The
Restoration of a Timeless Funny Car
Sometimes, you can go home again, or at least get close enough to remember what it was like. Many well seasoned drag racing fans relate to the original evolutionary era of funny car racing as if it were an awakening. Seeing these cars in action may well have been the moment when they became life long drag racing fans. The cars that raced during that earlier time frame were visually exciting, the drivers were colorful, and brand identity still mattered. The popularity of drag racing grew exponentially during the late 60's and early 70's as young drag racing fans flocked to drag strips nationwide to see the wild new breed of race cars. When Roland Leong chose to enter the enter the fray in 1969, his 'Hawaiian' Dodge Charger was arguably one of the most beautiful funny cars to ever make a pass down a drag strip and was representative of the best of the breed. After an initial mishap at the Winternationals, Larry Reyes amassed numerous victories in the car and soon the 'Hawaiian' was a feared competitor nationally, with an 80% win record to it's credit.
Thankfully, those of us that remember the magic,
can appreciate the era again through the recent
restoration of this noteworthy race car. This daunting
project was undertaken in 2004 by Ted Guth of Savage
Minnesota. The original 'Hawaiian' was found, almost
poetically, in Hawaii after a lead was provided by ex-top
fuel racer Bruce Wheeler. It was in the
hands of a collector who was basically storing the car
after it had been through the stewardship of previous
owners. The car was barely recognizable after having
been previously repurposed as a bracket racer, and
then neglected. Yet it was mostly complete save for
the nitro fueled Hemi engine. Ted was drawn to the car
due to it's rich history, and because he had memories
of seeing it in action at Minnesota Dragways as a
youth. He contacted both Roland Leong, and Larry
Reyes, and received confirmation from both that this
was indeed the infamous 'Hawaiian'. He then made
arrangements to purchase the car based photographs and
e-mail correspondence. Once the deal was struck, the
car was loaded into an air freight container and
shipped to Minnesota, far from it's original
California homeland. For the better part of the next
18 months, the car underwent the restoration process
without much fanfare.
As you can see from the photographs, there was a lot to be done. Every square inch of the car would receive attention. A fresh 426 Hemi was built, new chrome, new tin, new paint. Photographs were studied, and it all slowly began to come together. Roland Leong was scheduled to serve as the Grand Marshall of the 2006 California Hot Rod Reunion, and no better time existed to unveil the car to the public than at the at the annual Bakersfield event. The trick would be to get it all done in time. Thankfully, the car was ready to be re-introduced to California drag racing fans and it appeared at the reunion to rave reviews. It not only made an appearance at the customary Saturday night Cacklefest with Larry Reyes in the seat, but it also shared the limelight with three other historical drag cars, including the restored LA Challenger funny car, during the Friday night fire-up at the Double Tree Hotel.
Sometimes, you can go home again, or at least get close enough to remember what it was like. Many well seasoned drag racing fans relate to the original evolutionary era of funny car racing as if it were an awakening. Seeing these cars in action may well have been the moment when they became life long drag racing fans. The cars that raced during that earlier time frame were visually exciting, the drivers were colorful, and brand identity still mattered. The popularity of drag racing grew exponentially during the late 60's and early 70's as young drag racing fans flocked to drag strips nationwide to see the wild new breed of race cars. When Roland Leong chose to enter the enter the fray in 1969, his 'Hawaiian' Dodge Charger was arguably one of the most beautiful funny cars to ever make a pass down a drag strip and was representative of the best of the breed. After an initial mishap at the Winternationals, Larry Reyes amassed numerous victories in the car and soon the 'Hawaiian' was a feared competitor nationally, with an 80% win record to it's credit.
As you can see from the photographs, there was a lot to be done. Every square inch of the car would receive attention. A fresh 426 Hemi was built, new chrome, new tin, new paint. Photographs were studied, and it all slowly began to come together. Roland Leong was scheduled to serve as the Grand Marshall of the 2006 California Hot Rod Reunion, and no better time existed to unveil the car to the public than at the at the annual Bakersfield event. The trick would be to get it all done in time. Thankfully, the car was ready to be re-introduced to California drag racing fans and it appeared at the reunion to rave reviews. It not only made an appearance at the customary Saturday night Cacklefest with Larry Reyes in the seat, but it also shared the limelight with three other historical drag cars, including the restored LA Challenger funny car, during the Friday night fire-up at the Double Tree Hotel.