Connecting Highway

[cammer427]

Originally Posted by art leong

I came face to face with Dick Landy's "Pepsi Cola" Challenger. At the PRI show last December.
Vinnie Maida and I bought that car from Landy in 72 (I think) That was to be my first NHRA car. We were going to run it in C/Gas with a clutchflite and a "prostock" Hemi. And some street racing. We rented an open trailer. Towed to California from Brooklyn to pick it up with a slant six plymouth fury. I even got a bank loan for that car, Landy had to put a number on the car to satisfy the bank.
I never got that car finished.
I teamed up with Tex (Ray) on the 71 Charger, and the rest is history.

This one?

[mopar68]

Originally Posted by cammer427

What's the name of the racer who bought it from S&M? Where is it now? I always find it exciting to hear of ex-race cars that were purchased by street racers... especially when they're still around and haven't been crushed and melted into a fleet of tea pots and toasters.

Well, I don't know the name of the racer who bought Sox & Martin's Road Runner after the 1969 season but do know for sure Eric Petosa from Staten Island, NY owned it by the late 1970s. The then 19-year-old's car was featured in an 1979 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. The kid had money...in fact, I saw him in Staten Island one night (circa 1987) as he drove past us with a white Lamborghini with his surname on the license plate. Having said that, I believe this is also one of the Petosa's who campaigned the Petosa Bros. funnycar back in the early 1990s with driver Mark Oswald behind the (butterfly steering) wheel.



M68

[mopar68]

Originally Posted by art leong

I came face to face with Dick Landy's "Pepsi Cola" Challenger. At the PRI show last December.
Vinnie Maida and I bought that car from Landy in 72 (I think) That was to be my first NHRA car. We were going to run it in C/Gas with a clutchflite and a "prostock" Hemi. And some street racing. We rented an open trailer. Towed to California from Brooklyn to pick it up with a slant six plymouth fury. I even got a bank loan for that car, Landy had to put a number on the car to satisfy the bank.
I never got that car finished.
I teamed up with Tex (Ray) on the 71 Charger, and the rest is history.

Wow, Art...you've really been around. Thanks for sharing that history.

M68

[hemicop]

Funny someone should mention NHRA's classification system---- I always thought it didn't allow for street cars, that AHRA did a better job for that. Kinda hard to picture a 3800lb Chevelle being put into Gas just'cause it had some engine mods & slicks. Truth be told told, that's probably what pushed so many guys onto the street.

[mopar68]

Originally Posted by Paul Ceasrine

Hey, don't forget.
'Don't Cook Tonite, Call Chicken Delight'

Hey, I remember that commercial!

M68

[mopar68]

Originally Posted by hemicop

Funny someone should mention NHRA's classification system---- I always thought it didn't allow for street cars, that AHRA did a better job for that. Kinda hard to picture a 3800lb Chevelle being put into Gas just'cause it had some engine mods & slicks. Truth be told told, that's probably what pushed so many guys onto the street.

Some of the most popular supercars on the street were non-competitive in NHRA Stock and Super Stock racing. For example: 383 Road Runners and 400 cu.in. GTO's. Tons of them on the street--near zero at the Nationals.

And classifying street cars with the usual hi-po speed parts added to them to run against purpose-built race cars really was short-sighted and counterproductive on their part.

M68

[cammer427]

You know, now that I think of it I recall reading about someone pulling into a popular Brooklyn or Queens street racing haunt back in the late-'60s or early-'70s with one of Dick Landy's cars on a trailer. Can't remember if that was an article or a post.

[cammer427]

Art, did you not finish the Challenger because you teamed up with Tex on the Charger, or was it because of other projects on the go?

[hemicop]

Originally Posted by cammer427

You know, now that I think of it I recall reading about someone pulling into a popular Brooklyn or Queens street racing haunt back in the late-'60s or early-'70s with one of Dick Landy's cars on a trailer. Can't remember if that was an article or a post.

As I recall it was an article in Car Craft Magizine about NYC streetracing. I think the story was how Landy was in town for a race at NY Nat'l. and the streetrace had gone off near JFK Airport---can't remember who he was racing against, though but I vaguely remember something about Brooklyn Heavy possibly running him...

[cammer427]

Originally Posted by hemicop

As I recall it was an article in Car Craft Magizine about NYC streetracing. I think the story was how Landy was in town for a race at NY Nat'l. and the streetrace had gone off near JFK Airport---can't remember who he was racing against, though but I vaguely remember something about Brooklyn Heavy possibly running him...

I don't think I've read that Car Craft article, but an event like that I'm sure would have been mentioned elsewhere too. Did the article mention that Dick himself raced one of his cars against someone near JFK? That would be pretty wild if that did occur. You hear of many pros in the league of Sox and Landy doing some street racing before they went pro, but never doing it while or after that (except for the NYC guys, of course ... seems it's in their blood), so it's interesting to hear of them "cutting loose" like that!

I'm not entirely sure where Heavy did most of his off-track racing, but if he was involved, and it was near JFK, it was most likely 150th/South Conduit. The Mutt Bros, Levi Holmes and I think Tab Talmadge raced there (the Mutt Bros raced there almost exclusively). Heavy knew those guys (Ronald Lyles & Levi even shoed some of Heavy's cars professionally) so it wouldn't be surprising.