Pioneering drag racer Joaquin Arnett’s life will be honored during the 19th Annual California Hot Rod Reunion this weekend. Arnett’s contributions to the sport go far beyond the machinery he constructed and the races he won. The Bean Bandits car club he founded was one of the first clubs that was made up of guys from many ethnic backgrounds. As the leader of that club and one of the most gifted hot rodders of his era, Arnett’s name was one of the biggest in the sport during the 1950s. 

Arnett won the first ever NHRA sanctioned drag race at Pomona and the Bean Bandits dragsters were so feared that some racers would not even offload their cars if the club showed up to a race. If they were there, they were going to win. 

Their cars were famously crude looking and simple, and Arnett gained some notoriety with his famous quote about mixing nitromethane. Using a mix of 50% alcohol and 50% nitromethane he said that he liked that percentage because it was easy to measure, “It’s easier to mix that way; a gallon of this and a gallon of that.”

Arnett’s memory will be honored by the presence of his restored (and running!) Flathead powered dragster and with a moment of silence during the Twilight Memorial, held before the Cacklefest on Saturday night. 

LINK: Bean Bandit Tribute to Joaquin Arnett at 2010 California Hot Rod Reunion

And don’t forget to come back here for the live video feed of the Reunion, Oct 15-17.