Mouse

So corner sliding to the right in the clay mud - the left small tire would on any acceleration lift up-to - two feet high and twist the frame and rotate extra weight over to the right front giant tire ~ with wide friction gripping tread - so that this tire with the greatest grip was the steering wheel - of which the other wheels followed - and Melius could do what no-one else could - pass in the corner curves on the ends oval slide.

We not only watched the wheel, but we were looking for the shortest number of laps it would take him to go from last to first in a 30 lap race. His record or the shortest that we observed was around 9 laps, but that was a real exception. He was the only car that could pass on the curves as well as the straights. And somehow probably by superior driving skills, he was able to avoid all the accidents, and with sometimes two and three accidents in a final, he was never involved in one that we saw although he would have to avoid any number of them.

Roaring down the straight-away - back-off for the corner hack hack hack hack - in the early summer just after June dark - flash flash flash flash - engine exhaust straight out-of the open sides - raw red and blue flame - and slip-slide side on the mud thru the turns.

Mouse Melious was the draw with brand new Chevy fuel injected Corvette V8 engines - three-twenty-seven horse power in those years and we for two summers - four of us would go to watch that wheel on Saturday nights - ShaZam !

(7 of 7) Stories Page