Who is Dick Harrell?
Written by Ray Morrison
Dick Harrell was a professional drag racer in the 60s and early 70s who was enjoying a lot of success as a mechanic, crew chief, and driver of Chevrolet race cars. His success as a driver in both NHRA & AHRA drag racing events, his devotion to Chevrolet, even without factory backing and still winning a large majority of the races he participated in, earned him the nickname "MR CHEVROLET." Dick lost his life in a fuel-funny car crash in Toronto, Canada, on September 12, 1971.
Dick Harrell was born in Phoenix, AZ, and lived there until he was 5 years old. He and his family then moved to Carlsbad, NM, where he resided until 1965.
A Carlsbad, New Mexico product, cars were very much a part of Dick Harrell's life. Dick first gained racing acclaim in the Carlsbad, NM area at the tender age of 14, where he became deeply involved with sprint cars. He began tuning and later proved to be a capable driver, racing throughout the Southwest. At age 17, Dick started driving stock cars on a dirt track near Carlsbad.
At age 18, he signed up for 3 years in the U.S. Army, where he worked on aircraft engines and airframes for light single-engine aircraft used in Korea. He was issued a certificate by the US Army, which stated that SGT Richard M. Harrell, USAR, was Honorably Discharged from the Army of the United States on October 31, 1961. This certificate was awarded as a testimonial of Honest and Faithful Service. After his stint in Korea, Dick was transferred to a large helicopter base in Lawton, OK, and did flight testing of large troop helicopters. In his spare time, he toyed with car engines; racing still had its appeal. This would be the starting point of his drag racing career. His first attempt would be on a non-paved oil strip near Lawton.
After his duty was served with the Army, Dick would return to the Carlsbad area, where his family owned a dairy farm. He continued to run a 56 Chevy while earning money working in the local potash mines and as a garage, mechanic to keep his love for the competitive sport of drag racing alive. On weekends, he would drive his car 165 miles to El Paso, TX, or 280 miles to Amarillo, TX, to compete. He came out of this area in 1960 as a virtual unknown outside the Southwest area surrounding Carlsbad, New Mexico.
In 1961, Dick began to travel across the Southwest, racing a factory-backed Chevrolet. He won about 90% of the events he ran. This was his final amateur year, as he won every regional race in a three-state area of the Southwest. At this point, Dick Harrell would begin searching for new worlds to conquer.
In 1962, Dick began to range out farther from the Carlsbad area to begin competing against some of the big, nationally known names in the field of drag racing. These were not only some of the best drivers, but many had the backing of the Detroit automobile manufacturers. In 1962, Dick Harrell became NHRA point Champion in the Super Stock Class, driving his Chevrolet. After winning this, he began getting appearance money matches-racing a chosen opponent at various tracks as an incentive to draw racing fans.
In 1963, Dick was driving a 409-Zll (427) Super Stock Chevrolet against some of the stiffest competition ever assembled, as drivers came in from every corner of the United States to compete for Super Stock Eliminator at the AHRA Winter Nationals. At this event, Dick used his tuning abilities and driving skills to take out his competition one by one until he was declared the winner. This immediately cast the country boy from Carlsbad into National fame, and from here, it was onward and upward from this point for Harrell.
On May 19, 1963, the team of Dick Harrell & Charles Thurwhanger set the AHRA National speed record at San Angelo, TX, in the A/SM "Sportsman" Class with a clocking of 118.57 mph. This would only be one of the many records he would set in both NHRA and AHRA events.
This year would see some of the exotic, factory race cars start to surface, such as the aluminum lightweight Pontiac's, the Z-11 427 Chevrolet's', light-weight 427 Fords, and the Max-Wedge Chryslers. From this point on, a battle would be waged at drag strips across the nation by the big 3 automobile builders.
Dick Harrell was destined to become heavily involved in all this while competing with his favorite Chevrolet. Dick won Top Stock Eliminator at the Winter Nationals Championship with a 427 Z-11 Chevrolet.
In 1964, Ford was really bearing down on competition with the 427 Ford Fairlane "Thunderbolt." Since Chevrolet was at a disadvantage with only the full-size car to accommodate a Z-11 427, Dick would install a 427 into the newly introduced middle-sized Chevelle. Harrell's engineering of this combination proved to be an obstacle for the folks at Ford. Chrysler was also starting to get serious at this point with the introduction of the 426 Hemi in the lightweight Savoy.
In 1965, the war was really starting to heat up among the big three. Dick Harrell was right in the thick of all this with different Chevrolet's, battling the best Ford & Chrysler had to offer. Chevrolet had withdrawn all factory backing at this point, and with it took all its speed parts and high-performance engines. Racers with Chevrolet's abandoned ship across the nation, and soon the only major driver left with a Chevrolet was Dick Harrell. His complete faith in Chevrolet kept him from giving in.
With the full factory backing of Ford & Chrysler, who thought they had the very best of drivers and crews, it was the feeling only those had a chance of winning. Someone forgot to explain this to Dick Harrell, as he took his Chevrolet on a one-man vendetta against the odds and the factories, and had success. With this success, Dick quickly became a crowd favorite, winning his fair share of races.
In 1966, Dick Harrell was now hailed as one of the sport's top attractions and considered to be among the top stock car drivers to ever shift gears on a drag strip. His lightning reflexes earned him many nicknames, such as "Quick Dick" and "Mr. Reflexes," but above all, the name that he was most widely known was "Mr. Chevrolet." He was a top attraction in whichever car he would drive. In this year, he would travel about 50,000 miles for special appearances and still find time to make a trip back to Carlsbad, NM, where he was the hometown hero.
Besides all the racing, he would enter into the field of building high-performance cars for Nickey Chevrolet. They would use his services to engineer and build high-performance cars for their dealership in Chicago, IL. The start of the funny car era was beginning to escalate, with large engines being installed in small but heavily modified cars. These cars often had altered wheelbases to get better weight transfer, the use of injection and nitro-methane for more power, and eventually, the addition of superchargers. Since Dick Harrell had a lot of experience in doing his own work on these cars and being successful in doing so, Nickey Chevrolet got the idea Harrell could benefit their dealership by building cars for customers with some of this research & engineering. The Semi-Hemi 396 was introduced the previous year, and the new 427 with the same design, but more cubic inches would be the basis for the cars he would engineer, although he did do some with the small block.
In 1967, Harrell continued racing in a winning way. Chevrolet had just introduced the Camaro. It is believed Harrell was the first to install a 427 into a Camaro for a dealer, "Nickey Chevrolet," to be sold to the public as a dealer-installed, new car.
Dick Harrell then made another move to East St. Louis, Illinois, where he would engineer and build cars for another well-known dealer, Yenko Chevrolet, in Canonsburg, PA. Here, Dick engineered 350 and 427 conversions that were sold through Span, Inc. These cars were advertised as street or strip-engineered.
Herb Fox, an employee of Fred Gibb Chevrolet in LaHarpe, Illinois, and also the driver of the 1967 Z-28 Camaro Fred owned and sponsored, met Dick Harrell at his business in East St. Louis. From this meeting, a business association was destined to evolve with Fred Gibb Chevrolet.
In 1968, Harrell moved his shop to Kansas City, MO. In this shop, Harrell would convert and modify Camaro's, Chevelle's, and the newly introduced Big Block Nova. All of these could be purchased through an authorized Chevrolet Dealer with a 427 cubic inch engine with modifications up to 500 horsepower. Another first for Harrell was building and converting some 427-powered Novas with a special competition 3-speed automatic transmission. These Novas were from the Fred Gibb order of COPO cars that were specially built for setting up an automatic class for Chevrolet in NHRA drag racing. These cars would get Chevrolet involved in competition against Ford & Chrysler in the automatic classes. Dick also did extensive research on the design, engineering, and development of the ZL-1 all-aluminum 427 engines, later to be placed in what is now known as the ZL-1 Camaro.
While his business was taking a lot of his and his Family's time, Dick Harrell continued to do what he loved best, compete at the racetrack. He continued his winning ways as he was named the AHRA Driver of the Year in 1969, tuning and driving a fuel funny car, and was named Driver of the Decade in 1970. Dick Harrell continued his racing career in 1971 until an unfortunate accident claimed his life in September in Toronto, Canada.
The memories of Dick Harrell still loom big in many of us who were fortunate enough to know him, and for those who are interested in the infancy of motorsports and the upward spiral they have evolved into at present. Dick Harrell was a very pleasant person who would help his fellow man, take time out from his busy schedule to talk to those who had a question or wanted an autograph and had an interest in the little guy, remembering at one time he was one, too. Dick Harrell shall be remembered not only for his devotion to Chevrolet, with his knowledge of building, tuning, and driving, but being a well-mannered, well-liked person who had a huge following of fans from coast to coast.
For all that Dick Harrell stood for in automotive sports, there is no doubt he should be recognized in the "Hall of Fame" Induction?
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Dick Harrell Bio
Dick Harrell was one of the most important individuals in the early history of both Funny Car and Pro Stock racing, to say nothing of his important work in establishing, yes establishing the Muscle Car marketplace that's still boom today.
During Harrell's tenure in Funny Car racing he "made" Chevrolets synonymous with drag racing because he stuck with Chevy-power when many others had already switched to the ubiquitous Chrysler Hemi engine for motivation. Harrell was a standout on the old American Hot Rod Association circuit, where he made such a name for himself that his reputation as a superior driver and tuner continues into this new century.
But, as the cars became faster and faster a funny thing happened on Harrell's way to immortality. He began to realize that what would eventually become Pro Stock had a lot of appeal to both the racers and, most importantly, the fans. Harrell was at the forefront of the movement that ultimately convinced AHRA founder/president Jim Tice that a heads-up class featuring "pump gasoline" and carburetors would attract a number of "name" competitors, and that's exactly what happened. Through Harrell's diligence and dedication competitors like "Dandy Dick" Landy, "Fast Eddie" Schartman, Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins and "Dyno Don" Nicholson soon became a regular part of the Grand American Series races. It was as a result of this type of competition that NHRA ultimately "adopted" what had been known as "Super Stock" and turned it into Pro Stock.
On the Muscle Car front Harrell was instrumental in the development of a whole series of big block-powered Camaros and Novas that scorched the nation's highways and byways from Van Nuys to New York City. In essence what Harrell did was to build "better" cars than were then coming out of Chevrolet and the rest is history. Those cars remain highly prized today, thanks to the magic of the Dick Harrell name.
Deserving of Hall of Fame induction? Of that there is no doubt.
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THE FACETS OF A MAN: A EULOGY TO DICK HARRELL
During a man’s life he presents many facets to different people for reasons of their relationship, mood, and/or preference! The “make-up” of these facets or personalities, as they can more accurately be called, may vary from the socially acceptable to the in- verse. Yet, in a real sense, each is a facet of the complex individual. No man is so simple that he has only one mood or even one image to the people surrounding him.
Such is the case when trying to write about Dick Harrell known to thousands as MR. CHEVROLET! Dick died last weekend at the wheel of his popular Camaro Funny Car. The simple facts are that a front tire caused the tragic accident and the car ripped through a guardrail and came to rest against a light pole. But these simple facts do not tell you the whole story and they certainly fail to express what this loss means to Dick’s wife and family, to his many friends and competitors, or what it means to a little boy in a crippled children’s hospital in New York where Dick took the time to visit and say hello to some youngsters that needed help. People ever touched by the magic of Dick Harrell will feel the loss in their own unique way, and by the same token we all will share in the pain to some degree!
The family Dick left behind will surely bear the brunt of the pain including Elaine, the childhood sweetheart he married years ago and his two daughters, Valerie and Kim. To them Dick was a husband and father, not just one of DRAG RACING’S SUPER STARS. They knew Dick as a human being first and a professional race driver second. As much as it may seem improper, Dick Harrell was a human being with all of the strengths and weaknesses that are common to everyone! Elaine and the girls knew all of Dick’s and loved him for them, as they should. Many of you will say I should only talk about Dick Harrell in terms of his outstanding qualities but that would be an injustice to a great man of our sport who above all was a fine human being.
The one person that knew Dick Harrell better than the rest of us in Drag Racing was Charles Therwanger, now a driver of his own Funny Car, but the one-time mechanic and driver for Dick Harrell when nobody in the nation could equal his performance. Charles, like Dick’s family, knew the quiet and personable man but he also knew the driving, aggressive competitor beneath the crash helmet and facemask. He saw Dick in moods ranging from quiet contentment to utter rage and love him for his entire self, not just the “fact” the public came to know! To Charles the magic of Dick Harrell was more than just a driver or mechanic -- it was the soft charm and smoothness that covered a fierce desire to win that would not be stilled! In his years with Dick he learned a great deal about racing and their friendship never ended after they parted company over a year ago!
Another “face” of Dick Harrell was known well by Jim Tice, president of the AMERICAN HOT ROD ASSOCIATION, and long time personal friend of Dick’s. The man Jim knew was the soft-spoken driver of a feared Funny Car that could draw thousands of spectators to his tracks each and every time he appeared. He was the man that Jim could count on to be there on Friday of big race weekend for interviews with the press and to do a few burnouts for the local reporters. He was the man Jim counted on to set the standard of performance and professionalism for the other drivers! When Dick Harrell was contracted to race at one of the major AHRA events, Jim could rest assured that a super-neat crew and car would be on hand and the contract would be fulfilled to the letter! Yet, it wasn’t any written contract that joined these men, it was a verbal agreement that never needed to be reduced to writing. Jim Tice paid “MR. CHEVROLET” top dollar to race and Dick gave him his monies worth at all times.
The admiration and loyalty between these two giants of Drag Racing ran deep, yet when one had a beef with the other, few words were spared between them. It was simply two men that respected each other speaking their piece and getting the job done without unnecessary wasted effort. Yet another face of Dick Harrell was seen by his sponsors whether it was across a desk during contract talks or at the track. Dick was a hard man to deal with for prospective sponsors that didn’t understand his magic with fans and high performance buffs. Dick knew exactly what it meant for him to endorse a product and he could tell his sponsors how many prospective buyers he could produce through his efforts. He produced what he said he could and expected to be paid a fair price for his work. This is as it should be, especially when you realize that Dick wouldn’t endorse any product that he didn’t believe in and use himself.
As Bud Lyons of Quaker State, Don Genrich of Poweready Ignition, Jack Duffy of Hurst, and many others and they will tell you that the money they paid Dick Harrell was a “GOLD-PLATED” investment. Now consider the “PROFESSIONALISM” of the entire DICK HARRELL organization and you will see the little things that Dick did for his sponsors that other drivers usually failed to remember! Each and every spectator coming into the pits could walk by Dick’s van and receive an autographed color picture of his car with all of his sponsors listed on the back. He also had decals available and most of all he offered his years of experience FREE to many aspiring youngsters that asked his advice concerning equipment choice and racing suggestions! This too was Dick Harrell!!
Now you may begin to realize just how complex a person Dick was and we still haven’t covered the three facets of his personality that were most publicized. Dick Harrell, Goodwill Ambassador of DRAG RACING, Dick Harrell, the Businessman, and Dick Harrell, the Man IN The Public Eye! These will take some explanation so please bear with me as I try to capture in words the “CHARISMA” that was the Dick Harrell!! As Drag Racing grew from its infancy and became semi-professional during the mid-sixties, Dick became a TOURING PROFESSIONAL, racing on tracks from coast-to-coast. You may think that this is a thrilling way of life but in the early days it was one of the hardest ways imaginable to make a living. It took a real love of the sport to race three and four days a week at tracks that many times were barely paved. But it was the barnstorming days on the road that earned Dick his fantastic following of loyal fans.
When Dick arrived with his early Chevelle and Chevy- II’s, the fans came out of the woodwork to see him make full quarter mile passes with the wheels in the air at 140 and 150 mph. Dick literally “SHIFTED” his way into the hearts of thousands and earned Drag Racing the right to be called a professional sport while he was at it. That’s right, Dick, at all times, impressed upon reporters and fans alike that Drag Racing was for everybody and expressly developed to eliminate STREET RACING. Dick was a PRO and many young men took his warning to heart. They quit racing on the streets, which endangered their own lives and the lives of others. At the same time Dick was learning about other aspects of “PROFESSIONALISM”, he developed the familiar “DICK HARRELL INSIGNIA” painted on the sides of all cars racing under his banner and designed formal uniforms plus all of the other little things we came to expect from him. You see Dick was an innovator in his own right in ways that seemed insignificant at first but were copied quickly by others. From the give-away photos already discussed to the impressive Tractor / Trailer of 1970, Dick Harrell developed and refine the words, DRAG RACING PROFESSIONAL, to a degree that earned him the respect of racing magazines and the “straight-press” throughout the nation. He worked full time at representing the sport he loved and repaid his debt to it by being an example of its true maturity. Yes, Dick understood what responsibility he incurred as his fame grew. It was simple–he made a fine living at professional Drag Racing–and to ensure its continuation he did his part as its Number One Ambassador.
Next, we must consider Dick Harrell, ‘THE BUSINESSMAN”, a unique aspect of the man that deserves special recognition. As Dick made the rounds of the racetracks across the country, he sensed a desire in High Performance buffs that couldn’t be met by any of the automotive manufacturers. The “KIDS”, young and old alike, wanted big engined, small cars and they were not being built by Detroit. His answer was simple, build his own and market them through a chain of dealers throughout the nation. Thus, the Dick Harrell “SUPER CARS” were born, first through a dealership in Chicago, and finally directly a Dick’s own “MINI-FACTORY” in his new home, Kansas City.
During the late 60's these cars became legend as the fastest cars available in the country and once again Dick Harrell’s fame grew. These ‘SUPER” Camaros, Chevy II’s, and Chevelle’s were on the streets of every major city and each proudly carried the Dick Harrell “EMBLEM” on their fenders. When Dick opened his first “PERFORMANCE CENTER” in 1968, it became “THE SHOP” for tune-ups and high performance work of all types. It not only appealed to those interested in Drag Racing but to many customers that simply trusted Dick’s reputation and wanted only the best service for their “GROCERY GETTER”. The shop was equipped with the latest in diagnostic equipment and some of the nation’s top racing mechanics were trained under his personal tutorage. Charles Therwanger, Jim Guthrie, and Guy Tipton worked for Dick at one time or another and learned their trade well enough to demand TOP dollar for their services. Dick also ventured into other fields including a product line of “MR. CHEVROLET” GOODIES sold nationally and his own Model Car Kit produced by MPC Corporation. Dick was far-sighted when it came to his own specialty, High Performance Marketing, and he was smart enough to capitalize on it. Dick could have become a wealthy man if he devoted his full efforts to business but he had one weakness, Drag Racing! Because of this, his true business potential was probably never realized.
The last “face” of Dick Harrell to be considered is the “PUBLIC IMAGE” he created and what he really meant to thousands of people. It consisted of the warm smile that greeted everyone he encountered at the track and on the street. It was the friendly word of encouragement for fans and competitors alike and the many visits he made to hospitals and boys clubs fulfilling the responsibility he received as the price of fame. The DICK HARRELL the public knew was just as REAL as the Dick Harrell his daughters knew as their father, but at the same time was another personality. Believe me when I say it wasn’t “PHONEY” or just an act, it was the Dick Harrell that the public had created. Our nation has always been prone to hero-worshiping and to most of us our HEROES are a necessary part of life. Sure we consider them above the normal frailties of plain everyday people; yet, in our hearts we know heroes are made of the same parts and chemicals as ourselves. It is natural, therefore, that a person with the sensitivity and understanding possessed by Dick would become what his fans desired him to be.
Of the many tasks that faced Dick during his lifetime, living up to the HIGH STANDARDS of his fans was probably the hardest. Constantly considering what is expected of you by others leaves little time for self-indulgence and Dick paid the full price for his fame. Every year he came to the strip with a new fleet of cars. He laid his reputation on the line each time he raced and he never failed to perform as expected. No one can win every race; but over a period of years, encompassing the evolution of the Funny Car from a stock-bodied vehicle to the sophisticated cars of today, he compiled a win-lose record that may never be equaled! Dick even entered a full season of competition knowing he couldn’t win any big meets when he stuck with “CHEVROLET” power in 1970 simply because he felt his fans expected him to remain loyal. Finally in 1971 Dick made the switch to “HEMI” Power and his fans supported him saying, “He had no choice and he’s still Mr. Chevrolet”! Such was the relationship Dick had with his public. He did everything in his power to stick by them and they responded with faith that he was right.
Dick had fans from all walks of life. At a recent race Dick was introduced to a black youngster from a correctional institution who had earned the right to come to the race by holding the highest scholastic average in the school for a month. The youth’s fondest wish was to meet Dick Harrell and to see the famous “MR. CHEVROLET” Camaro in action. He received far more than just a handshake. Dick arranged for the youth to work on his pit crew throughout the race and he put the boy to work just like a regular crew member. Needless to say, it must have been the high point in the troubled life of the youngster but to Dick it was his way of showing that people do care. In honesty, it was just another example of the Dick Harrell the public came to expect. Sometimes we expect far too much from our HEROES, but Dick never complained.
I hope this “EULOGY” to Dick Harrell has in some way brought to you a more complete understanding of the MAN as a whole and not just one of his many facets. I haven’t tried to glorify him beyond accomplishments, nor have I tried to make him less of a hero to those that idolized him. I simply have tried to help you understand Dick as a human being, not just a “SUPER-STAR”. Dick Harrell devoted most of his 39 years to drag racing and out of respect for Dick and what he accomplished, I devote these few words, ”THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER “MR. CHEVROLET”.
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