Dan Blocker

Documentation of the Dan Blocker Nickey Vinegaroon 1965 Genie Mk10

John Cannon raced this Genie Mk10 USRRC / Can-Am car, manufactured by Huffaker Engineering of California, for Dan Blocker Racing in 1965 and 1966. Cannon and Blocker’s close friend, Dennis Reed, made several trips in mid 1965 to San Rafael California to monitor the construction and eventually made many modifications to the chassis and body configuration. The plan was to run the car with special BOP Aluminum engines built by Traco Engineering. With a 200 pound weight advantage, better handling, and better fuel mileage, it was felt that the car would be competitive with the Chaparrals of Jim Hall and Hap Sharp. The car was run extensively in the U.S., Canada, and once in the Bahamas. In 1965, the car finished 2nd in the Nassau Tourist Trophy race. In 1966, the car finished 1st at the Stardust USRRC race in April with the new tubeless Firestone tires. The car was involved in a serious crash with Mark Donahue at Watkins Glen in July of 1966. At that time, Cannon and Blocker parted ways. The car was repaired, re-bodied, and subsequently raced by Bob Harris in several more USRRC races and at least three Can-Am races in the fall of 1966. After the 1966 season, the car was parked. It ran one more Can-Am race in 1968 at Laguna Seca with Ron LaPeer driving. At some point, Bill Thomas may have ended up with the chassis in exchange for some engines that Thomas supplied to Campbell’s power boats.

Ray Hutson bought the car from Bill Thomas, probably brokered by the Blocker / Campbell racing group, around 1970 or 1971. Hutson ran the car in 4 or so regional races, but decided that it wasn’t the car for him. Believes that he sold it to Dennis Zainfeld of Covina CA in 1974 or 1975.

Dennis states that he bought the car around 1976 from Hutson. Never raced it. Hung it on his living room wall with a McLaren body until 1982 when he sold it to John Helash.

John, of Helash Steel, stated that Hutson brokered a deal with Dennis Zainfeld for Helash to get the car. Never ran it. It was simply another car. One of many that passed through his shop.

John was a racing friend of Floyd Sable when Floyd lived in Southern California. Helash had the chassis of the Vinegaroon hanging on his shop wall. Floyd was visiting the shop and Helash told him what it was. Floyd was particularly interested in Genies due to his friends Don Skogmo and Scotty Beckett having owned them. Helash had almost all of the parts for the car less a body.

In 1987, Sable, now living in Minnesota, struck a deal with Helash to buy the car, subject to him getting permission from Beckett to take a mold from his Genie’s body. After obtaining Scotty’s permission to take a mold, Floyd and his daughter Jessica (age 15) then took a road trip to Southern California to pick it up. She was quite disappointed to find out that the car was in many pieces and not the complete race car that she had envisioned.

Floyd started the restoration work with Scotty Beckett helping, but the project stalled when Floyd’s wife was diagnosed with lung cancer. After his wife passed away, he took up the restoration project again, partly as therapy. He and Scotty became close friends as they restored Floyd’s car and at the same time re-built Scotty’s Genie. They worked together on the cars at Scotty’s shop and their mechanical skills complimented each other.

Floyd talked with John Cannon on several occasions during the restoration of the car and Cannon helped to verify that it was the original Vinegaroon. Cannon stated that he helped to build the car with someone named “Striker” in Huffaker’s shop. The idea was to make it as light as possible so he used 4130 Chrome Moly tubing. His philosophy was that light & nimble was better than big and heavy with big horsepower. He used the Buick version of the “BOP” aluminum engine because it had better heads. Certain changes and traits were unique to this Genie:

  • There was an indentation in the foot box on the left hand side to accommodate Cannon’s foot positioning
  • The rear view mirror post and tach were mounted in the center of the cockpit.
  • There were special brackets on the sides to brace the fuel cells
  • The Genie front wheels were ground and machined to save weight
  • A special Firestone fuel cell was installed.

In 1998, after an 8 year restoration, the car was rolled out for its first event at the BRIC at Road America. Aside from a minor shift linkage problem, the car performed flawlessly. Floyd entered the car in the Road & Track concours event in downtown Elkhart Lake and was awarded 1st place in the Race Car Division.

Tom Stephani, son of one of the owners of Nickey Chevrolet, was at Road America participating in the 35th anniversary of Formula Vee event held that same weekend. Tom’s son Paul saw the car in the paddock and alerted his dad. Tom and Floyd got to know each other and kept in touch over the next 5 years. In the fall of 2002, Floyd agreed to sell the car to Stephani and he has been racing it for the past 4 years in Vintage events nationwide.