OFFICIAL 1970-1989 RACING PHOTO THREAD

Just remembered the story and added it to the post. As you get older, memory fails. Add to that two incredible rear end collisions I have dealt with in 4 years, and one's thoughts get jumbled up.

Now, none of my friends will ride with me in my car. :{

 

OK, last photo for tonight.

In earlier years when more manufacturers were involved in NASCAR than just Chevy, Ford, Toyota, and Dodge; like Buick, Pontiac, Plymouth, even American Motors, these manufactureres would rent Daytona in January for a period before the 500 for testing.

So I was asked to go to go during the week that Buick had the track, something about a new race magazine, get a cover shot of Bobby Allison. In his car. OK.

Allison's crew chief for the Miller Beer Buick was the best cheater at that time in NASCAR, Gary Nelson. So good that NASCAR made him VP in charge of tech. I mean fuel supply in the roll bar, body formed to be aerodynamic but still meet the templates. Only Smokey Yunick was better, and if you do not know who Smokey Yunick is, you are missing the best race car builder bar none in all of racing history. If he built F1's, they would destroy the competition. He was the ultimate in reading rule books. Used to say, "says you can't do this, but it doesn't say you can't do that". His coup was a Chevelle that was 3/4 the size of the actual Chevelle yet still met the templates, and when it flipped over at Charlotte with Curtiss Turner driving, the bottom was flatter than a current F1 car. NASCAR changed the rules immediately.

Back to Allison at Daytona. I asked Gary if I could get into Bobby's car and go up pit lane. There was enough contrast in the sky that no one could tell we were on pit lane and not on the track. He said he would ask Bobby.

Bobby agreed. The start of my skid mark underwear day.

So I climb into the Miller Buick passenger side, no seat of course, no seat belts. Remember the earlier story in thei post about the young dumb asses on turn one of Michigan International? I am one of them. Here I go again. I sit on the floor pan, three cameras each with different lenses. So Bobby starts up pit lane, I am happily shooting away, then he looks at me with an SEG (s*** eating grin), and suddenly, I hear a loud bang, and the car feels like we are gong upside down.

He decides to scare the bejesus out of me and go for a spin around Daytona. Up those 31 degree banks. The g forces keep me from looking out the windshield, but I can see out the back window. Now I am getting nervous, really nervous, I fidget with my cameras, and oh crap, I knock the lenses off of two of them. So with the one camera I am shooting photos of Bobby Allison while I am pressed on the floor of the Miller Buick going around Daytona at speed. The shot below is the one I kept. Vertical because it was intended to be the cover shot of what ever magazine for which I was shooting.

As we left the back straight, which for me that day was way too long and never ending, I looked at Bobby, motioned for him to give the thumbs sign which he did, thinking afterwards we were somewhere between turns 3 and 4 and he is driving with one hand? Later I was told we were doing well over 160mph.

So Allison is laughing at this time, at my expense. We pull into the pits, Nelson walks up to the car laughing to help me out and asks if I am OK. I tried to be cool and told him yes but I did not bring a change of underwear. Again laughter at my expense. The NASCAR officials at that time of the series were usually old guys, friends of Bill France. They came over and started a lecture about how what Bobby did was against the rules, and how I was not strapped in, and all they got in return was a big smile from Allison and Nelson. Seeing that was worth the experience.

There are great race driver personalities, Bobby Allison is one of them. He lost two sons to the sport.

Two years ago, I finally told this story publically to Bobby's brother Donnie at a book signing. More laughter. At the story or at me?
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I am feeling a little alone here. Or is it I am a bit old here and no one else remembers? There has got to more of you with photos from this wonderful period of motorsports?

Please, start posting, would love to see more photos.

 

Jasen, you are quite good at photography, in a few years, they will be hiring you. All I can tell you is that you do not become a race photog for the money, it is absolutely for the love of the sport. To be able to be in the pits and stand next to a Stewart (Jackie not Tony), a Revson, a real Bruce McLaren, a Jim Hall, a Fireball Roberts (I was only 2), and an AJ Foyt, even a complete jerk like Salt Walther, was worth every aching muscle and 12 hour drive.

I hope for you someday you will show us your photos of the next few WDC's (Massa of course) and currently young drivers like Piquet, Senna, etc. Your reward will not be money, but to be so fortunate to be able to tell stories like I can.

Geez, just being able to remember is a good thing. Thank God I can still get erections. I mean like in those building sets, of course.
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Long Beach when it was F1:
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Yes, he drove the Lola for some time, but anyone out there with a better memory help me. I know Jackie drove Jim Hall's car in one or two races, I thought the one at Mid-Ohio was with the Chaparral. The photo below is not mine, but it is Jackie in the vacuum cleaner, aka sucker car, at Watkins Glen in 1970:
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Michael, thank for pointing out that photo was of Giles. I have to get that printed and framed. We were each assigned certain drivers to be sure there photgraphs of all of them. I usually got Andretti, Lauda, Hunt, and Jackie Stewart. I wish I had asked for GV.

The only Long Beach stories I can remember tonight concern a young lady in one of those black jump suits and that is personal. I do remember that I never liked the setting.

OK, all the Long Beach I can find for now together (is #11 Reuteman?):
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I was at Watkins Glen the year the "boggies" hijacked a double decker bus full of Brazilian tourist's luggage, and drove the bus into The Bog. At that point, since the bus was stuck in the mud, it was torched, as those were the rules of The Bog.

If you do not know what "The Bog" is, let me explain. It was an area in the infield that perpetually was a muddy bog. The tradition was if a drunken Glen camper ("boggie" - pronounced boh ghee) drove their car into the bog an they could not get out, the car was destroyed in a heathen ceremony on Saturday night.

So this one year , they decided hijacking a tour bus was a good idea. When they were done, the next morning the bus was on its top, but no, about 36" tall. Glen management ended The Bog tradition the following year.

A Watkins Glen rainy start (James Hunt leading):
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Thanks for asking Dale. Doing OK, can play the key boards, a little tough to write, but everything happens for a reason. Just can't figure this one out yet. ;}

 

Kurt, beautiful photos. The only California races I attended was Long Beach when it was F1, and Ontario when they had the F1/Indy car event, I forgot the name, something like Quest GP?? I wasn't old enough to drive when I got my first assignment, sort of faked the age, it was a TransAm race at MidOhio where this silly silver Pontiac GTO taught the factory teams a few lessons.

Some kids wanted alcohol, I wanted the smell of gasoline! I was just out of high school when I started this full time in the summers, so not really getting paid to stand next to my favorite drivers was absolutely OK.

More photos please.