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21st June 2009 - 11:51:44 AM
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295 :
Billl Bowers
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I saw Jim race the 2G at Bridgehampton on September 15, 1968, where he finished 2nd to Mark Donohue. It was an exciting race and a thrill to get my first look at a Chaparral. I have a picture of myself standing by the 2G in the paddock before the race.
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15th June 2009 - 10:33:09 PM
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294 :
Bruce Maniscalco
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Love the site. The 2E is my all time fav race car ... I first saw it when I was in Jr high ... from that moment on I was hooked on sports cars and auto racing. Can't wait to get to the museum one day.
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11th June 2009 - 06:56:14 PM
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293 :
ED FLOYD
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MARCH OF THIS YEAR I TOOK A TRIP FROM PENNSYLVANIA TO SEE THE CHAPARRAL COLLECTION.IT WAS AMAZING TO SEE THE HEROS OF MY CHILDHOOD.I WAS ABLE TO GET CLOSE AND TAKE GOOD PHOTOS OF THE CARS.THE CHAPARRAL 2E IS MY FAVORITE;HOWEVER I DID NOT THE 2F ON DISPLAY.THE GENTLEMAN IN CHARGE OF THE COLLECTION SAID IT WAS IN BACK BEING SERVICED.HE TOOK ME TO SHOP AND SHOWED THE 2F HAVING ITS MAGNESIUM HUBS AND WHEELS BEING REPLACED TO KEEP THE CARS SAFE TO DRIVE.IT WAS WELL WORTH THE TRIP TO SEE THE CARS.
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05th June 2009 - 08:23:44 AM
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292 :
mike schiffer
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I'd buy Chaparral gear if you offered any...think about it
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17th May 2009 - 11:52:05 AM
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291 :
nigel upcott
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hello,how are you fixed to mail me one of your t/shirts as now at 52 yrs of age am ready to relive my youth on this side of pond.quote me price with p+p much obliged.the best cars i have ever seen in all my life as a petrol head.
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07th May 2009 - 11:13:04 AM
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290 :
Ron Clatworthy
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I can still remember, clearly, watching the cars in the '60's, at Mosport and Watkins Glen. So ahead of their time, and legislated against.
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23rd April 2009 - 12:46:28 AM
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289 :
Skip Nichols
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Jim-
I still have the 265 small block that art and floyd were building for you in our dyno shop in El Segundo ca. back in 1964. when you and i raced at the trans am historics in seattle you thought you might want it. As i said before its yours if you want it. i also have the photos of art building the oldsmobile engine for you that go shelved when you got the big blocks.
Good luck and keep in touch
skip
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21st April 2009 - 10:12:27 PM
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288 :
Steve Vrismo
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Imagine the days before cable TV or the Internet. Imagine a fourteen year-old boy getting his racing news via Competition Press & Autoweek, Car & Driver or Road & Track, all of which arrived weeks and months behind racing events. Every now and then a heavier sound echoed from the mailbox signaling the delivery of another publication and the boy would gobble the words and images as quickly as he could.
Soon, his best friend, a year older, who also shared the first boy's interests, acquired his driver's license and a brand new VW Beetle from his folks. Before long we ventured far from home - we slept in line one late Saturday night as we waited at the gates leading to the military reservation that hosted Laguna Seca Raceway. Awakening tired and sore, we started the little engine and crept into the track with all of the others who'd slept like us, crunched up in their autos and chilled to the bone.
It was still dark on that cold October morning in the fall of 1966. We felt like we'd time traveled to a medieval battle encampment... The chilled air was filled with Monterey Bay fog and the hanging smoke from those who had camped within the confines of the track. Finally, the sun burnt through, and for the very first time we could see the hilly valley, the dry lake bed and the track which encircled it.
Wandering through the pit area left me with the same feeling I might have had were I invited to a Playboy photo shoot. We'd never seen sights, sounds or even smells like that before. It was more exotic than I could ever imagine handling.
Approaching race time, we climbed the hills and found a comfortable spot just where the cars would brake heavily and zoom through the famous corkscrew twisties called "Turn Eight."
We couldn't see pit lane or the starting grid, yet when they give the signal to light up all those racing engines, we could practically feel the exhaust blast. More than 300 oversized pistons pumped within 40 American engine blocks, and there was one lone Ferrari and an even lonelier Porsche.
Soon we could hear that the cars were moving for their warm up lap - and who would we be seeing in the next minute or two? Denny Hulme, Dan Gurney, Bruce McClaren, Phil Hill, Jackie Stewart for god's sake, and Mark Donahue.
The rumbling pack was now making it's ascent up through turns six and seven, climbing toward the clouds and screaming a scream that I can still hear - then suddenly, back to a rumbling idol as drivers stomped the brakes to slow - fiberglass and aluminum under-bodies scratching against the asphalt, and in a split second they were hard on the gas again now fighting the oddball physics of Laguna's Turn Eight.
And with all of that, what was the very first thing that we saw as the cars finally burst into our vision? The white wings of Phil Hill and Jim Hall's Chapparal 2Es - there they were, visible above the heads of the crowd, through the scrub oaks and manzanita and all the dust raised by thousands of spectator's feet - it was like seeing the dorsal fins on shark before you see anything else, quite chilling.
For a moment I was so hypnotized that I think that I had forgotten to breathe. I do know that those two barn-door wings and the four black struts holding them up were the only visible evidence that a race was going on for at least several seconds until the pack finally emerged from behind all of nature's clutter.
Hall qualified on pole and ran the quickest race lap, yet finished in second behind former World Champion, Phil Hill. Obviously, my life was never quite the same. Each year coming to my favorite track, fueled by my winter's reading, and always, ALWAYS wondering what that clever oilman from Midland might come up with next in that championship that knew few rules.
Steve Vrismo
April 21, 2009
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01st April 2009 - 04:46:29 AM
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287 :
Andy
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I was a kid when the Chapparals raced in the '60s and have great memories of them. Nice to see that they are not forgotten.
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21st March 2009 - 06:28:12 AM
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286 :
Richard Smith
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Hey, im a 14 year old and i am soooooooo facinated with the chaparrals. They are my dream cars and i love that i found this website. I cant wait till i can go to the museum*. My favorite one is the 2j and i want to see it in person sooooooooooo bad.
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09th March 2009 - 08:30:34 PM
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285 :
Dwight Thompson
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The Chaparrals are the most exciting cars I have ever seen race. Glad to hear they have a permanent exhibit. God bless Jim Hall.
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28th February 2009 - 03:28:35 PM
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284 :
Frank Hunt
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Hi Chaparrals
Have admired your cars & innovations from here in Australia.We did not have the Le Mans & Can Am cars in Oz but I always followed the exploits of Chaparrals through the magazines & bought a model of each one if available.Congratulations on the achievements.
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27th February 2009 - 10:26:24 PM
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283 :
Donald Sturgeon
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I worked with Charles A. Templeton at his machine shop in Odessa Tex. when Hap Sharp and Jim Hall had the first 12 mag wheels made from castings . I did the machine work on them and other projects . I am now 73 years old and own a body shop in Baton Rouge LA. It is a pleasure to see the car as it is today . Keep up the good work
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26th February 2009 - 04:12:04 PM
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282 :
Bruce Irving
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Brilliant cars. Always my favorite. Still remember as I was
setting up my tent at Mosport, my friend returned from the
pits and said, " You should see the Chaparral, it's got a huge
wing on it. Thanks Jim for a lot of great racing memories.
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25th February 2009 - 01:09:46 AM
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281 :
lynn kay
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loved your race cars
made great slot car bodies
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16th February 2009 - 12:58:43 AM
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280 :
Christian J. Palot
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Les Chaparral luttant au Mans contre les GT40 et les Ferrari seront toujours parmi les plus beaux moments de ma jeunesse!
Encore un grand BRAVO à Jim Hall pour sa clairvoyance et son sens de la course!
Regards from Reims.
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02nd February 2009 - 03:30:38 AM
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279 :
Barbecue Wang
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When I saw a Chaparral 2J in a video about Cam-Am series, I was shocked and said "Wow, What a car!" I have never seen a car like this, it is fast, it is innovative, and it can also make competitiors frightened. Jim Hall should be the guy among genius like Ferdinand Porsche & Colin Chapman.
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27th January 2009 - 06:46:08 AM
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278 :
Tom Czech
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One of the patients I see at VA is someone you may recall - Richie Sorel. He has some physical problems but still is a great guy.
He always asks how I'm doing at MidOhio with PCA. I run a Lotus. One old guy keeping an eye on another I guess!
If you're interested Richie can be contacted at 313-205-1051
Best,
tom
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24th January 2009 - 05:35:20 PM
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277 :
Dave K
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I have followed the Chaparral race cars since I was 14 in 1965. What an impact they had on racing and if there would have been more support I believe they would have beat everyone at Le Mans. I used too sit at a drawing board trying to design my own race car. So great to see the cars restored and I will have to make a trip to Midland to see them and the Chararral facility.
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15th January 2009 - 12:29:39 AM
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276 :
Doug Jetmund
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It is so nice to see the Chaparral Mark, and the inside of of some of the shops. I first saw the Chaparral 2's at Greenwood Roadway in (I believe) 1964. You had two cars there. One I believe Hap Sharp drove. We were at the curve where it caught the guard rail and the front left wheel well was damaged -- it was out for the rest of the day. But, OH, what a day it was. I can't believe that was 45 years ago ... I wish I could have been a member of your crew ... I am so happy that all the innovation you brought to the racing scene has not been forgotten, and that you are still involved with the awesome creation you let loose on the tarmac. Other friends of mine were watching other things while I was dreaming of what it would have been like to be one of your crew. I'd have gladly handed you your bottles of water. You have had a huge impact on the racing world. So much innovation ... so many milestones and records. Congratulations on all you have done and for those of us who have been inspired by you.
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