Pictures Pikes Peak Hill Climb race dune buggies and more

[colorado_aircooled]

Hello, I have been doing some research about Volkswagen aircooled Pikes Peak Hill Climb race cars. Problem is in 1966 when Ted Trevor and Don Wilcox raced the Peak they were shunned. WHAT aircooled motors on a hill climb race. Plus what were those California guys coming to historic Pikes Peak to race with dune buggies .Well, they did so well in thier class they were for the most part banned until 1971. I would like to recreate if possible one of those Hill Climb Dune Buggies. Anyone have any good pictures? Being a shunned car most magazines and even Hill Climb programs have very few pictures of Dune Buggies at Pikes Peak Hill Climb races. Also pictures of the sandrail based Hill Climb cars and Norman Dreagers would be nice to have. The first time in 1966 the Meyers Manx's that raced were Corvair powered. But in 1971 and later many stayed with VW power. John and Bud Whitfield ran for many years too in dune buggies. Thanks for your help.

[colorado_aircooled]

Here is a bad black and white photo Of Ted Trevor's early Meyers manx at the Hill Climb. Used for a Gates tire ad. I have been told this was a purple car. ops let me put it in the gallery and maybe someone here can attach it too this forum.thanks[/img]

[ts39136]

[ts39136]

From Here -->http://www.lightner.net/manxclub/wilcox1.html

[size=9]Quote "All of this was in the process of happening. Ted had made a set of wheels for the car: 13 inchers (7 inches wide) to drop the front end, and a set of mind blowing 15 inch rear wheels that were 10 inches wide. (This was in the days when normal race tires were on 4 to 5 inch wide wheels, and the tire revolution had not yet started!) He had come up with a set of Koni shocks (Porsche racing version) and had dropped the suspension so that the ride height was about 6 inches lower in front and 8 lower in the back. A set of super sticky racing recap tires was enroute from San Franscisco where a company that did sticky tires for drag cars had agreed to do a set on road racing carcasses, and include a bit of a tread pattern for legal reasons only. Every thing on the car that could be removed to lighten it a bit was gone, and although it looked like the car would never run again, it was really in the process of starting to go back together again. I asumed that it would be a month or so until we could hope to try it out, but Ted said to come down on Saturday, and we would try it a bit in a huge nearby parking lot!
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[colorado_aircooled]

Thanks , I have seen that letters from Don Wilcox on the Meyers Manx club site. There are two small black and white l pictures on the MANX website of car 444 Ted's and # 44 Don's manx. But not much of any thing else. I have seen some of Don Wilcox's manx, gold in color many years after racing. Hoping to be able to find pictures that you can make out the stickers ,names, etc... I have a bunch of pictures of the Roger and Rick Mears sandrail type of race car and many N-D type cars they made out of Ascort dirt track cars that ran type one and type 4 motors and did well at Pikes Peak.

[colorado_aircooled]

First Dune buggies I know of ran in 1966

Group 2 Open Wheel 0-2000cc class

444 Ted Trevor Volksair Manx 1st place
17 Bud whitfield Corvair (?)
44 Don Wilcox Volksair Manx


I dropped another picture in th gallery (help)

[ts39136]

[colorado_aircooled]

Ok, maybe I can try the picture . Here is what became of Volkswagen cars on Pikes Peak after Dune buggies . Here is Rick and Roger Mears sandrail based Hill Climb car. Again not many pictures out there in color.Hot Vw's even ran the car twice over time but not in color. Used Volkswagen type 4, motors but back then it was called a porsche engine

This car won the Open Wheel class in 1976 car was built by Newman-dreager used both type 1 and type 4 motors.

[colorado_aircooled]

Ok, this is the last Dune buggy picture I have found on the internet and looking at 20 years of Pikes Peak Hill Climb race programs. The stuff is just not out there and I don't want it to be forgotten.

I have seen a few deserter dune buggies from Pikes Peak rear and mid engined but not many Manx shots. Ted Trevor raced in slamon races thru out California back in the day but being corvair powered not many VW guys liked that idea.

[Russ Wolfe]

I am a VW type 3 owner, and every 2 years we try and get together at a different location around the country.
2010 was in Carthage, MO. on Route 66.
The 2012 get together will be in the Pikes Peak area. I will try and make the run up in my stock 1600cc Type 3 Fuel Injected car.
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Society is like stew. If you don't keep it stirred up, you end up with a lot of scum on the top!--Edward Abbey

Gary: OK. Ima poop.

[colorado_aircooled]

Hot VW's had a couple of pages all black and white of the 1971 race. That was the first year they had an offical Dune Buggy class. 1st car is Alex Dearborn's Deserter Gt. Looks to have Crown Mfg logo so it was more then likely running a corvair motor

2nd car Wally Drew VW-powered got second place in class with a time of 15:44

As of today these Dune Buggies are the only pictures I have seen, all but one in black and white. If there is interest I can also post some pictures of the sandrails and N-d style cars that changed the way cars were built for the 2nd oldest running race in the US.

[Manx102]

Very interested in your pictures and history of buggies at Pikes Peak.
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"The simplest of outdoor adventures - the most treasured memories." - Bruce Meyers
54 years of "outdoor adventures" and "treasured memories" with our Manx in my gallery.

[Mr. Unpopular]

It's a shame they are paving Pikes Peak
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"In any racing engine, the nearer you are to it disintegrating, the better it's performance will be"
-Keith Duckworth, creator of the Ford/Cosworth DFV

[colorado_aircooled]

One interesting story about the two dune buggies in the 1966 race. When the cars showed up for tech inspection the story goes, that they still had both seats. The class was for single seat cars only. So that is why the black and white pictures from that year only, have the covers over the passenger side and back seat area. When they made the dune buggy class for 1971and later years they allowed the extra seating. Wish I could confirm the story any help out there?

As far as paving goes it may help. The theory is that it will become a great drifting type of challenge and with the wild cars that ran this year things are looking up for the race.

[Mr. Unpopular]

On one hand, having a Formula 1 car tackle the hill and blast through the time berrier will be neat, but I'm much more partial to seeing a semi or rally car sliding through the dirt turns than what amounts to a road course with less margin for error.
_________________
"In any racing engine, the nearer you are to it disintegrating, the better it's performance will be"
-Keith Duckworth, creator of the Ford/Cosworth DFV

[perrib]

While not pictures this has buggies and an Audi.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKKfzR7dX-c

[Russ Wolfe]

I think it is Stanford Univ. that is attempting to build a car that will run the Pike's Peak without a driver.
_________________
Society is like stew. If you don't keep it stirred up, you end up with a lot of scum on the top!--Edward Abbey

Gary: OK. Ima poop.

[colorado_aircooled]

Just got a copy of HOT ROD magazine Sept issue 1966. Long story on that years Race to the Clouds. Article does mention the under 3000cc class. A pair of Californian Meyers Manxs that really causing raised eyebrows. Other then this shot of Ted Trevor in the winners group the only picture of his car was about the size of a postage stamp. Of course black and white.The article does go into some details on the performance and power to weight ratios.

[colorado_aircooled]

thanks for the you tube link. The dune buggy sand rail looking race cars are Wells Coyotes. Those are the great grand kids of the Dune Buggies and VW sandrails .The designer John Wells drove sandrails on the Pikes Peak Hill Climb before he designed those mid engine V-8 monsters. The Wells Coyote cars are still raced today,great cars. I will post more about the sand rails and Newman Dreager race cars if there is interest.

On the you tube there was a shot of Danny Arants VW powered car. Yellow and white #3. listed as a 77 Newman Dreager

[colorado_aircooled]

Once the Hill Climbs teams figured out just how good the shorter lighter rear engined cars did on the Peak. Even the Mear's drove VW based sand rails. These were the children of the Dune Buggies on the Peak. This car set records for both Rick and Roger Mears. Picture is from 1973. Now that we are moving up in time a few colors pictures are out there.