Tifositeaser # 25 <SOLVED> MAD DOG lV

[Tifosi]

I think the puzzle number is right...can anybody identify this car and what it's famous for?

[pieter]

My guess would be Bob Osiecki (It says Osiecki Dodge on the back) and World record for a closed circuit of 181.561 mph ( it says so on the nose.) The 'blower' and the wings says that it was a special record attempt, not a normal race, in which this mark was set.

[Tifosi]

My guess would be Bob Osiecki (It says Osiecki Dodge on the back) and World record for a closed circuit of 181.561 mph ( it says so on the nose.) The 'blower' and the wings says that it was a special record attempt, not a normal race, in which this mark was set.

Correct so far...



Can you give me the name of the car and the venue for the record it set?


Dan

[pieter]

http://www.dragracingonline.com/special/leftturn.html

Malone, the 1963 AHRA Top Fuel World champion and that year�s Bakersfield March winner, competed at the U.S. Nationals in the middle 1960s, but, surprisingly, with only modest success. He also raced the Indy 500 three times, 1963 through 1965, with a best finish of 11th in 1964. Malone was quite an all-around talent. He drove Top Fuel and Funny Car in 1966, and also held the one-lap closed-course record of 181 mph set in Bob Osiecki�s blown roadster at Daytona in 1961.

[Tifosi]

I guess that's close enough.  It's hard to find info on this car online...or off, for that matter.  I remember reading about the car when I was a kid...back in the mid '60's, and it was rather obscure, then, too.  I found this article in the current issue of Hemmings Muscle Machines as I was compiling info on the Le Mans article I just finished, and decided that it was too interesting not to share here.  I tried to black out the info on the front of the car with a pencil[I don't have Photoshop], and didn't notice the OSIECKI DODGE script on the tail fin.  I didn't even notice the tail fin...I thought it was something in the background...I also didn't realize just how big the image would be when I downloaded it to this site.  I would have used a marker on the nose to blot out the writing, if I'd have known just how well it would stand out.

One thing is for sure...It's one big, honkin' automoblie...


Dan

[TomOsiecki]

Mad Dog Iv is going up for auction in May. Plans are underway for Art Malone to again pilot the car at both the Daytona 500 and the Indy 500. Gary Babineau (babineaumetalworks.com) will be installing a new 413 engine so Art can hopefully drive the car in a parade lap at both races. The 50th anniversary of the record run (August 28, 1961) is approaching and we look forward to reminding people of the groundbreaking engineering that Bob Osiecki utilized in making speeds in excess of 200 MPH  (226 MPH on the back straightaway at Daytona) possible with the use of aerodynamics. An obviously evolutionary approach to automobile design that forever changed the car as we know it. More pictures can be found at conceptcarz.com. It is incorrectly listed as a Watson on that website. It was, in fact, a Kurtis Kraft used by Firestone for tire testing. It is on display at The NC Motorsports Hall of Fame Museum in North Carolina.

[Otto Puzzell]

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