Strega Info???

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Strega Info???

Welcome to the Hangar Mike!

[Leo]

Re: Strega Info???

yes once. Of course then we would have to get serious with the Merlin

Best line I've seen in a while! the essence of the whole competition.
Welcome!

[CanIFlyIt]

Re: Strega Info???

Hey Mike what team do you work with?

[ChrisMX105]

Re: Strega Info???

. Can I or anyone build a radial that could beat Strega? .

It can be done And more than once, But I doubt it will happen.

As a die hard radial fan and former Bear crew I do have to dip my hat to the whole Strega team. It was/is a kickass program and you guys earned every win!!

[Big_Jim]

Re: Strega Info???

Hey Mike what team do you work with?

Whatever team pays the money, of course.....

[Wild Bill Kelso]

Re: Strega Info???

It can be done And more than once, But I doubt it will happen.

As a die hard radial fan and former Bear crew I do have to dip my hat to the whole Strega team. It was/is a kickass program and you guys earned every win!!

I think what PAPA Nixon is trying to say is that you will beat him once and then he will find a way to squeeze more power out of a Merlin to beat you next time.

[John]

Re: Strega Info???

Can I or anyone build a radial that could beat Strega? I think thats a new thread but for now the answer is: yes once. Of course then we would have to get serious with the Merlin.

Was that for the Bear? ...or other?

[Dago Dog]

Re: Strega Info???





Or this :





Truth will set you free!!

[MIKE NIXON]

Re: Strega Info???

What is the date of that photo? Is Lockwood flying? He has a shop 200 feet north of our Radial engine shop.

I have a photo of the first daytime run of Dago from August '82. I will try to get it posted.
The first engine run in Dago was a Sunday night at 11:55PM, first week of Aug. 1982. Frank Taylor had a $10,000 bet that we would have it running by Midnight! We did it and Frank won the bet. That lit a fire under the crew!
We had mated the wing and fuslage the middle of July. First flight was the Middle of August. The first win was the middle of Sept. Just a normal summer at Chino in the '80's.
The project was planned out on the first Friday evening of October, 1981 at a Mexican resturant on Vineland Blvd north of Burbank airport. On the back of the placemats. The planers were Pete Law, Bruce Boland, Tiger, Ron Hevley, Mike and Kim Nixon. Phase one was what won the next year. Phase two for '83 was to use a boiler to cool the oil. Phase three for '84 was to use a boiler to cool the engine. I was the project manager and I still have all the notes and drawings in my office. That notebook and the tooling for Dago was the basis we used for building Strega the next year. Two racers in 23 months.
The years '82, '83 and '84 saw three Mustangs, two Sea Furys and the Super Corsair arrive on the Reno ramp. The competition was fierice and the pile of broken engine parts was huge! I burned out a few years later with 4 Merlins in the Gold race. However we have had 5 or 6 engines at Reno most years since.
This Reno will be my 40th and I have boxes of t-shirts, photos and stories. I worked with Dave Zeuschel, Randy Scovill, Pete Law and Bruce Boland on the Red Barron Griffon project in 1974-75. That was a time to be in the game as a twenty something. It was a big jump from car engines. I helped build the last 427 engine Dave did at that time.
As I find time I will share a few more bits.

[kiwiracefan]

Re: Strega Info???

What is the date of that photo? Is Lockwood flying? He has a shop 200 feet north of our Radial engine shop.

I have a photo of the first daytime run of Dago from August '82. I will try to get it posted.
The first engine run in Dago was a Sunday night at 11:55PM, first week of Aug. 1982. Frank Taylor had a $10,000 bet that we would have it running by Midnight! We did it and Frank won the bet. That lit a fire under the crew!
We had mated the wing and fuslage the middle of July. First flight was the Middle of August. The first win was the middle of Sept. Just a normal summer at Chino in the '80's.
The project was planned out on the first Friday evening of October, 1981 at a Mexican resturant on Vineland Blvd north of Burbank airport. On the back of the placemats. The planers were Pete Law, Bruce Boland, Tiger, Ron Hevley, Mike and Kim Nixon. Phase one was what won the next year. Phase two for '83 was to use a boiler to cool the oil. Phase three for '84 was to use a boiler to cool the engine. I was the project manager and I still have all the notes and drawings in my office. That notebook and the tooling for Dago was the basis we used for building Strega the next year. Two racers in 23 months.
The years '82, '83 and '84 saw three Mustangs, two Sea Furys and the Super Corsair arrive on the Reno ramp. The competition was fierice and the pile of broken engine parts was huge! I burned out a few years later with 4 Merlins in the Gold race. However we have had 5 or 6 engines at Reno most years since.
This Reno will be my 40th and I have boxes of t-shirts, photos and stories. I worked with Dave Zeuschel, Randy Scovill, Pete Law and Bruce Boland on the Red Barron Griffon project in 1974-75. That was a time to be in the game as a twenty something. It was a big jump from car engines. I helped build the last 427 engine Dave did at that time.
As I find time I will share a few more bits.

Amazing, that is one hell of an effort to field so many motors, but the history and experiences of what you do is not only marvelled at by fanboys such as myself, but respected and revered by many in the aviation community as a whole, i must admit i cant wait to hear more to feed my appetite for racing history.
Thank you for all you have brought to the aviation community as a whole, and for the racing community

[marada mx3]

Re: Strega Info???

What is the date of that photo? Is Lockwood flying? He has a shop 200 feet north of our Radial engine shop.
............................

Isn't Skip in the driver's seat for Dago? Penney in Bear!

[Race5]

Re: Strega Info???

What is the date of that photo? Is Lockwood flying? He has a shop 200 feet north of our Radial engine shop.

I have a photo of the first daytime run of Dago from August '82. I will try to get it posted.
The first engine run in Dago was a Sunday night at 11:55PM, first week of Aug. 1982. Frank Taylor had a $10,000 bet that we would have it running by Midnight! We did it and Frank won the bet. That lit a fire under the crew!
We had mated the wing and fuslage the middle of July. First flight was the Middle of August. The first win was the middle of Sept. Just a normal summer at Chino in the '80's.
The project was planned out on the first Friday evening of October, 1981 at a Mexican resturant on Vineland Blvd north of Burbank airport. On the back of the placemats. The planers were Pete Law, Bruce Boland, Tiger, Ron Hevley, Mike and Kim Nixon. Phase one was what won the next year. Phase two for '83 was to use a boiler to cool the oil. Phase three for '84 was to use a boiler to cool the engine. I was the project manager and I still have all the notes and drawings in my office. That notebook and the tooling for Dago was the basis we used for building Strega the next year. Two racers in 23 months.
The years '82, '83 and '84 saw three Mustangs, two Sea Furys and the Super Corsair arrive on the Reno ramp. The competition was fierice and the pile of broken engine parts was huge! I burned out a few years later with 4 Merlins in the Gold race. However we have had 5 or 6 engines at Reno most years since.
This Reno will be my 40th and I have boxes of t-shirts, photos and stories. I worked with Dave Zeuschel, Randy Scovill, Pete Law and Bruce Boland on the Red Barron Griffon project in 1974-75. That was a time to be in the game as a twenty something. It was a big jump from car engines. I helped build the last 427 engine Dave did at that time.
As I find time I will share a few more bits.

That pic is from the demo "race" at Nellis in 2004. Skip is flying Dago.

[Ron Lewark]

Re: Strega Info???

Mike, that was a wonderful story and history lesson. Those were great years in the early eighties, you better write a book with all the good stuff you have been involved in and the people you have worked with. Our first year was 1974 and we've only missed two years since. It would be great to see all of the old racers, owners, crews and pilots at this years big 50, even if most of them don't race.
Ron

[MIKE NIXON]

Re: Strega Info???

We plan to start the engine build this week

[Fawkes]

Re: Strega Info???

I love it when someone pulls the pin on a very large grenade and walks quietly from the room...especially when it is a respected member of the community.