Pendine Sands tomorrow, what a great place.

Posted on June 26, 2014January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

26 Jun

Ok Gang

Some of you know that not only am I into the Motorcycle lifestyle, but I really have a passion for the Hot Rod and Custom scene too.

I had a 32 Three Window Coupe in the UK in the 80’s and tomorrow Pendine Sands will have their second meet where you get to race on probably the earliest dry bed speed trials anywhere in the world.

To be part of this would be an awesome thing, just to experience all these cool Hot Rods that have been restored or completely built to their style must be intoxicating.

Lucky for me I was in the Hot Rod fraternity in its early guise and we had a blast but now to see so many people and so many rides is just mind boggling and on such a famous part of the British Isles for Land Speed Racing.

So hopefully my mates will send me some photos and I can share some of it with you on a blog.

The Vintage Hot Rod Association presents:

2nd Annual Pendine Sands Hot Rod Races

28th & 29th June 2014

We are pleased to announce the 2nd Annual Hot Rod Races to be held at Pendine Sands. With the tide playing no small role in determining dates for us, we will be running the event on the 28th and 29th of June 2014. That’s right folks, two days of hot rod racing on the historic beach in South Wales. We will be starting around 11am each day and racing for around five to six hours, with non-stop action from start to finish.

The first running of the event was a complete success and has brought the VHRA international acclaim, peaking with no lesser award than the Motoring Event of the Year at the International Historic Motoring Awards. The press coverage has been phenomenal, with Octane, Motorsport and The Automobile reporting about our time on the beach, along with the more expected magazines such as Custom Car and Classic American. In case you have missed what happened on the 7th September 2013, click here and here to get a taste of the action.

Free Spectating

Outside of the pits it’s free if you wish to come and spectate. There is a fee of £3 per car payable on the day which will allow you to park on the hallowed beach in your car. This will not permit you to enter the pit or race areas, nor will you have access to the after race parties on Saturday or Sunday night. No pre-booking is required, you do not need to be a member and there is no limit on numbers.

Racing Classes

V – Vintage – Pre 54 engines, inclusive of all Ford flathead V8’s

L – Late – 1954 and later engines

4 – 4 Cylinder

6 – 6 Cylinder

8 – 8 Cylinder

U – Unlimited Cylinders

B – Blown – Supercharger or Turbo

F – Flathead – ALL valves in block, no OHV conversions

R – Roadster – Open top factory cars. Roof chops allowed, top must be down.

C – Closed Car – Fixed roof factory cars. Roof chops allowed.

M – Modified – Open top special & shortened bodies including any non factory bodies.

S – Streamliner – Closed car special & shortened bodies, including any non factory bodies.

K – Full Body – Factory cars post 1934. All body styles, roof chops allowed. Full fenders must be fitted.

Accommodation

For those wishing to stay nearby there are a number of options. If you are quick then the Parkdean Caravan Park across the road is the place to stay. Call 0844 335 3729 and be sure to quote reference HOT ROD 14 to receive a 5% discount whilst the offer still stands. Bookings are done on a short break basis and start from just £229 for a 6 berth caravan. Check out their website for details of the accommodation available. Alternatively there will be camping available on site and nearby, bookable via the VHRA, at £15 per pitch for Friday and Saturday nights and is only available to those booking race or patrol passes. There are also hotels and B&B’s in the area, just search on Google for more information!

Some cool video of chain on Drag bike and other cool vidz.

Posted on February 21, 2014January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

21 Feb

Well today I thought I would show you a cool video I saw on you tube- don’t ya just love that site?

This shows a great low view of the chain and how it moved and reacts on a Drag bike, thought that I would share it with you today.

Also a few of these videos of the drags, of course there is always something cool about a screaming 2 stroke motor.
NHDRO 2: Super Eliminator class 2-stroke motorcycle drag racing Indy

I would love this double engined H2, the guy is hard to hear but I wanted to see and hear that machine, love it!!!

Yes, back home this fella used a bunch of KH250 triples for a 48 cylinder world record, although it weighs a Ton!

Then there are the nutters in Germany that built the Chainsaw bike.

Now here is something you look at and say “WHY?”

Now this is right up my street, a V12 Lincoln Flathead Motor Jammed in this machine.

An old KZ1300 that was brutal in its day now has a Viper V8 wedged in its place.

Clay Smith, a man beyond his years.

Posted on January 26, 2014January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

26 Jan

Everyone knows this logo, many people have seen it on Tee shirts and many even have this iconic Woodpecker inked on their body, not many people remember that he was a Man beyond his years in mechanical ideology,but clay Smith was an unbelievable non college trained guy, that could turn chicken poo into chicken pie.

I have taken a few examples of his history here as people still think the man himself is here, I guess in spirit he always will be and of course the shop in Dale street down the road from me in Buena park will have his parts for ever.

Who knows where he would be today if it wasnt for that tragic day in 1954 but i will never forget him that’s for sure.

In fact, Clays original Cam grinding machine is still used in there to this day.

Enjoy

Gearhead Guys You Should Know: Clay Smith

Clay Smith, the legendary purveyor of speed during the early days of professional racing here in America is a gearhead guy you should know. He’s a more than worthy guy to be profiled. Heck, Smokey Yunick looked up to him.

Yup, Smokey Yunick once dubbed Clay Smith, “the world’s smartest mechanic.” That’s something coming from a guy who was notoriously light on the compliments. Most people recognize Smith’s name and immediately think about the camshaft company and its famous logo. Mr. Horsepower, the pissed off looking, cigar chomping, bird was drawn up to be a cartoon version of Smith himself, a whimsical look at an intense and brilliant competitor. It’s been argued that the image of the red-headed fowl was the inspiration for Woody the Woodpecker.

Smith’s mechanical education did not come from a university or a set of mail order books. He learned on the job by hand grinding cams. As legend has it, he was good enough and smart enough to tune each lobe to the cylinder it was to be working on.

Smith worked for a man named Pierre Bertrand in his shop as a younger man. That experience, along with the experiences of racing, sunk the hook deep. In 1942 Bertrand died and Smith bought the company. It was renamed Clay Smith Engineering.

It should be noted that Smith cams were appearing in midgets, land speed cars, Indy cars and even stock cars, but with the addition of his own full line shop, his name skyrocketed along with his celebrity. Now building full-on racing engines, Smith’s business was expanding

We’ll skip right up to 1947 when Smith made his first big headlines. He teamed with Bill Stroppe to compete in a hydroplane boat race. Their machine was powered by a Ford straight six engine and they were repeatedly told that it was junk. The problems were numerous with the factory pieces. Oil starvation and vibration were two of the terminal problems with that particular motor. Smith solved them both and they won the event.

So impressed were the people at Ford, they kept Smith on a sort of retainer to work on special projects, and they put him to good use. He took a stocker Mercury and tweaked it to get the best mileage possible, winning the 1950 Mobilgas Economy Run. Following up on that success, Ford had Smith and Stroppe prepare Lincolns for the PanAmerican Road race across Mexico. That was a harrowing adventure for drivers’ as well with lots of sharp turns and kinks. The big Lincolns dominated until the race was discontinued in 1954.

During the time of the headline projects Smith was grinding cams and tuning engines for racers all over the country. He became one of the early household names of the hot rodding world. His crowning achievement was tuning Troy Ruttman to victory at the 1952 Indy 500. He had arrived.

With the camshaft business booming and his tuning abilities being sought out by the biggest names in racing, it all came to a tragic end for Smith at an Illinois speedway in 1954.

Roger Ward lost it on the front straight of the Du Quoin Speedway in Du Quoin, Illinois. His car careened into the pits, striking Smith and killing him. Smith had been Ward’s own crewchief in years past and the accident shook the steely Ward so hard he nearly walked away from auto racing forever.

Clay Smith’s story is one of sadly unrealized long term potential. His accomplishments prior to passing were huge, so we can only imagine what he would have gotten done with decades more of life. There’s all the chance in the world that he’d be held in the same mainstream gearhead lexicon as Yunick and others of his ilk. We can only imagine the fun he would have had in the musclecar era. His company still lives in the hands of capable owners who are maintaining a legacy of quality and innovation.

Clay Smith, another gearhead guy you should know.

Just some more bits and bobs that I thought you would like about Mr Horsepower.

The “Mr. Horsepower” legacy began in the early 1930’s with camshafts that were literally hand-ground by clay Smith to high performance specifications. His technical expertise was recognized by the industry and racers were mesmerized by the overall performance of his products. Although he specialized in camshafts, his high performance engines were setting world speed records. He raced Joe Guess’s Hydro boat and during this time a friend of theirs drew a characterization of Clay Smith – which is the now the very famous “Mr. Horsepower Logo”

Originally a mascot painted on Clay Smith’s boats and race cars, Mr Horsepower became the company logo as the reputation of Smith’s fine-tuned auto parts spread.Today, the Mr. Horsepower logo is commonly seen as a car decal,t-shirt logo, and many cool tattoos have been inked on Hot Rodders arms over the years.Some people have confused Mr. Horsepower with the cartoon character Woody Woodpecker.^[5] The notable points of contrast are that Woody Woodpecker’s beak is curved but smooth on top and bottom, and his head-feathers form a well-contained “V” shape in early iterations or a sprout of sorts in newer iterations.

In the 75-year history of Clay Smith Cams, Striegel has owned it longer than anyone else. Striegel still uses an indexing machine, instead of a CNC machine to grind his camshafts. “We use two cam grinders, we do very little advertising and we count on our satisfied customers to spread the word. We build engines, engine kits, fuel pumps and rebuild distributors along with blueprinting heads, porting & polishing.” Striegel still owns Smith’s original cam grinder, which is hand-operated and uses an electric motor.

“We design and build between 5,000 and 10,000 camshafts a year. We deal with custom engine builders, have performed work for Chrysler and Ford, normal street grinds and just about any application,” said Striegel, who operates with nine employees in about 10,000-square feet. He laughs and says he needs about 20,000-square feet. He says the company is growing, thanks in part to his daughter talking dad into selling clothing with the company logo: the cigar-chomping woodpecker. Today, Striegel continues to work, and recently built a 420-cu.in. small-block engine for his grandson’s 1972 Chevy Vega. “I originally built that car for my daughter after she wrecked my Corvette. We put the Vega in storage and gave it to my grandson, Nic, when he turned 16. He and I built the engine for his senior year project. It’s about 500hp, has an automatic transmission and an 8-3/4 Chrysler rear end.” Striegel said his grandson Nic is getting into the family-run business. “I think people will always love cars and want to go fast. George’s granddaughter Trayce will soon be racing her Super Comp Dragster-she is currently attending Cal State Fullerton and he hopes she will someday join the business,” said Striegel. “A camshaft is the heart and lungs of an engine. If an engine doesn’t have the right cam, it just won’t run right.” Clay Smith Engineering Company was founded in the late 40’s. Since that time, the company has strived to maintain the standards set up by Clay himself. Throughout the years, Clay Smith Engineering has continued to push the boundaries of engine performance through constant research and development. Following the death of Clay Smith in 1954, “Red” Wilson took over the reigns, and then in the 70’s, George “Honker” Striegel took on the challenge.
“Honker” had a reputation of his own in the racing industry, setting numerous records in the super stock classes in drag racing and then with the ever famous Henry J (the Henry Honker). He also experienced great success in boat racing where he won numerous world championships and was the first driver to acquire the APBA Triple Crown with his competition jet (the American Revolution). George’s high performance engines are in great demand and he has established himself as a competitor in the high performance world – continuing the legacy of Clay Smith by always building a high quality product and proudly displaying the now famous “Mr. Horsepower Woodpecker.”
In the 80’s and on into the 90’s George has established a Clay Smith Team dedicated to building quality products that set the standard for the industry. Joining him in this endeavor is his daughter, Sherry, whose goal is customer satisfaction through quality service and timely delivery and several other dedicated employees who support our motto.

Little known side bar to the Clay Smith history. Speedy Bill Smith’s wife Joyce was so impressed with the California Mr. Smith, she named their second son “Clay” in his honor.
True story…can’t make stuff like that up.

Tragedy At The ’14 Grand National Roadster Show

Posted on January 22, 2014January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

22 Jan

Tragedy At The ’14 Grand National Roadster Show

Written by: Thom Taylor on January 22 2014 2:37 PM

Folks, please, always make sure that your throttle is free and doesn’t stick. Not that we wanted this to be the first post for the Grand National Roadster Show but one of the contenders was approaching the viewing area to be judged when his throttle stuck, running over GNRS judging chairman Vic Cunnyngham, resulting is serious, though not life threatening, injuries. And the roadster is in bad shape. ALWAYS make sure that your linkage is free of hangups and interruptions or this can happen to you.

Categories: Editorials

LONG LOST 32 Three Window FOUND !

Posted on October 17, 2013January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

17 Oct

Champion barn find: Long-lost ’32 Ford was drag-racing star

Deuce was original champ of first World Series of Drag Racing

This 1932 Ford was built for the first World Series of Drag Racing, and after that 1954 race, it was parked and never run again.

Story by Angelo Van Bogart
Photos by Bob Chiluk

A single shot from a BB gun may have saved one of the most historic 1932 Ford Deluxe three-window coupes in drag racing history from completely rusting into oblivion.

In 1954, Francis Fortman and Kenny Kerr decided to build a car for the 1954 World Series of Drag Racing, the first such event hosted by the Automobile Timing Association of America. The event was held at Half Day Speedway in Lawrenceville, Ill., about 20 miles from Chicago, none too far from Fortman and Kerr’s home. Other young participants included Arnie “The Farmer” Beswick driving a new Oldsmobile, Art Arfons in the Allison airplane-engined “Green Monster” and Fred Lorenzen in a Cadillac-powered Ford convertible.

Fortman and Kerr did not become big names like some of their fellow competitors that day. However, the 1932 Ford three-window coupe they built and raced for that event placed first in the A-B class with a 105.88 mph speed.

Surviving pictures show the ’32 Ford at the 1954 World Series of Drag Racing. The car placed first in the A-B class with a time of 105.88 mph.

After that day of racing, Fortman and Kerr hung up their helmets and parked the Deuce for good. As driver, Kerr took home the trophy from the track. As the builder, Fortman took home the Deuce as his own trophy. He then parked the car outside until fate intervened and the car became a bona fide barn find in 2012.

“[Fortman] told me a ’32 Ford race car was worth nothing in 1954, so instead of selling it, he put it in a field and put a tarp on it,” said Ken Robins, the 1932 Ford’s new owner. “So it spent 20 years under this tarp until one day, kids were shooting the windshield with a BB gun, so he put it in the barn. But from the day he brought it home in 1954 to the day I bought it, it was never touched or started.”

The Deuce Robins bought in the summer of 2012 is the ’32 every hot rodder dreams of finding or building in their head while lying awake at night. The car is a simple, purpose-built car with several period go-fast tricks, and the fact it’s based on one of the rodding world’s most lusted-after cars is pure luck.

“He was just looking for a good car to race and it just so happened he found a ’32 three-window,” Robins said.

“[Fortman] owned a frame repair shop in Chicago and Kenny Kerr came to him and said, ‘Why don’t we have fun and build a drag car?’ Fortman was reluctant, but he said OK.

“[Fortman] purchased the car in Chicago, made a deal and put down a deposit and when he came back, he found the seller had taken the radiator out of it. He got back in his car because he told him he wasn’t going to buy it without a radiator, but he reluctantly went back and bought the car.”

The car was brought back to Kerr’s shop, where it was channeled over the original frame. An alcohol-burning flathead Ford engine with four Strombergs was mated to a stock Ford three-speed crash box that led to a standard 1940s Ford rear axle welded to make it a “locker.”

In 2012, builder Francis Fortman said goodbye to the ’32 Ford he built in 1954. Fortman never had the urge to start or run the car after it was built for the 1954 World Series of Drag Racing event.

The car had other modifications standard to hot rods of the day: a 1940 Ford steering wheel and a filled roof and cowl vent, a rollbar, custom interior door panels, and a metallic red spray job with a white-painted grille insert and firewall. It was a race car, however, so a rollbar was installed and the deck lid was secured using screws. A hand-operated fuel pump and fuel tank were installed in the passenger compartment, next to the single driver’s bombardier seat obtained from a salvage yard.

“The fuel system by today’s standards is absolutely suicidal,” Robins said. “Keep in mind, they had nothing to go by. This is just what they did.

“I have a couple hot rods, and people have now built ’32 Fords with the bomber seats designed just like this car is designed, but when [Fortman] did it, he didn’t have a car to by. It just all fell into place.”

A search for the car also fell into place for Robins. His friend, a fellow Model A enthusiast, stopped by Robins’ business at Restoration Plus in Cary, Ill., and mentioned he knew of an old Ford race car in the area, although he wasn’t sure of the type of Ford or exactly where it was parked.

“We went in the area and we knocked on doors,” Robins said. “At the third door, an elderly gentleman came to the door and I said, ‘I don’t mean to bother you, but do you have an old race car?’ and I asked if there was any way we could see it.”

The gentleman was Francis Fortman, and since he was acquainted with Robins’ friend, Fortman showed them to the barn where the Ford had been parked since the mid 1970s.

“We went into the barn and we go in the back corner and there was a 1932 Ford drag car with an alcohol-burning flathead,” Robins said. “Because my buddy was into Model A’s, he said, ‘I have no interest,’ so I took him home. I asked the gentleman if I could come back, so I came back and he pulled out the original sheet from the first World Series of Drag Racing, and in it he showed me how he had won his class with another gentleman.”

The 1932 Ford Deluxe three-window coupe as OCW reader Ken Robins found it in a barn in 2012. The coupe body was channeled over the frame and didn’t run headlamps. Power came from a later Ford flathead that burned alcohol. To save weight, builder Francis Fortman installed a lightweight seat found in a salvage yard.

While Robins and Fortman visited, Fortman told of how the Deuce would not start once they arrived at the track. A fellow racer noticed their troubles and explained the problem was the ignition. He happened to own a shop that sold the parts Fortman and Kerr needed and would supply it.

“They drove to Iowa that night, bought the ignition and they installed it the next morning,” Robins said. “It got the car running and they ran it twice down the track. When Fortman built the car, it had all new gauges in it, and the odometer now shows 8/10 of a mile because the car went down the track twice.”

Robins eventually asked if the car was for sale, and after Fortman conferred with his wife — “She said, ‘Absolutely don’t let the man out of the house,’” according to Robins — a deal was made for Robins to buy the car, but he had to wait until after Father’s Day.

Since purchasing it, the only work Robins has completed on the car is a tire change and a thorough cleaning. Despite the deterioration the car suffered while parked outside, Robins said the crowd “went nuts” over the car at the Iron Invasion traditional hot rod show in Woodstock, Ill., the only place the car has been shown.

“This is a true time capsule,” Robins said. “Basically, this car is the Holy Grail of hot rods, but to Francis, it was just another car. He was actually a pioneer that built the car that everyone tries to copy today, which is really amazing.”

Although the car is certainly restorable, it has considerable rust in the lower portions of the body. Robins has no plans to restore the body or make it run.

“I would never restore this car. It should be untouched, because if it is restored, it’s just another ’32 Ford,” Robins said. “Where are you going to find a car from the first World Series of Drag Racing?

“It is more of a piece of Americana and artwork and hot rod history than it is a car.”

While Robins has realized the dream of many hot rodders, he has hopes the dream lasts long enough for him to find the trophy from the car’s day at the track, and to perhaps find it a more suitable home.

“I would like to find a museum interested in it. This is a true time capsule that should go down in history as drag racing folklore.”

Enjoy more photos of Robins’ 1932 Ford…

Awesome find and would another 3 window, very cool article.

Nostalgia Speed & Cycle Shirts available on website.

Posted on September 16, 2012January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

16 Sep

Hey there

Here we are with the New shop shirt, this is the logo of the shop and I am proud to now offer it as a cool set of threads for everyone to enjoy.

These are available on the website www.nostalgiaspeedandcycle.com for the sum of 15 bones and boy are the cool swag to own.

These are a strong print with exensive inks and will last you many many moons, I use the same printer that I have for over a decade, as the colors last and of course, these wash really well.

The shirts are 100% Cotton and a Gilden brand, as is all my shirts. You will really like the quality of the shirt and the print, its bold and will stay strong for sometime to come, as I have many shirts last over 5 years.

I am offering these to you on the website as I know that you will be back for more, as I have many designs, with more to come, so stand by for cool threads and of course, Hot Rod and Cafe Racer products and apparel.