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The "Freight Train"

 

The original Train was a dual-engine car built by John and partner Nye Frank in 1959, and ran under sponsorship from Quincy Automotive in Santa Monica, California.  It was a twin-Chevrolet car with one front-mounted 6-71 blower, overdriven through a Halibrand quick-change, with one long inlet duct running over both engines.  Then a top-mount 6-71 was added to the rear engine, and three weeks later, the front-mount blower was moved atop the front engine.  The shape was born.

There were several Freight Trains, all twin-engines, and (after a brief period in 1959) all twin-supercharged.  They raced in three decades, the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s.  They made over 1700 passes in 24 states, including Hawaii, at the hands of 13 drivers.  The Train was always the most feared competitor in its class, virtually throughout its lifetime.

 

The 50's & 60's were a time of great innovation throughout drag racing. For many fans the "real show" took place in the ranks of the "Top Gas Dragsters". Qualifying occurred within 2/10 of a second over an entire field so the competition was fierce. In 1967 the Freight Train threw a scare into the Gas Dragster class which fueled the cry "let's have 'em barred", "I won't race 'em" etc. The cause of this scare and subsequent comments were the ultra low e.t.'s the dual small block powered Train was turning  .  .  .  in the 7.40's! By 1968 the Train was still churning out the scary numbers and still had the edge.

 

It was the car to beat.  During one era it was nearly a half second faster than the rest of the field!  It was the best known dragster in the country for many years. 

 

Don Garlits called it one of the top five drag race cars ever built.

 

In its final form in the twilight of Top Gas racing, two 428-CID blown early Chryslers were fitted, coupled to a two-speed transmission, and once again weight approached one ton. 

The list of accomplishments of Peters’ magnificent legend is so long we’ve put a small part of it in a sidebar.  It’s impossible to list them all, let alone convey what seeing this car meant to so many drag racing fans during the sport’s Golden Era of the’60s.

  By 1971, virtually every competitive Top Gasser in the country had quit trying to beat John Peters at his own dual-engine game, and joined the bandwagon.  Twin-engine Top Gassers were everywhere, and fans were treated to awesome contests between two pairs of blown engines in one race for nearly every round of Top Gas, But NHRA had other ideas.  For the 1972 season, Top Gas was dropped, and the cars were to be lumped into handicap-start Competition Eliminator bracket racing.  Just as the Freight Train broke into the sixes on gas, it was relegated to a bracket racer!  We’re all the poorer.   

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES

 

·  Top Gas Eliminator “ Bakersfield ’62  Muravez (last win as “Muravez” for six years)

·  Top Eliminator Winternationals ’63 (Peters was listed as driver)

·  First Gas Dragster over 180 mph  “63 (Peters was listed as driver)

·  Low ET gas “ 8.07 “ Tulsa World Finals ’65 (disallowed; NHRA said car was too light!) “ Tuller

·  Best Appearing Crew “ Winternationals “ ’66 “ Tuller

·  First Gas Dragster in the sevens “ ’66 “ Tuller

·  Top Gas Bakersfield “ ’67 “ Tuller

·  Top Gas “ Bristol Springnationals “ ’67 Tuller

·  First Gas Dragster over 190mph “ ’67 “ Lippencotte

·  First Gas Dragster 200mph “ ’67 “ Lippencotte

·  Top time, low ET gas, 7.30/200 “ U.S. Nationals- ’67 “ Lippencotte

·  Top Gas - USPD Championships, Lions “ ’67 “ Lippencotte

·  Top time, low ET gas, every meet raced in ’67 “ Lippencotte

·  Division VII points champion five years of seven

·  Top Gas “ USPD Championships, Lions “ ’68 “ Lippencotte

·  Top Gas Springnationals “ ’69 “ Muravez

·  Top Gas “ Bakersfield “ ’70 “ Davis

·  First Gas Dragster to run seven-flat “ ’71 “ Rhodes

·  First Gas Dragster in the sixes “ ’71 “ Muravez

·  Top Gas “ Gatornationals “ ’71 “ Rhodes (final major win, Chryslers)

 

Drivers of the "Freight Train"

 

The list of Freight Train drivers is stunning.  This added a colorful dimension to the Train’s history that helped make it the fan’s favorite everywhere.

 

Train "engineers” included (random order) Bob Brissette, Craig Breedlove, Tom McKewen, Mickey Thompson, Bill Alexander, Leonard Harris, Roy “Goob” Tuller, Billy The Kid Scott, Jerry Glenn, Bob Noice, Sam Davis (pictured), Walt Rhodes, and the infamous Floyd Lippencotte Jr., AKA Bob Muravez.  Behind each and every one of them was the “real” engineer of the entire saga, toiling quietly in preparation for another of its seemingly endless appearances, John Peters.

 

  

   Bob Muravez made over 1300 runs in the car, that’s over 325 miles in a digger!  At one point he won 28 consecutive rounds of competition before losing to a red light.  Through suggestion from track announcer Mel Reck and track operator Steve Gibbs, and because of a peculiar family circumstance, Bob adopted the Lippencotte handle for several years.  He was rarely photographed during the period, and was undoubtedly the most notorious drag race driver in the sport’s history, for driving and winning national meets  using an alias.

Sam Davis 2007