Another quiz

[CJAM427]

Re: Another quiz

Also Neal, I have to say it was a pleasant surprise to check in here today and see you posting again. I've missed your presence here! Your photos and knowledge of the sport are a real treasure!

-Connor

[sledge39]

Re: Another quiz

Thank you, Sledge. I have learned a bit here. This was all long before my time, and the published articles of the time rarely mentioned crew chiefs. I didn't meet Dwight Thorn til the late 1970s and didn't really get to know him til the mid 80s. 1964 never came up in conversation (nor did 1972). I wish I'd spent more time asking questions of both Dwight and Bill Kerchenfaut. I miss them both.

So what do you know about 1972? My understanding is that Dwight built those engines for #5 (what was Jack Hovey's involvement in those days?). Jim Larsen was again involved. Who was the crew chief for Gunther Balz?

That's still the only picture I've seen of Dwight with a crew cut. I've seen shots of him during the development of #8 and his curly locks are much like they were 40 years later. Maybe Rosie made him get a haircut for the new Races?? LOL

Neal

1971-72 info

Dwight Thorn was Gunther Balz crew chief at Reno

source: vault.si.com/vault/1972/10/02/how-to-succeed-while-flying-scared


Dwight Thorn, Jim Larsen, Bill Kerchenfaut, and Jack Hovey were all involved with Balz

Gunther Balz "I got Hovey and Thorn to do the engine, and Jim Larsen to do the engineering"

source: pylon1.org/articles/publish/article_98.shtml

[Big_Jim]

Re: Another quiz

Dwight called this very different motor a "Mouse Motor" and the name stuck.

It actually is a drag racing reference. Small block engines are Mouse Motors, large block engines are Rat Motors. In this case, the Mouse Motor was the Merlin, while the Rat was the Griffon...it just was the name he chose for the Allison rod modification.

And the key to such modifications are all about where the oiling holes in the rods are drilled.

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

So Brad -- while you're here, could you run down some of Dwight's major racing involvements before 1985?

There was obviously 1964, and presumably the Lyford efforts after that, with the Nitrous and such.

There was #5 and Balz.

In the 70s I think he was doing Bob Love's motors for #97. It's always seemed a shame that Bob just didn't ever seem to have the money or sponsorship to make it to the top. He gave Lyle a good run for the money a couple of times though. I remember Lyle talking about how he felt when Bob would pull up on him -- he was not a big fan of racing against Bob Love.

Around 1980 he test ran the first Allison rod motor.

and what else?

Do you know the provenance of the 1985 (and Bakersfield) and 1986 motors in Strega? Did any of these engines have Allison rods?

Neal

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

Thank you again, Sledge. I actually have that Kallio interview with Gunther printed out somewhere in my files. I never thought to check it.

Neal

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

And Hello back Connor. I've wondered what you've been up to. Still taking photographs, I assume. Will posts here occasionally, and on another site I frequent, but you've been real quiet. I still remember a PM discussion we had 4 years ago about political messages on raceplanes. I understand that you've been active working with the EAA, but know no specifics.

I have an unrelated question for you -- I'll start a new thread sometime over the next couple of days.

Neal

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

Bob Love blew up a couple of what I assume were Thorn motors back in the day. Photo by my old friend Bill LeSanche...

Neal

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

And here is a shot with some relevance to this thread. This is from the year that Tsunami broke the qualifying record by 10 mph with a speed nobody remembers because Tiger had broken it by more a few minutes before.

So an easy mini-quiz. Who are these people and how do you think the conversation is going?

I have no real memory of taking this -- I was shooting a lot of photographs in those days. I don't know when during the week it was taken or where on the ramp. I do think it's a very cool shot from a fascinating year at Reno...

Neal

[L.E.D.]

Re: Another quiz

Obviously Tiger is Tiger... I'd don't know who the other person is, but I happened to still have the '87 race report open so I can tell you Tsunami's qual speed: 464.649, which broke Dreadnought's record of 452.737 from 1986.

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

so nobody on aafo can identify the second man -- the one who doesn't have his name on his head? That's kind of sad...

This man was prominent at Reno for 20 years, was heavily involved in and/or owned at least 4 or 5 raceplanes over the years, supplied many of the engines (Merlins, Allisons, 4360s) run by the Chino folks -- generally for free, and owned and financed one of the very fastest airplanes ever to run at Reno. He was a major figure in EAA and Oshkosh for years. one of the smartest and most motivated Racers ever.

Kind of sad, indeed...

Neal

[L.E.D.]

Re: Another quiz

.... Frank Taylor?

[sledge39]

Re: Another quiz

.
...John R Sandberg...

[L.E.D.]

Re: Another quiz

Thems what knows least, learns most. =) Good to put faces to these names.

[wingman]

Re: Another quiz

Sledge has got it. I'm still surprised at this. I think Jack may not have been very visible to the average fan, despite his importance to the Air Racing community and to the Warbird movement in general. For years in my involvement with racing he was everywhere -- somebody I talked to every year if possible. I ran into him in Chino, and at Oshkosh. He was a truly fascinating character.

Here he is with another fairly well known Racing talent. They were trying to figure out whether they had really won a race where they were not particularly expecting to. Everybody was totally exhausted at this point and near heat stroke, or at least felt that way. Thus the towel and sweat...

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Another quiz

And here is a shot with some relevance to this thread. This is from the year that Tsunami broke the qualifying record by 10 mph with a speed nobody remembers because Tiger had broken it by more a few minutes before.

So an easy mini-quiz. Who are these people and how do you think the conversation is going?

I have no real memory of taking this -- I was shooting a lot of photographs in those days. I don't know when during the week it was taken or where on the ramp. I do think it's a very cool shot from a fascinating year at Reno...

Neal

EXIF one of the best things about digital!!