Nothing more badass than a gasser!

[Willie B]

My buddies dad's Jr. Fuel

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.., Been staring at the roll cage… Trying to figure out who the chassis builder was… I came up with…I have no idea???…

 

[4Waters]

.., Been staring at the roll cage… Trying to figure out who the chassis builder was… I came up with…I have no idea???…

It's a Tadlock chassis, aka his, he built it and it passed first time. The engine is a 301.

 

[4Waters]

You know @Willie B I wish Phil were still alive, I'd come out and pick you up and bring you over to his place so you guys could bench race and tell old stories, I would become a fly on the wall with a video camera and post those videos on here. I'm sure you guys crossed paths, hell maybe even lined up against each other once or twice. I kinda miss that asshole

 

[jetboatperformance]

Cant get enough gassers VVVVV

https://fb.watch/mEZPti3CSg/?mibextid=unVGrl

 

[Willie B]

It's a Tadlock chassis, aka his, he built it and it passed first time. The engine is a 301.

…Got it…with a 301… It would have been a Junior Fueler… Junior Fuel didn’t come around till shortly after I was no longer driving… At San Fernando. It would’ve been a D/Fueler… a class came along later at least at Long Beach… called Unlimited/Fuel… which meant…unblown… unlimited cubic inch…on Nitro… I can’t remember whether it was…
U/Fuel or UU/Fuel???..,

 

[Willie B]

You know @Willie B I wish Phil were still alive, I'd come out and pick you up and bring you over to his place so you guys could bench race and tell old stories, I would become a fly on the wall with a video camera and post those videos on here. I'm sure you guys crossed paths, hell maybe even lined up against each other once or twice. I kinda miss that asshole

… Wow… yeah, that is really too bad that… that can’t happen…???… but thanks for a great idea…

 

[Willie B]

… Stone… Woods…and Cook…
… Some of this I knew, and some of this I did not… Pretty fascinating story…

 

[Wheeler]

Video

www.facebook.com

Private car show Eagle ID this weekend past.

 

[Willie B]

… Oh yeah, I forgot about asbestos fire suits????…yikes…

 

[rrrr]

… Oh yeah, I forgot about asbestos fire suits????…yikes…

Weed burners and pie crust slicks!

Great stuff.

 

[Willie B]

… Yes indeed Tommy Ivo is a good guy… …Part of his game plan in the earlier days was to put peanut shells on the seat of a new driver on the scenes Fueler… Well I had walked away from the race car one day….Maybe I went to Brownies snack bar and got a hotdog and a Coke. I don’t remember..,but when I came back, there were peanut shells on the Tony Nancy/Denny Nish upolstery???… I looked around and I did not see Ivo???… but I heard somebody mumble under their breath…Ivo…Yes I was intimidated…

… I ran into Tommy Ivo at Toluca Lake Bob’s Big Boy…sometime around possibly 2005… we started talking and he told me that John Tarzan Austin wouldn’t take his phone calls and didn’t want to talk to him… I thought that’s weird. I talk to him all the time… Tarzan had been his crew chief/ mechanic/body guand…off and on for many years… Man the stories that they had of life on the road…yikes… anyway they rekindled their friendship later on… And Ivo bought him a trophy as he had won a national event as the crew chief for… Damn, I can’t remember which Top Fueler???…but the car owner had kept the original…

… As I walked away after talking to Ivo for quite a while… he said, sorry about the peanut shells… I guess he was admitting he did it…lol…
[

I love your stories about driving the fuel car. It must have been quite a surprise when you whacked the throttle the first trip down the quarter mile. You have made this thread fun and interesting, thanks so much for adding great content.

The small block Chevy started the racing careers of millions of drivers and crew members in all types of motorsport. From what I've read, junior dragsters running on gasoline were a fairly affordable way to go drag racing, and as you found out, the 327 could turn in some stout times when it was run on nitro.

Those hand formed bodies you spoke about are a fascinating subject by themselves. They progressed from a wrapper around the tub and basic rounded cowl covers to the absolutely stunning full bodies built by metal magicians like Tom Hanna.

The dragsters progressed so quickly over a short period of time, it's fun to explore how the innovators discovered ways to go faster. The evolution of the front engine dragster is displayed by these photos of Tommy Ivo's rides. Tommy has always been one of my favorite drivers.

"TV" Tommy Ivo started acting and singing on television at age nine, which was the basis for his nickname. He gave up that lucrative career at age twenty to become a full time racer, and he was very good at it. He was the first to 170 and 180 MPH, and was also the first to break the five second barrier. Even today at age 87, he gives great interviews and tells awesome stories about his career. Tommy is a absolute treasure.

His cars always had a couple of things in common. One, they were stunningly beautiful. The other, they were always fast.

This was his first purpose built dragster, a Kent Fuller (pictured with Tommy) chassis powered by a Buick nailhead and built in 1957. During the nitro ban years, it held NHRA ET records. Notice that Fuller is wearing an Iskendarian Cams T shirt. Ed was 36 when this photo was taken, and he's still going to work at age 102. What a legend!

This Don Long chassis, powered by a Chrysler 426 hemi and body by Tom Hanna was campaigned during the 1970 season. Hanna's dragster bodies were works of art. Both views vividly illustrate his talents:

Tommy was also great at promoting himself. His glass sided trailers were legends. This one with two FEDs and a Corvette push car riding on top was typical of Tommy's showmanship:

Weed burners and pie crust slicks!

Great stuff.

… Having a hard time telling what year that might’ve been… weed burners probably ‘60 to ‘64… pie crust slicks… you were a hero if you could smoke em all the way through???…Notice the white ‘57 Chevy… probably a gasser…looks like it ran pretty well…

 

[Eliminator21vdrive]

… Oh yeah, I forgot about asbestos fire suits????…yikes…

I wore one of those with a hood doing foundry work in high school between that and chemicals from the auto industry I don't think I'll make ti to my grandfathers 103 lol!

 

[Willie B]

I wore one of those with a hood doing foundry work in high school between that and chemicals from the auto industry I don't think I'll make ti to my grandfathers 103 lol!

… Not in great shape… But I am alive from it… Wishing you on to 103… If you actually want to go that far…

 

[Willie B]

 

[Willie B]

 

[Wheeler]

… Stone… Woods…and Cook…
… Some of this I knew, and some of this I did not… Pretty fascinating story…

Here you go Willie.

@Clank123

 

[Willie B]

Here you go Willie.

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@Clank123

… Okeyy-dokey. Here you go… Maybe I will go lay sideways on my bed, and I might remember something from way back when.… kind of lessens the pain laying sideways???…

… Waiting to see who wins the Top Fuel…final at Pomona…no question about it Doug Kalitta really deserves it.., but on the other hand, I physically, saw Leaha Pruitt. come up through the nostalgia, funny car ranks…

… I was walking away from somebody’s car hauler, and I felt a funny female vibe behind me… I turned around and looked and it was Leah Pruitt, leaning against a red car hauler… radiating… I walked away, thinking this chicks gonna go somewhere… Well look at her now???…

 

[got wood]

… Okeyy-dokey. Here you go… Maybe I will go lay sideways on my bed, and I might remember something from way back when.… kind of lessens the pain laying sideways???…

… Waiting to see who wins the Top Fuel…final at Pomona…no question about it Doug Kalitta really deserves it.., but on the other hand, I physically, saw Leaha Pruitt. come up through the nostalgia, funny car ranks…

… I was walking away from somebody’s car hauler, and I felt a funny female vibe behind me… I turned around and looked and it was Leah Pruitt, leaning against a red car hauler… radiating… I walked away, thinking this chicks gonna go somewhere… Well look at her now???…

Willie u and wheeler r great looking forward to meeting you

 

[Willie B]

Willie u and wheeler r great looking forward to meeting you

..: Well come on by… I don’t leave the house much anymore here in No Ho…Old age a couple of broken neck deals and my lake Oroville property burning to the ground…I guess have caught up with me… I am starting to want to go places… But I just really don’t know where I want to go???…Signed stupid stumped guy???…

 

[4Waters]

..: Well come on by… I don’t leave the house much anymore here in No Ho…Old age a couple of broken neck deals and my lake Oroville property burning to the ground…I guess have caught up with me… I am starting to want to go places… But I just really don’t know where I want to go???…Signed stupid stumped guy???…

Have your neighbor bring you to the next SFV/Ventura Co get together, probably be just after the first of the year

 

[Willie B]

Have your neighbor bring you to the next SFV/Ventura Co get together, probably be just after the first of the year

… I would really like to do that… But…and here is a big but…neighbor girl is now with child… Her first at the age of 29… due probably in mid July,..Don’t think her live in boyfriend of seven years would let her do it… But I guess we will find out???…
…

 

[done]

 

[done]

My cars launch...