More old school pics of Atco!!!!!

[AtcoDave]

I hope I don't bore anyone with this but I can't get enough of the old pics!!!

Gapp & Roush vs Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins That looks to be Grumpy's Toy Vega, dead give away are the wheelie bars. Dated March 3, 1974 Who painted the tower those colors?


Does it get any better than this? Notice that big number 1 on the window!


Ahhhh, the 351 Cleveland. Back when they cut and welded the heads to get the exhaust ports higher. Also the days of weight-break racing. Check out those bone-stock valve covers.


Ode to the ladder bar setup.


Not familiar with this car. Anyone have any info? Dated November 11, 1973.


Notice the van with the push bar in the front. That's how they used to start the slingshot dragsters. Also the starting line was back about 20 feet from its present location.


Believe that is Al Joniec in the green car. Prior to this he drove the Rice & Holman Cobra Jet Mustang.


Tough day for the Pinto. At least it didn't catch on fire.

[AtcoDave]

And the hits keep coming..

Phil Bonner and the Warbucks Mustang. Someone cut those weeds!!!!




Supposedly 1960. The very first year.






Art Arfons!!


Connie Kalitta and the Bounty Hunter.


Sox and Martin Mercury Comet, that is awesome!!


Straight 8 Buick!!

[AtcoDave]

And you guys complain about parking in the dirt now.


October 1969


Atco Raceway 1966






1965

[AtcoDave]

I was going to stop but this is such a cool pic of the wall that used be along Jackson Road where the containers are now. Plus I believe that is a A/FX Mustang with a 427 SOHC in it.

[HPdoctor]

Wow those pics are really cool ! By the way sir do you have any pics of other manufacturers I beleive there were other automobile companies involved in drag racing that also raced at atco raceway ?

[AtcoDave]

Wow those pics are really cool ! By the way sir do you have any pics of other manufacturers I beleive there were other automobile companies involved in drag racing that also raced at atco raceway ?

I'm Dave, my father is sir. I just put them up as I got them, no editing. After a few pics I thought the same thing, somebody is going to make a Ford comment and I figured it would come from HP Doctor. There are pics of everything, Fords, Chryslers, Chevys, Harley, jet car and even a Buick straight 8 so I don't want to here it. You're just jealous that one of your little motors never came with Cleveland heads, we all know everyone else has been copying them.

You know I am trying to find a Fonse and Kuhlman (spl?) pic!!

[AtcoDave]

Thanks to Derek Cesari for providing the following pic. He said it's from 1973 and it's a picture of his brother Chuck's 1932 Bantam with his 72 El Camino in tow behind it. If you were ever wondering, El Camino translates to "the road."

This pic is classic. It captures a Bantam, an El Camino (half car, half truck), a three-wheeled golf cart and the Ghostbusters ambulance. Even more observations: that was another snack stand behind and to the left of the tower. It burnt down probably about 15 years ago. If you can make it out, there is a tube running down from the second floor of the tower to the return road. That is where you used to get your time slip! No kidding! A piece of that plastic tube is still intact on the old tower today.

[Dugeman]

The time slip tube from the timing tower was in fact the latest state of the art , high tech gutter down spout tube.

[Kurt70s]

It's tough to tell from the pic, but it looks like the bed of the Camino was shortened??

[Dragbike1]

Hey Kurt,
That is wierd, the bed does look short. I am looking at the picture I scanned and it's just a strange reflection in that area of the picture.
Maybe part of the UFO thing going on at Atco.

[tire fryer]

Its either atco/cecil? Hemi under glass

[Qwik Cobra]

i didn't know they had jet cars back in the 60's lol...thats wild!

[i/sacamaro]

Sometimes wish the pros would go back to those days when they hauled on open trailers. Those early Pro Stockers were great. Do you have any pics of the Mod Prods and Super Mods? There was nothing like the sound of a Chevy duece with a 292 side stepping the clutch at 9k and rowing the gears down track.

[AtcoDave]

i didn't know they had jet cars back in the 60's lol...thats wild!

I might be wrong but I believe Art Arfons was the first to 200 MPH in the 1/4 mile. This is probably in the mid to late 60's.

Ever see one of the car burns done with a jet car? A lot of times it's Doug Rose in his Green Mamba which I think started out as the Green Monster and was owned by Walt Arfons. Doug was hired by Walt to drive the Green Monster back in 1962. So there have been jet cars since at least 1962.

Back then they did not run them side by side, only one at a time for safety reasons. I remember going to the Summer Nationals at E-Town when they would run jet car exhibition passes after the top fuel and funny car finals. Once the nitro cars got faster than the jet cars it no longer made much sense.

This is crazy: In the 70's they had rocket powered dragsters! They still hold the record today for the fastest pass in the 1/4 mile. I know Sammy Miller had a rocket powered dragster and I want to say Ray Alley did too, might be wrong on that one. Rocket cars were banned by NHRA but I think they still run them in England.

[noricehere]

I need a scanner, dammit, got some nice ones from inside the car as we followed it to the staging lanes to then go down and get it after the run. Two 57 Chevy's the C/G coupe and the matching 2 door nomad.

[Qwik Cobra]

i didn't know they had jet cars back in the 60's lol...thats wild!

I might be wrong but I believe Art Arfons was the first to 200 MPH in the 1/4 mile. This is probably in the mid to late 60's.

Ever see one of the car burns done with a jet car? A lot of times it's Doug Rose in his Green Mamba which I think started out as the Green Monster and was owned by Walt Arfons. Doug was hired by Walt to drive the Green Monster back in 1962. So there have been jet cars since at least 1962.

Back then they did not run them side by side, only one at a time for safety reasons. I remember going to the Summer Nationals at E-Town when they would run jet car exhibition passes after the top fuel and funny car finals. Once the nitro cars got faster than the jet cars it no longer made much sense.

This is crazy: In the 70's they had rocket powered dragsters! They still hold the record today for the fastest pass in the 1/4 mile. I know Sammy Miller had a rocket powered dragster and I want to say Ray Alley did too, might be wrong on that one. Rocket cars were banned by NHRA but I think they still run them in England.

about 10 years ago when i was a senior in Highschool....We saw the Jet Cars at Atco...We Sat in the Burnout Pit, the sound and force behind them things is amazing. Blew one of my Contacts right out of my eyes. I was video taping it w/ a old school VHS style Camera, one of them big bulky ones...Filming Trying not to blink lol That 25 ft wall you drive through into the burnout box would be getting hosed down before they would pull in lol. I think it was the Queen of Diamonds??? Hot blonde driving back then? I hear they have a new driver but equally as hot

Crazy to think something raced in the 70's still holds the 1/4mi ET record to this day. More then 30 years later. Any idea how fast that ET was??

[AtcoDave]

i didn't know they had jet cars back in the 60's lol...thats wild!

I might be wrong but I believe Art Arfons was the first to 200 MPH in the 1/4 mile. This is probably in the mid to late 60's.

Ever see one of the car burns done with a jet car? A lot of times it's Doug Rose in his Green Mamba which I think started out as the Green Monster and was owned by Walt Arfons. Doug was hired by Walt to drive the Green Monster back in 1962. So there have been jet cars since at least 1962.

Back then they did not run them side by side, only one at a time for safety reasons. I remember going to the Summer Nationals at E-Town when they would run jet car exhibition passes after the top fuel and funny car finals. Once the nitro cars got faster than the jet cars it no longer made much sense.

This is crazy: In the 70's they had rocket powered dragsters! They still hold the record today for the fastest pass in the 1/4 mile. I know Sammy Miller had a rocket powered dragster and I want to say Ray Alley did too, might be wrong on that one. Rocket cars were banned by NHRA but I think they still run them in England.

about 10 years ago when i was a senior in Highschool....We saw the Jet Cars at Atco...We Sat in the Burnout Pit, the sound and force behind them things is amazing. Blew one of my Contacts right out of my eyes. I was video taping it w/ a old school VHS style Camera, one of them big bulky ones...Filming Trying not to blink lol That 25 ft wall you drive through into the burnout box would be getting hosed down before they would pull in lol. I think it was the Queen of Diamonds??? Hot blonde driving back then? I hear they have a new driver but equally as hot

Crazy to think something raced in the 70's still holds the 1/4mi ET record to this day. More then 30 years later. Any idea how fast that ET was??

The record I was speaking of was for a rocket car, not a jet car. Not sure what the jet car record is but they are somewhat limited because they need air to build up speed so the acceleration is not as great as lets say a Top Fuel dragster.

The record for a 1/4 mile pass in anything I think is 3.58 seconds at 384 MPH!! It was set in Holland by Sammy Miller in his rocket car. Remember a rocket does not use air, but chemicals to create thrust, so acceleration is more instant. Think of a Sidewinder air-to-air missile on a fighter plane. That's basically what he was strapped to. Here is an article on Sammy Miller:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dragracingonline.com/features/images/nbRocketcar.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dragracingonline.com/features/miller_1.html&usg=__HlSqWzkMxl75rFGvTKxgRLJ93CY=&h=160&w=390&sz=38&hl=en&start=11&um=1&tbnid=tNMOb60BRFNS7M:&tbnh=50&tbnw=123&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsammy%2Bmiller%2Brocket%2Bcar%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26um%3D1

Jill Canuso drives the Queen of Diamonds jet car today. She also works for M & R Products and is a great person to talk to. If you get the chance, I highly advise you say hello.

[AtcoDave]

Well I received an answer to what happened to the Pro Stock Pinto that was crashed. Dave Ley informed me that the Healey part of the team worked for Tasca. I think he built engines for Tasca and yes the same Tasca family that is currently racing Funny Cars.

Anyway Dave said Healey lost control of the car at the top end and skidded off the track. Back then there were no guardrails so the car skipped into the grass and dirt and then began to cartwheel over and over again. Dave stated that it was as high as the telephone poles when it flipped over. He noted the driver walked away with just a small cut on his finger. Mr. Ley added that the car was relatively new and had only been out a few times prior to the accident.

I post a pic and a question and get an answer within two days!! Thanks again Dave!!

[AtcoDave]

Derek Cesari emailed me some more pics. Some are of his brother from 1978, the others from the 1980 US Nationals. Thanks again Derek!

[AtcoDave]

More from Derek.