<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Jerry@CHP</div><div class="ubbcode-body">One of the truly legendary sportsman race teams of the '60s that is still racing today. Dave and Ben Wenzel. Bought the car new, won Indy in 1967, set multiple national records and still race the car 41 years later. Not many can say that today?? Many don't know that Ben bought a new COPO car from Berger in June 1969. There were 23 of them on the lot at that time. He wanted the cheapest one!
This photo was taken in Vegas in 2005. Both Ben and I won class at this race! The Z28s beat up on the big block Novas that weekend. Ben had Jim Hughes in the final and I had Gary Waldo. We also changed the ring & pinion at the track in my car for the altitude change.
Jerry </div></div>
A "Dave and Ben Wenzel" story and a couple pics:
Some of you know my Dad was a diemaker at Chevrolet Flint Manufacturing (Pressed Metal Division), which is where they would make oil pans, rocker arms, valve covers, radiator supports, air cleaners, etc. As a result, one of the things Dad used to do was make special parts for Duntov. If Zora had something unique, like an air cleaner or special oil pan or something, he would call up to Flint (since that was where the base part was made) and ask for the die room to whip it up. He would ask for Dad, specifically, to make the parts for him ("...I van da skeeny diemaker to make deese.."
.
One time Zora was doing a study on valvetrain geometry on small block Chevies, for wear vs lift, so he requested (via a sketch on a napkin) a batch of rocker arms to be made in various ratios: I think they started as low as 1.2:1, then incrementing up through 1.50, maybe 1.55, 1.60 and finishing up with a 1.65:1 ratio. He asked for 100 pcs of each, so Dad would run 100 for Zora (to ship to the Tech Center) , and then 100 for himself (and stick them in his locker).
Our paths would cross with Dave and Ben on occasion. Dad happened to see them up at Tri City one time, so he handed them a bag of these 1.65 ratio rocker arms and said "here, try these".
They looked at him like "...who are you and what are these and why should I try them?".
Dad said "...just try them".
They did, and then they were REALLY flying. They got protested, torn down and the cam checked but were declared legal. Nobody ever did notice these special, production looking rocker arms that they were running.
