Last Year of Modified? Question

[Bob Rice]

Jimmy,
Here's a picture of Billy at Suffolk, VA, 1979.
Bob Rice

[Alan Roehrich]

Originally Posted by FED 387

Batten was /is in the Detroit area hooked up with diamond Pistons and did have Batten Heads not sure if they are still in businees tho-Comp 387

CJ Batten ceased producing the Oldsmobile Batten heads and intakes, as well as other Oldsmobile stuff, about 5 years or more ago. He was selling some of the stuff on ebay a while back. I saw him the last year he had a booth at the PRI Show a few years back. Maybe 8 years or so ago.

[Ed Wright]

Originally Posted by Tom P

The same Mike Edwards who seemed to be doing OK in Pro Stock yesterday ?

Is the Jim Head listed the current funny car guy?

Nice to hear FJ pipe in on this.
I only ever saw the last season of the class though some of the cars continued to run a few years afterwards. What flywheels did you guys run?

It seemed to take longer to wind down after being revved than my bench grinder.

If this was answered and I missed it, I appoligize. yes, that is the same Mike Edwards. I'm in Tulsa, Mike's race shop is about fifteen miles from my business. It's located between Broken arrow and Coweta. Two small towns next to Tulsa. My C/SM Camaro was a blast, but as Rich said, it about broke me. I finally had to give up in 1979. I began break parts much faster than I could buy them. If I had any sense, I would have stayed away. Super Stock now is not near as much fun as Modified was then. Unless you luck into a heads-up, it's become basically a friggin bracket race. You had to actually know how to make one fast then, and most guys did their own work. Not nearly as many "check book" racers as now. If you weren't reasonably fast you went home real early. One year at Indy there were so many C/SMs, if I remember correctly, seems like they ran a round of us the day before the other classes to thin us out. I took one of my too-frequent naps in the semis of class. I remember like fifty C/MP, C/SM, and I think about that many F/MP in different years. I remember Dick Moroso in C/MP with his Vette "Spastic Plastic". Very nice guy. More cars than classes then. Nowhere to hide from the fast guys. Somebody fast in every class. Now NHRA has become like the old AHRA, way too many classes.

Btw, Billy Mansell put his on the pedal wood when the 1st amber came on, and held it there until time to go. Billy was one of the nicest racers I ever met. Really a great guy. His mechanical tach's tattle-tail was always past ten grand after a run. Pete Smith's too. Loved to watch those cars. With those 50lb flywheels, some guys might have had a problem with these new three amber trees.

[Jimmy Smith]

Thanks for the pic of Billy Mansell, I see Joe Minga sometime as his shop is 75 mile from me and a good friend goes to church with him. Joe is Late model racing with his son Marcus and still same ole Joe. Later J.Smith 4621 racing

[Pat Hennebery]

Originally Posted by david ring

Looking at the last three names on this page, I know that Ed Sigmon is still racing comp and Sherman Sligh just built a manifold for a new comp motor, but did that guy Danny Jesel ever amount to anything?

Thanks Tom for posting these.

Tom I'd love to have a "real" copy of the complete entry list. I'm listed on part2 of the 6th page:
1368 H/MP Pat Hennebery Sixfiend III

This is my car at the 69' Nationals - Glen Self won the eliminator that year with his 67 Camaro H/MP "Storm Six"

[randy wilson]

until nhra or ihra realize the crowd wants no-breakout racing, the normal spectator will never come back to drag racing. i think the down fall was- money, breakout racing, no break out racing with no limits on money, clutchless tramsmissions, and automatics. look at the old videos, they actually had to clutch and shift their cars. driving had more to do with it than it does now. they could still do it with the backing of one major head manufacturer policing the cylinder heads. it is not the et the crowd enjoys, it is the competition. they look like slot cars now.

[BlueOval Ralph]

1976 C/SM there were 39 car fro the first round of class, back then you Had to win cass to run in Elminator

Originally Posted by Ed Wright

If this was answered and I missed it, I appoligize. yes, that is the same Mike Edwards. I'm in Tulsa, Mike's race shop is about fifteen miles from my business. It's located between Broken arrow and Coweta. Two small towns next to Tulsa. My C/SM Camaro was a blast, but as Rich said, it about broke me. I finally had to give up in 1979. I began break parts much faster than I could buy them. If I had any sense, I would have stayed away. Super Stock now is not near as much fun as Modified was then. Unless you luck into a heads-up, it's become basically a friggin bracket race. You had to actually know how to make one fast then, and most guys did their own work. Not nearly as many "check book" racers as now. If you weren't reasonably fast you went home real early. One year at Indy there were so many C/SMs, if I remember correctly, seems like they ran a round of us the day before the other classes to thin us out. I took one of my too-frequent naps in the semis of class. I remember like fifty C/MP, C/SM, and I think about that many F/MP in different years. I remember Dick Moroso in C/MP with his Vette "Spastic Plastic". Very nice guy. More cars than classes then. Nowhere to hide from the fast guys. Somebody fast in every class. Now NHRA has become like the old AHRA, way too many classes.

Btw, Billy Mansell put his on the pedal wood when the 1st amber came on, and held it there until time to go. Billy was one of the nicest racers I ever met. Really a great guy. His mechanical tach's tattle-tail was always past ten grand after a run. Pete Smith's too. Loved to watch those cars. With those 50lb flywheels, some guys might have had a problem with these new three amber trees.

[W J]

Originally Posted by Greg Barsamian

That car was purchased by Les Lucier & Jim Reid. A gentleman in Nebraska restored it and brought it to Barret Jackson 2 years ago, It didnt bring anything close to what he had in the restoration. Last I heard they were in litigation against BJ.

Those of you that recognise Ryan Ondrejko's 62 Corvette, that is the very car that went "heads-up" for the A/MP record in 1972. Joel Rosen & Dennis Ferrera made the trek to Lebanon Valley & ran away with the record that year. The Corvette was Owned by Vince Barletta, built & maintained by Wes Nester from Worcester Mass. The 62 was called The "Plastic Rat" It featured an all-Aluminum ZL-1 engine built by Jim Reid at Reid's Automotive. The car was always a "hit" with the M/P crowd at the Valley back in those days! Yanking the wheels 2 to 3 feet on every launch!
We stole err borrowed a carrage from the Mammouth Mart one night to make a set of wheelie bars for it so the damb thing wouldn't flip over.

The Baldwin Motion Performance Camaro was "trick" to say the least. Bill Lorenzo & Ed Sarkiaian from SS & DI did a detailed story on that Camaro when Reid & Lussier campained it. They set many records in M/P with that car as well.

Jim Reid Sr & Jim Jr still build & maintain the engines for the 62, currently campained by John & Ryan Ondrejko in Division 1 S/G. They recently won the 2008 NHRA D-1 National Open series championship, and last fall Ryan took "Vinny's Vette" to the winners circle at the 2008 IHRA North American Nationals at New England dragway in Super rod.
The Barletta family still own the car.

Bob Don you were sponsored by the "Speed Shack" in Norwood, where "We push Speed"
( I still have the licence plate frame you gave me)
Negrini is now out in D-7 planning on driving them crazy with his Johns Racecraft Firebird in SS/CM

BTW I still own "The Wild Armenian"
Greg

Going back even farther w/Ryan's '62 Corvette: Originally, a 4 sp/fuelie, it was bought new by Brent Erickson, then of Holden, Ma., and successfully campaigned in the old NHRA "sport" classes by Brent and his wife, Linda, (the car was still tuned by Wes Nester),running at tracks on the eastern seaboard that are now gone: Orange, Ma., Sanford, Me., Charlestown, R.I., and Ct. Dragway. Car was then blue, and called "The Minuteman". The fact that the '62 is still a campaigning, winning racecar is pretty cool...I believe the car now runs Top Sportsman, as well....WJ

[W J]

Another heavy hitter C/MP owner/driver I saw on that list was a fellow named Ralph Ridgeway, of Springfield, Mass. Ralph's blk/white '55 Chevy 2 dr sedan was a Nat. record holder for awhile...a 301" chevy with a sheet metal fabricated intake manifold that was quite sophisticated for its time. Ridgeway won a number of National events w/that car...and was tough to beat anywhere he raced..Anyone here remember that '55 w/ "DEB'S DYNO" painted on the side? I sure miss that M/P class.... WJ

[Frito]

The same Jim Head? YEP it is. He ran a C/Dragster and I still remember his hometown listed as Sunbury, Ohio.