"Wild Bill" Shrewsberry

Billy Lewis "Wild Bill" Shrewsberry (born June 26, 1938) is an American exhibition drag racing driver primarily active throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Originally from Mansfield, Ohio, Shrewsberry moved to Southern California in October 1962. Shrewsberry is best known as the driver of the drag racing replica of the Barris-built Batmobile from the 1966 television series and of the "L.A. Dart," a series of wheelstanding funny cars each with a rear-mounted, supercharged Chrysler Hemi engine and each sponsored by the Dodge and Plymouth dealers of Los Angeles and Orange Counties. The result of the rearward weight transfer caused by the engine's mounting position was a "wheelie" for the entire quarter-mile at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. Steering was accomplished by a combination of the service brake pedal activating the brake on the left wheel while a brake lever from a racing go-kart activated the right brake. So proficient was Shrewsberry at this sort of driving that he would often spin his car to face the opposite direction at the end of the track and race back to the starting line, all the while maintaining the wheelstand.  Shrewsberry also helped develop and pilot the Hurst Hemi Under Glass Plymouth Barracuda later driven by Bob Riggle. He also participated in the development of the Dodge Little Red Wagon driven by Bill "Maverick" Golden, sponsored by Hurst Performance. Like the "L.A. Dart", the Little Red Wagon and Hemi Under Glass were wheelstanders.

Subject ID: 11621

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Billy Lewis "Wild Bill" Shrewsberry (born June 26, 1938) is an American exhibition drag racing driver primarily active throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Originally from Mansfield, Ohio, Shrewsberry moved to Southern California in October 1962. Shrewsberry is best known as the driver of the drag racing replica of the Barris-built Batmobile from the 1966 television series and of the "L.A. Dart," a series of wheelstanding funny cars each with a rear-mounted, supercharged Chrysler Hemi engine and each sponsored by the Dodge and Plymouth dealers of Los Angeles and Orange Counties. The result of the rearward weight transfer caused by the engine's mounting position was a "wheelie" for the entire quarter-mile at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour. Steering was accomplished by a combination of the service brake pedal activating the brake on the left wheel while a brake lever from a racing go-kart activated the right brake. So proficient was Shrewsberry at this sort of driving that he would often spin his car to face the opposite direction at the end of the track and race back to the starting line, all the while maintaining the wheelstand.  Shrewsberry also helped develop and pilot the Hurst Hemi Under Glass Plymouth Barracuda later driven by Bob Riggle. He also participated in the development of the Dodge Little Red Wagon driven by Bill "Maverick" Golden, sponsored by Hurst Performance. Like the "L.A. Dart", the Little Red Wagon and Hemi Under Glass were wheelstanders.

Subject ID: 11621

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