Z11- Hayden Proffitt Story

[Z-11Guy]

Awesome article! Thanks for posting! This must of came out after the US fuel & Gas championship at Bakersfield in 1963. Hayden Drove Tom Sturm Z-11 (Hayden just had sold his after the Pomona Winternationals) to S/S class win with an 11:87 ET at 117 MPH. Frank Sanders ran a 12:04 at 120 MPH! Earl Wade driving Lenkes Z-11 won A/FX and made it to the final round for Sunday Stock eliminator (to run stock eliminator all he had to do was run no slicks) and lost barely to the Richie & Richie tan '63 426 Plymouth (the fastest Plymouth along Hayden's in California). Wade didn't get a good bite off the line and Ritchie's automatic 426 MoPar jumped ahead . The 427 cubes of Wade & Lenke's Z-11 came on hard on the top end and lost barely by inches to the MoPar. No worries, Dick Harrell got even with Richie's Plymouth with his Z-11 soon afterwards

 

[1961BelAir427]

Thanks to everyone for bumping this old thread. I have either never seen it, or had forgotten already. Very good stuff. I noticed this was back in 2003 just a year before the first National Convention. Enthusiasm is as high as ever!!

 

[LMBRJQ 60]

Steve

 

[region rat]

Man, If we could turn back the clock!!

Bob

 

[Fathead Racing]

Man, If we could turn back the clock!!

Bob

We are Bob, kind'a.

 

[Iowa 409 Guy]

http://www.chevyrumble.com/news.asp?ID=38

goto this link to read about the best Z-11 409 story and how Hayden Proffitt kicked the Ramchargers 413 butt during the
NHRA U.S. NATIONALS SEPTEMBER 1962: with his SS/S 1962 Z11 409 sponsored by Cone Chevrolet of Fullerton, California which by the way is still in business

The link about Hayden died...does anyone have a copy of the article to post?

 

[david montanbeau]

Interesting article, wish we could get the old links to work. Most probably already know that we did the 1st clone of Proffitt's car. 62 Red bubble top but we put a Z11 in it with a 4 speed. Took the car to Super Chevy weekend at Indy in 80-81. Had the opportunity to meet Doug Marrion and others while at the show. Drove around the 500 track also. Was a lot of fun back then. Mike Zubal the owner. Me and my brothers built the car from parts left over.

 

[Z-11Guy]

The link about Hayden died...does anyone have a copy of the article to post?

Geesh! You gave me heart attack about Hayden dying, I just called him a few hours ago and he's fine, just relaxing from his sons wedding

 

[1961BelAir427]

Geesh! You gave me heart attack about Hayden dying, I just called him a few hours ago and he's fine, just relaxing from his sons wedding

He was saying the LINK died. I thought the same thing when I first read it.

 

[troublemaker427]

David, whatever happened to the first Hayden replica?

 

[Z-11Guy]

Hayden Proffitt & associate Chevy's that I know of now are pictured below. When I spent time with Tom & Linda in Wilmington summer of 1998 I asked who the name Upton was on Ol Blue. Tom told me it was a local small grocery owner's name that gave him & Linda free Steaks etc just to put his name on the door. Upton loved drag racing though did not race. Tom Strunk ran a swimming pool cleaning business in the Glendale CA area when racing the roman red Impala (380HP car) in B/Stock. And later of course I learned about the Totten/LaPole black '63 Impala as well. There was another racer who had a blue '62 Bel Air 409 hardtop, couldn't remember his name that had his car raced out of Hayden's shop out of Garden Grove CA as well Tom Strunk told me about and did well. When I asked Hayden about him, Hayden got sad and told me he was a young kid that ran good and Hayden was his mentor. This kid had the opportunity to join PAN AM airlines to study to become a airline pilot. The kid got excited and told Hayden all about it and went for his mandatory physical PAN AM required. In the physical, doctors found out he had cancer at 22. Within 6 months he was gone . I asked Hayden and Tom Jacobson more about this kid though memories are sometimes hard to keep, especially sad ones.

 

[david montanbeau]

I do not know what happen to it. Maybe somebody out there can chime in.

 

[Blk61409]

I think Delmer McAfee has it in his collection in Odessa, Texas.

 

[troublemaker427]

I've been buying quite a few 1962 National Dragsters lately off of ebay. Check out who originally received these issues in 1962. This was totally dumb luck. I had no idea whose these were until they arrived from the seller....

 

[Phil Reed]

Way to go Jody!!!!!! Great score!!!!!

 

[jim_ss409]

Cool!

 

[Z-11Guy]

Hayden was living in Long Beach at the time until 1994 when he moved to Texas.

 

[Dick MacKenzie]

Wow!! Great find Jody!!

 

[troublemaker427]

Here is another neat part of the March 9, 1962 ND. This issue contains the results of the Winternationals. As you an see in these shots someone made marks next to the winners involving Hayden and Mickey Thompson. Most likely Hayden made these marks himself. I find these kind of things interesting!!

 

[Z-11Guy]

1410 COTA AVE , Long Beach CA 1962,when Hayden was running Pontiacs for M/T.