![]() Owner, Mal Hooper himself built it with the help of Herb Francis. (Special) streamliner– the body was made of fiberglass over a plaster handmade mold. The crew has winning on the brain– right down to the badass checkered-flag socks. Streamliner powered by Le Blanc’s Speed Engineering– Bonneville Salt Flats, 1954. The largest streamliner to race at that time, powered by Le Blanc’s Speed Engineering, and judging by the word “plastic” on the side, most likely sports a plastic body - Bonneville Salt Flats, 1954. “Streamliners” like the one here were a Bonneville Salt Flats design innovation that pushed speeds ever higher– reaching 200 mph and beyond. In 1960, Thompson achieved international fame at the Bonneville Salt Flats when he became the first American to break the 400 mph barrier– hitting 406.60 mph surpassing John Cobb’s previous land speed record of 402 mph. Racing legend Mickey Thompson’s twin engine 200 mph dragster at Bonneville, 1954. Without missing a beat, Chet focused his racing know-how towards engine performance and became a legendary and ground-breaking innovator– he developed the first roller camshafts, was among the first to use nitromethane fuel after reading about how the Germans used it to power torpedoes in World War II, and developed a header that blew smoke away from a dragster’s rear tires to improve traction.Ĭhet Herbert, a former racer himself, supervises from his wheelchair as they prepare to start his car at Bonneville– September, 1953. Chet’s racing career was ended in 1948, when polio left him confined to a wheelchair. Oh yeah– pinstriping on this bad boy by Von Dutch.Ĭhet Herbert’s streamlined speed machine at Bonneville, 1954. After returning home from WWII, Isky resumed racing and started grinding cams in his garage, more of an art than a science in those days, and they became one of the top performance cams around. “The Outcast”– based on other old pics I’ve seen, this hot rod may have belonged to Ed “Isky” Iskederian– also known as “The Camfather.” Isky started racing at Bonneville back in 1950, and soon became a legend. ![]() ![]() Racing for bragging rights and a record, and not much more. The Bonneville Salt Flats speed meet, 1954.* This one’s sportin’ a rear-mounted engine. Photos by J R Eyerman.Ĭommonly called a “Lakester”– these open-wheeled, tank bodied dragsters were first raced on dry lake beds before the SCTA scene made the move to the Bonneville Salt Flats. There’s also some great video w/insightful commentary at the end– if you can survive the xylophone noodling in the background… Definitely born too late, I was. Great speed machines, as well as that classic 1950’s style– good grooming topped with denim, khakis, white tees, coveralls and awesome old-school racing graphics. There were many that still fiercely held on to pure, brute horsepower over anything else– but many moved forward and a new dawn of streamlined dragster designs utilizing plastic and fiberglass bodies were born that changed the face of American racing forever. The 1950s in particular saw a revolution in the hot-rodding scene that became more aware of the importance of aerodynamics, weight and drag. Many racing legends and innovations have been born on the 160 square mile barren patch known as the Bonneville Salt Flats.
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