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Senior Moment From Russ Dodge:
Losing It's Independents
Once again the 3wide message board put me in
a senior moment. A recent discussion on a Corvette suspension being used in
the seventies, I believe, took me back to my memory of Jimmy Diaz's car at
Vineland Speedway. The photo shows the number 9 car as it appeared on
October 6, 1963, driven by Herby Schoch.
A little background on the owner will help explain the "creation"! Diaz and
his brother ran a body shop in Williamstown, N.J. that specialized in
foreign car body work and restoration. They were "off the charts" in ability
to form sheet metal and use of the English wheel. Using his understanding of
sports car racing and construction, Jimmy proceeded to build a car on the
technology he thought would work. I believe he had never actually been to a
stock car race. Herby once told me he had to persuade Jimmy to make the roof
height that it finally was, much higher than Jimmy envisioned. The end
result was a car using basically a Corvette chassis with a tilt off aluminum
body.
You can imagine the "Buzz" it created in the grandstand when it appeared on
the track for warm-ups and the louder commotion it caused in the pits when
it arrived earlier. Before it was unloaded the protests and complaints
began. However, the race officials decided to allow the car to run. This
decision was greatly influenced I surmised years later, when I found out how
friendly Herby was with promoter Bill Nocco and that Diaz had been
instrumental in getting the sports car facility built at Vineland a few
years before.
Herby and the 9 car never materialized into too much of a threat! I really
think the officials knew Herby's limited experience would keep the car in
"check" when they made the decision to allow it to run. The car ran 1963
race and several races in 1964 registering an 9th place as its best finish.
Herby told me when they brought the car in for the first show several
drivers wanted to take it out. He said one young guy came down and inquired
about trying it out and Herby said, "I blew him off and said I was driving
it! I didn't know at the time it was Wally Dallenbach! Can you imagine not
giving him a chance to test it out?" Herby's evaluation of the car was it
went and stuck anywhere you wanted to go.
The team took the car to Wall Stadium to race and the officials just laughed
at them and told them to take it home!
In the mid-1990's discussions with Herby Shoch about the car usually ended
with "Whatever happened to the 9 car?" To which Herby was curious but
couldn't recall.
Advance now to one of Bob Miller's Reading Reunions and an introduction to
Alan Carter, son of Rags Carter. CRS prevents me from overloading you with
details but in essence I do remember Alan starting a driving career in
sportsman I believe at Nazareth. The car he used was one he purchased from
car owner Walt Donald. Alan had work around Kinsley Enterprises for Walt in
his late teens and recalled working off the cost of the car for payment. You
guessed it. It was the Diaz #9 car that somehow ended up at Walt Donald's as
a result of some type of deal to which the details will never be known.
Alan was helpful in solving the mystery he sent us a copy of his only photo
of his car, which was painted dark blue and numbered 88. There is no
question about it when you compare the photos. However the independent front
end had been replaced with a standard straight axle.
Senior Moment By; Russ Dodge
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