Jalopnik: retro: racing

SEMA 2007: Big Daddy and Mopar to Burn Nitro Again

Mike Bumbeck — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:00:00 EDT

Big Daddy Don Garlits has always liked his Chryslers. He stuck with the hemispherical variety of engine even when the dark forces of moneyed sponsorship tried to convince him otherwise. Back in May we found out that he continues to enjoy stuffing hemis down into the framerails. The Swamp Rat XII is now finished and rolling out to SEMA from Florida. The vintage 6:71 blower looks better than bitchen raking down on top of the modern 392 mill. Release and specifications after the jump. [Big Daddy Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing]

ANOTHER MILESTONE FOR BIG DADDY

Don Garlits supercharges the new 392 HEMI Crate Engine with a
vintage 6-71 blower and takes it back in time to power his historic
Swamp Rat XII dragster. The Mopar® Wynn's Charger commemorates
his long association with both Chrysler and Wynn's.
The new 392 HEMI Crate Engine is the latest chapter in Big Daddy's
long history with Chrysler, starting with the 331-cubic-inch FirePower
HEMI V8 he adopted in 1956. Then, fifty years ago, he upgraded to the
new 392 FirePower HEMI and started a long series of record-breaking
performances. In 1959 Garlits added the first supercharger to his 392,
and he never looked back. Even when Chevrolet and Ford came
knocking with fistfuls of dollars, Big Daddy stood firm. "I like my
Chryslers," he said. "Money wasn't always everything."
The new Mopar Wynn's Charger also marks the renewal of Wynn's
sponsorship of Don Garlits. The relationship began in 1960 when a
Wynn's decal first appeared on Swamp Rat III. "Wynn's was the first
company to sponsor me," said Big Daddy. "Before that, the only help I
got was free parts." The name "Wynn's Jammer" appeared on Swamp
Rat VII a few years later. The current name, "Wynn's Charger," was on
Swamp Rat X and was last seen on Swamp Rat XXIII in 1977 ... until the
launch of today's historic new Mopar Wynn's Charger.

TECH SPECS:

Engine: ...................... Mopar 392 HEMI Crate Engine, modified by
Don Garlits
Horsepower: ............ Not yet measured, but more than adequate
Fuel Injection:.......... Vintage Crower Four-Port
Intake Manifold:...... Hand-fabricated in Big Daddy's shop
Supercharger:.......... 6-71 with vintage 392 front snout and rare
Reath Automotive rear cover
Compression:........... 7.0:1 (Venolia pistons)
Camshaft:.................. Crane "Nitro"
Crankshaft:............... Mopar 392
Oil Pump: .................. Mopar 392
Clutch:....................... Schiefer multi-disc
Gears:........................ High gear only
Fuel Pump:................ Vintage Mechanical. Driven off blower
rear cover
Fuel:........................... 80% Nitro, 20% Methanol
Chassis: .................... Garlits Swamp Rat 12-A, restored
Wheelbase:.............. 137 inches (200 inches overall length)
Weight: ..................... 1500 lbs

Down in the Grove at Bakersfield

Mike Bumbeck — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 16:00:00 EDT

A week has past since we drove into the drizzle with a 207 thousand plus miles econobox to get to Bakerfield for a drag race that also happened to be a swap meet and car show. The roots of the California Hot Rod Reunion run deeper into history than a modern drag racing event. Behind the bleachers at Famoso Raceway is the Grove, in the ground of which trees are planted in honor of those drag racing heavyweights that have passed on. The Grove at the CHRR is packed with those who feel a strong enough connection to the action on the track to fork over a few extra sawbucks to show off their rides - with some spots conspicuously vacant after the call to the staging lanes crackled over the loudspeakers.

Nitromethane Illuminates a Cacklefest Dusk

Mike Bumbeck — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 17:30:00 EDT

The good stuff kept burning long after the last pair of race cars lit up the clocks at the California Hot Rod Reunion. With dusk came the return of Cacklefest to the hallowed track surface of Famoso Raceway. Over 50 restored fuel machines of the slingshot and funny car variety first ran parade in front of the capacity crowd, then put fire into the holes until thousands of eyeballs either watered up the acrid power of nitro, emotion, or a mix of both.

Monterey Historics Can-Am Action Gallery

Mike Bumbeck — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EDT

The 1966-1974 salad days of Can-Am racing were a result of the Sports Car Club of America and the Canadian Automobile Sports Club joining forces. The adoption of Group 7 FIA rules spawned a North American racing class with no restrictions on engine size or boost pressure. Tire size was wide open. Weight was optional. While there were no rules on construction materials, Can-Am cars had to have an open cockpit, two seats, and two doors. Unlimited rules encouraged innovative thinking. The Jim Hall Chaparral 2J featured not one but two engines. A snowmobile mill spun a set of rear-mounted fans that generated over 1000 pounds of downforce without need for drag-inducing wings. We didn't see the 2J or driver Jackie Stewart at the Monterey Historics, but we did catch Chris MacAllister of Indianapolis, Indiana drive his number 5 1971 McLaren M8F to the checkered flag.[Can-Am History via Vintage RPM]

It Was All Part of the Fun

Mike Bumbeck — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 16:00:00 EDT

Chris Economaki slugged it out as an announcer for racetracks across the country before he took the helm of Speed Sport News, or wore the yellow jacket for Wide World of Sports. In the '50s Economaki had followed the promotional efforts of Sam Nunis to Sioux Falls, where he saw a bunch of guys unloading a sophisticated timing device from a truck parked on the infield before the race.

"They struggle to get it up the stairs of the judges stand, and they place it in clear sight of the grandstand. The device has a dial that's about 18 inches in diameter.
Qualifying gets under way and we're really hyping this timing device. 'Breaking the second into one thousand parts, timing these record speeds with absolute precision!'

The dial spun while the clock operated, and stopped when the car flashed across the finish line. The hand on the dial actually spun so fast you couldn't see it with the naked eye. I'm wondering while I'm looking at it, how could the clutch work properly to stop the hands of the dial without slippage? I was curious.
Winkley is sitting in front of the machine, operating the timer, and I'm calling out the times as they're given to me. 'The time, 24 and 232 one-thousandths of a second...' I'm talking away when I look down from the judges stand, and the wires from this timing device are lying in the grass, coiled up and are plugged into nothing.

It was a phony! It was simply something to hype these 'record' speeds, and Winkley was simply winding up the clock mechanism, and making the dial spin while the cars qualified.

Again, it was a little bit of a con. The fans of today simply wouldn't but that sort of thing, no doubt about it. But many people of the era always suspected that the things being hyped weren't necessarily on the level, but there was an underlying chuckle at the same time. It was all part of the fun."

Excerpt from: Let 'Em All Go! The Story of Auto Racing by the Man who was there by Chris Economaki [daveargabright.com]

– Mike Bumbeck

Starion Racing Video Music Contest, Part 2

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 16:00:00 EDT

More eighties ~~bombast~~ music and STP helps the Starion slay an onslaught of Ford Sierras, BMW's, and even a Volvo in the second video segment of the contest. We're not sure if Andy Granatelli had anything to do with this STP race car, or what makes this second and near 20 minute video the Hot Version. Wait for it... – Mike Bumbeck

Starion Racing Video Music Contest, Part 1

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 15:00:00 EDT

Long before editing software made it easy for even Chim-Chim to put together a video of his dancing cousins, it seems Mitsubishi assembled their own quality versions of racing videos. As far as we can determine from the eighties soundtrack, these two rolls were produced during the actual run of the Starion itself. The first person to correctly identify all songs featured in both videos will win a genuine used OEM hydraulic lifter from a 1987 Mitsubishi Starion ESI-R. This is video number one - We Are Fast. – Mike Bumbeck

PART 2; Contest Rules; 523 Horsepower Starion Bar-B-Que [Internal]

Jalopnik Flickr Finds: Motor Racing in Angola, Africa

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 17:00:00 EDT

Building a race track in Angola seemed like a smashing good idea back when dashing playboys and ne'er do wells cashed in on the benefits of colonialism by way of fancy motor cars. Racing around public Angola roads and the purpose built street circuit was a welcome sunny holiday from the usual drab weather euro-fare. Engine overheating was a minor annoyance compared to eventual decolonization. Ensuing civil war has prevented the return of motor racing to the sandy dunes, but the imagery from the past lives on thanks to a photoset from Nite Owl. – Mike Bumbeck

Car Racing in Angola from the '50s thorugh '70s [flickr.com]; African Motor Racing History [grandprix.com]

Related:
Oh, Group B, How We Miss You [Internal]

Open House of Velocity and Tradition

Mike Bumbeck — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:00:00 EDT

The worst of Los Angeles must often be endured to find the best of what makes Southern California great. The reward for fighting a brutal snarl of typical eastbound Friday afternoon Los Angeles traffic was the So-Cal Speed Shop Open House. The history that began with Alex Xydias after World War Two is still being made. The SoCal 800 horsepower turbocharged and intercooled Ecotec-powered 34 roadster carries tradition down the long black line of land speed racing, and Jimmy Shine creations help keep tradition rolling down the boulevards of the basin. As shown by the sheer number of machines and folks that rolled in from as far away as Vermont, the So-Cal Speed Shop continues at the nexus of California hot rodding. While the LA Roadster Show may catch more notoriety, they weren't giving away In-N-Out Burgers. – Mike Bumbeck

So-Cal Speed Shop [so-calspeedshop.com]

Beat on the Berlina 2000

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 15:00:00 EDT

While looking for a parking space in order that we could make a stop at ~~Rockaway Beach~~ our favorite store full of robots and the like, we spied this well yet exquisitely worn Alfa Romeo Berlina. Melee and other badges indicate road rally action. The miles look as if they have been, and will continue to be a heap of fun. Bonus points for the blue tape racing stripe. – Mike Bumbeck

Related:
1968 Alfa Romeo Ambulance at Fantasy Junction [Internal]

Great Achievements in Motorsport: AJ Foyt Interview

Mike Bumbeck — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:00:00 EDT

While there may or may not have been any more Elvis, Beatles, or the Rolling Stones in 1977, it was certainly the year that AJ Foyt won his fourth Indy 500. Tune in as Jim McKay, Jackie Stewart, and Chris Economaki don the mustard yellow sports jackets to bring you the constant variety of sport, then say so long from Indianapolis. – Mike Bumbeck

Superbikers: Father of Supermoto

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 14:00:00 EDT

Just when we thought the origins of Supermoto had something to do with the rolling urban terrain of a euro-centric San Francisco Bay Area, history tells us otherwise. Supermoto, or Supermotard if you happen to be in France, started right here in Carlsbad, California as part of Wide World of Sports on ABC. The guys in the mustard yellow sports jackets incorporated this two-wheeled challenge of off and on road motorcycle skill into the regularly scheduled programming of Canadian Rules Ice Curling and Demolition Derbies, until the wheels fell off the show in the eighties. The Europeans kept the Superbikers flame alive lest it suffer the agony of defeat. Supermoto is now back, with Americans once again able to experience the thrill of victory. – Mike Bumbeck

Related:
Beverly Hills Ducati Hypermotard [Internal]

Say it Isn't So! Jim Nabors Unable to Attend Indy 500

Mike Bumbeck — Fri, 25 May 2007 13:30:00 EDT

In a move shocking to Indiana residents and racing fans alike, Jim Nabors announced that he will be unable to attend the Indy 500 and sing Back Home in Indiana due to illness. Race fans in attendance and from around the world will be encouraged to sing in place of the heartland crooner via a live video satellite feed from his home in Hawaii. Brush up on the lyrics now for race day. – Mike Bumbeck

Back home again in Indiana
And it seems that I can see
The gleaming candlelight still burning bright
Thro' the sycamores for me
The new mown hay sends all its fragrance
Through fields I used to roam
When I dream
About the moonlight on the Wabash
How I long for my Indiana home

Nabors To Miss Indy Due To Illness - Fans To Sing 'Back Home Again' [indianapolismotorspeedway.com]

Related:
Parnelli Jones Back at Brickyard [Internal]

Parnelli Jones Back at Brickyard

Mike Bumbeck — Mon, 21 May 2007 20:30:00 EDT

Looks as if Parnelli Jones himself is back in the number 40 at the Brickyard. Trackforum.com has a shot of Jones sporting an open face helmet behind the wheel of his son PJ's Honda-powered tribute to the legendary turbine-powered Silent Sam. – Mike Bumbeck

Parnelli on Track [trackforum.com]

Related:
Silent Sam Turbine Livery Returns to Indy 500 [Internal]

Silent Sam Turbine Livery Returns to Indy 500

Mike Bumbeck — Mon, 21 May 2007 18:00:00 EDT

In 1967 Parnelli Jones lead the Indianapolis 500 in an all-wheel drive entry built by Andy Granatelli - and powered by a jet turbine. With Jones at the wheel the turbine car almost won, but was felled by a spent bearing with but a few laps left in the race. "Silent Sam" was nonetheless a crowd favorite. Parnelli's son PJ Jones and crew plan to honor the 40th Anniversary of this tremendous feat of motorsports achievement and engineering innovation with a florescent orange livery and number 40 in-a-meatball on their entry at this, the 91st running of the Indianapolis 500. Team owner Kent Baker said that "We hope to recapture some of that excitement and recognition without the STP pajamas." We're hoping for more turbine cars and STP Pajamas. – Mike Bumbeck

Jones To Honor Father's 1967 Feats In 'Silent Sam' [indianapolismotorspeedway.com]

Related:
Indy Retroness: The Lotus 56 [Internal]

Modern Muscle into Vintage Digger

Mike Bumbeck — Fri, 04 May 2007 16:30:00 EDT

Something good is bound to happen when Big Daddy Don Garlits gets his hands on a modern Mopar 392 Hemi. Seems Big Daddy bolted up a blower to the top of the mill and dropped it in the framerails of a front engine chassis. Boy howdy! We have what looks to be Swamp Rat Number 35. Swamp Rat Number 1 sits in the Big Daddy Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing in honor of huffing nitro through eight modified Stromberg carburetors and taking the World's Fastest Dragster title in 1957 and 1958. Swamp Rats 1-B through 34 are also duly enshrined. And yes, they all had Hemis. – Mike Bumbeck

[Thanks to Jack Pine for the tip]

Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing [garlits.com]

Related:
More Big Daddy Don Garlits

Team Starfish Barracuda

Mike Bumbeck — Fri, 04 May 2007 11:30:00 EDT

From the Plymouth compact performance department comes this Barracuda - shown here putting the twist to the front torsion bars and rear leaf springs through the corkscrew at Laguna Seca Raceway. Mike Ritz and Team Starfish have logged over 5000 miles of race track since building the vintage race prepared 1966 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S in 1994. The little fish tosses up door handles with Camaros, Mustangs, and AMC Javelins on the weekends it tears up the track. On those weekends the team burns through around 1200 clams of gas, tires, and entry fee, but manages to keep racing by doing all the mechanical work themselves. Budget performance - from your Plymouth dealer. – Mike Bumbeck

Team Starfish Racing [teamstarfish.com]

That Psychedelic 70s Car Show

Mike Bumbeck — Wed, 02 May 2007 15:30:00 EDT

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway itself is putting out the call to all unique and unusual rides from the 70s. Owners are encouraged to roll in and help celebrate the 91st running of the Indianapolis 500 at the Psychedelic 70s Car Show, from May 18th to 20th. As a Sunday bonus the entire group will be invited out onto the Brickyard for a parade lap. Brush the dust off that 1976 Mercury Bobcat, break out the 8-Tracks, and register before May 11th. – Mike Bumbeck

[Thanks to Cole Coonce for the tip]

Psychedelic 70s Car Show [indy500.com]

The Red Menace: Zastava-Yugo 750!

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:00:00 EDT

The diminutive Zastava was endearing enough to earn the nick name Nicia, which means Little Fiat in Serbian. As was its Fiat 500 cousin to the west, the compact Zastava was endlessly modified and by way of engine swaps and other creative mechanical mayhem. The final version of the car packed a very close to Fiat 850 engine which belted out 39 horsepower. A glorious day Comrade! We ended up with the slightly more powerful Yugo here in the states, also known as the 2CV of the Americas. – Mike Bumbeck

Zastava-Yugo History [autosoviet.altervista.org]

Related:
You Go, Turbo! Yugo Turboooooooo! [Internal]

Star of Soviet Land Speed Record Car

Mike Bumbeck — Tue, 01 May 2007 19:00:00 EDT

To forever put forth the collected might of the Soviet into the history of speed and worker achievement came the mighty Zvezda-1, which means star in Russian. The two-stroke two-cylinder engine at the heart of this 1948 streamliner featured something known as undoubled pistons. This undoubling somehow employed one combustion chamber for two pistons and created a mind-bending 42 horsepower. The Zvezda-1 was not so speedy in itself, yet begat the 54 horsepower Zvezda-6! – Mike Bumbeck

More Soviet LSR Machines [autosoviet.altervista.org]

Related:
Walt & Art Arfons: Jet Car Pioneers [Internal]