John ‘The Crazyman’ Taylor passed away in September, aged 73, but the tales of his exploits in trying to go as fast as possible as cheaply as possible live on.
Taylor was, by any measure, a budget racer. His career was spotted with cars that were pushed to the far limits of their structural capabilities, but were kept going on the promise of a major refurb if he could just win that next race.
Beneath the rough and ready surface, Taylor was a very determined racer doing the best with what he had. He rose rapidly to become one of the lions of the fuel altered wars in the early 70s, evolving with most of that breed into the early nitro Funny Car crowd as the decade rolled on.
Taylor started his racing days hanging out with Sydney-based altered racer Ron Gardner, and once recalled crewing on Gardner’s Y-block Ford-powered Fiat Topolino at the 1967 Nationals at Surfers Paradise Raceway. That early experience welded him to the notion of altered as the most fun you could have on the quarter-mile, but someone in the pits had a dragster chassis for sale. It was pretty crude, but at just $300 was too cheap to pass up. So Taylor became a dragster racer.
That chassis turned out to be a venerable part of Australian drag racing history. Built in 1959 by Victorian Greg Goddard, it was just the second purpose-built dragster constructed in Australia. It had been passed on to Melbourne speed shop owner Eddie Thomas and became the first car in the country to break the 140, 150 and 160mph barriers, and the first to run 10s, and later, nines.
This story is from the January 2020 edition of Street Machine Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the January 2020 edition of Street Machine Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
ROTARY INTERNATIONAL
JAPANESE STEEZE MEETS AUSSIE ICONOGRAPHY IN JAY DUCA'S GENRE-HOPPING VL
BIG-BUCK BURNOUTS
SUMMERNATS ANNOUNCES MASSIVE NEW PRIZEMONEY AND A BRAND-NEW BURNOUT SERIES
RETURN OF THE KINGS
WITH SOME OF AUSTRALIA'S MOST ESTEEMED CAR BUILDERS SET TO DEBUT CARS, THIS YEAR'S MEGUIAR'S MOTOREX IS SET TO BE A CRACKER
YACHT ROCK
PRO STREET luxury cars may as well be a religion unto themselves in Victoria.
THE LONG ROAD
A 20-YEAR ODYSSEY SAW JASON MACKENZIE’S CAMARO TRANSFIGURED FROM BURNOUTBRUISER TO SHOWSTOPPING BOULEVARD CRUISER
KICKSTART MY HEART
TWO HEART ATTACKS JOLTED JASON HANNAM TO HOME-BUILD HIS SL/R 5000-STYLE HOTTIE
DOUBLE ACTION
THINK BUILDING AN ELITE CAR IS TOUGH? TRY DOING A 1700RWHP HQ MONARO STREETER AT THE SAME TIME!
Mission BROWN
TWIN BROTHERS YOUNAN AND EDDIE KHAZI SET OUT TO SHOWCASE THEIR TALENTS WITH THIS CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED BARRA TURBO XE GHIA BUILD
HELL YEAH
HOW DO YOU IMPROVE ONE OF THE BEST-LOOKING MUSCLE CARS EVER? GIVE IT TO RINGBROTHERS, OF COURSE!
DIY DREAM
MONIQUE O'GARR'S EH WAGON WAS THREE DECADES COMING, BUT AN ELITE HALL DEBUT MADE IT ALL WORTHWHILE