Author Topic: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???  (Read 15307 times)

satman

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Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« on: March 31, 2014, 11:56:14 PM »
      With the majority of the teams racing in the Trans-Am series being independents I think not enough credit has been given to the unsung heroes who soldiered on in inferior cars, prepared by underfunded teams for little or no compensation
 
     Perhaps our members could reveal their favorite Drivers and why... In deference to my two drivers Robert Barg and Dick Hoffman who did more with less than anyone I know and in all fairness to  others I will go outside my own team for my choice and pick one of the most exciting drivers ever to race in the Trans Am.

I will not divulge this drivers name but a very big clue is the car he drove pictured below ...............

1968RSZ28

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #1 on: April 01, 2014, 12:39:49 AM »
I will not divulge this drivers name but a very big clue is the car he drove pictured below ...............

That's Bob Tullius driving the Gray Ghost, a 1964 Pontiac Tempest.   :)

Paul

satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #2 on: April 01, 2014, 01:01:35 AM »
Right you are Paul ................. Some people might not realize that the car started life as a daily driver, with over 80,000 miles on the odometer when they turned it into a race car ....

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #3 on: April 01, 2014, 03:00:07 AM »
Al, Bob Tullius is kind of a cheater pick because he was also a factory driver for Dodge earlier and sort of a quasi-factory driver for Javelin in '69. He even was in consideration for one of the Mopar factory contracts for 1970. I always liked him. He was a real character. Below my younger brother and I are getting autographs from Bob, Kas Kastner and (I think) Carl Swanson at the '71 Road America Trans-Am. I'm on the far left.
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satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #4 on: April 01, 2014, 03:32:32 AM »
Jon that's a really neat photo ...... You make a valid point but watching Bob drive the wheels off that 6 year old grocery getter was almost unbelievable ........... Does this mean I am disqualified ??? 

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #5 on: April 01, 2014, 03:38:39 AM »
Al, you're not disqualified but you have to start from the back row on the grid.  ;D

Pick again.
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satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #6 on: April 01, 2014, 01:57:43 PM »
        Jon no problem for me I am used to that ................... My alternate driver will be Rusty Jowett, in my opinion a bit of a spoiled brat but none the less a very steady driver.

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #7 on: April 02, 2014, 12:19:51 AM »
Al, Rusty had a very good record as an independent. So did Craig Fisher in '68 when he was running the Firebird and in the early '70s, Warren Agor and Mo Carter did very well as independents. I think I like Dick Guldstrand both for his driving ability and his outgoing and fun-loving personality. I'm also biased and partial to the former driver of my Camaro, Johnny Moore.
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satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #8 on: April 02, 2014, 02:25:01 AM »
  Jon, That is a pretty stout group of drivers you have there....... Mo Carter was probably the biggest character on your list, Sam Posey once wrote in a magazine article that he looked like a bank manager till he got behind the wheel then he turned into an animal . One of my crew went on to work for Mo and told me about a race out west where Mo had a coolant leak and drove the car till the $20,000 ZL1 aluminum block melted rather come in for water....... In my opinion Mo was a charter member of the more money than brains club.

69Z28-RS

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #9 on: April 02, 2014, 02:49:28 AM »
I'm *partial* to my two engineer friends who both ran '69 Z28's (and other cars) in T/A and IMSA later....   Bob Christianson (R.A.C.E.), and Bob Mitchell.   Both both new '69 Z28s and converted them immediately for SCCA racing, and ran in several eastern and southern TA races.
09C 69Z28-RS, 72 B 720 cowl console rosewood tint
69 Corvette, '60 Corvette, '72 Corvette
90 ZR1 red/red #246, 90 ZR1 white/gray #2466
72 El Camino, '55-'56-'57 Nomads, '55-'57 B/A Sedan

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #10 on: April 02, 2014, 03:07:47 AM »
Al, classic shot of Mo. Thanks for posting. He's probably still got the gas pedal nailed to the floor.

Hey Gary, I think one or both of the Bob's you mention ran at Sebring back in the early '70s. If you have contact with them, can you ask if they ran dry sump oiling at Daytona or Sebring in that '71-'72 timeframe that has been asked about in this thread... http://www.camaros.org/forum/index.php?topic=11961.0;all

Thank you!
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69Z28-RS

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #11 on: April 02, 2014, 03:55:26 AM »
I sent Bob Christianson an email; no longer sure how to contact Bob Mitchell... but I can dig around a little..
09C 69Z28-RS, 72 B 720 cowl console rosewood tint
69 Corvette, '60 Corvette, '72 Corvette
90 ZR1 red/red #246, 90 ZR1 white/gray #2466
72 El Camino, '55-'56-'57 Nomads, '55-'57 B/A Sedan

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #12 on: April 02, 2014, 01:22:59 PM »
Great! Thanks for doing that.
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JoeC

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #13 on: April 02, 2014, 02:33:08 PM »
many great drivers mentioned

I would like to throw in Don Yenko since I am a big fan of his

he ran about 6 TA races in 1969,  didn't do very well however he won the
Citrus 250 NASCAR Grand Touring at Daytona Speed week 1969.

 NASCAR held the first ever 250 race featuring the TRANS AM cars and the NASCAR GT cars. They ran on a 3.81 mile road course using turns 3 and 4 of the high banked oval. All types of  drivers entered from USAC, NASCAR, and SCCA, including some big names such as Parnelli Jones, Bob Tullius, and Peter Gregg. Don Y was fastest qualifier and sat on the pole.

Parnelli was fast in his new Mustang but had some problems.

After Don took the checker flag he stopped and  picked up his pit crew.  They climbed on his Camaro and all drove to Victory Lane. This is from a race report in Stock Car Racing magazine May 69.

 In the text they state the car is a 1969 Camaro but its Don's blue and white 68 Camaro racecar in the pictures.
It was a big win for a private team since Don was not a regular in NASCAR GT and not a top team in TA

1 1 Don Yenko 11 1969 Chevrolet Camaro 67 4,500 running
2 5 Rusty Jowett 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 66 2,700 running
3 23 Larry Wallace 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 64 1,850
4 14 Seiichi Suzuki 1968 Mercury Cougar 64 1,000
5 18 Peter Gregg 1968 Porsche 911 63 800
6 10 Bob Tullius 94 1969 AMC Javelin 62 700
7 Wilbur Pickett 1967 Porsche 911 61 650
8 3 Larry Bock 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 60 600
9 Al Straub 1969 Ford Mustang 59 550
10 15 Jack Ryan 1967 Porsche 911 59 500
11 16 C.B. Gwyn 1968 Mercury Cougar 59 450
12 25 William Lowell 1968 Ford Mustang 58 400
13 8 Richard Childress 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 57 350
14 26 T.C. Hunt 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 56 300
15 24 Les Covey 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 54 250
16 Dennis Wherrell 1967 Alfa Romeo 52 200
17 27 Bill Hemby 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 51 190
18 29 Frank Sessoms 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 50 180
19 17 Ken Rush 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 49 170
20 13 Billy Yuma 1968 Chevrolet Camaro 49 160
 6 Don White 3 1969 AMC Javelin 22 head gasket
 2 Parnelli Jones 1969 Ford Mustang transmission
 4 John Martin 4 1969 AMC Javelin push rod
 7 Lloyd Ruby 1969 Chevrolet Camaro engine
 9 Joie Chitwood Jr. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
 11 Charlie Blanton 1969 Chevrolet Camaro
 12 Jim Paschal 27 1969 AMC Javelin oil pressure
 19 Jim Murphy 1968 Chevrolet Camaro
 20 Buck Baker 1967 Chevrolet Camaro
 21 Ernie Shaw 1968 Ford Mustang
 22 Ed Hinchcliff 1968 Ford Mustang
 28 Richard Crebs 1967 Alfa Romeo
 30 Bobby Mausgrover 1967 Plymouth Barracuda
 31 Joe Childress 1968 Chevrolet Camaro
 32 Ed Hessert 1969 AMC Javelin
 33 Johnny Lawrence 1969 Fiat

Jon, did you ask Warren D. about the dry slump? He worked on Yenko's ZL1 powered 69 Camaro they ran at Sebring in 69&70

oldtransamdriver

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #14 on: April 03, 2014, 07:52:51 PM »
Here are 2 more guys to add to this list - Warren Tope and Paul Nichter.

Robert Barg

satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #15 on: April 03, 2014, 10:43:28 PM »
                      Hey Bob how would you know you were too busy backing down escape roads to see what was happening on the track (LOL) !!!

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #16 on: April 04, 2014, 01:40:14 AM »
Jon, did you ask Warren D. about the dry slump? He worked on Yenko's ZL1 powered 69 Camaro they ran at Sebring in 69&70

Joe, I have not asked Warren about that. The 427 car falls into a different class than the 5 liter cars so I'm not sure that it would be comparing apples to apples.
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oldtransamdriver

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #17 on: April 04, 2014, 03:55:57 PM »
Yes, the famous 71 Lime Rock rain race, the escape road at the end of the front straight - first time it happened I was "moved over" in very poor visibility but no problem to
get back on the track - it was an "anxious moment  The next two times I must have gotten braver with late braking into one.

I'm sure Al was having a heart attack in the pits during my "excursions".

Robert Barg

satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #18 on: April 04, 2014, 07:55:39 PM »
      Yes I think your right Bob that was the day where I pulled you aside before the start of the race to explain  that  the check I had written to Goodyear for new rain tires wouldn't clear unless we did well in race ............ Anyway our little chat must have worked because that day you had an awesome drive in very nasty conditions .

AL

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #19 on: April 04, 2014, 10:32:27 PM »
At least when he went off the track it was on the escape road. A whole bunch of other guys didn't have it so lucky in that race.

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satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #20 on: April 04, 2014, 11:53:40 PM »
              Yes we were lucky and as your image clearly shows the weather that day was atrocious, but  unfortunately we were pitted at far end front straight so we had front row seats to Bobs numerous off track excursions.
   
      Next to Bobs driving for me the other high-lite that weekend getting to meet Chris Economaki  "The Dean of American Motorsports." ......... Chris was the track announcer that weekend and he made it a point to take the time to introduce himself to all the teams that were racing that weekend, which I thought as a very thoughtful gesture.

AL

1968RSZ28

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #21 on: April 05, 2014, 12:02:09 AM »


A race car with deluxe interior?!?!

Paul

Jon Mello

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #22 on: April 05, 2014, 01:54:32 AM »
Deluxe door panels anyway. The T/G Firebirds had deluxe door panels also.

More '71 Lime Rock photos here... https://www.flickr.com/photos/thehenryford/page89/
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Trans Åm

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #23 on: April 15, 2014, 04:22:22 AM »
I'm voting for this not because I know what I'm talking about, but rather because he's in one of my most favorite T/A cars. In fact, I don't even know if it was Trans Am or some other class.

Milt Minter; driving the successor to the Gray Ghost Tempest seen up top and built by Herb Adams Racing Associates, it was the "last hurrah" for Pontiacs 303 RAV/Super Duty program, and he was part of it. This car famously/infamously holds the record for the best finish Pontiac ever achieved in a series it made such a timeless name from.

(I hope I got all of my facts strait)

Nick

satman

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Re: Favorite Independent Trans-Am Driver ???
« Reply #24 on: April 16, 2014, 12:43:02 AM »
I like your pick Milt was an awesome driver .......

AL