Top: Bobby Ely
Second: Mark Labrum
Third: Chalmitty B
Fourth: Hotrod
Fifth:
BC Designs
Top: Chuck Ely
Second: Kustom Keepsakes
Third: Matt Buda
Fourth: Unknown
Fifth:
BC Designs
Top Photo: It’s hard to pick up any old racing program and not see a picture of Maynard Forrette in it. The Ageless wonder became an instant fan favorite when he turned into a Valley regular in the early 80’s. Maynard loved the kids and back when he first started with the Queens machine, You would be hard pressed not to find a kid or adult wearing a “Queens Machine #78” foam hat. Maynard was active in racing right up to his last days, recording his final feature victory on June 19th, 2001.
Second Photo: This “Thunderbird”, and Kudo’s to the front grill, was
one of the first new DIRT wide bodies out there, and in general, the new look
resulted in complete eye bleeding disasters, and this one was no
exception. While anyone who worked
with sheets of aluminum can attest, the craftsmanship on these designs were
there, but the final end results with the rules in place and what the
fabricators had to work with created some of the ugliest body designs in the
history of motor sports. Think
Jennifer Lopez waking up with no make-up, they were that ugly.
These cars were at a huge disadvantage in respect to downforce, and until they allowed the new styles larger rear decks and longer side pods/wings they were barely competitive. Nobody’s perfect and DIRT really messed this idea up, conjuring up thoughts of the general public being able to relate to the cars they saw zipping around the ovals on any given weekend. What DIRT never realized was the Northeast mods were unique & sleek, and after they figured that out (or maybe they never did) that’s what gave them their appeal.
Third Photo: Maynard and John Hewitt doing battle.
Fourth Photo: Maynard making a move on John Gibson. A race car metal fabricator from the Averill Park area. Our Mystery Driver # 17.
Fifth Photo:
No mistaking the skyline here, as hard to believe as that may
be. The Queen’s Machine on the
starting grid for the 200 at the Moody Mile.
Additional Comments: