Blair’s: The World’s Oldest Speed Shop
February 2021 • By Bob McClurg • Photos by Bob McClurg, Dave Kommel, Robbie Robison & Tony Thacker
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Born September 3, 1921 in Highland Park, California dry lakes pioneer and hot rod industry mover and shaker Don Blair attended South Pasadena, California’s Lincoln High School prior to taking automotive classes at Los Angeles, California’s Frank Wiggins Trade School. Before striking out on his own, Blair learned the ins and outs of the auto parts business by working in early 1940’s era parts houses and machine shops around the Greater L.A. Basin.
Blair’s recently built this small-block Chevy for Mike Williams. You can just make out the old Thornton and Carlson Candies sign on the building. Photo of courtesy David Steele, American Hot Rod Foundation
When Don’s grandfather died (1945,) and left him a modest inheritance he bought at age twenty-five a lot on Arroyo Parkway and founded Blair’s Speed Shop. Don’s brother Bruce came along with the deal and was responsible for engine building and chassis fabrication. In the late 1940’s, Blair erected a small building on Foothill Boulevard in Pasadena and hired his first employee, Tim Timmerman only to outgrow it a couple of years later.
In 1950-51, he purchased the former Thornton and Carlson Candies building (which had a showroom,) a half block down the street at 2771 E. Foothill Boulevard and Daisy Avenue and called it home! However, the responsibilities of the new shop didn’t deter Blair from his racing activities.
History records that in 1945 as a member of the Pasadena Roadster Club, Don was the first to adapt a Roots type supercharger cannibalized from a European Mercedes Benz to a Ford Flathead V8 engine. This setup powered his modified roadster, AKA: ‘the Goat,’ to a top end speed of 141 MPH with a two-way average of 130.27 at El Mirage Dry Lake. Throughout the 1950’s Blair’s Speed Shop was well known for their dropped front axles for early Fords and their expert chassis preparation.
In the late 1950’s to early 1960’s Blair’s would set the standard for Tri-Five Chevrolet straight front axle conversions and everyone else would follow. With Irwindale Raceway just a stone’s throw away, (est. 1965,) Blair’s Speed Shop became the racer’s ‘one stop shop’ on race weekends for spark plugs, oil, gaskets, race gas, nitro methane and alcohol, etc; Suffice to say, Blair’s sponsored a ton of race cars that raced Irwindale belonging to the likes of Robbie Robison, Don & Betty Walker, Ruel Nicol, Don Lindford and countless others. However, the most notable of the Blair’s Speed Shop sponsored entrouge were the cars belonging to the late Steve Bovan.
In the early 1960’s, Blair’s Speed Shop sponsored the Bovan & Castro 1961 Corvette followed with the sponsorship of Bovan’s 1964 Plymouth 426 Wedge match racer. In 1965 Bovan, Indy 500 great Sam Hanks and Blair’s made national headlines with the sponsorship of Steve’s blown, nitro gulping 1965 427 Chevy II match racer. Bovan’s follow up act was the Blair’s Speed Shop flip top 1968 Chevrolet Camaro funny car, both of which were built in house by Blair’s ‘chassis-meister’ Mike Hoag. After 25 years ownership, Don Blair sold the business in 1974 to gasser racer/employee Phil Lukens. In 1985, Don started Blair’s High Performance; an engine building facility who’se specialty was sprint car engines, located at 142 S. Glendora Avenue, Glendora California. Don Blair died September 29, 2011 at age 90.
And, there are several Blair’s tribute cars.
NOTE: Established in 1945, and still operated by Phil Lukens Blair’s is the oldest continuously operated speed shop in the world. You can reach Blair’s at (323) 681-8644
The story of Blair’s Speed Shop is excerpted from Bob McClurg’s latest book The American Speed Shop published by CarTech. Buy it here: https://www.cartechbooks.com/search?q=american+speed+shop&type=product