CRG Discussion Forum
Model Specific Discussions => Trans-Am Camaros => Topic started by: SMKZ28 on January 16, 2020, 03:25:24 PM
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The Revs Digital Library recently added a bunch of photos of the Trans Am 500 held at Watkins Glen International Speedway in Watkins Glen, New York on June 16, 1973. I know that 1973 was a year after the classic years of the Trans Am series, but there are five photos showing the #78 1969 Camaro driven by frequent contributor to this forum, Robert Barg and his co-driver Richard Stevens.
Click on the following links to use the magnifying tools for each corresponding photo:
1) https://library.revsinstitute.org/digital/custom/single-image?id=599367&collection=p17257coll1
2) https://library.revsinstitute.org/digital/custom/single-image?id=598091&collection=p17257coll1
3) https://library.revsinstitute.org/digital/custom/single-image?id=597037&collection=p17257coll1
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Here are two more.
1) https://library.revsinstitute.org/digital/custom/single-image?id=596784&collection=p17257coll1
2) https://library.revsinstitute.org/digital/custom/single-image?id=598490&collection=p17257coll1
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Souvenir program images from here: https://www.racingsportscars.com/race/Watkins_Glen-1973-06-17.html
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Here is a color picture of the car at Mosport in 1973. Frequent contributer Mike Scott from Canada sent them to Jon Mello several years ago and it was posted in the following thread: http://www.camaros.org/forum/index.php?topic=7779.180
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Another picture found on Flickr. It was obviously taken in a warm state, notice the palm trees. Daytona, Florida perhaps?
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Great looking car, is it still around Scott? As well as the extensive flaring of the quarters/fenders, wonder why the park/turn signal holes in the lower valance were filled....
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This is a front end picture of the Camaro I bought back in the mid-70's. Never was a Trans Am car, but according to the documentation I received, it was built using the Chevrolet recommended approach. Came with a notebook with a lot of drawings and Xerox copies of pages of specs and pictures. The parking light openings had been sealed on it, as well.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/4439/36114932943_71e8a08e8a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/X2mtkD)Front-1 (https://flic.kr/p/X2mtkD) by Jim Forte (https://www.flickr.com/photos/157859435@N04/), on Flickr
Wish I hadn't sold it and lost track of it.
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Jim Forte: We've talked about your ex-car before; that's Bob Mitchell's old car. Bob was an engineer; he and I worked together at the Army Missile Command (McMorrow Labs) several years in the mid-late '70's. After finding out he'd sold the car to a Bud Johnson in TN, I tried for a long time to track it down.
HE immediately converted it for SCCA racing. He ordered/purchased that car *new* with the JL8 package (which is what I wanted) and raced it for a few years. He and another Bob (Christiansen) were both friends and bought new '69 Z28's and immediately converted them for SCCA road racing, and both Bobs did race in TransAm many times. They drove the Bolus and Snopes car several times, and several other cars in TransAm road racing over the years. Later on they both built cars and competed in the IMSA series. I participated in Bob's crew at Road Atlanta in the late 70's. In the early 80's (I think), Bob Mitchell was on the driving team along with Cale Yarborough and a couple of other famous drivers and went to LeMans one year.
https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/photo/Bob-Mitchell-USA.html
https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/photo/Bob-Christiansen-USA.html
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This is a front end picture of the Camaro I bought back in the mid-70's. Never was a Trans Am car, but according to the documentation I received, it was built using the Chevrolet recommended approach. Came with a notebook with a lot of drawings and Xerox copies of pages of specs and pictures. The parking light openings had been sealed on it, as well.
Wish I hadn't sold it and lost track of it.
What a great looking car - thanks for posting that. I'm a newcomer to this area of the forum, but will be catching up as time permits.
On the park/turn housing covers, quite a few old racers down here used the hole to duct air over to cool the front brakes, so I wondered about these cars having them filled in. Maybe not permitted by race rules in that category?
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Great looking car, is it still around Scott? As well as the extensive flaring of the quarters/fenders, wonder why the park/turn signal holes in the lower valance were filled....
I'm not sure Tim. Jon Mello would know if it's still around or not. Perhaps Jon or even Robert Barg will chime in and let us know.
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Interesting that when in the Bolus and Snopes configuration (per the picture), my car had both the parking lights open as well as ducts in the front spoiler.
As you can see in my picture, we planned to duct front brake cooling through the front bumper bracket holes.
By the time I acquired the car (1975-76), SCCA A-Sedan rules allowed us to use any natural openings as ducts. The metal work closing the parking lights was so well executed that I hated to disturb it.
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Not totally up on all the SCCA rules but pictures from 1969 show that the Penske Camaros employed the smoothed out turn signal area from the very first Trans Am race of the 1969 season at Michigan International Speedway. Pictures are from the CRG T/A thread on this race: http://www.camaros.org/forum/index.php?topic=8328.0
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Robert Barg is having troubles accessing the forum but here's what he said to me today about the red #78 Camaro above...
"That 69 Camaro which Rick purchased from Alfie in 72, was originally thought to have been the Mo Carter Camaro, but then we learned that it was also built in the Mo Carter shop, maybe from a Firebird shell? Rick raced it in the Mosport Carter charity unofficial T/A race in 72 but was DNF. Also in 72 I teamed up with him (built a Chev ramp truck) and we raced it in 3 Camel GT races in the (2-5L) class, which Bishop had kept for ex T/A racers - had 3 3rds in that class. I raced in the 73 Lime Rock T/A but the engine blew - cobbled another engine together for the 73 Glen T/A which was red/flagged near the end because of rain and fog and the race finish reverted back to the previous lap. We came in for fuel and put on rains, but got caught out in the scoring and some reports said we were DNF, but not so - was passing lots of cars in the rain when red/flagged, but the scoring people missed our pit stop before the start/finish line.
Rick had business commitments later that year and this car was sold to Leon Alain in PQ (he was a previous T/A racer in a 68 Camaro).
Don't know if Leon ever raced it, but it was apparently burned up in a garage fire - don't know what happened to the remains - had some contact with him a long time ago."
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Robert, don't know if you're still having problems posting, Is this the same car ? my files say Alain, Three Rivers, Quebec Sept. 1 '74.
If it is, I have a few more shots I can post
Think I found this on the Autocourse.ca site, it was a while ago.
Mike
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Robert is still having trouble getting on the forum but told me via email "Rick says it is the same car."