Flathead Fords and Nostalgia Drag Racing

All contents © Copyright James H. Marlett

The Ford Motor Company's flathead V8 was at the very root of drag racing when in 1949 a pair of Merc-powered hot rods clutched off at Goleta in the first organized drag race. Despite all odds, it's still around, but even its "modern" replacements are now out of date nostalgia pieces.

So, this site is primarily to share photographs of flatheads and other nostalgia drag racing cars and to pass on some technical information as I run across it.

Flatheads and Drag Racing

• Flathead basics
• The date your flathead was assembled
• The much talked about French flatheads
• Drag racing basics
• My current foolish projects
• Links and Sources

The Old Days

• Me and my '53 Ford from the ‘60s
• Drag racing photos from the '60s
• Ted DeTar's shirt in 2003

Races 2010

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2010 – I'm sure I missed some races and got some things wrong. Please email me with scheduled events. I will post ANY nostalgia race I know about, no matter how small or local.

Races 2009

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2009 – It's over, but here's what happened.
• Bonneville Speed Week - I know it isn't drag racing, but is it ever flathead intensive!

Races 2008

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2008 – It's over, but here's what happened.
• H.A.M.B. Drags 2008 – Despite the threat of rain in a year absolutely plagued by the stuff, at least here in the Midwest, a miracle happened and the drags came off without a hitch. The race was on Saturday, but I can’t keep from shooting pictures on the morning after as well. I dream of being able to trash more images, but until I come to my senses, you’ll have to wade through vast numbers of pictures.
• The Arkansas City Tumbleweeds 33^rd Annual Last Run Nostalgia Drags – The drag race portion of this well-established car show is hosted by Mid America Dragway. It is mostly a nostalgia weekend spiced up with some Pro Mods and some more modern stuff. I can’t tell you who won what, but I can tell you I saw a ’40 Ford powered by a flathead that I hadn’t seen probably since I raced against it in 1968. The yellow isn’t as bright and there are some primer spots now, but it sure did my heart good to see that car. The pictures are my usual unedited stuff.

Races – 2007

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2007 - It's over, but here's what happened.
• H.A.M.B. Drags 2007 – The biggest one yet. Races were on Saturday, but I walked around the hotel parking lot taking pictures on Sunday before heading home. One of these days I’ll have to show up on Friday for all the pre-race shenanigans. The Saturday link goes to the first of four pages of thumbnails. Once again there are a lot of pictures that should have hit the trash bin, but I’m too lazy to weed them out. That’s why you have to plow through over 1,000 images!

Races - 2006

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2006 - It's over, but here's what happened.
• The 2006 High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals
• H.A.M.B. Drags 2006 – This just keeps getting bigger and better. Four H.A.M.B. Gas Rails (HA/GR) were in attendance this year. Unfortunately, the races themselves were cut short by lightening knocking out the power upstream of the track, but the fun continued back at the Motel. The link goes to the first of two pages of thumbnails of pretty much everything I shot that wasn’t completely messed up.

Races - 2005

• Nostalgia Race Schedule for 2005 - It's over, but here's what happened.
• The 2005 High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals.
• H.A.M.B. Drags 2005 - Three years now and it just keeps getting better. This year a new feature was the HAMBster dragster. These are dragsters built in the spirit of the earliest dragsters in the days before slingshots. Motive power is restricted to flatheads or early inline sixes. The driver has to be situated between the motor and rear axle, no narrowed rear ends, bias ply tires, and so on. There are other rules, or perhaps they are better described as guidelines, but you probably get the idea. Once again, you get to see the good pictures with the bad because I'm just too lazy to do much editing, although I did throw out some absolute stinkers. If you are into traditional hot rods, check out the H.A.M.B.
• American Hot Rod Reunion 2005 - MoKan is getting to be the king of nostalgia around this part of the country. The AHRR celebrates the old American Hot Rod Association that sanctioned a lot of strips back in the day.

Races - 2004

• Race Schedule for 2004 - It's over, but here's what happened.
• The 2004 High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals - I missed last year's race, but I wasn't about to miss this one.
• H.A.M.B. Drags 2004 - Once again the H.A.M.B. internet group held a drag race and other festivities at Mo-Kan Dragway. This year the roast pig burned to a crisp in its pit of coals due to an air leak, but otherwise, a good time was had by all. Once again, there are way too many pictures. The link will take you to the first of six pages of thumbnails. Hope you have plenty of time. You will see the good photos along with the bad. Sorry, I just didn't edit.

Races - 2003

• Race Schedule for 2003 - It's over, but here's what happened.
• The 2003 High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals as reported by Alan Samura.
• The H.A.M.B. Drags The H.A.M.B. internet group decided to have a drag race at Mo-Kan Dragway in Asbury, MO. I figured it could be a very nostalgic race, so I went with my camera and brought back way too many pictures.

Races - 2002

• Race schedule for 2002 - It's over, but here is what happened.

Races - 2001

• Race schedule for 2001 It's over, but here is what happened.
• John "Mr. Flathead" Bradley's report on flatheads at the first ADRA race in Fallon, NV, April, 2001.
• Steve McGuiness's pictures of the High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals, Denver, CO, June, 2001

Races - 2000

• Race schedules for 2000 It's over, but here is what happened.
• Heartland Hot Rod Reunion, Noble, Oklahoma, August, 2000

Races - 1999

• Bakersfield Flatheads, 1999
• Nostalgia Race, Wentzville, MO, May 1999. This is where Rick Schnell made the quickest and fastest flathead run ever and broke into the sevens. No pictures yet, but there is information about Rick's car and the event.
• Nostalgia Race, Great Bend, Kansas, June 1999
• First NNTA Flathead/Inline Nationals, Salt Lake City, Utah, July 1999
• Heartland Hot Rod Reunion, Noble, Oklahoma, August 1999

Races - 1997 & 1998

• A 1997 Flathead race in Great Bend, Kansas, including some turbocharged flatheads
• The 1998 Kenz and Leslie High Altitude Flathead/Inline Nationals
• The First Annual Slingshot Nationals, Springfield, MO, 1998
• Wichita International Raceway's 35th Year Reunion

Assorted Unrelated Photos

Note: I have tried to make this site work quickly at the expense of making it fancy, so if it works slowly for you, please let me know. Also, I'm always interested in additions and corrections. Contact me through this link, but please call me Jim despite what is says in the copyright notice.

Jim Marlett

jmarlett@cox.net