Meadowdale mayhem, 1962
#101
Posted 28 November 2009 - 14:44
Tom
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#102
Posted 30 April 2010 - 20:48
http://images.google.....q=source:life
#103
Posted 30 April 2010 - 22:15
The race pictured is from September, 1958. That was an SCCA Regional, won by Chuck Daigh in a Scarab. In 1959 there were no SCCA races at Meadowdale.As you may know, you can search the Life Magazine photo archive via Google Image search. The archive has a number of high resolution photos of the 1959 SCCA race, taken by Frank Scherschel, that I'm sure would interest TNF. Enjoy!
http://images.google.....q=source:life
Tom
#104
Posted 30 April 2010 - 22:20
OH for the day when men were allowed to act like men and kids were allowed to act like kids; do that nowadays and you will be in asininely horrendus trouble.In post #30 is a picture of the Meister Brau pit tractor. I have included a photo of Harry Heuer ( I believe) driving my brothers and sister around at meadowdale back in the day on that tractor. Enjoy, John Scott.
Wonderful picture though, takes me back to my yout, and all its youtful danger.
#105
Posted 01 May 2010 - 00:26
The race pictured is from September, 1958. That was an SCCA Regional, won by Chuck Daigh in a Scarab. In 1959 there were no SCCA races at Meadowdale.
Tom
What about May 1959????:
And July 1959????
#106
Posted 01 May 2010 - 00:27
The race pictured is from September, 1958. That was an SCCA Regional, won by Chuck Daigh in a Scarab. In 1959 there were no SCCA races at Meadowdale.
Tom
Tom, If it was the race Chuck Daigh won it was the opener, first race at meadowdale.
Chuck never ran the Scarab again at meadowdale...
ZOOOM
#107
Posted 01 May 2010 - 18:16
The race pictured is from September, 1958. That was an SCCA Regional, won by Chuck Daigh in a Scarab. In 1959 there were no SCCA races at Meadowdale.
Tom
Both those events were USAC races, not SCCA. USAC ran three weekends at Meadowdale in 1959, SCCA did not run any that year.What about May 1959????:
And July 1959????
Yes, the race pictured is the SCCA Regional in Sept. 1958. It was the inaugural race at Meadowdale and was won by Chuck Daigh in a Scarab. Zooom is right about that being Daigh's only Scarab appearance there.Tom, If it was the race Chuck Daigh won it was the opener, first race at meadowdale.
Chuck never ran the Scarab again at meadowdale...
ZOOOM
Tom
Edited by RA Historian, 02 May 2010 - 01:04.
#108
Posted 05 May 2010 - 18:16
Pasted below is a link to four pictures from the 10/61 race at Meadowdale --the top one is of my dad's car (#85) on the "Monza Corner." The bottom photo features my dad verses Bob Spooner in his (Spooner that is) famous "Purple People Eater" (#33).
http://dicklang.blog...dowdale-il.html
But I'm not sure about this photo. I'm pretty sure it is Meadowdale, but do you experts agree? Dick Lang's Corvette (#85) vs. a very cool Cooper Monaco (#44).
Edited by Fez, 05 May 2010 - 18:28.
#109
Posted 05 May 2010 - 19:12
The rest are probably taken from the outside of Doanes Hairpin.
The last big picture is from somewhere else as the cars are going in the wrong direction for the "Monza Wall". It can't be the little Monza either because the little Monza had concrete walls...
ZOOOM
#110
Posted 05 May 2010 - 19:39
One minor clarification. Bob Spooner bought a racing Corvette from Nickey Chevrolet, but to be very precise, it was no longer the "Purple People Eater". That was the Nickey Corvette raced by Jim Jeffords to two National Championships in 1958 and 1959. While Spooner did have one of those cars after Nickey, very technically it was no longer the "Purple People Eater" because that designation was the property of Nickey Chevrolet. I know, I know, nits are being picked...
Tom
Edited by RA Historian, 05 May 2010 - 19:41.
#111
Posted 05 May 2010 - 19:46
Yes indeed. When you stop to think about it, it is somewhat remarkable that a government entity is actually preserving an old/obsolete/out of service race track rather than just having the land sold off to some developer for yet another strip mall of one sort or another. This does not happen very often, I dare say.
Tom
Just south of the track there are tons of stores and a mall - so no worries about a build up.
#112
Posted 05 May 2010 - 21:48
The first picture of the vettes is definitely on the "Monza".
The rest are probably taken from the outside of Doanes Hairpin.
The last big picture is from somewhere else as the cars are going in the wrong direction for the "Monza Wall". It can't be the little Monza either because the little Monza had concrete walls...
ZOOOM
Thanks for the info. Dad told me that the last big picture was of Daytona, but that didn't make a ton of sense to me since they race clockwise there.
#113
Posted 06 May 2010 - 00:32
In the first few years the sports cars ran clockwise at Daytona. After that, and continuing to this day, they run counter clockwise.Thanks for the info. Dad told me that the last big picture was of Daytona, but that didn't make a ton of sense to me since they race clockwise there.
Tom
#114
Posted 06 May 2010 - 00:40
In the May/June issue of Vintage Motorsport. just received, there is a several page article on Meadowdale. It is an overview of the track's eleven year life, and not a race history as such. Informative as to the origins of the track and its ultimate demise. Interesting, with just a couple items in the text that require a slight correction. However, the photo captions leave a lot to be desired, as several of the pictures grossly misidentify cars and drivers. A case where a quick look over by a historian (they used to use Jim Sitz, but apparently no longer do) would have caught these obvious errors.
Tom
#115
Posted 06 May 2010 - 08:56
Great thread --I love reading all this history.
Pasted below is a link to four pictures from the 10/61 race at Meadowdale --the top one is of my dad's car (#85) on the "Monza Corner." The bottom photo features my dad verses Bob Spooner in his (Spooner that is) famous "Purple People Eater" (#33).
http://dicklang.blog...dowdale-il.html
But I'm not sure about this photo. I'm pretty sure it is Meadowdale, but do you experts agree? Dick Lang's Corvette (#85) vs. a very cool Cooper Monaco (#44).
This is Daytona on january 28, 1962. The Cooper Monaco is W. Bowman's, on his way to a DNF. It has already been touched here : http://forums.autosp...w...0&start=160
#116
Posted 07 May 2010 - 04:41
Do you know what year his Corvette is in these pictures? Is it a '61 as the race was in '61, or did he use a slightly older car?Great thread --I love reading all this history.
Pasted below is a link to four pictures from the 10/61 race at Meadowdale --the top one is of my dad's car (#85) on the "Monza Corner." The bottom photo features my dad verses Bob Spooner in his (Spooner that is) famous "Purple People Eater" (#33).
http://dicklang.blog...dowdale-il.html
#117
Posted 07 May 2010 - 05:17
Do you know what year his Corvette is in these pictures? Is it a '61 as the race was in '61, or did he use a slightly older car?
If you're talking about the #85 Corvette, it looks like a '61 to me.
Vince H.
#118
Posted 07 May 2010 - 14:03
That's what I'm thinking tooIf you're talking about the #85 Corvette, it looks like a '61 to me.
Vince H.
#119
Posted 09 October 2012 - 16:57
I went to Raceway Woods with my two boys yesterday and took a few pictures that I'll post here when I can.
But before I do, does anyone know anything about the silo itself? There was a sign near it that says build date is unknown, but it appears in an aerial photo taken in 1939. I can't find this picture online anywhere.