Drag Racing
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Drag Racing |
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One
of Ford's mainstays from the mid-60s to the early 70s was Michigan's Connie
Kalitta. It was Kalitta who introduced the SOHC and Boss 429 motors to fuel
racing with his T/F entries, but by his pictured 72 ride, the "Bounty Hunter"
had made the switch to Hemi power. Among Kalitta's other accomplishments were
his tutelage of Shirley Muldowney into the F/C and T/F ranks and giving a young
Tripp Shumake his first driving assignment... in a Bounty Hunter Mustang when
Kalitta was unable to show for a match race obligation. Following the above
flopper, Kalitta went back to his T/F roots in the mid-70s, but remerged in the
flopper ranks in the mid-80s with a Mustang driven by son Scott and sponsored by
his own Kalitta Flying Service. One of the Pilots for Connies Fling service is
your Own Brion Gluck of Dark Horse Racing 1991 to 1994. Brion Flew Beech
TurboLiners and Lear jets at KFS.
(Photo from Amalie handout, courtesy of Randy McGinnis)
Pictured
"way out west" at Irwindale is the Colorado based "Hells Cargo" Mustang of Ernie
Spickler and Tom Cacy. Car was ex-Jerry Ruth Pay-n-Pak Mustang that the team ran
from the early 70s through 76. Drivers included ex-Jeg's shoe Bob Durban and
Mike Snively. In 76, Spickler's brother Doug Jordan purchased the car and
continued to campaign the flopper through 78 with such drivers as Doug himself,
Jere Wilson and Rob Williams. In 78 Jordan built a new Trans-Am F/C and had the
first Jolly Rancher sponsorship... Hell's Cargo cars were "High Country"
regulars, ran division meets and match races throughout the Rocky Mountain
region. Today, Jordan is negotiating to buy ex-Ed Mullins R/E Duster flopper and
go nostalgia funny car racing. (Photo by John Shanks, info courtesy of Doug
Jordan)
One
of funny cars "founding fathers," Lew Arrington moved to PA in the late 60s with
his Firebird flopper to set up shop with his popular series of "Brutus" funny
cars. Firebird shell gave way to Mustang body in 71... neat trick on first
Mustang was fitting 392 powerplant with Boss 429 valve covers to round out the
Ford look. Pictured is Arrington's 72 Mustang at Englishtown, NJ... design on
hood/roof represented nitro molecules. Car started the season a brilliant orange
but due to a paint problem faded as the season continued... later burned to the
ground at Epping NH. Arrington's last nitro ride was at the wheel of the Brutus
Charger (ex-Nichols & Oxner) that ran out the Fred Forkner's Delaware stables.
Arrington later sold the "Brutus" name to Roy Harris who carried it into the
80s. Arrington became one of the charter Rocket F/C pilots with his swoopy "Capt
America" Mustang in the mid-'70s and was joined in the RF/C ranks by former F/C
drivers Fred Goeske and Sam Miller. (JW Last Photo)
The
Doheny and Fullerton Trojan Horse was one of the prettiest... and quickest F/Cs
of 1972. Shown here at the 72 NHRA Summernationals, the car recorded a
then-quickest 6.42/228 in the first round of eliminations. Fullerton became NHRA
World Champion the same year by winning the World Finals at Amarillo. Fullerton
started the decade wheeling the Galpin Ford SOHC powered Maverick, adopted the
Trojan Horse name with a 71 Mustang. He continued to campaign the Trojan Horse
line throughout the 70s, closed the decade with a "new generation" Mustang shell
in 79. Rare Fullerton "Horses" include a short lived rear engined "Stang" in
early 73, a Trojan Horse 2 campaigned by Dale Pulde in the early 70s and
Fullerton wheeling M/Ts seldom seen "yellow" car as a stablemate to the "blue"
and "red" cars as a Boss 429 test bed to the others SOHC powerplants in 69. (JW
Last Photo)
