Shelby Terlingua Racing Team Returns to the Spotlight
PR NEWSWIRE
Posted: 2007-07-19 14:03:19
LAS VEGAS, July 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Shelby Automobiles, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Carroll Shelby International Inc., (OTC Pink Sheets: CSBI) and designer/artist Bill Neale are returning the legendary Terlingua Racing Team to the forefront of the grassroots racing community. The team will explore opportunities to develop products similar to the Shelby program in the mid 1960s.
"We were a bunch of young hot rodders when we formed the Shelby Terlingua Racing Team," noted Carroll Shelby, Founder of Shelby Automobiles. "Most people think our group disappeared because we took our activities underground when my company stopped building GT350's and GT500's. Now that Shelby Autos is working with Ford again to build high performance cars, its time to put the Shelby Terlingua Racing Team back into the spotlight. We asked Bill Neale, who was a co-founder of the group, to help us create cars and products for serious young enthusiasts who want both fun and performance."
An avid enthusiast, Bill Neale has competed in SCCA and other sanctioned races throughout his life. He was part of the Shelby "rat pack" that dominated the American performance scene in the 1960's.
"We loved to race and raced to win," said Neale. "And we've continued to quietly compete in events worldwide over the past four decades. Just look around at most motorsports events and you'll spot Terlingua Racing Team logos. Through the years, new young members have been initiated into the group. Working with Shelby Automobiles, we'll go public again to introduce a new generation of racers to this irreverent lifestyle with the cars and stuff they need to blaze their own path on the track."
The Terlingua Racing Team's roots began when Ford Motor Company asked Carroll Shelby to turn its Mustang into a race winner. His team created a competition version of the Shelby GT350 for that purpose.
About that time, Shelby and a few close friends including Bill Neale, Dave Witts, Tom Tierney and David E. Davis, Jr., were enjoying the Terlingua area of the Texas Rio Grande region. Thumbing their nose at the establishment, they lived hard and enjoyed life to its fullest between winning races. As a symbol of their lifestyle, Neale designed a logo that is black and yellow, with a rabbit holding his paw in the air.
Shelby said, "Some of the greatest racers in the world competed in Terlingua Shelby Mustangs. Ken Miles was the first to put the 'prancing rabbit' in the winner's circle when he won the race at Green Valley Raceway in 1965. Then things really broke loose when he introduced Jerry Titus to the team."
Titus became one of the most iconic Terlingua racers when he drove for the Shelby team in the 1967 Trans-Am series. He piloted the first "official" Terlingua Racing Team car.
According to Neale, "Jerry was a bit of a maverick and Shelby wanted his car to really show up on the grid, so we painted it 'Gawdawful Yellow' with a black hood. The combination of outrageous looks and serious performance in a car driven by such a cocky, talented driver made the team very popular. And it seems the Terlingua Racing Team is even more admired today by drag racers, drifters and road racers."
Throughout the decades, drivers put Terlingua Racing Team badges on more and more cars; some were official Shelby entrants while many were not. When racing moved upscale and Shelby ceased building GT350's in the early 1970s, Terlingua Racing Team drivers carried their anti-establishment attitude in competition piloting whatever vehicle they could put on the track.
"The Terlingua Racing Team symbolizes a time when racing was less structured and more pure," noted Amy Boylan, President of Shelby Autos. "It was a poke at the seriousness of racing by some people who had the clout to make such a statement. It's time to bring that attitude out of the shadows and give the next generation of racers their fair share of the fun."
About Bill Neale
Bill Neale is a successful business owner, automotive fine artist and lifelong Shelby associate. A founding member of the prestigious Automotive Fine Arts Society, Neale's paintings are the centerpiece of exclusive private and museum collections worldwide. A contributing artist for many national books and magazines, Neale also founded and managed advertising agency Point Communications. The owner of Racy Thangs and an avid racer, Neale has been involved with high performance cars and aircraft his entire life.
About Shelby Automobiles, Inc. and Carroll Shelby Licensing
Founded by legend Carroll Shelby, Shelby Automobiles, Inc., (========0) manufactures and markets performance vehicles and related products. Shelby Automobiles is a division of Carroll Shelby International, Inc. (CSBI.PK). Carroll Shelby Licensing Inc., also a wholly owned division, is the exclusive holder of Carroll Shelby's trademarks and vehicle design rights. It also holds trademark rights for Shelby-branded apparel, accessories and collectibles. For information, visit ========1.
SOURCE Shelby Automobiles, Inc.
Copyright © 1996-2007
PR Newswire Association LLC. All rights reserved.
Shelby Terlingua Racing Team Returns to the Spotlight
Linear Mode
