Needs to be told

[bak189]

I think what follows need to be told..........................
In 1979 my good friend Mike Parti and myself brought the first sidecar to run a SCTA/BNI event
The officials at that time, "said great" write us some rules, which I did........1979 to 1987 we ran our outfits, set some records with a passenger...
1987 we are running around 150mph (w/pass.)
rule change; no more passengers not safe.......
O.K. we run with no passengers set some records
By the end of the 1980's we build a streamliner
sidecar, complete with a place for a passenger,
(this is where we put the mannequin Elmo) fire-system, roll-cage, seat-belts....in short everything that is required for a liner....in 1990
we bring it to Bonneville.....they put us in the
SC/AG class (not streamliner)  O.K. we run and set a record......we retire the liner......build a open type sidecar...set some records (no pass.) now it is the late 1990....we want to build a open sidecar where the drives kneel inside....we take the drawing to officials...No way, not safe....O.K.
we keep running our other outfit, in the following years...keep checking regarding
our "inside kneeler" No way, not safe............
The BUB event opens up.....we work on the new rules (allows passenger) we have been racing the BUB ever since.  2007 WOS sidecar takes our record in SC/G  Now I should expain that in 1991
our record of SC/AG was changed to SC/G with
no info. about the change to us.  Now remember
this was a legal sidecar streamliner that was put in SC/AG........ not streamliner class....and than changed to SC/G......back to..... 2007 WOS our record is lost to a sidecar that we wanted to build in the late 1900's early 2000's...Not safe aprox 8 years ago......now it is safe.......Now I am being told "BoB, why don't you let us see your drawing
and see wat we can do" (drawings from the No
way, sidecar 1990's)  Maybe now some of you will
understand why todate we have been racing the BUB....................................................................................
End of Sermon..........Amen

[jdincau]

      Things change you just have to get over it. In 1971 my partner and I decided we were tired of stock bodied cars and the constant whining over rules so we sold the Studibaker to Tom Finn and started on a gas roadster project. Little did we know what we were jumping in to. Complaints about missing windshield wiper motors and non stock headlight bezels were nothing compared to the roadster wars. We built a one piece bantam body with a 32 grille shell. The hood was long enough to make the total length 145 inches which was the maximum in the rule book. We sent the association a picture of the body and they promptly changed the rules to make it illegal.  It wasn't just us,  we were the victims of the great Mark Dees laid back 34 Chevy grill and spring loaded tonneau controversy. The funny thing is that it was exactly what everyone is running as a gas roadster now, we were just 20 years too soon.  The roadster shell became a house for Ken's mom's dogs. We went to Speedweek as spectators and it was boring. The salt was good tho.
Jim Dincau

[bak189]

Interesting, you noted Mark Dees .....we had our run ins with him on our sidecars......in fact he said he would take me to court....can't remember what it was about!!!!!!
Rules change, officials change, ...........Right, but this is about....  RECORDS SET.................................
How valid are these records, with all this mess....
You noted..."get over it".....we did..... we race the BUB

[JackD]

Pretty close.
Actually I think the "Elmo" was first on an existing sidecar.
When I beat the FIA record held by the GMC Cyclone, and blew off the 2 club for my own reasons, Mark Dees introduced himself to the FIA Rep in tech as the 2 club legal council and was going to file a protest because my Buick TAXI was not a 2 seater like the PU and thus was not in the same class.
They explained the FIA rules to him and that was not the end of that.
He backed off and was a little upset.
The following year he bought a Yamama from Canada, paid to have it hopped up, and had a rider.
He proceeded to enter it as a Production bike and had he not made a mistake it would have been legal.
He applied the tape required to confine the glass lamps all over the front of the bike before record runs.
My kid saw it first and brought it to my attention and the entry was withdrawn , never to be seen again.
And so it goes, there it went, and it just keeps going, and going, and going.

[bak189]

Oh, Yes....now I remember.....Mr. Dees= lawyer=Dees .......we had been standing in line to make our run.....and Mr. Dees, driving some sort of sedan, just pulled in front of us in the middle of the line, stating he was a SCTA official and that allowed him to move in the middle of the line.  I told him BS and told him to move to the back of the line.......with screwdriver in hand I told
you can't race on flat-tires........he indicated he would take me to court, for insulting him.....I told him he would be  out of place in court in a body-cast, Due to the fact that I would kick his ass....in addition to the flat tires ( I was much younger then).....he moved to the back of the line........We had fun.....Right, Jack

[Dr Goggles]

He backed off and was a little upset.

He applied the tape required to confine the glass lamps all over the front of the bike before record runs.
My kid saw it first and brought it to my attention and the entry was withdrawn , never to be seen again.
And so it goes, there it went, and it just keeps going, and going, and going.

, stating he was a SCTA official and that allowed him to move in the middle of the line.  I told him BS and told him to move to the back of the line.......with screwdriver in hand I told
you can't race on flat-tires........he indicated he would take me to court, for insulting him.....I told him he would be  out of place in court in a body-cast, Due to the fact that I would kick his ass.

ha ha ha .... what a pain , before you take a big stick to a fight you want to be sure you can hang on to it , let alone use it ...else somebody takes it off you and ...um ....belts you with it.....

It's hard to give lawyers a worse name but thet guy seems like he's got something to offer the cause...

[4-barrel Mike]

Is this Mark Dees the writer?  The Miller Dynasty, the 4-part magazine series on the history of the Ford flathead & racing, etc?

Mike

[jimmy six]

Same guy. He pulled into a pit of some one who was in impounds and was told to was taken...A minor skuffle broke out and a guy 5'2" convinced him it was in his best interest to leave...Fun to watch............

[JackD]

The Dees stories could fill a book.
Remember Mark D. with the exotic import playing the Opera music until Mort the Sport set up next to him and out grossed him with his Spike Jones collection turned up to shout.
That same meet, Senter's kid was cruising the pits with Mark's Lamboguinni or something, and my boy along for the ride.
The kid decided it was a good idea to go way way out of the pits and do some donuts.
My kid bailed before that happened and about 1 hour later the driver kid walked back and said the car was way stuck about a mile out.
Mark was a niceaguy, you guys just treated him bad, I know I did.

[dwarner]

I had to create a protest form because Mark's input from the Stateline bar napkins were usually unreadable the next morning. A combintation of wet table tops and fuzzy hand writing.

I have an autographed first edition of Mark's Miller book. He gave me all the updates for about six years - he then realized that I had yet to pay for the book. I did square up with him.

RIP Mark,
DW

[fastesthonda_jim]

Yeah,

I never met Mr. Mark, but I've always been amazed at how only 95% of the attorneys can so screw it up for the rest of them.

Keep the shiny side up!   

JK

[panic]

Actually, some lawyers aren't that bad.
The problem is finding out which ones, and getting their attention.
A method suggested to me (by a doctor, who in his own way was even worse - and couldn't understand why someone who WASN'T A DOCTOR could believe he was entitled to anything):

When he (the lawyer) says something really stupid and officious (you'll know it's coming, because his mouth will open), you hold out your hand and say:
"Sorry, have we met? I'm Judge Smith"
and watch his face change colors several times.

[dwarner]

Here's another Mark story.

He was being his usual lawyer self and pissed his crew off one year so bad that they pulled this stunt.

Pushed him off in his streamliner, cut a U turn and went back to the hotel. They picked up their bags and left for Los Angeles. Mark in the meantime was sitting down at the 7 mile mark waiting for the push truck. true story, I heard it from the source.

DW

[JackD]

Hey !
I know those guys !

Someday I will tell you the story about Mark escorting the really handsome, and single, PR lady from Buick around EM in his best cowboy silver and she spent most of the time talking with me.
He kind danced around like he had to go pee or something, and the Porta was right there.
I never did ask him what was wrong.