Wally Parks

Wally Parks

Infobox Person
name = Wally Parks


caption =
birth_date = birth date |1913|1|23
birth_place = Goltry, Oklahoma, United States
death_date = death date and age|2007|9|28|1913|1|23
death_place = Burbank, California, United States
occupation = Founder, President, Chairman of NHRA; automobile writer, editor, and hobbyist.

Wallace Gordon ("Wally") Parks (January 23, 1913 – September 28, 2007) was instrumental in establishing drag racing as a legitimate amateur and professional motorsport. He was the Founder, President, and the Chairman of the Board of the "National Hot Rod" "Association", or better known by the acronym "NHRA". Parks was also an accomplished automobile writer and hobbyist, and co-founder and first editor of the magazine "Hot Rod" in the late 1940s. He was also instrumental in the founding of "Motor Trend" magazine in 1948. As editor of "Hot Rod," he began to promote safety in the organization of drag racing, both in the magazine and by organizing "safety safaris," which taught drag racing organization and safety at several tracks around the country. This was the first concerted effort in getting racers off the streets and into controlled race tracks.

In 1951, he founded the National Hot Rod Association, which stands today as the largest motorsports sanctioning body in the world, and became its head for several decades after leaving the magazine business. His wife, Barbara, who preceded him in death in 2006, worked for the NHRA as its Chief Secretary in its formative years.

Prior to his death, he was Chairman of the Board of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California.

Winners of National Hot Rod Association national events are awarded a trophy statue nicknamed the "Wally."

Awards

He was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1993 and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1992.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum — The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, presented by the Automobile Club of Southern California, is located at 1101 W. McKinley Ave., Bldg. 3A, in Pomona, California 91768, USA. It houses a collection of memorabilia, automobiles and motorcycles… …   Wikipedia

  • Wally — (a nickname for Walter or Wallace), can refer to:People* Wally Hayward, South African ultra distance running legend. * Wally Lewis, Australian rugby league footballer. * Wally Parks, A founder of the National Hot Rod Association. * Wally Phillips …   Wikipedia

  • Wally the Green Monster — is the official mascot for the Boston Red Sox Major League Baseball team. His name is derived from the Green Monster nickname of the 37 foot wall in left field at Fenway Park. Wally debuted in 1997 to the chagrin of many older Red Sox fans.… …   Wikipedia

  • Los Angeles County Fair — The inaugural Los Angeles County Fair, now known as the L.A. County Fair, opened Oct. 17, 1922, and ran for five days through Oct. 21, 1922 in a former beet field in Pomona, California. Highlights of the Fair’s first year were harness racing,… …   Wikipedia

  • National Hot Rod Association — NHRA redirects here. For other uses, see NHRA (disambiguation). National Hot Rod Association NHRA …   Wikipedia

  • Park (disambiguation) — A park is an area of land with a recreational or other specific purpose. Park or Parks may refer to: National park, a reserve of land protected from most human development and pollution Park (name), a common Korean family name Contents 1 Places …   Wikipedia

  • Hot rod — imagestack Hot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. Nobody knows for sure the origin of the term hot rod. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of hot roadster, meaning a roadster that was… …   Wikipedia

  • 1320 A West Coast Story — an independent film, is a feature length documentary on the subject of illegal street racing. It is presently showcased at its website. [ [http://www.1320movie.net “1320 A West Coast Story” – official “street racing documentary” website] ] As st …   Wikipedia

  • San Jose Hills — The San José Hills are a part of the Transverse Ranges located in Eastern Los Angeles County, marking the border between the San Gabriel Valley and the Pomona Valley in the Inland Empire. It includes portions of Covina, West Covina, Walnut,… …   Wikipedia

  • drag racing — See dragracer. * * * Form of motor racing in which two contestants race side by side from a standing start over a straight quarter mile strip of pavement. Winners go on to compete against others in their class until only one is left undefeated.… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”