| (3-19-11) From Erich Schultz:
"I actually own a Devin featured on your site, (along with 11 other
vintage race cars), but the description of the Devin and its history are
incorrect.
You attribute the Devin to Ray Wermuth, but the car was in fact built
and owned by Robert "Bob" Shirley, who was the track manager at Laguna
Seca. Ray was a successful regional driver of an Austin Healey 100-6
before Shirley hired him to drive the Devin.
You mention remembering seeing the house where the car was parked
when you were in high school; that house most likely belonged to Shirley
not Wermuth. He also owned and operated a garage in the same vicinity
as the high school. I've been told that there were often race cars
and hot rods there and that the garage was a popular hang out for high
school boys.
Shirley's family, father and brothers, raced sprint cars. Shirley
custom made the Devin frame in the style of a sprint car frame,only wider
in the center making it a two seat sports car, with help from a friend
in the Navy who was a skilled welder and fabricator. They used heliarc
welding equipment from a navy maintenance facility.
Initially Shirley used axles, wheels and other components from a
sprint car he owned, transferring them back and forth as needed between
the two cars. Later he replaced the Devin's front live axle
with a bolt in VW trailing arm front suspension, and the rear Halibrand
Champ axle with a 56 Chevy unit equipped with a spool instead of a differential.
He also used a few different engines, originally a Chevy 348 and later
a bored and stroked Chevy 283.
Early on, the Devin was entered in races by Robert, but later it
was entered by his daughter, Susan, as Robert had been diagnosed with Cancer
shortly after completing the car. In the early 60's, the 7-UP
soda company photographed Susan in the Devin and featured the car
and Susan in magazine and billboard ads.
The Devin was built to show standards and took top sports car honors
in several concours d'elegance. After Robert died from his illness,
his wife gave the car to her nephew, Mike Fitzello, in Los Angeles.
The Devin was further developed by Mike, his dad, and their family friend,
Larry Shinoda, and used as a drag racer.
Later, Mike disassembled the car with the intention of completely
redesigning the chassis. He never got around to completing the project
and the car remained in pieces, scattered in various places for nearly
40 years. Fitzello continues drag racing today in top fuel funny
car classes as well as some nostalgia classes.
Hopefully we'll be seeing this car back on the track in the not too
distant future." |
