Finding 'Fast Eddie' Hill

[xcarguy]

Eddie (and all),

 

I was visiting the shop of a long time car guy this morning. While I was oohing and awing at all the neat speed nostalgia around the place, he showed me a photo taken in 1958 at the Freeway drag strip in Houston. Eddie, you’re in the photo. Do you remember the moment?

Edited December 24, 2016 by xcarguy

[xcarguy]

Eddie, you’re . . .

. . . right there. :cooldude:

[FourFather]

Yes, sir, that is me as labeled.

 

Here it is, early in its (and my) career.

 

http://www.imgtree.net/files/fhhhkzoht6ueaktdx6j0.jpg

 

1958: Eddie Hill dragster #2 - my first Pontiac unblown gasser (first use of small front wheels and tires - Cushman motor scooter wheels, hubs, and spindles) - 9.93 e.t., 139 MPH, Texas e.t. record, trophy total 36 through October. World's first dragster to use engine as stressed member.

 

1959: Still Eddie Hill dragster #2 - Pontiac unblown gasser, 9.75 e.t., 147 MPH, won AHRA championship at Great Bend, Kansas, car weighed 1,075# (A-Gas dragster); won Texas Championship; Texas records 151.77 MPH, 9.25 e.t.; 16 more trophies (total to date 52); made first professional (paid) appearance at Inyokern, California, against Jack Chrisman in his Sidewinder. This car was in Hot Rod Magazine in March, 1960. Over 160 MPH, low 9.0's, world's fastest unblown gasser.

 

I have a large copy of that picture you posted on the wall in my office.

 

Thanks for posting.

 

That was then, and this is now-

 

http://www.imgtree.net/files/tfssinme0alxhenphtwv.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

Eddie FourFather Hill

Born on the 100th anniversary of the battle of the Alamo. Exactly. Really. :driving:

Edited January 25, 2017 by FourFather

[xcarguy]

Scooter tires, engine as a stressed member and 150 + MPH . . . . you rock, Eddie!

 

 

. . . . I do love the scooter tires!

[FourFather]

Here it is, after I did some cosmetic work on it over the winter.

 

http://imgtree.net/files/82jrqkfjwh1dlky5i13x.jpg

 

Has it really been 59 years, already, since then?

 

Thank you Lord!, for all the cool rides so far!

 

Eddie FourFather Hill :flag:

[xcarguy]

Eddie,

 

Did you fab the Moons for scooter wheels?

 

...and whatever became of the car?

[FourFather]

Eddie,

 

Did you fab the Moons for scooter wheels?

 

...and whatever became of the car?

 

 

Even though Dean Moon and I were pretty good friends, and I was a dealer for him for years, (I still have original Mooneyes decals and stickers in stock), he didn't have any ready-made discs that size, so I cut some 15" ones down to size.

Incidentally, that Moon hand-operated pump on top of the body just in front of the cockpit was used to pressurize the Cushman gas tank that was mounted on the engine front cover plate. I still use that Moon pump to pressure -fill my R/C airplanes fuel tanks. Still works good!

 

I converted the world's quickest and fastest unblown gasser to the worlds quickest and fastest gasser, by building the supercharged engine shown here. I dropped the official NHRA elapsed time record from 9.40 seconds, held by Jim Nelson's Dragmaster Dart, to 8.84 seconds. Jim (NHRA's technical director at that time) was there at Amarillo when I set the record, and he had a very hard time with what I did to his record, and kept making me repeat and repeat runs to convince him and everyone else that the performance was not a fluke. Even had the clocks re-certified. They were fine. At that time, that was the largest improvement in a national record, and remained so, as long as I watched and kept up with it. "First in the eights on gas".

 

 

http://imgtree.net/files/tqj5zxcx3h16lxqn2b38.jpg

 

It was holeshots like you see here that prompted National Dragster to dub me "Holeshot Hill" in their writeups.

 

When I built my first fuel car, I sold this one to a local guy that spent the next several years "improving" the car in his shop, and never took the car to the track.

 

Cheers,

 

Eddie FourFather Hill :flag:

Edited January 28, 2017 by FourFather

[FourFather]

Here is what the early stage of building looked like-

 

http://imgtree.net/files/dtli1dxwom1pdlkzdht2.jpg

 

Looking at the expression on my face, makes me remember how badly I wanted to go fast, back in the fifties.

 

Kinda like today-:driving:

 

Cheers,

 

Eddie FourFather Hill

[Kitcat]

The word "primitive" comes to mind:)! The roll-over bar is 4" below your head, without a helmet (tho improved in the drag race photos). What amazing history you made. Is your Ariel all that much slower?

[xcarguy]

The roll-over bar is 4" below your head . . . /QUOTE]

 

 

This is back in the day when men were real men. :jester:

[dilke123]

Yes, sir, that is me as labeled.

 

Here it is, early in its (and my) career.

 

http://www.imgtree.net/files/fhhhkzoht6ueaktdx6j0.jpg

 

1958: Eddie Hill dragster #2 - my first Pontiac unblown gasser (first use of small front wheels and tires - Cushman motor scooter wheels, hubs, and spindles) - 9.93 e.t., 139 MPH, Texas e.t. record, trophy total 36 through October. World's first dragster to use engine as stressed member.

 

1959: Still Eddie Hill dragster #2 - Pontiac unblown gasser, 9.75 e.t., 147 MPH, won AHRA championship at Great Bend, Kansas, car weighed 1,075# (A-Gas dragster); won Texas Championship; Texas records 151.77 MPH, 9.25 e.t.; 16 more trophies (total to date 52); made first professional (paid) appearance at Inyokern, California, against Jack Chrisman in his Sidewinder. This car was in Hot Rod Magazine in March, 1960. Over 160 MPH, low 9.0's, world's fastest unblown gasser.

 

I have a large copy of that picture you posted on the wall in my office.

 

Thanks for posting.

 

That was then, and this is now-

 

http://www.imgtree.net/files/tfssinme0alxhenphtwv.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

Eddie FourFather Hill

Born on the 100th anniversary of the battle of the Alamo. Exactly. Really. :driving:

That's really amazing.