his work and assistance will be missed. But more importantly, his friendship and personal relationships will be missed. He was a great guy to know. He leaves his wife Sandy and three sons. There will be a wake (no casket - he will be cremated prior to the wake) this Friday, August 21 from 4 to 8pm at Brookside Chapel and Funeral Home, 116 Main Street, Plaistow, New Hampshire 03865 (Rt121A) a right fork off Route 125 if driving north from Haverhill into Plaistow. Phone number is 603-382-2233. There is no funeral scheduled. Hot rods are encouraged. Cliff's constant assistance both personally and with hot rodding adventures will be sorely missed. He did so much, but always in the background, never looking for credit or recognition. And he's trying to leave on those terms - unless we make sure to give him the recognition he deserves. Our deepest sympathy to his family. Going to be real different without Cliff around. God bless, God speed. (please feel free to share this information with other hot rodders).  Sent in by Gil Coraine
   Gil: The SLSRH newsletter always runs three weeks behind and therefore we may not be able to help. But where we can help is in posting a bio or obituary for Cliff so that our members can know a little more about him. We encourage everyone to write their bios and caption all their photographs, so that we can leave a little history behind us when we go.

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I came across your website and hope you can help. I'm a freelance auto journalist and one of my main outlets is the Globe & Mail in Toronto, for which I write new car reviews and old car articles. I'm also a Morgan owner. I have just come across an old photo which shows Victor H. Carr of Wayland, Massachusetts driving a Morgan in what is described as the NASCAR speed trials in Florida in 1956. I've searched but can't find anything about the guy. The car has a Purelube sponsor decal on the door. Do you have any record of Carr, or can you point me at someone who might be able to help. Thanks, Bob English
   Bob: I'm sending this email to our Society president, Jim Miller, and I will include this email in our next newsletter. The Society of Land Speed Racing Historians is basically concerned with straight-line racing (early drags and land speed racing), and hot rodding. But some of our members cross over into other forms of motorsports. You should also check with Art Evans, a road course driver and author, as he might know whom to refer you to

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Autobooks-Aerobooks, 3524 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank, CA 91505. 818 845-0707 Tina Van Curen

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On Saturday, August 29, 2009, starting at 10:00AM, there will be a Bean Bandits reunion and car show at the Point Loma Masonic Center, 1711 Sunset Cliffs Blvd, San Diego, CA. The theme is to honor the 60th year of the San Diego BEAN BANDITS Racing Team, and to honor Joaquin Arnett. Joaquin is suffering from Alzheimer's, but is expected to be in attendance. Also featured will be the famous $5.00 donation lunch. If you can attend, please do, and extend an invitation to any and all that may be interested. Jack

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I received word that Joaquin Arnett won't be able to be at the Bean Bandits reunion. He is in the Community Care in La Mesa, California should anyone like to pay him a visit. The reunion will be held at the Point Loma Masonic Center half a block from Jackie Arnett's home in Ocean Beach. The reunion is set for Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 10AM at the Point Loma Masonic Center, 1711 Sunset Cliffs Blvd, San Diego, California. This will be the 60th anniversary of the famed car racing club. The $5 donation lunch includes the famous Bean Bandits recipe of beans, beef, salad, tortillas and soft drinks.  T-shirts and other souvenirs will be on sale to the public. Hot rods and race cars will be on display. The organizers are asking the racing community for information on any records, event wins and times set by Joaquin Arnett and the old Bean Bandits in the LSR, SCTA, NHRA or other racing groups. They are trying to put together a history of the club. You can send any information on to Jackie Arnett at [email protected]. 

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New email address for Don Pennington and Don Pennington Studio; [email protected]. Author of..."Kickin' Rocks," "Supe Job," and "Karbux." See www.hotrodmotors.com. Original Automotive Art, Water Decals, Reproduction Programs, Historic Models and "Our Modern History" in magazines on your newsstands. Don
Readers: Don has reproductions of old programs and other articles. He lets us know that they are reproductions and not originals and they seem fairly priced. If you are missing a program for your collection, check out Don's website and see if he has what you are looking for.

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SANDY BELOND'S PRE-WAR ROADSTER GAINS LONG AWAITED PROVENANCE, by Michael Brennan.
   I recently attended a show with the Belond roadster and through happenstance I met Sandy's best friend! His name is Bob North and he met Sandy when he was in high school. He is a founding member of the Hollywood Throttlers! Bob is 90, still driving and is as sharp today as ever. He had a cabriolet in the first Hot Rod Expo and was the owner of 4 early drag strips here in So Cal. His widow was Jack McGrath's wife Louise. She died a year or so ago, and they were married for over 50 years. Louise introduced Bob North to Sandy Belond when she was in high school and Bob was at Emmanuel Arts High School in Culver City. Bob is 5 years younger then Sandy was. He does know Alice Hanks and in fact Bob takes her to dinner now and again since they live close to one another. Bob remembers Sandy building the car, where they sourced the body, it's continual tinkering with and how big a deal it was to run over 100 mph in a roadster on the dry lakes with a Ford V8 when there were no hot rod parts for that engine. He also has great insight into Sandy and Sam Hank's involvement with the Gilmore guys and their relationship with the Orr's and Roy Richter. So after a very long journey the Belond roadster has provenance. I finally have a testimony from a direct link, someone involved with the build from the beginning to the end and he is certain the car is the roadster Sandy and Sam built together. Bob was a sort of money man funding a lot of what was going on in the early days and we know how that is inter-meshed with racers and getting help for their projects. Bob was also a part owner in Carlsbad raceway with Sandy and he helped put together the deal to sell Belond Equa-Flow to AP Industries and create Blackjack Headers. Obviously I am very excited about getting Bob on tape soon. It's inevitable that we will get a lot more of the missing info filled in on a lifetime of stuff we have had a hard time figuring out. We have talked together for about 5 hours and the more we talk the more that comes to mind for him. If you have some specific questions about the Throttlers get them to me and I'll ask him. We'll be riding together in the Belond roadster to the upcoming Throttlers' picnic. A fun little bit of dry lakes trivia told to me by Bob North a founding member of the Hollywood Throttlers. We have all heard how dangerous it was to run around on the dry lakes at night before the Associations were formed. The Throttlers had a solution. They would tie an old tire carcass to the rear of their roadsters with a cable. They would put some fuel in the carcass and light it on fire. This way if you were in another roadster traveling across Muroc you knew not to cross the path of a campfire that was traveling around at 90 mph. Michael Brennan
   Michael: Ask Bob North if he would work on his bio for us. I've included it below.

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Burke LeSage and Gail Phillips sent in the announcement on the Gold Coast Roadster & Racing Club's 17th Annual Gas-Up Party and Dry Lakes Racing Hall of Fame induction ceremony. The date is September 26, 2009 at Mendenhall's Petroleum Museum, located in Buellton, California. The time is from 9 AM to 5 PM. Mark and Vicki Mendenhall are the hosts and provide a Santa Maria style barbecue with tri-tip steak, beans, salad and drinks. The pit passes are $55 each and you must register by September 15th. For more information call 805-245-8519 or email Gail at [email protected]. The honorees for 2009 are;
Historical vehicle-Mickey Thompson's Attempt Streamliner
Presently running vehicle-Walsh/Cusack/Walsh 333 Roadster
Motorcycle-(One of) Scott Guthrie's Multi-record Hayabusa
People who have contributed-Tanis Hammond, Lee Kennedy, Gail Watson Phillips, Mike Nish, Bill Taylor and Bob Sykes Jr
People from the past-Meb Healey, Eddie Kuzma and Walt Scott
Manufacturer-Mooneyes and Chico Kodama
Historian-Mark Brazeau

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I am looking for the following items for my Hall of Fame Museum, which will open late this year in Auburn, Indiana. I need information on anything speed equipment or cars built by Grancor Automotive Specialists (Granatelli Corporation) like Ford Flathead motors, heads, manifolds, etc. Also, looking for any racecars I owned or built, including Indy cars, street rods, Bonneville cars or a Fordillac. I would like to have any information on the whereabouts of any of the above. I will consider a loan, a donation or I will purchase the items. No matter what, I would like to know what's out there. Contact Andy at [email protected]. Thank you. Andy Granatelli

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The Morgan in the picture is running on very tall skinny wheels and tires on the beach at Daytona, so I'm assuming he was engaged in a speed record attempt of some sort, not a sports car race. Thanks for your help, somebody out there might remember Carr. Incidentally, do any Canadian speed record holders from the past come to mind that might be worth a story, thanks again. Bob English
Bob: I'll send this on to Jim Miller, who I believe may know more about the Morgan. As for Canadians, I am sure there were many and this is a worthwhile project for us to look for and do a survey of them for our newsletter. We do research on straight-line racing no matter where in the world that it occurs. Let me know if you want me to put your email address in the newsletter for our readers to respond to you personally, otherwise go to www.landspeedracing.com and read the newsletters posted there. It is a free website. My personal feeling is that we will find lots of Canadians who are land speed racing fans and participants. A Canadian drag racer of note is Gordie Bonin and I have his bio on-line at www.hotrodhotline.com, guest columnist/Richard Parks.

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Checkered Flag 200 Car Show and Family Fun Day Petersen Automotive Museum, Sunday, August 30, 2009 11 a.m.-3p.m., 6060 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036. See www.petersen.org.  Chris Brown

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Subject: British Steam Car Team on Course for World Record Success! For Immediate Release: British Steam Car Team on Course for World Record Success Edward's Air Force Base, California: Wednesday 18th August. The British Steam Car Team have now successfully carried out 5 test runs in excess of 100mph ahead of its bid to break the century-old world land speed record for steam-powered vehicles. After numerous setbacks last week, the team were jubilant on Saturday having unofficially beaten the Fred Marriott record. The teams own calibrated equipment measured the two way average at 137.14mph, and a 48min 52 second turn-around. Today the British Steam Car Team will commence their attempts to achieve an official record. The current FIA record is 127mph previously set by American, Fred Marriott, driving a Stanley steam car in 1906. Project Manager Matt Candy said: "it was an enormous achievement on Saturday and one we hope to replicate now that the FIA timing officials have joined us today. The timing equipment is currently being set up across the 7mile lakebed. When we left England we knew we had a tough challenge ahead, but we had carried out all the testing we could. Since arriving in the UK the team has had to do a lot of preparations to the car with the effects of heat, altitude and the surface conditions. Compared to UK testing at Thorney, Portsmouth, the goal has been to make the car travel twelve times the distance, at double the speed and twice in within one hour. Saturday was a milestone for the team in achieving this goal". The FIA is the sanctioning body and now recognizes a land speed record as the average speed of two passes made across the same measured distance in opposing directions within 60 minutes of each other. The time of the two runs is then averaged to obtain the official recorded speed. The record runs will commence at 6am USA time (2pm UK time). We will keep you posted with the team news!
Notes to Editors: Principle Driver Charles Burnett III was born in England in 1956 and educated in South Africa and America. As a legitimate tri-national - his mother was Canadian and his father American - he inherited a love for travel and all things mechanical from his father, who raced hydroplanes and restored Hudson automobiles. A long-time powerboat enthusiast, Charles set up Vulture Ventures, a UK-based offshore racing team, which soon became known as the world's most successful team in the sport. During this time, Charles took a variety of world records using catamarans and monohulls powered by diesel, petrol and LPG. He was included in the Guinness Book of World Records in 1999 for an offshore water speed record of 137mph. The team acknowledges the achievements of the "Barber-Nichols Team". Their vehicle 'Steamin' Demon' is currently the fastest steam car in the world. On 18th August 1985 The Barber-Nichols Team carried out three successful passes and achieved an American National Record at 145.607mph. There was no attempt to establish an FIA record. However, the British Steam Car Challenge recognizes this speed as the record to exceed. For further information and team interviews, please contact: If calling within UK: Account Manager, Chris Wall DD Tel: 01452 260063, Email: [email protected]. If calling within the USA: Publicity Director, Rebecca Nicholls M: 07749 852481, Email: [email protected]. For photographs and footage of the British Steam Car Team record attempts please contact The Press Association or Associated Press. For further details, please contact the Picture Desk on 0207 963 7032. Email: [email protected] . Re-sent by Ron Main

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Recently I published a Commentary and Feasibility Report on the subject for Drag Racing at Willow Springs. The feasibility is very positive for certain few that will be able to meet the criteria. Whether we are involved or not it is a good start. For the full story and recent articles written on the subject please visit http://www.SaveLACR.org. Your continued support and feedback is highly valued. For comments you can respond to this e-mail or contact me at (800) 880-6567 or (661) 944-2299. Very truly yours, Jeffrey W. Hillinger A.K.A. Moldy Marvin
http://www.savelacr.org and http://www.aeclassic.com.

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The results for Road Runners participating at Speedweek 2009 are now posted on the Road Runners website. There is an overview of the week's activities on the News Page: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/news.htm. Results and Records are also posted on the following pages: http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/results.htm. Also http://www.ussarcherfish.com/roadrunners/records.htm. It was an incredible week with three new records for Road Runners, one new Red Hat (Congratulations Dale Wester) and personal best class speeds for all five race teams. All our former existing Bonneville Records still stand also. Other than high winds (up to 72mph gusts) with "white out" conditions due to blowing salt dust on Thursday the 6th, we had pretty good weather. On Saturday morning, it was very cool and most folks showed up at the Driver's Meeting with either sweatshirts or jackets, or they shivered (like I did). No rain during the week on the salt but some around us early in the week. Very good salt but it did get a little slick on the 12, 13 & 14th when the air temps got hotter. Jerry Cornelison

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We have lots of pictures up from Bonneville and some videos. If you go to our show coverage www.Hotrodhotline.com/feature/2009show, you'll see two Bonneville articles near the top. Bob Choisser sent a bunch along with some videos and said you wanted them too. If you want us to send them to you let me know, but they are all already on our site. Jack made it there for one day, better than not at all. Thanks, Mary Ann Lawford. See www.HotRodHotLine.com, www.BikerHotLine.com, www.LandspeedRacing.com, and www.HotRodTrucks.com.

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I'm working on an article about stock car road racing in Southern California during the 1950's. There were two races at Paramount and one at another location, I think perhaps Pomona. I have dates on the two Paramount's, but not the other, also promoted by JC Agajanian, I think. Do you have any info? Do you have any photos? Thanks, Art Evans, Phone 310-489-5330

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August 17, 2009. RE: Postings and Emails: "Speed Week 2009 RESULTS" sent from Ron Main's PC-sent while Ron Main and George Poteet were at Bonneville during Speed Week.
   Ron Main, George Poteet and members of the team were not responsible for the emails or the results posting of the website. Ron's brother, Bob Main in Los Angeles, was responsible for both the emails and web posting that in addition to various news items that began with an unwarranted derogatory remark directed toward the SCTA's website. Moreover, Bob Main was typed after the unwarranted irresponsible statement. Ron and George only found out about my email and the posting as he was returning from Bonneville near Las Vegas. Ron Main immediately called Jill Davis, the website person and had the Speed Demon website immediately shut down. There is no defense for my disrespectful remark, except the need to clear Ron Main and George Poteet of any blame or repercussions that may have been caused by my thoughtless remark. The statement at the end of this letter has been also been posted on the Speed Demon Website. I was trying so hard to get information about my brother's car that I took a cheap shot mistakenly thinking that the SCTA site should be my personal news service. Ed spends most of his time typing out all the entry forms and he's lucky to get out of the trailer at all. We should all appreciate the extra work he does in just adding the extra pictures to the speed results that really should be showing the great work done by all the officials and volunteers of the SCTA. I am truly sorry for the unjustified remark and I am solely the one to blame for the remark on Ron Main emails and the web posting.
The integrity, diligence and hard work done by the members of the SCTA and its volunteers did not deserve this unwarranted remark. I am truly sorry.  Robert E. Main
   ps-The Speed Demon web site has been temporarily shut down. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

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While Ron Main, George Poteet and the Speed Demon Team were racing at Bonneville, a derogatory remark was posted without their knowledge or authorization. Ron Main was notified of the posting and has the site shut down until he is back home and can remove any postings that are not authorized and approved by him.  Ron Main, George Poteet, and the entire Speed Demon Team fully support the efforts of the SCTA and its members, whose unwavering hard work, and integrity have contributed to the success of land speed racing. Congratulations to the SCTA for Speedweek 2009. Speed Week is sanctioned by the SCTA. The SCTA is an all volunteer organization whose mission is to provide safe and friendly Land Speed Racing (LSR) events for racing enthusiasts from all over the world in both Southern California; at the El Mirage Dry Lake; and at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. The SCTA is a non-profit 100% volunteer organization. All of its officers and event staff are unpaid motivated by the pure love of the sport. The SCTA not only works dragging and surveying of the courses, but had 138 workers working tirelessly to keep the meet running smooth and safe. 
   In addition racing they have been instrumental in the restoration of the Bonneville Salt Flats. The Save the Salt Board has members from the Southern California Timing Assn (SCTA) / Bonneville Nationals Inc (BNI) and Utah Salt Flats Racers Assn (USFRA). This group was able to negotiate a restoration agreement in 1997. Working hand in hand with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Reilly Chemical Co. they began to work together to return salt from the ponds. The Lay down Project has been reversing the loss of salt by pumping brine water back onto the salt flats at the rate of 1.5 million tons of salt each year for the last 5 years. Through their efforts and hard work in helping preserving this historical natural treasure, racing competitors can be assured that it will be there for future generations to come. So whenever you get a chance be sure and thank all of the SCTA/BNI workers that put together SpeedWeek 2009. Through their hard work we had a safe and memorable event. Again, Congratulations to the SCTA for a job well done at this year's Speed Week.  For complete results of the event, go to the Southern California Timing Association website at http://www.scta-bni.org/ .  Ron Main, George Poteet, and the entire Speed Demon team

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Editor's notes: The following biography was done by Tom Bryant and it is one of the most interesting bios that I've had the pleasure to assist in capturing. Tom recently lost his son Barry at Bonneville and it is a huge loss. Here is Tom's story and you will see just what a giant the Bryant family is to land speed racing.
   Gone Racin'...To see Thomas Elmer Bryant Junior. Biography and photographs by Tom Bryant, editing by Richard Parks, photographic consultant Roger Rohrdanz
 
  Our family is of Scotch/Irish decent, with farming and lumber backgrounds. My father, Thomas Elmer Bryant Sr, was the second eldest of nine children. The family has been traced back to Kentucky in the mid-1800. My mother, Trella Myrtle Lane Bryant was also the second eldest of a family if nine children. Her family, the Lane's, has been traced back to the 1500's in England. Both families arrived in Arkansas after the Civil War and their roots are deep in northwestern Arkansas and northeastern Oklahoma. Many of our relatives are still in that area. I was born February 28, 1930 in Pettigrew, a small mountain lumber town in northwest Arkansas. Pettigrew had probably developed around the saw mill, which processed the abundant timber in the area. The town is located in the Boston Mountains, about 25 miles south of Huntsville, the Madison County Seat, and roughly 45 miles south and east of Fayetteville. I had the good fortune of being able to go there, with my mother as a guide, in the late 1990's, the only time I had seen the place of my birth. There was not much that she recognized from when we had lived there. Today it is just a wide spot in the road, a country store and post office and a few houses scattered about.
 
  Shortly after my birth, my father journeyed to northwest Missouri and gained employment as a laborer on a farm east of Rockport. My mother gathered up her two children, my sister Leona, about age 5, and myself at less than 1 year of age, and we boarded a train with luggage, sack lunches and very little money to make the 400-mile trip to join my father. It must have been like a trip around the world for a poor, sickly mother of two to strike out on a journey of this magnitude. Dad worked for two different farmers during the next four years. For his labors, as was the practice for this type of employment, he was paid a monthly salary, furnished a house, which included a place for a garden, a place to raise chickens, received milk, and generally a hog to butcher for meat. By the standards that most of us live by today, this was a meager existence. However, it was okay, because we didn't know we were poor people. We were a family that appreciated what we did have. I don't remember our first house, but I have been told this was the location that first revealed that I was a "risk taker." There was a windmill, about twenty feet tall, near our house, which furnished water for us. One day my curiosity compelled me to investigate this structure; I made my way to the top where I remained until my father came to rescue me. I do remember the thrill of climbing inside a tire and hanging on while my dad rolled the tire across the yard, or sitting on his lap while I steered the car down the road. A few years later, I remember riding on the car's front fender and hanging onto the headlight with the wind in my face, all the time knowing my mother was vigorously reminding my dad of the dangers of such antics. My dad was a kid at heart and enjoyed living on the edge, too. From an early age, I can remember being attracted to anything automotive.
 
  In 1935, we moved from the hill country, east of Rockport, Missouri, where we had lived the last four years, and moved northwest of town to the "Missouri River Bottom," the rich gumbo flat lands between the river and the bluffs. The previous four years had produced two more siblings, Norma and Rex, making us a family of six. In September of 1935, I began my formal education at Cottonwood Grove School, a one-room schoolhouse about one and a half miles from our house. I was only five years of age, but was allowed to enter the first grade. This was likely one of the major mistakes of my life. Throughout my school days, I was always shy and a bit behind socially. I didn't have lots of friends, primarily because of my shy disposition, I suppose. Usually, I had one or two good friends and spent most of my free time with them. Since I worked on the family farm, "free time" was scarce. I was not able to be the typical teenager. My friends had jobs, making money to spend, cars that gave them freedom to go places and do things, while I was contributing to the family's income and receiving a meager allowance. I guess I felt abused. It was many years later, before I could appreciate the work ethic that my dad was teaching me. I didn't like school all that much. I had a vision problem that caused my reading to be very slow; therefore, I didn't enjoy reading and did just what was necessary to get through the courses. Math was my best subject. Unfortunately, I didn't continue with Math past Algebra I. When I was in the sixth grade, in the one-room schoolhouse, we had a ciphering match and I won, putting down the seventh and eight graders. I could do problems in my head faster than I could write them on the board. There are advantages to the one-room school where all grades were taught within your hearing. It allowed the student to learn at his or her own rate. There was never a reason to be bored with the subject matter.
 
  I can't recall any of my lower grade teacher's names, it has been too long ago, and there were three or four in all. I do recall some of my high school teachers, however. Mr. Houston was the superintendent, and he taught Civic Studies. Mrs. Newland was the principal, and she taught Mathematics, Algebra and Spanish. Mr. Shaw was the Ag and Shop teacher. Coach Hinderlighter, who besides coaching football, basketball and track, also taught Social Science. Miss Della Douglas was the English teacher. I took Typing and Bookkeeping, but can't remember the teacher's name. Miss Douglas was my favorite, a very proper single lady, probably in her late twenties. She had hard and fast rules and if you broke them you would be sorry, because there were consequences. One of her pet peeves was gum chewing. If you came to class chewing gum, she would stand in front of the class until everything was very quite, then with probably every eye on you, she would call the offender by name and say, "Would you please put your gum in the waste basket." This usually only happened once to anyone! Aside from her strictness, she was very good at encouraging you to achieve higher things and to expect more from yourself. I appreciated what Miss Douglas gave me in the four years I attended her classes, English I, II, III and English Literature. I can still recall some of the memory work she required of us. Shakespeare was her favorite author and we covered most of his works in our senior year. She was very strict, and I am sure, loved her students. From talking to my classmates in recent years, I know she gained our love and respect. I was unable to compete in sports during high school. I had been diagnosed as having a heart murmur and my doctor felt that pursuit sports caused enlargement of the heart, so that was the end of it.
 
  While living in the "bottom land," two more sisters, Lois and Marcia joined the family. Then in the spring of 1941, we moved back to the hill country north of Rockport. Dad rented a farm and acquired a government loan of $1000, which was used to purchase needed equipment to work the farm. The equipment consisted of four horses and various horse drawn implements. For the next six years the family lived in a six room, two-story house that featured a bathtub upstairs and a path to the outhouse for a toilet. In time, dad erected a 20-foot, three-legged tower and mounted a wind-powered generator, which came with a radio we had previously purchased, to charge a couple of six-volt car batteries that powered a single light in the kitchen. We were living in the lap of luxury. We even had Aladdin Mantle Lamps which gave a very bright light, which replaced the kerosene wick lamps of the past. The whole family worked the farm and made a good living, eventually purchasing 120 acres that adjoined the place we were farming. Living on the farm was a great place to acquire a good work ethic. While still living on the Bottom Land, my older sister and I worked with dad during harvest, picking corn, to enhance his income. His income was derived from monthly pay, except during harvest where dad's pay was earned by a set fee per bushel of corn picked. My sister and I picked the same amount of corn that dad did. We had our own team of mules and wagon following him through the field. Since there was an elevator to unload the wagons, getting the corn into the crib was not a problem for us. In later years, after moving to the hills, the corn had to be unloaded with a scoop, which gives you a pretty good workout. When we started farming in the hills, I was eleven years of age and became a regular farm hand when not in school. Even when in school, besides walking a mile to catch the school bus, there were chores to do morning and evening which generally included milking four to six cows. This gave me some problems with dad, since there were two programs that came on the radio in the early evening that interfered with the chores. Jack Armstrong, The All American Boy," and Captain Midnight, were very difficult to turn off and leave to do chores.
 
  Except for working alongside my father, we did not have a great relationship. I grew up with little praise and lots of condemnation. It wasn't anyone's fault that was how my father had grown up also. I was to find out much later that he was really a very loving person, but I guess the stress of life had kept him from expressing it openly. I know that I also challenged his patience. I was fortunate to have spent a couple of days with him alone on my way to California in October, 1952, by way of Idaho. Talking with my father on that trip, I learned more about him and his desires than I had in the previous twenty years. I cherish those hours we spent together. Leaving him at my Uncle Troy's, my mother's brother, in Nampa, Idaho I continued on to California. Just three months later, in January 1953, he was killed in an auto accident, broadsided by a truck while taking his children to school. Two of my sisters and two brothers were in the car with him, but fortunately no one else was injured.
 
  We often had to work in the field after school. I remember well, during cultivating time, racing my sister home from school so that I could get the cultivator that didn't have the cracked seat that pinched. It was a treat to get to use a riding cultivator. There were other plows that I used which required walking. Dad was a very fastidious farmer. He hated weeds with a passion, which required that after the corn got too tall to cultivate, each row had to be walked with a hoe to get rid of the weeds. We also used corn knives to cut hemp, though we didn't have a clue about marijuana in those days, and sunflowers. Sunflowers and cockleburs were the two most problematic weeds that we had to deal with. The sunflowers were controllable in a couple of years with a serious program of cutting. The cockleburs were a different story. It is said that the burr could survive several years and still germinate, so it was very difficult to control this weed. But dad gave it his best shot! I remember seeing him stop while picking corn and pick up the burrs from a plant that had been missed before harvest and put them in the wagon and take them in to be destroyed. The fencerows were not clean in dad's mind unless you could see the bottom of the post. Today, farmers use chemicals on their crops and let the fencerows become overgrown with weeds. It is wild life habitat, they say! Fence building was another job that I didn't like. It required lots of physical energy. I thought that digging postholes was hard work. Looking back, I see that it was not all that bad, because in our area there were no rocks. Since then I have had the opportunity to dig postholes in northern California. That is a different experience! Fence building was another example of my father's perfectionism. He could take a fence post that was as crooked as a dog's hind leg and keep rotating and sighting down the fencerow until it was in perfect alignment. It was always important to him to have things look good.
 
  Our primary crop was corn. Corn takes lots of nutrients from the soil, so after a couple of years in corn, the field would be sown with an oat and sweet clover mix. Sometimes the oats would be allowed to ripen and be cut with a binder which left the oats in bundles that were then shocked, six or eight bundles stood up against each other and allowed to dry for several days, and then it was threshing time. Someone who had a threshing machine would come and set up. The bundles were loaded on a wagon and taken to the thresher where the oats were separated from the straw. Other times the oats would be cut for hay. In either case, my job, likely my favorite of all things I was required to do, was to man the wagon stacking the bundles or the hay on the wagon to be transported to its final destination. In the case of oat hay, you learned very quickly to load the hay properly or it could end up sliding off the wagon. Oat hay is very slippery. Alfalfa hay was much easier to handle. After the oats were cut the sweet clover would begin to flourish. The overshadowing of the oat crop had held it back. The clover is a legume, which puts nitrogen back into the soil and in the fall was plowed under giving more nutrition back to the soil. Corn could be planted again the next year and produce a good yield. During the war years (WWII), because prices were high, many farmers didn't rotate their crops, but my father did. He also planted corn on the contour, (rows following the contour of the hill) before it was the popular practice. He understood that you have to look beyond the present to be successful.
 
  Most of our crops were fed to the livestock, just prior to a new harvest; any surplus grain might be sold on the open market. We raised hogs and cattle, Duroc or red hogs and Milking Shorthorn cattle. Generally there was a Jersey or Guernsey cow or two in the milking herd to increase the butterfat yield in our milk. Of course we also had a large flock of chickens, which supplied us with both meat and eggs. Saturday evening was the time to go to town, socialize, sell our produce (eggs and cream) and buy groceries and supplies for the coming week. Generally, after buying the necessities there would be a few dollars left over from the produce income. Mother had a large garden and canned everything imaginable. We had both pork and beef, too. We were monetarily poor, most of my school years we didn't have a telephone or weekly newspaper, but we ate well. I often think about the years from 1942 through 1945 when this nation was at war, it was much different than today! Everyone was affected someway by the conflict. It was a tough time to be growing up, but I am thankful for the experience. I didn't have a car, but Oscar, a friend that lived close by, did. It seemed that anytime we went anywhere we were fixing flat tires. Tires, gasoline, sugar, gum, rifle shells and about everything else were unavailable or rationed. Everyone was part of the war effort. As school children, we gathered scrap iron, saved gum wrappers, toothpaste tubes, fruit jar rings, etc. Recycling is not a new thing!
 
  When I was a junior in high school, my last sibling, Gary was born. Our family now numbered nine, four sisters and two brothers. Forty years later, my brother Rex, who carried on the farming tradition, passed on to his reward. 1946 was also the year we bought our first tractor. Up 'til then everything was done with horses. Plowing was done with two horses pulling a 16" single bottom plow that you walked behind. Later, we got a riding plow, but it was still a long job turning under thirty or forty acres sixteen inches each time around the field. We had a couple of horses that doubled as riding horses. Smokey was a very gentle animal with a rough gait that discouraged a faster pace than a walk. Then there was Dick, a one-eyed part mustang that was fast as lightening, and I never rode against a horse that could beat him. Even in harness, he was always the leader. He had a smooth fast pace that was very comfortable to sit, but once you ran him he was a miserable mount from that point on, almost impossible to hold back. I would have liked to have known his history. Our new home was more modern than the one we had inhabited. This was a single story house, two bedrooms with one bath and a full basement, which contained a wood fueled furnace that heated the house. It had running water, supplied by a 120 foot deep well next to the house and a windmill to pump the water, when and if the wind was sufficient, otherwise I took my turn at pumping water. We later equipped the pump with a pump jack and electric motor to deliver the water to the tank in the attic that gave us our water supply. The REA, or Rural Electrification Act, had recently been extended to our part of the country, so the house had electric lights, but except for the radio, which had the capability of using either six volt battery or 110 volt, there were no other electrical appliances for a while.

  As I stated earlier, my formal education began at Cottonwood Grove, a one-room schoolhouse on the river bottom. When we moved to the hill country, I began the seventh grade and continued my education at Lone Cedar School, another one-room school. In 1943 I started high school at Rockport High, walking a mile to catch the bus and riding seven miles to school. This continued until graduation in 1947. While in high school I continued to work on the family farm, but as a senior, began to work at part-time jobs in town as well. Our school had an Ag Shop, but nothing automotive. My best friend, Willard Jones, had a 1937 Ford pickup, which we tried to work on occasionally. I worked for a short time as an attendant at the local Conoco Service Station. That experience at the station and working as a mechanics helper in a local one-man shop, whetted my interest in things mechanical. My mechanical experience consisted primarily of maintaining a fleet of "bull hauler" Chevrolet six-cylinder trucks. I assisted with several engine overhauls. This is where I learned that a good method of starting a new engine was to use acetylene as a fuel to keep from washing the oil off the cylinder walls on first startup. Of course, we were dealing with babbit rod and main bearings, which were set up with rather close tolerances, often requiring more starting power than the original 6-volt starter would produce. It was here that I learned hooking two 6-volt batteries in a series would boost the starting power considerably. In our part of the country, the Midwest, our competition with cars was at wide-open throttle on the highway. My friend, Willard, was considered a bit of a daredevil by most of the adults. If he had been in California, I am sure he would have been in the forefront of the "Hot Rod" movement. We were car nuts! I recall the two of us sitting in the truck, looking at a Hot Rod Magazine, the particular issue that had the Pierson Coupe on the cover. We were really taken with that car. At the time, I never dreamed that one day I would own the car.
 
  After graduating from high school, I spent the next few years stretching my legs. A couple of friends, Oscar Hosfield, Carl Kish and I decided we would "follow the harvest." Wheat harvest in Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas gave opportunity for young men, who were willing to work hard, to make some serious money. As it happened, we journeyed south to Chickasha, Oklahoma, only to find we were too late to catch the "harvest" so we headed back north and didn't stop until we were at Westhope, North Dakota, where Carl had worked before. Since we were too early for the wheat harvest, we found work in the hay fields for a month or so while waiting for the harvest. I returned to North Dakota the next year in February, spending the rest of the winter and early spring in Bottineau working in the local creamery until the weather warmed, then as a service station attendant for a while before getting a job with a farmer in the Westhope area. I injured my foot and had to go back home to Missouri a couple of months later. In January of 1949, I made my first trip to California with a couple of friends, Oscar Hosfield and Harold Smith. Again, it was not as rosy as I had thought. Work was not plentiful. Oscar and I got a job setting pins at the Whittier-Atlantic Bowling Alley in East LA. We made $5 each a day for our efforts which just paid our expenses. Becoming discouraged with this existence, Oscar decided to hitchhike home. Since we had made the trip in my car, hitchhiking was not an option. Smith and I made our way back home by car soon afterward. After returning to the Midwest, I met the love of my life on a blind date. It was love at first sight, but I still had an itchy foot and later in the year, I went back to North Dakota, stopping in Rugby and eventually going to work for a plumber there. Rugby had just finished construction of a sewerage disposal plant so there was lots of work for plumbers. After a few months as an apprentice, I was given the responsibility of Journeyman Plumber, doing the rough in plumbing myself. I continued to work for McLean Plumbing off and on for the next couple of years. 
 
  Margaret and I were married May 27, 1951, moving to Council Bluffs/Omaha shortly after. I had three jobs while in Omaha. First, working at Interstate Machine & Supply, a wholesale house, as a Warehouseman and then at the Front Sales Counter. Next, returning again to my love for cars, I took a job as mechanic at the Crosley Dealership in Omaha. I made my second trip to California as a vacation with my mother, father, a sister, a brother and my wife. This cemented my desire to make the move permanent. After working at the Dealership a few more months, I lost my job. As a stepping-stone to California, I took a job loading munitions, 105 mm shells and black powder for shipment to the war in Korea. I was turned down for service because of insufficient vision in my right eye, and this was my total war effort. About six-weeks later, I loaded everything we owned into the trunk of my 1939 Deluxe Ford Coupe, taking my father with me, and we headed for Caldwell, Idaho where I dropped him off on my way to Southern California. Margaret had stayed behind in Omaha, working to earn enough for a railway ticket to come and join me. I acquired my love for auto racing in 1951 while living in Council Bluffs Iowa. They had an old � mile dog track that was converted to "jalopy racing." I really got addicted to it. I came to California in October of 1952 and settled in La Habra, which was located in Orange County. We were about 25 miles north of the Orange County Airport where the Santa Ana Drags were held. It took a couple of years for me to find my way there.
 
  I worked in Santa Fe Springs at the Productol Chemical Refinery where I became acquainted with Bob James, a chemist who had built a �" stroke by 3/8" bore flat head motor (324 cubic inch, I believe) and installed it in a 1936 Ford coupe. It was a real ground shaker built by Nelson Taylor and John Ryan in Whittier. After a ride down the street in this car, the racing addiction returned and it wasn't very long before I found myself at the Santa Ana Drags. During this time, I joined the Road Runners Club, which was a member club in the Southern California Timing Association (SCTA). It was there that I first experienced the longer runs. Although I was heavily involved in the � mile drags from 1959 through 1962, the longer runs were pulling me away from the � mile. In 1959, I quit the refinery and went to work for Emil (Griggs) Grissotti at Fullerton Muffler in Fullerton, California doing tune-up and exhaust work. During the two years I worked there I was very actively involved in drag racing. Griggs and I went to the 1st Bakersfield National Drags and made the Santa Maria trip. At that time we held the top time records in our roadster class at all the dragstrips in the LA area except Long Beach. We had exceeded their record but had not torn down our car for an inspection in order to claim it. We were running a 300 cu. in. Desoto, which was giving us top times around 122 mph and ET's in the high eleven-second range. Our first run at Santa Maria raised the D/GR record from 116 mph to somewhere in the low 120's, I don't remember exactly. At the end of the day, we had also won the Top Eliminator Prize, a $25 Savings Bond, by defeating the local Cadillac powered Dragster. We were treated like Kings the whole day. It was one our more memorable outings.
 
  I first went to Bonneville in 1957 with Ak Miller and Dr. Nathan Ostich, tagging along with some other Road Runners. Ak and Doc had built a Chrysler powered Henry-J that they dubbed "The Thing." It was an interesting entry, an "ugly duckling" that ran about 176 mph before Ak parked it. Another Road Runner had a '57 Chevy Station wagon that some of us took turns driving. I was hooked! I have competed at Bonneville every year since except 1968-69. After moving to Redding and opening my own business, my shop was burglarized resulting in the loss of the fuel injection and heads off the racecar. It took a couple of years to recover from that incident. Ak Miller was a big influence in my racing experience. He was a bit of a hero to me and to others in the club. For many years, my entries have been known as the "Tom Thumb Special." Here is the "rest of the story!" Ak's motto was, "There is no substitute for cubic inches." Consequently, he nicknamed me Tom Thumb because I ran, and still run a 300 cubic inch engine. The name stuck, so much so that some didn't know me by any other name, even calling my wife Mrs. Thumb. Ak also gave me my first roadster. It was a '27 T that he and George Hanson had run in the � mile. My recollection is that they had run it at Great Bend, Kansas at the National Meet. It was not much to look at and gave me problems just about everywhere I ran, because Ak was always on the edge of the rules. This is the car I ran at the Bakersfield National Meet where I was soundly defeated by the Scotty's Muffler entry in the first match up. We spent the rest of the two-day meet walking through the pits amongst over-flowing outhouses kicking beer cans as we walked. It was a great event, but without a doubt, the attendance was grossly under-estimated by the promoters. It was a zoo!
 
  The '27 had to run Modified Roadster by SCTA Rules, a fuel class, so I built a 1946 Ford coupe for the 1958 Bonneville season and in 1959 started building a 1930 roadster for further competition. In 1963, we retired the Desoto and started using a Chevrolet for power. In 1964, we upgraded to a '29 roadster, which set the D/GR record at Bonneville in 1965 at 176.774mph. This car continued to campaign until 1982. In 1980, I acquired the Pierson coupe and ran it very successfully through the 1991 season, reaching a top speed of 227 mph in D/FCC. We campaigned the car longer than all other owners combined. The last time it had run at Bonneville was 1958. Tom Cobb and Phil Freudiger ran the car powered by a Blown Chevrolet (crank-driven Potvin) reaching a speed of 196 mph. The last time the car was in competition before I acquired it in 1980 was at the Bakersfield National Meet in 1959. Bob Joehnck had installed a Chrysler motor in it with the intentions of taking it to Bonneville. The car exhibited handling problems so Bob scrapped the idea and sold it to one of his employees. The car eventually found its way to Redding, California where it was in storage for a number of years before it surfaced again. Just before Speedweek in 1991, Bob Bouder, who ran a restoration shop in Big Bear, California contacted me about purchasing the coupe. I really didn't want to sell it, but he was persistent, saying a client wanted the car, so I named a number that I thought would discourage further conversation. Shortly after Speedweek, Bob called back wanting to know when they could pick up the car. I told him that I was not going to release the car until the '91 season was over. The deal was closed and Bruce Meyer, a collector from Beverly Hills, became the new owner of the Pierson Coupe. I delivered the car to Bob in January, 1992. On the way home, I stopped by Dick Williams' shop to pick up a PoliForm'34 Ford 3-Window Coupe body. Construction of the new car began in February, making its debut at Speedweek the same year. This car, which we still run today, is basically a stretched wheelbase (156") Pierson Coupe with tucked in rear wheels and streamlined front body section.
 
  After leaving Fullerton Muffler in 1961, I was employed by White Automotive in La Habra for the next seven years as a Carburetor and Electrical Specialist. During this time I served on the SCTA Board of Directors and as President during 1961-62. While president, SCTA regained control of the Bonneville Nationals and swelled in membership by the addition of the Rod Riders Club and other members from the disbanded Russetta Timing Association. The SCTA also did a series of timing events for Andy Granatelli during his promotion of the Paxton Supercharger, which was capped by the introduction of the Studebaker Avanti, which ran in excess of 170 mph on the old highway at Jean, Nevada, just south of Las Vegas. In early 1968, I left La Habra to make my home in northern California. We opened Bryant Automotive in Redding on May 15, 1968 and continue to operate the family business there. In 1979, I started teaching part-time in the Automotive Department at Shasta College. Due to cutbacks in funds after two semesters, my class was discontinued, so being in the habit of going out to the college; I started my higher education on a part-time basis. Four years later, I graduated with a 4.0 plus GPA, receiving the Top Student Scholarship Award. This was a little improvement over my high school days. My youngest son, Barry had finished his AA the previous semester and since there is only one graduating ceremony each year, we received our degrees together in June, 1984. That Fall Semester, I was reinstated as a part-time instructor, remaining on the payroll for the next twelve years.
 
  Bryant Racing is a family endeavor where most of the family is on the salt every year. I entered the Bonneville 200 MPH Club in 1990 at 217.236 mph driving the Pierson Coupe. By week's end, we had raised the record to 221.898 mph. Since 1999, six more family members have joined me in the 2 Club, my three sons, Jeff, Dan and Barry, my brother Gary, grandson Tim and nephew Ken Smith, the last in 2004 at 244.260 mph. Margaret, my wife, has no desire to drive the car, but is an avid supporter of our efforts. I am still active in the pursuit of speed. Although driving is not my primary desire anymore, I do drive every year and at present hold fast time in the car at 248+ mph. My son Jeff and I are also members of the El Mirage and Muroc 200 MPH Clubs. The only record I personally hold is the D/FCC Record at El Mirage (211.085 mph) set in 1995. My son Barry has been trying to erase this for the last three years and so far has run only 209 mph. I just can't seem to get the tune-up right. 
 
Gone Racin' is at [email protected].

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Random Photos

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Captions
photographs of the recent land speed meet of the Loring Timing Association at Loring AFB, Maine.  Bob Jepson collection

Click Picture for Larger Images

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