3 replies to this topic

[Ron Hershman]

The following chassis were built by Team Champion's Bob Kennedy and raced by Rande Marshall at various Nats and Tri-State USRA races in the early to mid -70s. Bob raced all around the country at Arco races and won a few here and there in the early '70s.

This first chassis is a plumber type chassis with all brass pans and drop arm. Rande used this chassis at the 1972 Nats.





This second chassis was built in early 1973 and is another plumber type chassis with a brass drop arm and pans.





This third chassis was run by Rande at the 1973 Nats and has a steel drop arm and brass pans.





This fourth chassis is a "iso" type chassis built in 1973 with a steel center section, brass pans, and independent fronts.





This fifth chassis was one of the last built by Bob Kennedy. Brass "iso" type leaning towards the lightened era of late '73-early '74. Notice the "Rocket Power by Wittenauer" sticker.

[mjsh]

Ron,

I know Rande thought a lot of Kennedy. Any way you could get him to post? My buddy use to race a lot in Cinncinati and ended up with one of Bob's frames. Looks like the fourth one with more cut out of the steel. Short as hell, too. Does it look like all used 1/8 inch rear axles?
Throw them things in a tumbler. TYhey are historic artifacts!

[Ron Hershman]

Rande isn't too computer hip . . . so you probably won't see him posting.

Kennedy was the top local sponsored pro who took a liking to Rande and took him under his wing for a few years. Yeah, he has a lot of good things to say about Kennedy, as did Ray Gardner and Bob Rule.

Rande wanted to know who your buddy is that has a Kennedy car, as Bob didn't sell cars except to Rande, Richard Akard, and possibly Ed Collins and another in Cincy, OH.

Of the five cars posted, only one has 1/8" axle and that is chassis number four.

Rande is going to be cleaning them up. He sent them to me to take pics and post for him.

[prplgeez]

For the record, Bob Kennedy was the first guy to beat me like a rented mule using "air dams". That would have been at Bob Haine's raceway at what had to be one of the last Arco Races, in probably February of '74. I ran some 20 laps behind him to finish second. Looked and looked at those funny contraptions and in my most scientific mindset, shook my head and mumbled something like 'couldn't be'.

Turns out it 'COULD BE'!!! We had learned our lesson by Nats time that year in Texas