There's a pre-CanAm car on BaT associated with Jack Baker, did you crew on this car too? It certainly looks mean, though it's too bad the original bodywork isn't on the car anymore. Photo 112 has mention of "Frenchie"
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1966-quasar-can-am-group-7-race-car/
In reply to RoddyMac17 :
It has to be him; he raced the Jack Black Special for years so who else could it be.
cool find!!
A 580 horsepower 427 at 7000 RPM in a car with 1600lb dry weight. Ho-lee-poop thats a helluva ride.
In reply to RoddyMac17 :
Yes that's Jack Baker's Quasar . The bodywork threw me off. I remember helping sort it out with Jack Baker. They took it to a race and Jack said he never could complete a lap without spinning out.
We went across the road to the old Met stadium last d out a big circle and they ( Jack Baker and Orlie Thornsjo ) tried to complete a full lap without spinning out. They both gave up when they were too dizzy to continue.
I asked if I could try, laughing they said sure, just don't wreck it.
I guess I was 16 going on 17. So what did I know? I've never touched anything with that amount of grunt. I put it into low and gently tried to ease the on/ off switch they called a clutch. At an idle those big fat tires smoked. No touch to the throttle. Just spinning tires. As I approached the circle I felt the slightest turn of the steering wheel the back end wanting to dash around I froze my foot on the throttle., not daring to look. Afraid the roll of my eyeballs would send me spinning out of control.
Somehow with my eyeballs frozen my throttle foot frozen, my hands frozen I completed a whole lap, then another and another. At that point I decided to pull back in before I really blew it in a big way. Besides I was getting dizzy.
Just as I was about to stop I glanced down and noticed I was in 2nd. Not 1st.
Well, God looks over fools and teenagers. Thanks God.
Anyhow, it wasn't even noon. So Jack and Orlie were shaking their heads and trying to figure out what could be done. More than an hour of back and forth as I studied the car. The outside edge of the rear tire was scuffed up and sort of melted. I had no idea of what to do. I stupidly suggested lowering the rear suspension . It just seemed that race cars were low and the lower seemed like a good thing. Suspension Geometry? I had no idea but it was the only idea offered.
It took me hours to figure out how a coil over spring worked. But when I did I lowered it as much as I could.
Turns out to be a good thing It gained chamber as I lowered the suspension.
It turned a horribly loose car into something slightly more stable.
That heavy cast Iron big block always wanted to become a front engine. Lacking that it seemed perfectly content to trade going forward for going backwards.
In reply to frenchyd :
What a glowing endorsement of the handling! Just slightly better than a wet rhinoceros on a clay embankment.
TurnerX19 said:In reply to frenchyd :
What a glowing endorsement of the handling! Just slightly better than a wet rhinoceros on a clay embankment.
If he posted this on the auction, one of us could probably buy it for a much lower price. Just saying.
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