Now we’re going back, way back to 1959, for the NHRA Nationals at Detroit Dragway.
This is not my work, I have already related that I didn’t start attending races at the ditch until 1966, eight years after this film was made. Ingenuity in Action was produced by Sid Davis and sponsored by Hot Rod magazine. It follows Jim Nelson and the DragMaster team as they head out from California to attend the nationals at Detroit.
The movie is in two parts. The initial 12 minute segment offers some nice arial views of Detroit Dragway, including a dragster boiling the hides as it nears the finish line. The flick then moves to the west coast and follows the racers as they make their way to the motor city, including a regional race in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Although the movie was made over fifty years ago, I was surprised that drag racing was portrayed as a positive, fun activity. In the fifties, drag racers were often characterized by the media as hoodlums or delinquents.
If anyone remembers the Wonderful World of Disney, then you have a good idea of what to expect from this film. The music and narration are quite reminiscent of the documentaries Disney would broadcast on the popular Sunday evening program.
I’ll post the second part in a couple of days. Part II takes place almost exclusively at Detroit Dragway, presenting plenty of footage of what the track looked like when it was first constructed. Some famous early diggers and gassers take part in the second segment, so be sure to watch for it.
Part 2 of Ingenuity in Action at Detroit Dragway
The second part of the 1959 film Ingenuity in Action takes place exclusively at Detroit Dragway. The track was apparently completed just in time for the ’59 NHRA Nationals as the famous ditches on either side of the track are brown mud with absolutely no vegetation.
It is interesting to see the track as it appeared when new, especially since I spent so much time there after it matured. Incredibly, much of the facility was exactly the same in the 1980s.
There are a lot of scenes of cars leaving the starting line. The footage is a far cry from what you see today on ESPN, and the cameraman shot too many cars from the same angle. Despite that, the film is highly entertaining because it shows the hot cars of 1959, which are unlike anything you see on a dragstrip today. This was the Nationals after all, so the contestants represented the ultimate drag machines of the day.
Apparently the “Christmas Tree” had not yet made it as the standard way to start a drag race, as the races were started by a flagman.
Things to watch for include the original Ramchargers High and Mighty C/A Plymouth, Ohio George Montgomery’s Little Eliminator winning Willys Gasser and Art Arfons in an Alison (piston driven) aircraft powered Green Monster.
There are many other cameo appearances by future racing stars, including future NASCAR racer and announcer Bernie Partridge.
If you want to see the ditch when it was brand new, take the time to watch this film, It offers a whole new perspective on Detroit Dragway back in the day.