This story shows what a BADASS Big Daddy was - love it!
“I remember we were at some race together — I don’t remember where it was, but it was really hot — and we weren’t supposed to run until night, so we’re back at the hotel; it’s so hot and humid you just want to stay inside. I looked out the window of my room, and there he was working on his car in the parking lot, sweating like a pig. It didn't bother him at all. He was out there with a hacksaw, sawing the bottom framerails to take a piece out of it to jack the engine up because he knew where we were running was going to be slippery, and if he jacked the engine up, he’d have more traction. That's how badly he always wanted to win. He just cut it, took out a piece, and welded it back together, then went out there and kicked everyone's ass.”
[The story sounded so outrageous that I had to call Garlits to fact-check that tale, and it’s true. “Yes, yes, that's exactly right,” he told me. “It was Swamp Rat 25. I cut a quarter of an inch out of the bottom framerail on each side, and that raised it up, and I put a slip tube in there and welded it back. Then I took the two little quarter-inch rings, I put them on a little tie, wrapped and mailed them to 'the Snake' with a little note that said, 'This is a speed secret,' and you look at two pieces, a quarter-inch of inch and a quarter tubing and wonder how the hell could this be a speed secret. Well, I built a damn car. If something was wrong with that, I didn't mind cutting them up. I had a heli-arc welder in my trailer so I could make modifications like that if I wanted to.”]
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