I made up for it in the Future Ex Wife thread, but seriously, do not Google Drag Racing now days. Very little about racing.
I grew up in Cali, too, but didn't have anything to do with drag racing. My Uncle Wally (Walt once I started building karts for him just before going into the USAF) was a name in go-kart racing. A couple of the karts I built were sold to Lee Michaels. That's my brush with fame, right there!
Last time I looked, I couldn't find anything about him online. Just found this. Updated: Walter Allan Meyers, Mechanic, Inventor, Writer, In Memoriam 12/31/1934 – 03/26/2019 – International Kart Federation Haven't heard from any my cousins in a long time, I guess. Bill
That's funny since the NHRA trophy is called a Wally.I grew up in Cali, too, but didn't have anything to do with drag racing. My Uncle Wally (Walt once I started building karts for him just before going into the USAF) was a name in go-kart racing. A couple of the karts I built were sold to Lee Michaels. That's my brush with fame, right there!
Bill
For some of us, "Grumpy" with the cigar hanging out like I do on a regular basis was an Icon in the olden days. He was the Mr. King of Chevrolet drag racing. He took what Zora Dontov designed with the first small block chevy motor and then the fat block chevys and refined everything around them with everything from dry sumps to using electric fans to reduce the power needed to turn the radiator cooling fan load to make Chevrolet the most respected name in drag racing for naturally aspirated engines in the world for many decades. He was only to be outdone horsepower wise by Tom Hoover who designed the Hemi motor for Chrysler that could take the pressures of a blown nitromethane motor. Later a friend of Tom's wound up with a "Discarded" mold from Chrysler and with some modifications came out with the cast in aluminum "Kieth Black racing engines" 500ci fuel motor with 6 bolt mains (2 bottom and two from each side) and other modifications, like easily replaceable steel cylinder sleeves and larger cam shaft bearing holes used for several years in top fuel and funny cars. Mine still has the flat water pump and fuel pump machined bosses not drilled out.
If you happen to run across one of those old Kieth Black blocks that has been discarded after being welded up it's last time from kicking the rods out like I did as John Force was discarding it, its life might not be over if you are really into drag racing nostalgia. If you clean it up well and put rod caps on each of the 4 corners under the block in the pan bolt holes, you can then put a piece of 3/8 glass 22x24 on top of it and discretely put it in your living room. It is amazing how many people take a little while to notice you have a unique end table you are casually sitting your beer on a coaster beside your lazy boy while watching a football game. Not everyone has an 8,000 hp beer holder, ya know. Ha Ha
Yes back in the olden days I met everyone in person mentioned above except for Mr. Dontov. I mechaniced a nitro funny car one season for Jim White along with Bob Critez and had the opportunity to meet these people face to face. Sometimes sitting in Herb Hoovers trailer drinking Coors (his sponsor at the time) during rain outs with his Dad Tom being at every race till he died. Keith Black did not drink "firewater" but would come by to visit. How can I comment about Force? Yep, what you see is what he is. CMF dedicated down to his toenails to drag racing. First saw him cooking bacon and eggs on a plate welded to his manifold on his 6cy chevy ramp back carhauler he had been sleeping under for the night in Tulsa because he could not afford a motel room. He paid his dues to be where he is today.
OK, what got me started reading this thread was first glance at Rickey Findley's camaro air intake pipe. Somewhere around 1966-67 I drilled a 4" hole behind the grill beside my radiator in my 56 chevy shoebox and put a flex hose up to the snout of an older oval snorkel air filter housing I found at a junk yard that fit my Carter 780cfm carb somewhere. I was a street racer, could not afford a NHRA approved scatershield. Only a few got to look under my hood. My painted orange aluminum hi-rise manifold on my 327 was missed by many, but most common comment was, "what is that hose?" I called it my "Cram Air" idea. Guess everybody including the factories were working on that about the same time as many versions of "forced induction" cold outside air came out shortly after but I had an advantage for a little while. Ha Ha
Yep, long post for a simple question. Thanks for bringing up the memories.
Similar threads
