Arnie The Farmer Beswick

Arnie “the Farmer” Beswick was called “the consummate underdog” by Hot Rod magazine. While there was good reason, there is much more to his unbelievable career. Born a third-generation farmer in the small town of Morrison, Illinois, Arnie Beswick’s driving career began not behind the wheel of a straight-line terror but that of a tractor. On local dusty roads, Arnie’s budding reputation grew with street cars, as the “flying farmer” was coined to describe his driving style. When drag racing began in the Midwest in the early 1950s, Arnie was one of the pioneers who campaigned Dodges and Oldsmobiles. In 1960, he purchased his first Pontiac and never looked back. At the beginning, he didn’t like the “farmer” nickname, but he quickly learned to utilize the name to lull his competition into complacency. After all, what could a simple farmer know of the world of high-performance drag racing? Throughout the 1960s, Arnie’s Mr. B's Passionate Poncho, Mystery Tornado, Star of the Circuit I and II, Tameless Tiger, and Super Judge all contributed to dispel the myth that a simple farmer couldn’t dominate straight-line racing. Arnie was an innovator, fierce competitor, entertainer and showman who always gave fans their money’s worth at the track. He is still brand loyal--sticking with Pontiac long after production models ceased. Arnie has always been a fan favorite for this reason, and he continues to exhilarate fans at the track with his cast of potent Pontiacs.

Blast through the evolving early years of Funny Car drag racing when doorslammers morphed into flip-top rail monsters. The era features historic mounts from Arnie "the Farmer" Beswick, Al “the Flying Dutchman” Vanderwoude, "Jungle" Jim Liberman, Don “the Snake” Prudhomme, and many more! The metamorphosis from doorslammers to fiberglass flip-top dragsters wasn’t ever a cut and dry plan. As drag racers pushed the envelope for more speed, a series of innovations quickly evolved and refined the genre. Funny Cars cut their teeth in the A/Factory Experimental (A/FX) and Experimental Stock (X/S) classes in 1964 with the 2-percent Mopars that looked funny with their axles moved forward. However, it was Jack Chrisman’s supercharged, nitro-fueled 427 Supercharged Factory Experimental (S/FX) Comet Caliente that trailblazed the class on which the NHRA turned its back and the AHRA fully accepted. Showmanship became the draw in the dawn of Funny Car with half-track burnouts and flame-throwing headers that packed fans five deep at the fence. By 1969, the NHRA had no choice but to create a class for these nitro-breathing, flip-top-sporting rail bruisers, indoctrinating the Funny Car (F/C) class at the Winternationals with 40 cars vying for 16 places in the field. The rest, as they say, is history!

By the mid-1960s, the American automotive market was yearning for faster, more responsive, and sportier cars, and a crew of high-performance enthusiasts at Pontiac recognized this. Large V-8s were commonly installed in full-size cars, but performance was hampered by pure chassis weight. Under the guidance of Bunkie Knudsen, John DeLorean, Bill Collins, and others, Pontiac installed the high-performance 389 V-8 into the nimble and lightweight intermediate-size LeMans chassis. It was a watershed moment for Pontiac; the 1964 GTO delivered astounding performance and created the muscle car blueprint that the Detroit manufacturers followed in the 1960s and 1970s. This volume in the Muscle Cars In Detail Series delivers a comprehensive review of this trend-setting and historic car. The GTO housed a 389 V-8 engine with a single Carter AFB 4-barrel carburetor, and along with dual exhaust and 4-speed manual transmission, it supplied extraordinary performance. To improve traction and handling, the GTO was fitted with stiffer springs, limited-slip differential, larger-diameter front sway bar, and wider wheels. And to give it panache, the GTO was adorned with distinctive badges and a hood scoop. The 1964 GTO is a landmark car, and this book goes well beyond the glossy overview of other books about this car. All In Detail Series books include an introduction and historical overview, an explanation of the design and concepts involved in creating the car, a look at marketing and promotion, and an in-depth study of all hardware and available options, as well as an examination of where the car is on the market today. Also included is an appendix of paint and option codes, VIN and build-tag decoders, as well as production numbers. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Arial}

p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Arial} After a brainstorming session, Pontiac executives and engineers decided to slot a 389-ci V-8 into the intermediate-sized Tempest against GM rules and the GTO was created. Little did they know what a profound impact that decision would make. The GTO would become a sensation and later was recognized as the first muscle car of the 1960s. Visionaries Pete Estes, John DeLorean, and other key Pontiac executives knew the youth market was waiting for a bold, lightweight sporty car. When their staff toyed with the concept of putting the large V-8 in the car, Pontiac executives jumped on the idea to meet that perceived market demand. Pontiac had a high-performance street car that could light up its tires and outperform the vast majority of the cars on the road. It also reshaped Pontiac’s image of a company producing stodgy, lumbering full-size cars into a high-performance youth brand. Pontiac expert and long-time writer David Bonaskiewich delves deep into the GTO model and its history, bringing the equipment and options of this iconic muscle car into full focus. He reveals the hardware under the sheet metal: the V-8 engines, manual and automatic transmissions, rear differentials, interior options, color codes, and so much more. When the GTO was released in 1964, it was offered as a unique performance package to the Tempest, and high-performance enthusiasts stood up and took notice. Examined are the GTO’s 4-barrel 389 with dual exhaust, 3-speed floor shifter, stiffer suspension, limited-slip differential, and heavy-duty cooling system. The 1965 GTO was restyled with more interior room being added, and the renowned 389 Tri-Power engine joined the lineup, cranking out 360 hp. By 1966, the GTO was a runaway success. Pontiac made the GTO its own model, and it featured a sleeker Coke-bottle styling. A convertible joined the hardtop, and a pillared coupe also joined the lineup. The 1967 Pontiac GTO was arguably one of most the superbly styled models ever, with a wide range of engines and high-performance hardware. All of these important upgrades, advancements, and model evolutions are covered in exceptional detail. The GTO stands alone in the annals for muscle car history. Not only did Pontiac create a classic muscle car, it created the muscle car blueprint that other Detroit manufacturers followed in the years to come. A glossy surface overview of this iconic model does not do it justice. If you have been searching for the in-depth, nuts-and-bolts guide to GTO equipment and options, you need look no further. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Arial}

In 1963 Pontiac's Chief Engineer John DeLorean and his two favorite staff engineers, Bill Collins and Russ Gee, came up with an inspired way to keep Pontiac cars in the performance limelight: bolt a big engine into Pontiac's upcoming Tempest intermediate body. Thus was the GTO born. Through cunning, resourcefulness, and outright trickery the minds of Pontiac managed to get this rocket into dealerships and out onto America's highways, and to introduce that most iconic of American automobiles, the muscle car, to the nation’s most discriminating drivers. This is the story of the GTO, of the people who made it a reality and a sales sensation, of those who owned and loved the cars. And it is, above all, a story of the cars themselves, from the initial option package offered for the 1964 model year through the high-performance late-model standouts. With color photographs, drawings, and detailed stats, this book is not so much the story of a historic car as an illustrated biography of American muscle.

Drag racing is a very regulated sport. In the history of the NHRA, IHRA, and other sanctioning bodies, many classes existed in an effort to make sure the cars racing against each other are as equal as possible. It is a noble, if not futile, pursuit. You have two cars facing off that have very similar statistics in terms of weight, transmission type, fuel type, estimated horsepower, and all other sorts of measurables. The byproduct is that often the races that were "fair" were not the races that the fans wanted to see. During the golden age of drag racing, fans didn't care as much about class racing as much as they wanted to see scores settled, rivalries battled, and interesting match-ups. There were the manufacturer rivalries, Ford versus Chevy, Chevy versus Mopar, Mopar versus Ford, as well as numerous driver rivalries. Match races were also a great way to feature wildly popular cars that no longer had a class in which to compete, yet the fans still wanted to see them. So popular and intense were these races that many track promoters didn't bother to promote class racing at all. Instead, they used the match races as headliners, similar to the marquee at your local arena or a billboard in Las Vegas, all resulting in putting more fans in the stands. And the drivers loved it too. Although the prize money for national events was fairly average for the day, the extra appearance fees and prize money to lure the most popular match racers to events increased the driver's take exponentially. Many of the most popular pro drivers quit class racing altogether just to go match racing. Veteran drag race author Doug Boyce tells the tale of the history of match racing through the cars, the drivers, the events, the classes, the rivalries, and everything else that was fun about match racing during the golden era. It's all here, complemented by wonderful vintage photography provided by fans and professionals in attendance. If you are a fan of any class of drag racing, from any era, Match Race Mayhem is a fun addition to your racing library. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Arial}

This book includes in-depth reviews of factory performance components, and gives advice on the proper way to modify them for optimal power and durability. It also give an assessment of the many aftermarket accessories offered for these great engines.

Learn about the rarest muscle cars ever produced with this new book. In the world of muscle cars, many were produced and sold in large enough quantities that they would be considered special but not particularly rare at the time of production. The Boss 429 and Plymouth Superbird were produced for racing homologation reasons, and since they were very expensive to produce, the manufacturers ensured that they would be rare. However, there is rare, and then there is rare. Prototypes and special factory builds, factory production cars, and super car tuners and builders are all covered in this new book by muscle-car historian Wes Eisenschenk. Some are single examples, some are very close to being the last remaining example, and all are extremely rare. Some have no surviving example known to exist. Featured cars include a Boss 429 Cougar, a 1971 Pontiac Ventura II Sprint 455, a 1965 Chevelle 300 COPO car with the L78 option, and a 1970 FK5 Deep Burnt Orange Metallic Superbird. Dealer promotional specials include a 1968 AMC AMX Von Piranha, a 1970 Dick Harrell LS6 454 Camaro, and a 1973 Nickey Chevrolet 427 Nova. These are cars that you will read about but likely never see. For a fun ride through muscle-car history and great stories of the rarest muscle cars ever produced, add this book to your automotive library today.