Fred Blanchard

had his beginning in Downtown Los Angeles—hanging out at the drive-ins on Race Night at places like Stan’s, Witchstand, Scrivner's Van De Kamps and the Clock. Each drive-in was frequented by

Hot Cars

from that area, each on a different night. There Fred met up with guys learning the latest How-To information.

My Place was Carmen Pisano’s Garage on Vermont Ave near Pico Blvd. Five brothers and all into cars; one raced, another painted cars; another sold cars and so on.

In the mid-1950s on his weekly visit Fred spotted pick-up trucks with race cars hooked up to them. Curiosity drove him to find out who owned these and where they were headed. Discovering they were headed to the Bonneville Salt Flats for Speed Week and one of the owners was nearby Fred introduced himself to the man who would become his

mentor, Nick Arias Jr.

Months passed and Fred’s need for speed led to thoughts of a souped-up engine for his "37" Chevy. He connected with Nick to build a GMC inline truck engine. Fred’s teenage Cool Aid income came up short with his Champagne taste, but Nick worked out a payment plan for him.

Later as the

need for speed

increased one of Fred’s friends wanted to purchase a

drag racing Coupe

to race only at the Local Strip. He asked Fred to help run the car with the opportunity to drive at the races. Nick Arias Jr. was the engine builder, the car was a modified and altered "33" Ford Coupe - inside all aluminum, a roll cage, single seat and centered steering; the engine was set back from the standard location, with a quick-change rear end. They ran the Coupe for two years winning multiple trophies.

The need for more speed came when that Coupe was sold. Someone from the drive-in days suggested building another Coupe to race. By now Fred had a very good paying job, but little did he know after more conversation he found a new partner in Dale Smart.

Fred purchased another Coupe, but after a few weeks of frequenting Long Beach’s Lyon’s Drag Strip they changed directions, buying materials to build their first fuel dragster. Ten months of bent tubing, cutting and fitting then welding the chassis fitted with a Chrysler engine and an Oldsmobile rear end; a clutch Scatter Shield completing the drive line; a padded seat and a chute to help stop the car they were now ready to run.



Racing a couple years, they learned about chassis design and racing fuel, Nitromethane, leading to re-thinking their chassis design. Investigation led them to a Long Beach builder, Woody Gilmore, and the "Woody" chassis was determined to be among the best. Saturdays found them back at Lyon’s Drag Strip photographing and measuring to make their own "Woody" and bring on board a driver for hire, Bob Hightower. Fred’s driving days ended and his interest shifted to all things mechanical, engine components, chassis and suspension design.

After spending so much time away from home their fortune changed when in 1966 the American Hot Rod Racing Association (AHRA) held one of their final events in California: The AHRA Top Fuel Championship at the Irwindale Raceway in Irwindale, California—a 32 Fuel Dragster Event. After three days racing their team won! And Fred decided it was time to focus on his family and left the team.

Within a few years, Dale Smart built a new dragster to race, again, asking Fred to join the crew. The connection for Fred, came full circle when a newly designed Arias Engine was chosen for the car. This decision was made mainly because of Discussions with Steve Montrelli Top "Tuner" and Engine Builder for Arias Racing Engines. This was the 1970s and the Arias Engine proved to be dominant and in high demand on race courses, drag strips and in the water. By 1980 Dale Smart’s team won the NHRA Division 7 Championship. Dale, Fred and the team worked in conjunction with Arias Racing with ongoing development of the Arias Hemi Chevy, then creating the newer Arias 8.3 Liter drag race engine for higher strength components to meet the demand for more horse power.