Voodoo Magic: Jerry Gardner's Voodoo Special

57 The Emergence of the American Postwar Sports Car ( continued from page 1 ) Definition of a Sports Car: Inaugural Year of SCCA (1944) In their quest to define a sports car for their club (Sports Car Club of America), the American definition of a sports car was distinct from its European counterpart: “ Before going further, a definition of what the club considers a sports car is in order. We cannot apply the term the way it is used in England, where many cars of this classification exist. Our definition, therefore, includes any quality car which was built primarily for sports motoring as opposed to mere transportation. In other words, any car which rates higher than average in construction and engineering, and which preferable has open body work. ” John Bond ’ s Challenge To America (1947) In the September/October, 1947 issue of the Sports Car Club of America magazine, “ Sports Car ”, author John Bond (future owner of Road & Track magazine) penned the article “ Talking of Sports Cars .” Bond considered the lack of an American sports car a challenge to be overcome and suggested who and how it might be done. Bond begins: “ It is indeed a most amazing fact that in the USA, with more cars than the rest of the world combined, we have no home produced sports car comparable to those manufactured in England, France and Italy. Still another “ straw in the wind ” is the rapid spread of the “ hot - rod ” from California. Here is a real indicator of sports car demand. The full import of the hot - rod on the American sports car scene is perhaps not fully appreciated by many enthusiasts. These cars are almost always hopped - up Ford roadsters and are capable of performance equal to the best of sports cars. What does all this data about hot - rods mean to sports car enthusiasts? It means that right here in our own backyard, so to speak, we have all the necessary mechanical components in the lowly Ford to accomplish a sports car that will transcend all previous conception as to what performance can be. Article Continued on Next Page