The Hot Rod Story Drag Racing

Hello, I'm Ken Berg, welcome to Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California. Some of the fastest racers in the world will be

racing

around this track today and before the day is over you will have the chance to meet some of them, drivers like Chi. Cobra skini Tony Nancy on the gas trike waves Don Prudhomme Connie Kalitta on the fuel bill raking the Modifieds just to name a few, now these racers and their teams have spent a lot of money, hundreds of hours on build your

racing

machines, machines capable of going from a standstill on this quarter mile track and speeds exceeding 200 miles per hour and times of less than eight seconds, today we would like to show you all the faces of the hot rod, the people involved, the way they worked a tear machine. down and increase it between races the strict rules that run under the safety devices that have developed safety devices that you and I use in our cars today we will see how they time the race in the difference between ET or elapsed time and maximum speed and we will end with some of the most popular

drag

racing in the world, but to give you a better understanding of current racing techniques and machines, let's go back to the hot rod.

Hey,

drag

racing actually took place in the late 1930s in the South. California, when the group of aspiring runners discovered that the smooth surfaces of the Mojave's dry lake bed, ideally, brought a motive. During the war the cars had changed, but here's a pretty fast chassis that hasn't changed since Adam. The need. The big difference between now and the early days was in the engines or Mills as the inserted column and some of the machinery that attacked the lake shore. and they look strange and veteran sports drivers like Vic Edelbrock Stu hilburn Fred Offenhauser Dean moon and escandarian and hundreds more who became part of today's multi-billion dollar speed equipment industry, another outlet for the burning desire for speed and La competition was the oval track, roadsters raced in fierce competition on dirt and paved tracks usually occupied by sprinters and race guards.

Roadster racing eventually spread to all corners of the United States and is still run today under the super modified classification, a new racing concept for the hot rodder was born in 1949. Bonneville was born out of necessity for the prime dry lake beds. in the southern California area they were being used by the military services the Ford flathead engine was the most popular mill for years some equipped with special art and superior conversions for greater performance here is a fuel that is familiar to all racers Today, technology and safety requirements were as strict in those days as the early events at Bonneville are now with cars of all shapes, sizes and descriptions competing for the record.

Very successful days, to get a record at Bonneville a car was required to make a round trip in a period of one hour and the average speed of both trips had to improve the existing record to be considered a new mark after Al Making their first run around the track, the team greets the driver, quickly services the car, cools it down, and is ready for the return race. Structural failures like these spurred the development of high performance engines used in cars that driving on the streets today were going to blow up or disappear and when it blew up it was commonly known as a basket case when you raced at Bonneville you had to have a good supply of high performance engines. spare parts were expendable car number 15 was driven by AK Miller Nowadays, performance advisor for Ford Motor Company and many times champion of the annual Pikes Peak Hill Climb race, streamlining was inevitable if riders reached higher speeds on the salt , the first single-engine ocean liner to exceed 200 miles per hour in flight.

Mile was built by Alex Nick Sidious of Southern California, but the aero record holder for many consecutive years was this twin-engine power-builder entered by the Ken's Leslie team of Denver Colorado. This car had to be pushed down a red hot street. road purchase at over 100 miles per hour before it began and Ana California takes credit for having the first organized race track in operation in this country. It opened in July 1954. The first race is on a quarter mile long paved course, suddenly there was resistance. strips everywhere for this consequence of racing activity a flood of custom and speed equipment manufacturers emerged and a new magazine flourished leading the noses of newbies by its name Hot Rod Magazine today the largest automotive publication in the world existed the need for better organization of racing events and the National Hot Rod Association was founded by hot rod magazine whose editor at the time was Wally Parkes based on rules established for the Partial Timing Association, the NHRA established a universally accepted set of Classes and Racing Rules One of the best quarter-mile racers in those days was the Bean Bandits dragster of San Diego, California, who held records of up to 134 miles per hour for several years.

Now show stock cars go so fast, more and more people line the quarter-mile sidelines every weekend, a week long as a spectator. next weekend, a participant who can resist trying his hand at a sport open to everyone who is too old to race a car or a motorcycle the simple formula watch a race race home take off the salesmen a cooper roadster tune up the engines and return to test it that, of course, as the safety inspection was carried out, more classes were added to accommodate the more varied field of cars lined up at the pit gate, eager to get a taste of drag racing.

Stock cars were a hit with enthusiasts, only the means of transportation could be duplicated and on weekends as races. entrance and if you had a car that could go 100 miles per hour, that was very important in those days, the need for faster speeds caused more rails or dragsters. Improved roll bars were considered part of the speed safety equipment with these machines. over 100 miles per hour with the market drivers aiming for 150 miles per hour these days, the most critical element of drag racing, elapsed times were seen at over 10 seconds and one of the rails was actually getting there and during the early 50's one of the first full body dragsters recorded an elapsed time of 9 seconds;

For example, one of the pioneer racing teams gave notice of future elapsed times in the quarter mile from a standing start. These were the early days. A form of racing would soon grow and become one of the most popular motor sports. of the United States. Well, now we talk about the hi

story

of hotrod racing. Let's examine today's dragster. You may remember that one of the names we mentioned was Wally Parks. Today Wally is president of the National Federation. Hot Rod Association and now he's here talking to Chuck Griffith about this great railroad work. Wally, come and chat with us.

It's a pleasure to have you with us today. Thanks, idiot, I'm glad to be here Wally, we talked about the hi

story

of this sport, is there anything you can do? I'd like to add at this point, well, I'd just like to add that I think it's not only the loudest sport out there, but certainly the fastest growing. As I understand it, Detroit is looking closely at the young people that have come up through the ranks and designed these machines and made improvements that all of us are taking advantage of right now. Well, Detroit has been active when it comes to watching a sport for a long time, but today we discovered that a large number of people have graduated from the hotrod.

It is classified under automotive industries and we also find that many manufacturers are actively participating in the production of equipment. Wally runs very well and the evolution of the sport. This is one of the things that railway work has developed. It is the fastest machine. No, yeah, it's like the quarter horse is in fall appeal in the horse world. It has been developed with the purpose of going as fast as possible over a quarter mile. Wally, I've known this since the formation of the National Association. I have emphasized safety. Maybe at this point I would like them to point out to people what the safety features of this machine are.

Well, this, most of the safety is based in the driver's cabin. We start with a roll bar on top, which has been a standard requirement in hot rods since the early 40's, in this case the driver's head is in a helmet and you'll notice the thing is padded, we have a requirement that states that the cabin must be properly padded to isolate the driver inside, we have shoulder straps, quick release seat belt to hold the driver firmly in the seat, most of this is inherited and will protect you in case be on a difficult road for more than overturning because we sell them we have accidents.

I'm happy to say that we have a parachute release ring on the bottom that the driver uses and pulls as soon as he completes his quarter mile run and this causes the parachute to come out the back and deploy. and he stops it in a place that of course has his brake here that he uses to stop additionally and very fine disc brakes mounted on the rear wheels so that it's well protected, actually, yeah, it's okay. It amazes me how simple the controls are on these machines, well the driver is quite busy running for about seven and a half seconds, actually, it's about as basic as it gets.

You have a clutch pedal on the left that he releases. You have a fuel pedal on. The right one pressing down on the steering wheel he's holding on to actually has no gears to shift. This is a handbrake for stopping in addition to the parachute and then of course you have the off button and the parachute. let go there and that's it, you don't have any instrument to read for him to pay attention to because in those 7.5 seconds he's a pretty busy man, Wally, let's move from the cockpit to the engine, this is the baby he makes the money for .

The driver tells us a little about the engineering of this machine. Well the engine basically in this one is a Chrysler, which is one of the most popular engines in modern drag racing, sitting on top of the engine, here is what we call a blower, which is a GMC supercharger like the one used in diesel excavation trucks and equipment, plus that's what we call the bug catcher in general, it's actually the air induction valves here, listen, turns out it's a hilburn, how about these tubes down here? A new tower style exhaust has been developed that raises the exhaust, which gives the car a bit of downward thrust, it also helps clear the tire smoke away from the driver and then we get to the rear.

This is the old magazine that provides the ignition on many of these cars and here is the fuel shut off valve that the driver uses when he completes his run to cut fuel off the engine Wally, I noticed the tires have no tread isn't it so unusual, well it seems unusual, but in reality This type of tire has been developed exclusively for endurance racing and the purpose is to place as much rubber as possible on the asphalt for traction. You'll notice the little holes here, these are simply inspection holes so they can tell how deep the tread is, but basically this type of tire with its soft rubber compound is what takes them off the line and makes them travel the quarter mile as fast as they go.

These long pieces of metal here, no doubt, that's where the machine gets its name, the rail. Good job, originally those pieces of metal were Model T frame rails and they have become the thin pipe instructions that we have now, that's where the rail got its name from and in front the wheels up here, like bicycle wheels, they seem to be bicycle or motorcycle wheels. and again they have been specially developed here with wider and stronger hubs and spokes and the things that carry very little weight most of the weight is in the rear of the car and they simply serve to steer the thing with a light touch from the driver So it's very interesting that you pointed out the safety features, the engineering features of this railway work, let's get out on the track and see it in action.

Thousands of fans crowd the gates of a race track on Sunday afternoon in all parts of the country. The reason. symbol of who can resist those tire-burning dragsters in the tight competition between the ever-popular stalkers. It all adds up to a spectacular guerrilla second. The pitsThey are also of interest to the viewer because here they get a close-up of the machinery to You can see it in action and might get a look inside one of the machines as they tear it down and prepare it for the next race. The mother often gets in on the act: she mixes critical fuel mixtures as if she were preparing baby formula.

These exotic high energy blends. Fuel is a vital contribution to those incredible speeds. Drag racers travel across the country to compete in major events. Drivers like Joe Shubik of Lakewood Ohio travel from coast to coast in a few months to compete in big races, like the second annual Hot Rod Magazines. The championship here at Riverside Shubik is one of hundreds of professional drag racers in the unit. They all make a living by driving the fast rails for cash prizes. The first job for the crew after the cars come off the trailer is a complete preliminary check of all components. including spark plugs, valve settings, tire pressure and many other areas of importance, drag racing in this category requires continuous attention to every functional part of the engine and chassis before racing, all cars must complete A technical inspection and waiting for classification plays an important role in racing to determine in which class the car will compete in relation to the displacement in cubic inches of the engine or its power, therefore all cars are classified for the most competition. fair within a given category.

More than seventy-six classes of competition are offered in a major endurance race. place for everyone to compete If one engine doesn't, try to make that frame have an aerodynamic body when this car runs at full speed mid-morning, the boxes hum with activity, sorting, inspection, repair and pattern tuning, parachutes play an important role. important part of stopping cars traveling over 140 miles per hour, in addition to the slides, conventional passenger car brakes are used, the slide must be inspected and repackaged after each race, it is a vital piece of the team on any competition car before the actual races.

They gather for the traditional drivers' meeting where slot rules are reviewed and elimination procedures announced. White Off at the meeting will also find drivers drawing lots to find out who their opponents will be in the first round of racing. The output system is clearly defined as it is. The file system and the basic rules of the track. These very important rules must be clearly understood because in endurance racing the prizes are very generous. Nobody. The car after the meeting returns to the pets and prepares the car for eliminations. Money can be made with price caps reaching into the thousands. of dollars in value, we've talked about the engineering efficiency of the machine itself and the psychological preparation of the driver and that brings us right here to the starting line when they start here and drag a quarter mile down this track the most Important to the driver is this machine, it's called a Christmas tree for obvious reasons and that's what gets it started and to tell you how it works let's call the editor of hot rod magazine, mr.

Ray Brock, right, how does this contraption work? Dick, we've got staging lights on top of the pre-stage and a stage, we'll turn them both off and then ask a couple of guys to turn the lights on in the pre-stage lights. guys, okay, now we go up to the stage light, we have both lights on, that means they are ready to go. I turn on the switch on this box and the countdown starts in half second intervals, the green light comes on and they're gone. if you go too soon then you're in trouble, we'll redo this again and make the guy on the left go through the beam too soon and he'll be in trouble, alright guys here we go. and while he was away, he made a foul, that's how the Christmas tree works.

It is a highly technical electronic system, but it is also a very precise matrix. We have talked about elapsed time and maximum speed. Could you explain the difference? Yes, this race track is a quarter of a mile long, the elapsed time is the time it takes to go from start to finish and that's it. We get some of our hard drives. We've done about seven and a half seconds. How about the top speed? Is maximum speed measured? the finish line with a set of traps right on either side of the police line and that gives you the maximum speed at that point, by noon everyone is ready to go and the spectators are treated, oh what a tree, look at the Queen Joni with Bob Peterson, founder of the hot rod.

Next comes Perky Patty magazine, the queen of the Hurst stick shift, and there are the beautiful street roadsters and the still excited racing and custom car show fans of all ages. The parade also includes a look at the drivers who will be seen in competition. Here we see the notables of endurance racing. Duchess Connie Kalitta with her Tom McEwen Ford-powered dragster, Norm Whitley George, said goodbye to Chuck Griffith and dannion gaya Toni Nancy Don Prudhomme Carroll Amex. There are hundreds more of the dozens of Fuel dragsters participating in a major drag racing event, only 32 will get a chance. in elimination they must qualify with a low elapsed time to get one of the 32 spots which entitles them to compete for the money and there is a lot to win in drag racing, even the losers receive some compensation to offset the cost of the competition .

It costs upwards of $75 to $100 to do a single race in one of the current fuel dragsters. How are you going to run first? The car must be registered so that all its times and speeds are recorded. We handed it over to the right driver and his mechanics later. used as a guide in your taper work and after all the book work is done bring it to the inspection area to wait in line and some bench racing with other racers comparing notes is not uncommon for endurance racers or a friendly group eager to help each other with performance tips and even supplying parts When an opponent gets into trouble with broken equipment, the scale or weight will first be determined by trained class officials who carefully work the scale to make sure everything is in order.

Next, check the car with and without the driver to take an accurate measurement, then perform the critical safety inspection where experts like Jim Dale, a professional drag racing technician, comb the car for the slightest defect or violation of the rules that could be the cause of a high speed accident if you cannot pass this line simply do not race until everything is fixed once the technician signs his name on the dotted line and gives the go-ahead to the driver, it is time to get to work, there are races ahead Fact, there are 13 different categories that a car can compete in drag racing and over 70 classes in those categories, each car must be clearly numbered and the competition class and category must be easy to see, as the complexities of efficient registration demand rapid identification. of a car, when the car reaches the starting line, the recorders quickly enter the class and number on their timing sheet and, as soon as the car completes its course, the elapsed time and speed are entered, the driver You receive a copy of this information on a time sheet. which can be used as the final judge on a car's performance, as we mentioned above, everything needs to be checked before a race and since endurance racing machines only run for a short time, they take very little fuel, refueling is usually necessary between each rod.

Drag racing Driver safety is of utmost importance here driverless Allen prepares to race. First you must put on your driving suit which is fully insulated and reflects heat and protects you in the event of a fire. Drivers must wear leather shoes, preferably boots. and to complete the protection you also wear a flame retardant mask with goggles and then the crash helmet which drivers jokingly refer to as a cap slip seemed like a big deal, imagine traveling at 200 miles per hour and it occurs a fire. in front of you, that fire suit could save a life. The car is also well equipped for protection.

The driver's head fits in a compartment just below the roll bar and is securely restrained with a shoulder harness and seat belt in case he tips over on stage. life we ​​have followed sixteen year old les Allen to Riverside International Raceway since we started this morning, he just completed his first race les, you just achieved a time of 169 miles per hour, are you happy with your race? Well, we hope more than that I know you've only had this machine running for a little over a month, you yourself have only been driving for four or five months, what do you think the top speed will be? we are 100 80 should be the maximum one hundred eighty-five hundred eighty hundred eighty-five how many times a month do you plan to drive this fuel dragster how many times a month well, every weekend five times you learn every time you get behind the wheel you learn Every time What are the things you feel you need to work on better?

Just control the car. We hope to see you soon in Victory Lane. Well, the qualifying races for a place in the elimination finals are just as hard on the car as the real races. the team sometimes we go as they say but it is quickly repaired right there in a moment the stock car hundreds of them block the preparation lanes when the call comes for time trials for the stocker like hot modified cars need many practice runs at pace The pattern continues race after race after race to squeeze out every ounce of performance the engine has to offer.

You have to have a runner to go on the road, if the push truck will come in, run to take a selfie, her or not just her? The mechanic knows this for a fact, Shane, a stay-at-home mom of three, drag racing enthusiast, super stocker and just the thing for quick trips to the grocery store. Now let's talk to the fastest lady on the track. Today both women and men enjoy endurance racing. Shahan, who has recorded the fastest time and will no doubt remain the women's champion here on the track. Congratulations Shirley, thank you very much. I know Martin often asks how a woman gets into drag racing, husband, husband, and how do you like it?

I like it a lot, you take a lot of jokes from the man, quite a bit, especially when you beat them. Yes, they get used to it after a while, although you plan to continue beating them as long as we can. Good. We will continue to look for you in victory circle. How are the class eliminations going? The cars are running in a system of free-for-all competition. Two cars at a time advance to challenge another round winner until finally only two remain. cars to go to the trophy, Vans really come out ahead, one shoe, big socks, ripped off the line at 26 miles an hour on the race track, a quarter mile isn't exactly letting the grass grow under your feet and many of these cars are identical to the ones you drive every day plus the original glass factory experimental cars that pierce the crowd as they launch off the starting line and hit 130 miles per hour here's the hot entry, the old lady from Pasadena, if the next car looks like Tony Nancy, a young Southerner from California, who has been driving his 22 Junior dragsters for years, is one of those who prefers gas dragsters.

They don't go as fast as the fuel ones, usually around 190 miles per hour, but his display of racing skill is as exciting as Big Brother's. Fuel cars with elapsed times for the 1320 foot distance fall into the 8 second bracket, the proudest, so drivers are ready, all stations are working. This is more than physical and the emotion of the machine also plays an integral role. Let's find out what a driver feels as he anticipates his turn. The starting gate is here, gentlemen, Joe Xu, back from Ohio Joe, how do you feel about anticipating your turn? Sitting in the staging area waiting for the race to start, you get a little nervous butterflies and all, but once you get to the start line a Christmas tree starts to fall I guess it all leaves you and then where before that you realize and kind of a funny feeling I like Don Prudhomme Sorry so I've been preparing pretty well for this big championship running here this weekend there's a lot of fast cars running we hope to jump right in the middle the best man wins thisgreat meeting Tom McEwen well we are really prepared for this race the car is the new engine new tires we We have been practicing as much as we can, we have the record here and I feel that we are the ones who can overcome the starting system.

I feel like I have it very well and the other drivers are going to have to overcome it. I get them all from Portland Oregon Ned McCulloch there's a big race to get tens before the race when the car starts you're ready to go I'm ready when the car starts the next thing to do is make a race. and a large part of the cars run around the race track every 28 to 34 seconds at the end of a race, the driver takes off his helmet mask and fire suit, then he and his team members will review the schedule and discuss the problems if the readings were bad.

Then, back to the pits where the engine is allowed to cool before making another run, the parachute must be inspected and all final adjustments repackaged. They made it back for another race as advertised. All the hot dogs are here today. Here's the popular Connie Kalitta with a supercharged Ford dragster. from Mount Clemens Michigan Connie's car is one of the fastest and fastest in the country, with elapsed times of less than eight seconds and speeds of over 200 miles per hour. Connie is one of the sporting superstars like the other fuel dragsters. Bonnie's car weighs a little more than 1,000 pounds and the engine generates over a thousand horsepower.

What if they cost well? These dragsters are valued at over $10,000 and that figure does not include the additional engines needed. Some of the engines are only good for a dozen races. Look at this. In the following slow motion sequence you will see smoke coming out of the tires and you can imagine how quickly one of these drivers must react. Did you get in trouble? The National Hot Rod Association speed record holder is Connie Kalitta in the Bounty Hunter. at two hundred and six point four four miles an hour Connie just ran and had some bad luck at the beginning County what happened oh we broke an axle shaft it's the first time I've broken one in about three years we've got it right behind you let's take a look look yeah, here it is right here, I just cut it with a nice clean cut.

You've got quite a bit of traction here today and it's just giving us a little problem. You said you had new tires and that was it. Part of the problem, yeah, was that you just got too much traction and you just cut it right, man, well, it's too much traction and not enough horsepower, one or the other, you're not going to blame the driver anyway, well, that should be part of You also don't know, Connie now, having done a race, although it wasn't a full race, what is the process that you go through and you go to tear down the engine, do you clean it completely or is it just a check? routine?

No, it's just a routine check, we check all the spark plugs and make sure we had proper combustion in each of the cylinders, that's okay, we check if we had the right fuel ratio in the engine at that particular time, we adjust the whip on the valves to make sure nothing is closed due to the extreme temperature, pack the parachute, check the tire pressure, put a fresh load of fuel in the car and give it a cold dose of water to cool it down again, you're ready to go. run Connie, you are paying great tribute when the announcer mentioned your name and your car approached the Christmas tree, all the people around the track ran to watch your race. and of course they were disappointed because they see you as the champion in many ways this puts extra pressure on you to a certain extent there are many problems involved in something like this it is a big meeting there is a lot of tension We had problems working on a car about three days ago.

I was racing in Salt Lake City and there's four thousand feet of elevation up there and it affects the car. Now I'm turning the car around for this. conditions here and I will set up the car and I'm not too sure the next one will be much better. County Championship racers require top-notch power. What is the power source for your machine? That guy is a new 1965 Ford overhead cam engine. This engine has been running extremely well, it has incredible power, it has been giving me very good results, what is the maximum speed that can be achieved with this engine ?

Well, I hope four to ten and two weeks ago I turned 209 point 78 just one. put it on the clocks, good luck to you Connie, I appreciate it, thank you, it was a pleasure talking to you, Connie Kalitta, and now let's go back and check out the action on the track, stopping that dragster is like the old west days in a over 200 miles per hour it shoots first, it brakes later and they don't always go straight look, if it's in trouble, it has to keep it straight, because if it crosses the center line, Kars is qualified, the call for elimination has come .

Cars are still having problems and the pits are a hive of activity as mechanics do their best to meet the deadline that may be just minutes away. These experienced hands can tear down an engine, rebuild it in a matter of minutes, if necessary they will replace a whole good engine, after all they usually have at least an hour to change engines and they do a lot of racing every weekend. This is where the right hand has to know what the left hand is doing because teamwork really counts when things are down here a car. that has been eliminated due to being disassembled and the rear end is being loaned to be installed on another dragster that is still in operation even the spectators in the pits are sweating with the mechanic it is all together they have changed the rear end now they can Run to the preparation area to comply with the deadline for removal.

Now the long road, the law before the storm, seems relaxed, but they are very worried about the big races ahead, after all, the Hot Rod Magazine Championship Endurance Race is one of the big ones. races of the year and these drivers have been preparing for four months on the top strip across the country, here is Tony Nancy, a young man from Southern California who has been driving his 22 Junior dragsters for years, he is one of those who prefers dragsters gasoline, they don't go. as fast as the refuelers, usually around 190 miles per hour, but their display of racing skill is equally as exciting as that of the Big Brother Fuel cars with elapsed times for the distance of 1,320 feet floating in the field of eight seconds, it seems easy to race around the race track, but for each race, dozens of hands move quickly to keep accurate records of each performance, the Tron platform's stopwatches, speed clocks and electronic judge must be watched and read Now that we know why they put blinders on horses, there is one important feature in drag.

In racing, anyone can win, it has been proven time and time again, as a dark horse that has rarely been heard of In previous weeks he arrives at the starting line in the final round of eliminations ready to go for the biggest prizes, but the case was not too complicated. The young driver is just starting out in high-level professional endurance racing. Nando survived one of the toughest car fields ever assembled to emerge as the winner of Hot Rod Magazine's drag racing championship. His consistent performances and his reliable motor and automobile resulted in this young man from Southern California. biggest win for awards and honors nor cheeky and crew chief john smiter receive awards from the queen bob peterson publishing president peterson and editor ray brock the winner's circle is filled with excitement and glory for the drivers who took the biggest wins from your 500 entry races or even a thousand, there may only be about 80 winners, someone has to lose, but drag racers never give up, they are a determined bunch, always eager to come back and try again, and they do it. they do, they didn't win today.

So they will take their cars home to try to find out why, but they will compete again next weekend when the Christmas tree shows its first countdown to signal the start of another race that is drag racing, a sport for all. From 16 to 60 years old, a fun sport that attracts young people in the United States because of the need to do mechanical things with their own hands to learn about how a car works and then go out to the race track, the proving ground of their ability.