NHRA biography. Jim Lieberman

All those crazy things that Lieberman got up at various events under the auspices of various associations, looked like an improvisation on a fun-hungry public spectacles, but virtually every performance has been carefully planned from the prelaunch of the car to teamwork on the track. Very popular among the fans crazy accelerations achieved perhaps only shestnadtsatikratny NHRA champion John Force, who won nearly 143 victories. Jim was an outspoken outsider, not burdened with «fatty» sponsorship contracts, but all of America of those times is incredibly very worried for him, forgiving him all the failures and defeats. But by and large it did not matter, win or not, and what the numbers will be displayed on the scoreboard after a blue Chevy cross the finish line. Throughout his short career, it was Lieberman remained the most popular driver of the Strip of the New World, and few people cared, how good he is as a pilot. Participation in the event of Jim in the seventies was one hundred percent guarantee that you bought a ticket for the bleachers is not in vain.

Lieberman was born in Pennsylvania, but addicted to racing only after moving to Northern California, where with all that is related to the automotive culture and drag racing was in order. Education as such is not very attracted novice riders, and already in the first year he was traded to the university desk wrenches and straight streets away from possible accumulations of representatives of law enforcement. Debuting in the Pro Stock class at Fremont Raceway in 1964, Jim almost immediately felt an acute shortage of speed and the following year moved to the cockpit Funny Car (own division officially hit the NHRA regulations in 1966) dregster. At the time of the birth of class Lieberman already available to its own Chevy II with the supercharged engine, where and began to participate in each and every event, provided that the road to the strip and the entry fee there was the necessary amount of cash in your pocket. Unlike its main competitors in the face of the legendary Don Nicholson and Jack Chrisman, have signed sponsorship contracts with Mercury and steadily demonstrate results within semisekundnoy area Jim at that time could not manage to get out of the eight seconds. The turning point was two vnezachetnyh arrival against Nicholson on the iconic Lions Dragstrip, has seen many historical and momentous events. Don, especially without straining or forcing technique, twice in a row got the upper hand, but the standing ovation the audience were addressed not to him, and Lieberman, which though came to the finish line a second later, but for a quarter of a mile was able to repeatedly pull the front wheels from the red-hot Californian sun strip surface. Undoubtedly, Nicholson was experienced, and its Mercury Comet has been prepared on a different level, but Jim's arrival was simply spectacular, and the people in the stands would like more...

Lieberman never chased numerous titles and laurels champion, but despite the showman image he was certainly one of the best pilots of his time, a talented mechanic and incredibly hard-working and efficient person. Many contemporaries called his first-class performances of the theater of one actor. He is not just destroying the tires under the cheers from the stands and smiling in all forty-two teeth in the autograph sessions, Jim yourself doing the final tuning of its dregster during the warm-up before races, manually working on the outside of the car views and was absolutely commonplace alone for him cook from scratch tubular frame for a couple of weeks working in the garage. With all that Lieberman actually lived on the road, and the intensity of the rhythm of his life exceeded all conceivable limits of human possibilities. «From Thursday to Sunday, he rolls back the entire event from its beginning to the closing, then immediately went, for example, in Canada at the next show. And it was no ordinary journey from point A to point B: By the way, he managed to check in at the strips in Indianapolis, New York and Maryland, in Ohio, „- says the owner of the workshop, in which Jim served his technique, Steve Kanuyka.

Despite a very busy schedule of his „tour“, Lieberman has always paid much attention to by fans as during the events, as well as in everyday life, and without regard to fit into any type of event that can spur the popularity of drag racing. For example, when the magazine Super Stock & Drag Illustrated, addressed to top-end pilots with a proposal to make a detailed photo review of all components and assemblies of Funny Car dregster, most responded with a polite refusal. But far from competitive component as such, and therefore not afraid of the fact that the mechanics opponents can „srisovat“ some engineering solutions of his car, Jim agreed without any hesitation, that only added to his popularity to the envy of the fastest guys of America. Lieberman, unwittingly, in the late sixties became a symbol and reference point for all fans of the brand Chevrolet, which at that time was experiencing far not the best of times in professional drag racing. And in 1969, when, in the end, he succeeded he lost the last crumbs of the competitiveness of Small Black Chevy engine for the best that she could offer industry — Chrysler Hemi, diehard purists increased degree of obstinacy emanated bile against the „traitor“.
For the first time Jim was noted in the final stage of the NHRA Winston Championship in 1974 Summernationals. But the cause of the tumultuous applause again became not the triumph of his opponent, and impressive villa in length ¾ meters by our hero, who crossed the finish line with a very good result — 7.14 @ 204.54 mph. However, not all situations in the strip were srezhessirovany most famous entertainer in the history of drag racing. During a demonstration in front of arrivals U.S. Nationals in 1976 jammed throttle caused impressive 6.21 @ 229.59 mph, and the total destruction of the engine immediately after the finish line. Somehow Lieberman was able to avoid the bump stop and eventually stopped blazing Chevrolet Monza in five feet from the fence at the end of the track.

Telling the story of Jim, it is impossible not to mention about his military girlfriend Pam Hardy. According to the girls, they met in 1972 on the street, when a very well-known in wider circles driver just stopped and got out of his Chevrolet Corvette with the words, „Hi, I'm Jim.“ For Pam constantly being on the move and in the midst of hysteria nitromethane Lieberman had a great chance to break out of the small town and see if not the world, then the entire continent accurately. Hardy quickly imbued with race, becoming an integral part of the show and Jim same symbolic attribute of a major Event, as well as bright promotion company Hurst headed beauty Linda Vaughn. Pam before each race appeared on the strip in a very frank dresses, helping the pilot to exhibit at the starting line, abundantly watered gasoline bernaut box if the program „a demonstration performance“ is burning in the truest sense of the word tires, helping to pack parachutes and just always been on mind. The iconic racer in this regard did not reinvent the wheel, it is reasonable having seen that sex and the speed will always be sold, regardless of the price and circumstances. And, perhaps, a lethal concentration of these two factors, the global motor racing will never see it already. The duo became the quintessence of the idea of ​​drag racing in the second half of the seventies.

Despite the fact that the results were to shine, to put it mildly, not in the style of Lieberman in 1975, Jim was the third driver in the class, who left six seconds. Very significant is the event OCIR Manufacturers Funny Car Championship, in front of which Jim spent six hours at the wheel of a similarity map in the entertainment center, and then showed up at the track for a few minutes before the start of qualifying. Check in started with bernauta longest in a quarter of a mile, to do according to the indications on the scoreboard, a little more than nine seconds, after which the star racer back to the start in his now have firm manner at a speed of 100 mph and the first attempt qualified in third place, took off helmet and went back to drive a mini-circuit.
Jim near the beginning of his career, refused to take part in the regular season in favor of demonstration races with other drivers, where each time he was a welcome party and the highlight of the program. But he did not give in contrast to the same Don Prudhomme some space for the time of the results, but the national love and the status icons of the fastest motor sport on earth — it is also a result, to achieve that, it seems to me, could only later to John Force.

Jim Liberman died September 9, 1977 in a car accident at the age of 33 years. On a public road. Behind the wheel of a completely stock Chevrolet Corvette. As for me, so his life — is the clearest example of a rock-and-roll, refined and uncompromising where the characters live very quickly and leave the life of the young.
Photo: open source