8 replies to this topic

[Ryan S.]

I was in Mexico last week, specifically Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo and we didn't know it, but the NORRA Baja 1000 was finishing up close to where were were staying. They had closed off some of the streets where they had the race routed and was actually pretty coo to see the variety of vehicles that were part of the race. I didn't get a lot of good pictures, but at one point while we were walking around, these guys were towing a broken Edsel that had been turned into an off road car. They were pretty busy taring the car apart to fix the problem so I didn't get a chance to talk to them, but I'm curious what made them choose this car of all of them to race. It was pretty cool.

[JunkPile]

It even looks cool on a tow-rope!

[James2]

I believe that to have been around a few year now, but I'm liken it and the chase truck too!

[Danno]

"Run whatcha got ..."



kewl pix

[JMD904]

Pretty darn cool! I think one of the bigger names like Parnelli Jones or somebody has a mid-late 60's Buick or Oldsmobile one year.

[ZTony8]

Parnelli Jones drove a Bronco for a couple years and the actor James Garner had a very modified '69 Olds Cutlass.

[DustyMojave]

The Edsel I believe was built originally by Bill Stroppe in the late 60s when an Edsel was considered a piece of junk.

 

At one offroad race at Barstow, the 1980 Fireworks 250, The start of the race followed the wedding of one Louise Van Trese (sp?) and Butch Gilliland. They were both veteran offroad racers and the Edsel was under the ownership of Louise who had been racing with her dad. They wore driver's suits for the wedding with white lace on her suit and his looked like a black Tux. The service was held at the Start/Finish line with the help of the race promoter. At the conclusion of the wedding, they donned helmets and got into the Edsel to start the race. When I lapped them later in the race in my unlimited class buggy seen in the avatar, they honked their horn and gave big waves.  I think they were enjoying themselves.

 

The class the Edsel was raced in was for production autos from VW Bugs to the Edsel, to a Chevy Nova, Camaro, Pinto, AMC Pacer, Datsun 510, a couple of very successful Saabs and even a 55 Chevy (later rebodied as a 57) and a Falcon Ranchero. After a while, the VW Bugs were banned because nothing could compete with them. The Edsel won some races after that. It was competitive in the class for quite a few years.

[Michigan Madman]

That's cool!

I'm diggin that weird hybrid first and second gen Ranger tow truck, too.

[blunc]

I think it's a new racing class where you have to tow a car through the whole course.