This is a car called the Orange Peel. This thing is a real 1963 split window Corvette that packs a four speed, a blown big block, a straight axle, and history like you would not believe. The machine has been a drag race car for decades and it lived a large swath of its life out in California participating in races at the most notable tracks in the history of that state. It has the suspension technology of a Conestoga wagon and it is a handful to drive as much as it is a pure joy to watch and announce heading down the track. Wickam shot a bunch of awesome photos of the car and we’ll be giving you all the tech, backstory, and information about the beast but for now we want you to take a ride to see just what it is like to manhandle a powerful stick-shift car with horse and buggy suspension under it.
The class that Beaumont was running in at this race was Hot Rod, a dial-in, bracket style eliminator. The car in the other lane may look pretty familiar and that is because it is a 1949 Hudson Hornet. That Hudson Hornet is packing a Mopar big block motor for power and it is driven by a very capable racer who we have seen all over the country. You may notice that Beaumont whomps the throttle and then lets out early in this one and that is because he is trying to “drive the stripe” at the top end of the track, which is a fancy way of saying that he was trying to figure out if he was close to his competitor, too slow, or getting ready to break out. Note the way the car starts to move around up there at speed. It is wild.
PRESS PLAY BELOW TO SEE THE WILD ORANGE PEEL CORVETTE MAKE A FOUR SPEED, STRAIGT AXLE, 10-SECOND PASS BELOW!
