PRIORITY ISSUES: STATE

Vehicle Equipment Standards and Inspections: State policy makers continue to revise and update equipment and inspection standards—often with a bias toward the vehicle manufacturer’s original equipment, such as lighting, tires and wheels, suspension components and bumper/frame height. SEMA opposes arbitrary and unnecessarily restrictive equipment and inspection procedures.

Accelerated Vehicle Scrappage: Under pressure from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop clean-air plans, a few states have considered including vehicle scrappage programs in their state implementation plans. Scrappage programs accelerate natural vehicle retirement by allowing for the purchase of older cars from owners. These vehicles are then typically crushed into blocks of scrap metal. SEMA opposes scrappage proposals. Where proposals can’t be defeated, SEMA seeks to amend them to protect collector vehicles, focus on gross polluters, use measured emissions values, allow parts recycling and include repair/upgrade alternatives.

Emissions Testing and Maintenance Programs: States have incorporated the Onboard Diagnostics (OBD) testing method as part of the vehicle emissions inspection for ’96 and newer vehicles. These OBD tests replace tailpipe tests by identifying emissions problems through information stored in the vehicle’s onboard computer system. I/M 240 tests require visual inspection of emissions-control devices, an evaporative emissions test and a transient drive-cycle exhaust emissions test performed while the vehicle is running on rollers.

Many of these state programs mistakenly fail vehicles based on the presence of aftermarket engine products, some of which are required to be tested, certified and labeled (e.g. California Air Resources Board (CARB) Executive Orders) as not increasing emissions. Others force older collector vehicles and newer vehicles to undergo some type of testing, the results of which demonstrate no significant threats to air quality from these vehicles.

The idea behind exempting older and newer vehicles of all classes is to reduce costs while not losing appreciable emissions reductions. SEMA supports programs that properly focus inspection procedures and do not confuse legitimate aftermarket parts with emissions-defeat devices and state and federal tampering violations. SEMA also supports proactive legislative initiatives to establish exemptions from inspections for low-mileage vehicles, classic vehicles (defined as 25 years old and older) and newer vehicles.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions/Engine Size/MPG: SEMA opposes legislation that imposes an added fee, surcharge or tax on the sale or lease of a new passenger motor vehicle based on carbon emissions, engine size or fuel-economy rating. These measures could affect a consumer’s ability to purchase the vehicle of choice and consequently vehicle safety. SEMA also opposes added yearly registration and renewal fees based on carbon emissions, engine size or fuel-economy rating.

Vehicle Suspension and Height Regulations: Modifications that affect vehicle suspension and steering as well as those changing the vehicle’s frame and/or bumper height continue to draw attention from regulators and legislators. Many state regulations are more restrictive than necessary. Others discriminate against aftermarket parts manufacturers and their customers by allowing the vehicle manufacturers to effectively set the frame and bumper-height standards. In addition, vehicle suspension and height regulations are often so unclear that the industry, motorist and inspection technician have no clear guidance. SEMA opposes state regulations targeting suspension and height modifications without regard to reasonable and useful modifications.

Specialty Vehicle Titling and Registration: Special titling and registration designations for specialty cars, including antique, street rod, custom, classic, collector, modified, replica and kit-car vehicles, have led to an easing of certain equipment standards and exemptions from stringent emissions testing.

SEMA supports initiatives that allow for the use of non-original materials and create a titling and registration criterion that assigns these vehicles the same model-year designations as the production vehicles they most closely resemble. SEMA supports initiatives to establish distinctive license plates and separate vehicle code definitions for these cars to allow special consideration during emissions testing and equipment inspections. SEMA supports initiatives to create classic motor-vehicle project titles that apply to vehicles undergoing restoration that are at least 25 years old, are not roadworthy and are currently without a title or with a title from another state.

SEMA supports initiatives to establish minimal one-time registration fees for specialty vehicles and opposes efforts to disproportionately increase registration fees and taxes for these cars based on state budget deficiencies. SEMA also supports legislation that allows vehicles with these special registrations to be driven for a variety of purposes, including occasional transportation, exhibitions, club activities, parades, tours and similar uses.

Lighting Equipment: Some states apply an approach to optional and auxiliary lighting equipment that essentially prohibits all such lights if not specifically permitted in the regulations. Poorly written legislation and regulations can confuse the issues of a clear safety hazard versus consumer demand for legitimate and safe lighting enhancement. Regulators are also scrutinizing blue-hued headlamps, some of which the federal government has declared legal for operation on the nation’s roadways, for excessive glare. Government officials are also concerned about non-compliant high-intensity-discharge headlamp conversion systems, clear taillamp covers, marker lamps and bulbs. SEMA opposes any use limitations or prohibitions on optional lighting equipment or accessories not related to a proven safety hazard.

Tire Fuel Efficiency: SEMA opposes separate state legislation requiring the development of a program to mandate that replacement tires for passenger cars meet fuel-efficiency standards. These state replacement tire-efficiency programs are anti-consumer, anti-small business and require substantial appropriations. Most importantly, state replacement tire efficiency programs often conflict with a federal program to create a “consumer information system” to rate the fuel economy, safety and durability characteristics of most replacement tires. The program includes a SEMA-drafted exemption for limited production tires (15,000 units or less in a tire line or 35,000 tires in total brand-name production) that are mostly tires for classic and antique vehicles or off-highway vehicles.

Tire Aging: SEMA opposes state legislation to limit the distribution or sale of tires based strictly on age. No auto industry, tire industry or federal government data has determined that tires fail to perform when they reach a particular chronological age. Proposals to outlaw tires based on age distract consumers from focusing on qualities proven to enhance safety, such as the tire’s handling and performance characteristics. The legislation also imposes unnecessary regulatory burdens on tire manufacturers and retailers while filling state landfills with tires that retain useful life.

Window Tint: Severe limits on window-film light transmission and reflectance percentages continue to surface in a number of states. SEMA supports advancement of the industry standard of not less than 35% light transmittance on all windows other than the windshield.

Inoperable Vehicles: SEMA opposes legislation that allows state, county or local officials to confiscate inoperable project vehicles or those vehicles in need of repair from private property.

Exhaust Systems: SEMA opposes legislation or regulations that unfairly discriminate against modified exhaust systems and apply arbitrary enforcement standards relative to muffler noise limits. SEMA supports efforts to reduce improper citations and encourage modifications that comply with applicable state regulations.

Nitrous-Oxide/Performance Enhancers: SEMA opposes legislation that bans the installation of power booster systems, including nitrous-oxide systems intended for off-road use.

Street Racing: SEMA supports efforts to abolish illegal street racing through focused legislation designed to incentivize drivers to pursue racing activities at legal racing venues. SEMA opposes anti-street-racing legislation that unfairly targets owners of legally modified vehicles for enhanced scrutiny, title branding and additional fees.

Due to the popularity of sanctioned racing events on closed streets in downtowns across the country and the current urgency to generate tourism and revenue, states are beginning to introduce legislation to provide for municipal racing. Known as “municipal racing acts,” these bills include provisions to limit local government liability and allow permits to be issued to race promoters to host Grand Prix-style events on public roads and highways. SEMA supports the promotion of the racing industry through such legislative action.

Alternative Fuels/Greenhouse Gases: SEMA opposes legislation that would unreasonably restrict opportunities for the aftermarket to continue providing performance equipment. SEMA supports such initiatives where opportunities exist to expand market opportunities for SEMA-member products.

Ethanol-Blended Gasoline Labeling Requirements: Each state sets its own labeling requirements for ethanol-blended gasoline, with 12 states and the District of Columbia currently not requiring pumps dispensing such blends to display labels. Ethanol increases water formation in the fuel system, especially when the vehicle sits over a period of time. Under these conditions, formic acid is created, which corrodes metals, plastics and rubber. This can lead to engine/parts failures and, potentially, safety hazards. Many products in the marketplace, including older cars, use materials that are incompatible with ethanol.

SEMA supports labels on fuel pumps dispensing ethanol-blended gasoline as important to consumers, especially those with classic cars and performance automobiles, who want to know what they are putting into their vehicles. There is a new urgency for more precise labeling due to the recent EPA approval of E15 for use in ’01 and newer light-duty vehicles, since owners of pre-’01 vehicles need to be able to distinguish between E10 and E15.

PRIORITY ISSUES: FEDERAL

Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA): The EPA continues to revise and update rules authorized by the 1990 CAAA. Recent examples include setting stricter standards for ozone and particulate matter, volatile organic compounds emissions and hazardous air pollutants. SEMA opposes any revisions that are unnecessarily restrictive or do not balance economic and small-business considerations.

CAAA Revisions: SEMA supports revising the CAAA to require cost-benefit rationales for rulemakings, a scientific basis for regulations and periodic reviews of existing rules. SEMA also supports implementation procedures that reduce future court battles (citizens’ suits, consent agreements, etc.).

Compensatory Time for Overtime: SEMA supports legislation that would give workers a voluntary choice between overtime pay and compensatory time off, accruing at 1½ hours for each hour of overtime. Unions generally oppose the legislation for fear that workers will be coerced to take leave in lieu of pay.

Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards: SEMA supports CAFE standards that take into account the impact on jobs, safety, consumer choice and technological feasibility. Drastically increased CAFE potentially limits consumer choice if manufacturers are forced to make smaller, less powerful and less useful cars and light-duty vehicles in order to meet government fuel-economy demands. SEMA supports market-based solutions that allow the consumer to participate in and respond to national energy policies.

Ergonomics Standard: SEMA supported repeal of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) ergonomics standard in 2000. The controversial rule imposed onerous compliance requirements on businesses to protect workers from musculoskeletal disorders, such as repetitive-motion injuries, commonly referred to as “ergonomics injuries.” SEMA supports OSHA’s subsequent approach to provide voluntary guidance materials for addressing ergonomic problems.

Ethanol Content in Gasoline: SEMA opposes the EPA’s waiver to permit the sale of gasoline containing 15% ethanol (E15) for model-year ’01 and newer vehicles. SEMA has consistently voiced concern that ethanol increases water formation, which can then create formic acid and corrode metals, plastics and rubber, placing older cars and certain high-performance specialty parts at risk. The EPA waiver would not protect consumers from misfueling these vehicles.

Gas Taxes: Lawmakers are considering legislation to address the nation’s dependency on foreign oil and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Proposals include establishing a carbon tax, taxing motorists based on miles traveled and using feebates as an incentive toward purchasing fuel-efficient cars. While SEMA opposes such tax hikes, SEMA supports policies that balance the interests of the business community with reasonable means to reduce reliance on foreign oil and create incentive-laden programs to help clean the air.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions/Global Warming: The primary greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide (CO2), which is released in direct proportion to the amount of carbon-based fuel that is burned. SEMA supports regulating CO2 emissions from automobiles through the CAFE standards. This approach also has the benefit of establishing a national standard rather than a patchwork of state rules.

With respect to stationary source emitters, SEMA supports a congressionally defined limited approach to regulate the largest stationary source emitters, such as powerplants, factories and refineries. The automotive specialty-equipment market is also part of the solution, since it is a leading innovator for products designed to address technological challenges, such as greenhouse gases.

Health Care: SEMA has consistently advocated for legislation providing small businesses with access to a pool of insurance plans, whether offered through trade associations or government agencies. The health-care law enacted in March 2010 contains SEMA-supported “exchanges,” which will offer small businesses access to a variety of competitively priced plans. While this is beneficial, the law is also limited and flawed (e.g., mandates on larger companies and not enough cost controls). SEMA remains committed to pursuing additional meaningful reforms to health-care policy.

Independent Contractors: Defining whether an individual is an “employee” or an “independent contractor” impacts whether a business withholds income tax and the employee’s share of the FICA tax, pays an employer share of FICA as well as many other issues. An imperfect 20-point test for defining classifications has emerged following decades of court decisions and IRS rulings. SEMA supports simplified worker classification rules, since the current rules are too complicated, confused and subjective.

Intellectual Property Protection: Assisting SEMA members in protecting intellectual property rights (IPR) is a top priority for the association. SEMA is taking steps through webinars, seminars and SEMA News to ensure that its members are better informed on understanding the value of IPR (trademarks, patents, copyright, etc.) and how to properly protect them. SEMA’s IPR enforcement rules at the SEMA Show have been effective and well received. SEMA actively supports IPR legislation in the U.S. Congress and government enforcement activities through the Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy.

Minimum Wage: SEMA supports policies that allow wages to be set by the marketplace. If a wage hike is contemplated, SEMA maintains that tax relief targeted at small businesses should be considered in order to balance the impact of the wage hike.

Onboard Diagnostics and Service Information Sharing: SEMA and certain OEMs have established partnerships for sharing technology information. Increased sales of SEMA-member products should also translate into more vehicle sales. SEMA is working with other automakers to forge similar service information-sharing partnerships.

Parental Leave: SEMA opposes any attempt to expand the Family Leave Act but supports legislation that would clarify certain aspects of the law.

Product Liability and Legal Reforms: SEMA supports sensible legal reforms. This includes bills to develop uniform standards of liability, take small-business size into consideration, alter rules pertaining to punitive and non-economic damages, discourage frivolous lawsuits and restore credibility to the judicial system.

Public Land Access and Use: Threats to OHV access typically take form in legislation passed by Congress or regulations issued by the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management or other federal and state agencies. The actions threaten recreational access, designate lands as “wilderness” (roadless) or unnecessarily close lands to protect endangered species. Public land access issues are of keen interest to off-roaders and the SEMA-member companies that market products to those groups. SEMA supports land-use decisions that are reasonable and enjoy local community support.

Regulatory Reform: The current regulatory climate is adversarial, focusing more on detecting violations than with helping the regulated communities solve problems. SEMA supports efforts to permit more flexibility in achieving standards, consider more cost-effective ways to meet goals, require cost-benefit rationales for rulemakings, require scientific basis for regulations and require periodic review of existing rules. In addition, President Obama recently issued an Executive Order directing all federal agencies to review their regulations in an attempt to eliminate rules that hinder economic growth.

Retirement Savings Plans: An estimated 70% of those working for small businesses are not covered by retirement plans. There are many reasons for this: revenue is too uncertain; administrative costs are too high; there is too much paperwork and government regulation; and required company contributions are too severe. Many small businesses cite reduced administrative rules, business tax credits and eased vesting requirements as necessary conditions for starting a plan. SEMA supports legislation that helps defer the costs of a retirement program, provides guidance in plan construction and establishes clear regulations to govern the program.

Rollover: SEMA supports performance-based initiatives that are cost-effective and technologically feasible to reduce vehicle rollovers. SEMA has developed a program to help member companies identify how a product may interact with the vehicle’s electronic stability control (ESC) system that addresses vehicle rollover.

Tax Policy: SEMA supports small-business tax relief through reduction and simplification of business taxes and a federal budget that promotes productivity. Tax cut examples include establishing a reasonable estate tax, extending tax credits for research and development and raising the alternative minimum tax. SEMA has not taken a position on the imposition of state sales/use taxes on sellers that do not have nexus in that state.

Vehicle Scrappage Legislation: For two decades, SEMA convinced federal lawmakers that vehicle scrappage programs are not cost effective and unnecessarily remove older vehicles from the marketplace. Responding to a global recession, lawmakers established a “cash for clunkers” program in 2009 to help spur car sales. SEMA helped lessen the impact of the program on the automotive specialty-equipment market by including a restriction that scrapped cars be less than 25 years old and by allowing the transmission to be recycled along with all other parts except the engine. SEMA will continue to oppose any future scrappage programs, especially those that simply target old cars and exclude recycling/repair/retrofit provisions.

Vehicle Equipment Standards: The federal government, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), maintains the right to set, enforce and investigate safety performance standards for motor vehicles and motor-vehicle equipment. Many NHTSA regulations, such as the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, have a direct effect on how specialty equipment is produced and marketed and how customers use the products. SEMA supports regulations that are necessary, practical and based on performance rather than on design criteria. SEMA uses the same criteria when supporting or opposing legislation to expand NHTSA mandates.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.

Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle Join the SEMA Hall of Fame Elite

Of course, if you happen to build a successful career, inspire others and, ultimately, leave something enduring behind in the process of doing what you love—now that’s the dream of a lifetime.

Since 1969, the SEMA Hall of Fame has celebrated outstanding persons in the industry who have enhanced the stature of, or significantly contributed to, the industry and/or the association’s growth. Without diminishing the contributions of early Hall of Famers, the increasing professionalism of the specialty-equipment market over the past 42 years has raised the bar significantly. For that reason, today’s Hall of Fame candidates must boast at least 10 years of industry experience and/or association. Their influence must also be national in scope. Finally, nominees must show technical achievement, unquestioned integrity and extraordinary leadership in helping the industry thrive.

There can be no doubt that our 2011 Hall of Fame inductees represent the finest of these SEMA traditions. Gray Baskerville, Art Chrisman, Chris Economaki and John Towle are all legendary names within the automotive realm. Their careers, enthusiasm, innovation and personal genius are synonymous not only with the growth of the specialty-equipment market but with the hobby, sport and overall mystique of automobiling itself. Indeed, it would be impossible to conceive today of racing, performance or driving adventure without their contributions.

Sadly, one of our inductees has passed from the scene and is much missed. Thankfully, three of these icons continue to shape our industry’s future. In each case, we remain inspired by the stories of these four individuals whom we are honored to add to the exclusive SEMA Hall of Fame.

How can the legacy of Gray Baskerville ever be summarized in a few short paragraphs? His passing in 2002 left a giant void that is not likely to be filled for a very long time—if ever.

As a long-running writer for one of the world’s most popular and successful automotive publications, Baskerville had a sweeping impact on the industry. But holding Hot Rod magazine’s senior editor title for some 30 years isn’t the rationale for his SEMA Hall of Fame induction. Rather, it’s the passion and candor that flowed from his writing and captivated readers. In the tradition of SEMA’s true Hall of Famers, Baskerville cultivated a deep love for cars that clearly permeated all of his endeavors.

Born in Los Angeles, Baskerville spent many of his formative years in Hermosa Beach, immersing himself in Southern California’s early rod and custom car culture. Graduating with a history degree from UC Santa Barbara in 1958, he honed his writing and photography skills at his family’s publishing house even as he drag raced locally. Eventually, the former history student landed a gig at Hot Rod, where he went on to actually make history.

If the hot-rod movement ever had a defining voice, it was Baskerville’s. His prose so exuded life and excitement that editors rarely changed his text—even when he invented words that did not exist in the dictionary. His style and flair helped focus and mainstream a Southern California phenomenon into a national pastime, taking it beyond niche hobby to industry proportions. Yet, never one to adapt to corporate rules or aspire to the corner suite, “Ol’ Dad” Baskerville was equally known for his casual disposition, playful wonder and basic shorts-and-flip-flops office attire. After retirement, the former senior editor kept a modest office with Hot Rod and Rod & Custom, where he remained a valued contributing editor.

Baskerville had numerous interests, including reading, gardening and jazz music. But his passion for cars outshone them all, as epitomized by his beloved daily driver: a ’32 Ford roadster in which he racked up about 250,000 miles over the years. His family relates that, just days before his passing, his brother and friends carried Baskerville from his bedroom to the roadster for one last poignant jaunt around his Pasadena neighborhood and a visit to his mother.

Those who knew “Ol’ Dad” will tell you that he wouldn’t have it any other way. In a tribute to Baskerville upon his retirement as Hot Rod senior editor, friend and fellow automotive journalist Ro McGonegal observed: “His automotive interests are eclectic. He’s just as excited about a vintage highboy as he is about clean modern machinery…. In Gray’s opinion, the key word is drive. Drive your hot rod: on Power Tour, on the dry lakes, on the dragstrip and especially on the street.”

At Baskerville’s passing, Jeff Smith, another former Hot Rod editor, further reminisced: “[Gray] is a guy who never sat still, who was always visiting someone’s shop, looking at the cars or writing away.... He set his own agenda and that was fine with us.”

Indeed, Baskerville was more than a unique figure on the automotive scene. Ultimately, he was the real deal—always genuine, always himself—and a performance advocate who exuberantly challenged an industry to march to its
own beat.

Given his many achievements, pinpointing any single reason for Art Chrisman’s induction to the SEMA Hall of Fame is difficult. Yet, for many, it’s unlikely that a single reason is even needed.

Chrisman played such a pivotal role in the hot-rod movement that his list of contributions is legendary. In fact, his story inspired The Chrisman Legacy: Always Faster, a 224-page book by Tom Madigan chronicling the Chrisman family and its indisputable influence on motorsports.

Originally from Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, Chrisman moved to California with his family during the Great Depression, settling in Compton. Working at his father’s Southern California auto shop in the ’50s, Chrisman acquired his family’s passion for car building and eventually met and competed against many of early racing’s biggest names, including Ed Iskenderian, Vic Edelbrock, Wally Parks, Pete Petersen, Mickey Thompson, C.J. Hart and Lou Baney, to mention a few. Along the way, his dedication, sincere work ethic and racing skill attracted a legion of followers. As Tony Thacker, the executive director of the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, has observed: “Art Chrisman is just one of those heroes that drag-racing fans look up to even if you grew up in another country.”

And with good reason. Fifth to earn a place in the prestigious Bonneville 200 MPH Club, Chrisman’s accomplishments include many notable firsts: First drag racer to hit 140 mph in the quarter-mile. First to exceed 180 mph. First to make a pass at the NHRA’s first national event in 1955 at Great Bend, Kansas. Winner of the first Bakersfield March Meet in 1959. And, as a member of the famous Autolite race team, he also ranks 29th on the NHRA’s roster of top 50 drivers of hot rodding’s first 50 years.

“The first time I recall seeing him race was probably around 1957 or 1958, out at the old Riverside Raceway at a drag race,” said Carl Olson, another former racer, SEMA Hall of Famer and current motorsports manager at the SFI Foundation. “I was extremely impressed by his car and his driving ability. Suffice to say, he was one of my earliest racing heroes.”

Eventually, Olson found himself introduced to Chrisman at the latter’s Autolite sparkplug workshop, and the two became lasting friends. Of all the celebrated personalities deserving of SEMA Hall of Fame recognition, Olson believes that few exemplify the industry’s heart and soul more than Chrisman.

“He’s willing to share information, experience and knowledge with just about anyone who walks up to ask,” he said. “And the cars that he turns out, whether they be race cars or street rods, are just absolutely fabulous. They’ve won every kind of award known to mankind, including Pebble Beach and the Grand National Roadster Show. He’s a masterful engine builder. He’s just the nicest, kindest, most generous, caring individual that I know, along with being an absolute icon in motorsports.”

Olson is not alone in this view. Industry pros universally praise Chrisman’s integrity and gentlemanly demeanor both on and off the track. And the legacy continues: Chrisman and his son Mike now work side by side at Chrisman Auto Rod Specialties, which the elder Chrisman founded after his Autolite years—and where he still serves as mentor, role model and inspiration to hot-rodding’s next generation.

Visit the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and you’ll find the Economaki Press Conference Room. At the New Jersey Motorsports Park, you’ll find The Chris Economaki Media Center. And each year on the day of the Daytona 500, thousands celebrate Chris Economaki Day.

Having served as a motorsports commentator and journalist for more than 70 years, Economaki is hailed as the founding father of American motorsports media. Even those unfamiliar with his name are instantly likely to recognize the voice behind the trademark horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Economaki got hooked on motorsports at age nine after watching an auto race at the board track in Atlantic City. By age 13, he was selling copies of National Speed Sport News (NSSN) at the fairgrounds racing events cropping up in the mid-’30s. A year later, he was penning a column for the publication. By the ’50s, he had complete charge of the title, became publisher and turned NSSN into what many have called “The Bible of Motorsports” and “America’s Weekly Motorsports Authority,” reporting on races throughout the country, regardless of series or track.

Economaki even flirted with midget-car competition himself at a Pennsylvania cinder track.

“It wasn’t for me,” he recalled later. “It was a really frightening experience. That was the first and last time I drove in competition.”

Deciding he was better suited to covering motorsports, he became a track announcer in the ’40s, even as he continued to churn out NSSN.

“We all came to know Chris because of the wonderful National Speed Sport News that he published,” said Steve Lewis, publisher of Performance Racing Industry [PRI] magazine and producer of today’s well-known PRI trade show. Like many in the industry, Lewis became an avid reader of Economaki’s publication in the early ’60s. “That was the pipeline to knowledge of racing back then. There was no ESPN, no SPEED Channel, nothing. The national and daily papers didn’t cover racing. He covered it in-depth. He covered NASCAR and Indy car and also covered weekly short track.... Chris’ paper was so important because it provided information and developed the hero status of people such as Bobby Unser, A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti.”

That could be considered achievement enough, but Economaki next turned his attention and energies to broadcasting, covering several Indianapolis 500s, Daytona 500s, Formula 1 Grand Prixes and other motorsports events for “ABC Wide World of Sports” in the ’60s. Two decades later, he moved on to CBS Sports and later contributed to ESPN and TBS motorsports programming.

“All that wasn’t an accident,” explained Lewis. “Chris pushed the networks to expand their coverage. He was the driving force behind it, and his insightful interview technique and unique voice as a real wordsmith made his before-and-after race interviews with drivers classic. He was very good at asking unexpected questions that made drivers have to think. Some of us forget the work he did that helped develop a racing industry. He’s not just a publisher, editor or writer. He had the vision, knowledge and energy to put forth an effort to upgrade and bring racing to
the forefront.”

NSSN ceased print production in March 2011, but Economaki continues to impart his original vision, knowledge and insights through daily contributions to his famous publication’s new online version.

“If you have an idea and a plan, share it. Who knows, maybe you will start something cool.” That’s been the motto of John Towle, whose stellar career in the performance aftermarket has spanned five decades.

In 1964, Towle walked into a hotbed of performance—the Edelbrock Equipment Co. in Los Angeles—to take a job sweeping floors and cleaning restrooms. He ended up staying for 27 years, moving up from department to department, learning every aspect of the performance business from manufacturing to sales to distribution. In 1982, he became Edelbrock’s vice president for sales, propelling the company to tremendous growth and helping it garner three Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Manufacturer of the Year awards (1984, 1989 and 1990).

The early days with Edelbrock introduced Towle to drag racing and the chance to assist Ed “The Master” Pink with his Top Fuel dragster.

“I was mostly changing oil and packing the parachute, but it was a great time and a lot of fun for a very young kid,” said Towle.

In the mid-’70s, he campaigned a B/Econorail dragster. After much success at the local strips, Towle came to the believe that A&B Econorails deserved their own NHRA class and rules. So he committed his ideas to paper and shared them with the NHRA. Then he went on to further suggest that blown alcohol cars should have their own class as well. The NHRA agreed and instituted the Pro Comp class along with Econorails as Competition Eliminator cars.

Still, it was Towle’s dedicated work at Edelbrock, SEMA and PWA that truly set him apart as a leader eager to help advance the industry. In 1990, Towle received the PWA’s Person of the Year award—in his words, “a prestigious honor and very rewarding.”

Retiring from Edelbrock in 1991, he became PWA executive director the following year. Under his guidance, the PWA has continued to grow, especially with its annual Industry Conference. Meanwhile, Towle was also elected to the SEMA Board of Directors in 1993 and served a two-year term.

“What always amazed me about John is how the entire Performance Warehouse Association ran like clockwork” once Towle took the helm, observed Van Woodell, owner and president of Weathers Auto Supply.

Woodell first met the PWA leader in the mid-’90s, when Weathers Auto Supply joined the trade organization. Noting that the aftermarket’s selling and buying sectors were far from seamless at the time, Woodell credits Towle with bringing the principals of the manufacturing companies and the principals of the distribution leg of the industry together for face-to-face meetings on a scale never imagined in the industry’s early days. And he did so with unmatched integrity and organizational expertise.

“What John has really offered the industry is a level of professionalism so that a bunch of ‘rednecks’ like me can sit down and negotiate with our suppliers and our vendors to build relationships on a national level,” said a smiling Woodell. “It has certainly made a huge difference.”

While Towle retired from Edelbrock years ago, he has yet to retire from the PWA, let alone the industry. True to his lifelong calling, Towle remains the quintessential idea man, still sharing his plans for an increasingly healthy and vital specialty-equipment aftermarket.