A Legend

[Shawn Aro]

ok i came across some old negitives i took speedee will tell you the date if i dont so i will this was 1981 i had the chance to use his camera for first time, an old Miranda. enjoy

[MRussell]

Re: A Legend

Great shot. Man that is one of the best racer canopies ever. Who came up with that thing?

[t-dub]

Re: A Legend

Great shot. Man that is one of the best racer canopies ever. Who came up with that thing?

I don't know who came up with that one, but it sure beats the previous version that ended up in pieces on the race course! (somewhere around the mid 70's) Man was that thing ugly! Does anybody remember the year that happened?

[Shawn Aro]

Re: A Legend

its in John Teglers book about 1972 he was comming back to stead after the parade the night before and it came apart. shawn

[wingman]

Re: A Legend

I had a long conversation with Bill Hickle at PRS -- one thing he mentioned was that when they stripped and disassembled the airplane they found repaired damage from that incident that Bill had pretty much forgotten about over the years. Apparently when the canopy departed it struck and considerably tore up the vertical stab, and the crew just used some sheet metal and "blind riveted" a quicky repair that was never really properly redone. The airplane now has a "new- old stock" vertcal that they found somewhere...

Neal

[t-dub]

Re: A Legend

its in John Teglers book about 1972 he was comming back to stead after the parade the night before and it came apart. shawn

Yeah, I remember some campers were camping on the course and Lyle dropped down to take a couple of "hotlaps" when the canopy came apart. The campers saw it happen, took a hike to the spot where the pieces fell, and returned what was left of it to Lyle in the pits. Lyle sustained some cuts to his face if I remember correctly.....

[laminar]

Re: A Legend

I think there are pictures of that incident in "Gentleman you have a race"

[Shawn Aro]

Re: A Legend

Shawn

[BellCobraIV]

Re: A Legend

Man that is one of the best racer canopies ever. Who came up with that thing?

The man himself, Lyle took plaster and shaped the mold that he sent out, to have Evans make the canopy from. Lyle made that in place on the plane. I think that Wingman has a Pete Behenna picture of that process but I'm not sure if he has the rights to allow it to be posted, Neal?

[wingman]

Re: A Legend

John, I don't think the canopy process was included in Pete's stuff that I printed, or at least I don't remember it. My prints are not a totally complete set anyway -- I just did what I had time for, and what I recognized as interesting to me at the time. God, it's almost twenty years since all that was happening! Scary thought...

I really need to get hold of Pete and if possible get some sort of blanket permission (if he's willing) to use that material for historical purposes. There's some very interesting and very important history there.

Neal