La Harpe, Ill., was the place where some of the top Super Stock drag racing cars in the nation came from in 1969. Fred Gibb Chevrolet of La Harpe entered this highly competitive class of racing in January, when it received a shipment of 50 Camaros with all-aluminum ZL-1 engines. These cars were ultimately distributed to racers throughout the United States.
Gibb’s dealership kept one car that was finished in Candy Apple Red with a Gold lace overlay. That Camaro went to the American Hot Rod Assoc. (AHRA) Winternationals in Phoenix, Ariz., and outran the factory-sponsored cars of Sox & Martin and Don Groether. The car traveled nationwide on a white Chevroklet truck with a specially-built ramp body made in Lubbock, Texas.
Early in the season, this car was campaigned by Herb Fox. An employee of Fred Gibbs Chevy. While he was driving Gibbs’ ‘67 Z-28 Camaro, Fox ran into car builder and racer Dick Harrell at his business in East St. Louis. A business association between the two men resulted from this meeting. Fox had a very successful year driving in 1968, but as the Gibbs racing team began to travel further from its home base, Fox quit driving and Ray Sullins took over. Sullins, who also worked for Fred Gibbs Chevy, had previously been employed as the high-performance technician for Steakley Chevrolet in Dallas, Texas. In 1967-1968, he had toured with “Flying Professor” Kelly Chadwick’s Super Stock Camaro team. He brought a lot of knowledge and talent to the Fred Gibbs team.
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