Parma Heights, Ohio (June 1, 2010) – The Quarter Mile Foundation (QMF), producers of the PROJECT 1320 film documentary series about the birth and growth of drag racing, has accepted an invitation to participate in the prestigious 21st Annual Chrysler Employee Motorsport Association (CEMA) Charity Car Show on the grounds of the Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Mich., on Saturday, June 12.
Joining the QMF will be the renowned Wally Booth, with the restorations of two of his most famous Pro Stock cars, the 1973 AMC “Gremlin X” and the 1973 AMC Hornet “AMC Special.” Both cars were restored by the father-son team of Don and Donny Schmitz of Kenosha, Wis. In addition to the cars, the Schmitz family will also display a set of the infamous saimesed heads which Booth and partner Dick Arons developed for the Booth-Arons Hornet.
Bob Riley (who with partner, Mark Scott, gained great acclaim as sports prototype and Indy Car chassis designers) designed the Gremlin X chassis for Booth-Arons, which was built by Ron Fournier’s Car Craft Race Shop in Detroit. Fournier’s skills were honed in Holman & Moody’s NASCAR shop, and later with Roger Penske on the Indy Car team and the TransAm AMC Javelins. The AMC Special Hornet was built by Tom Smith of Wolverine Chassis (Romulus, Mich.), whose shop turned out many famous drag cars of the era.
Booth, who serves on the Foundation’s Advisory Board, had an earlier Chrysler connection, having wheeled Dodges in the Super Stock classes for the Detroit Dodge Dealers Association during the 1960s. After a couple of highly competitive seasons racing Camaros in the newly formed Pro Stock class, Booth and partner Arons were tabbed by AMC to take the Gremlin to the quarter mile to battle with GM, Ford and Chrysler in Pro Stock. The square back Gremlin took a NHRA Division 3 Pro Stock title. The Hornet won 5 NHRA Pro Stock National events, including the U.S. Nationals and a classic battle with AMC “team mate” Dave Kanners in the Maskin & Kanners Hornet at the 1976 NHRA World Finals in Ontario, Calif.
“We are excited to be a part of the Chrysler Employee Motorsport Association’s car show,” said Quarter Mile Foundation chairman, Traci Hrudka. “We feel the show, and the acknowledgement of the 1970’s era of Pony cars, makes this a place where we can meet the people who helped shape the sport of drag racing from Chrysler’s perspective. To have Wally and the Booth-Arons Pro Stocks in our area, plus the Show’s honoring of the Chrysler engineering group’s potent ‘Ramcharger’ drag racing team, will make this a very memorable event.
“The Foundation is pleased to have received an invitation to participate in this event, one which draws car buffs and race enthusiasts from across the country. The CEMA Charity Car Show will provide a unique opportunity to meet many of the pioneers from Chrysler who made ‘Mopar’ and ‘Hemi’ two very important words in drag racing.”
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION regarding the 21st Annual Chrysler Employee Motorsport Association Charity Car Show, visit the CEMA website: www.cemaclub.org. For more information regarding Quarter Mile Foundation and PROJECT 1320, visit www.project1320.com.
