 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
As 2015 comes to a close, I think back to those we have lost in the drag racing community. For me, its personal because I grew up watching and photographing them race and do their thing. Each one of these individuals left a legacy in the sport of drag racing and I must thank them for their contribution to the sport I have enjoyed for over fifty years. From the pro stock ranks we lost Larry Huff, Joe Lepone and Hubert Platt. The funny car class lost car owner Nick Boninfante Sr., car owner/driver Gary Burgin and Roger Garten. Bill "Maverick" Golden passed away from the exhibition class. Then from the top fuel ranks, we lost Dave Beebe. A very personal loss for me was the passing of photographer Jim Kelly. Kelly was a long time friend and his images of drag racing from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s are true classics of the sport. One other person I should mention is the loss of George Barris. While he wasn't a drag racer or owner, he was the self-proclaimed "King of the Customizers" If you grew up in the '60s and '70s, were into cars and TV, then you saw some of George's ideas grace the small and large screens of TV and movies. The Batmobile of the 1966 Batman TV Show was a Barris creation. The rock group the Monkees had their Monkeemobile on their TV show and of course, Herman Munster was at the wheel of the Barris designed and built Munster Koach while Grandpa Munster drove the Drag-U-La coffin shaped dragster. These wild creations all came from the imaginative mind of George Barris. I was fortunate to have worked with Barris on a few stories for Popular Hot Rodding during the 1980s as well as with Ed "Big Daddy" Roth before his death in 2001. All of these men touched the automotive industry in a unique and individual way and their passing is a time for us to remember their contributions to the world around us. If you wish to purchase prints of the photos below, they may be obtained by contacting us at breyes@reyesontour.com. Other photos may be viewed by following the link at the bottom of the page at www.reyesontour.com.
and took his fortune and went top fuel racing with old pals Tommy Allen and Steve Carbone. The Soapy Sales AA/FD was a fixture at NHRA national events and NHRA division seven racing. Carbone would drive the ex-Lucky Dodge (Soapy Sales AA/FD #2) for a short time. Then Carbone left to race his own top fuel car for about three years, only to return and drive the mid-engine Soapy Sales top fuel dragster.
Dave Beebe, Dave Uyehara and Richard Tharp driving Huff's Soapy Sales funny car. Beebe won his and Huff's only NHRA national event in the funny car at Columbus, Ohio in 1973.
pro stock. Huff drove his Mopar at NHRA, AHRA and IHRA events and won his fair share. Retiring from the driver's seat in the late seventies Huff returned for some driving fun in the retro Pure Hell AA/FA in 1991. Old friend Rich Guasco provided Huff's "comeback" into racing via the Hot Rod Reunions.
on the East Coast, Joe Lepone. This guy was good enough to be hand-picked by Bill Jenkins to spend time in the Grumpy's Toy pro stock car. Lepone won races for Jenkins and then went out on his own. He was a great talent in the world of pro stock and from what I understand, he was also a very funny guy.
coast to coast with this A/FX and super stock race cars. When pro stock came into play there was Platt fighting it out with Chevrolet and Mopars with his mighty Fords. He was never shy and always told it like it was, so some fans loved him and others hated him, but that was Hu Baby!
Nick's funny cars were rolling labs for his many innovations. His Raybestos clutches were some of the best in racing. Richard Harman, Pat Walsh and of course, R.C. Sherman, drove for Nick and his Raybestos/U.S. Male funny car line.
From the AA/GS class to fuel burning funny cars, was a trail blazed by Burgin. He really bloomed when he started his line of Orange Baron funny cars and he was a fan favorite wherever he raced.
He was at the controls of the Tocco and Harper AA/FA and put on a show wherever he raced in California. Garten came up from the AA/GS coupe ranks into the fuel altered class and then funny cars. The Tocco, Harper and Garten Warhorse was a cornerstone in Southern California funny car racing during the 1970s. Roger and the gang retired in 1976 to concentrate on their business and families. Then in the early '90s, their AA/FA was found and restored to a cacklefest car. Then in 2008 the team got the nostalgia funny car bug and by 2010, the Tocco, Harper and Garten's Warhorse was a regular at nostalgia funny events. The 69 year old Garten died June 28th as a result of a two car funny car crash at Bakersfield, California, on June 27th. RIP Roger.
wheel stander. Golden loved to perform for his fans and his fans loved him for it. Bill even went two wheel drive pulling in the 1980s with his Little Red Wagon Dodge Ram pick-up truck. Bill was quite the character and I will miss him.
When he drove in the late '60s and '70s, he was a fan favorite and a feared foe on the race track. I got to photograph Dave driving the Beebe Brothers and Sixt AA/FD, The Beebe Brothers Dodge Fever funny car, the Mr. Ed funny cars, Larry Huff's Soapy Sales funny car and Rich Guasco's Pure Hell funny car. Beebe did well in everything he drove but he would not tour. He wanted to stay close to his family.
With the passing of Jim Kelly, an era of incredible photo images has ended. Kelly was one of four photographers inducted in Drag Racing's Hall of Fame and I am the only remaining one living. Kelly joins Eric Rickman and Leslie Lovett in that photo area in the sky. RIP Kelly.
George brought the world the 1966 TV's Batmobile, the Munster Koach and Drag-U-LA coffin dragster. He and his brother Sam were a major force in bringing custom hot rods to the streets of Los Angeles. Our paths crossed at ISCA car shows (pictured with Bob Linevee Sr., president of ISCA) and I would venture down to his North Hollywood shop to do stories on cars he was building on his million dollar model car collection. Did you know Barris was a photographer? One of his early subjects was as starlet named Marilyn Monroe.
|
|
Ready to take your order at 1-800-230-3030 | Customer Service 1-800-517-1035