User:Jerrick99/Bill Burke

{Jerrick, this is terrific. Tend carefully to my numerous suggestions below, and you'll have a publishable, public Wikipedia page on Bill Burke. Also see if you can find some images that are in the public domain. -- DL}

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Bill Burke, American hot rod {hot rod; no need to capitalize common nouns; only proper nouns (names of people, companies, official titles, and a few other things) are capitalized} and belly tank racer, famously raced in salt flats and brought popularity to belly tank racers in the early thirties and forties. Taking old drop fuel tanks from aircrafts from World War II, Burke {once you've said his full name at the start of the article, you can refer to him by just his last name thereafter.} transformed {transformed, since he's dead now} old fuel tanks into land speed record vehicles that were {were, since it was in the past} equipped with modified production engines. {Any photos available to show what a belly tank racer looks like? Also explain what they are early in the article.} Burke was part of the Western Timing Association and the Southern California Timing Association, Associations that maintains rules and regulation for land speed record events. in 1950. {<<Explain what those are.} He broke numerous records with different types of belly tankers and streamliners that he built. His achievement landed him on the cover of Hot Rod magazine{magazine} multiple times. He also produced more than 13 vehicles for other racers and clients that admired his success in building belly tankers. He brought  streamliners and laksters {<<??} to the recognition of the associations. He was the president {President} of the Los Angeles-based Road Rebels Car Club and was the advertising manager at Hot Rod and Motor Trend. Burke was the father of Steve Burke, {explain who he is, if notable} and grandson Joshua Burke, both who also participate in building and racing hot rods {be consistent throughout -- I think it's two words} and partnered a number of times for builds and races. For more than 60 years, Burke continued to develop streamliners and belly tankers that won numerous awards until his death on November 26, 2015, at the age of 97 from {from} a sudden massive stroke.

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History of Belly tankers:

Belly tank racers came from a tear dropped shaped fuel tank from aircraft that were {were} used in World War 2. Popular fuel tanks that were used for hot rods come from fighter jets like the P-38 Lightning, the North America P-52 Mustang, and the Republic p-47. After world war 2, large numbers of American airplanes were being decommissioned or it was a surplus of unused aircraft. Parts were abundant and were easily found in good condition at junk yards. The teardrop shaped fuel tanks caught the attention of hot rod builders like Burke because the tank geometry was already built to maximum aerodynamics.

Belly tank streamliners: {<< I think you can format this, and the other belly tank streamliner headings below, as a sub-heading}

Belly tankers and streamlines are land speed record focus builds from the late 40s, made popular by Burke. Early streamliners can achieve top speeds of 100 mph while modern streamliners can reach up to 360mph. Builders install existing engines in front or mid engine configurations with exposed-wheels. Compared to traditional hot rods and coupes, it is much easier and flexible to build, and parts are very abundant.

Burke was born in 1914 in Los Angeles, California. He was married to Catherine Burke and had sons, William and Steve Burke, as well as a daughter Luanna Burke. He had four grandchildren, Krista Meyers, Kier Schapiro, Joshua Burke, and Jennifer Burke, as well as two great-grandchildren, Penelope Myers and Nicole Burke. He was raised at his grandparents' home on Slauson Avenue, Figueroa. Burke was an athletic person throughout his life. He was a great swimmer and worked as a lifeguard at Hermosa Beach and on Catalina Island. He also played professional football and armature rugby, baseball, and lacrosse. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Bulldogs. And was a track and field competitor. {<<not sure what that is} He was also an advocate for animals. During his retirement, he would spend his Social Security checks on cat and dog food to feed stray animals in his neighborhood. He was a volunteer at the inaugural 1949 Bonneville nationals, also known as speed week, when he was introduced to his lifelong friends and partner Don Francisco, Mickey Thompson, Clark Cagle, Les Leggitt and Doug Cook. {Please create links to each of these people so readers can readily reference them if they're not familiar with them.}

Burke was a big fan of hot rods during his early childhood and throughout his teenage years. He spent many hours modifying hot rods and participating in land speed races in Bonneville. He built his first hot rod, a modified 1929 Ford, in 1937 when he was 19. During World War 2, Burke was serving an active duty in the Coast Guard/ Navy from 1942 - 1945. Pacific theater in the South Pacific where he was working with different aircrafts. He would study the tear dropped shaped fuel tanks from fighter jets. After the war, the surplus of military supplies became very affordable and easy to find.

The first belly tank streamliner: P-51

Burke built his first belly tank racer called the P-51 belly tank racers in 1946. The belly tanker was made in California with a 165 gallon teardrop shaped fuel tank from a P-51 Mustang. The relatively small size fuel tank had {had} a front engine configuration with a bicycle seat welded{welded} to the torque tube. The driver’s body was {I think this should probably all be written in the past tense, rather than the present tense, as it's a reflection of the design as it was worked out at the time. Normally, one can write entirely in the present or in the past tense, but it needs to be consistent. In this case, I think you'll be better served by keeping it in the past tense} enclosed inside the tank body; the head sticks out from the opening on top of the tanker. Burke {Burke} raced the P-51 belly tanker three times  and reached a top speed of 131.96 mph. The P-51 was later sold in the same year and the funds were put toward a new belly tank streamliner.

The second  belly tank streamliner: P-38

The P-38 belly tank streamliner was built in California in 1947. Compared to the P-51 belly tank streamliner, the P-38 was built on a much larger fuel tank with a mid engine configuration. The assembly {<<probably better to say "construction" or "assembly"} was partnered with Don Francisco. The P-38 utilized an old Model T frame and a rear mounted flathead V-8 engine. The P-38 surpassed the previous dry lake record {it's not exactly clear what you mean by "Dry Lake Record" -- the fastest speed ever achieved on a dry lake? If so, none of it is capitalized} and became the record holder with the speed of 151mph in July of 1949. The P-38 {<<what?} was also known as the “Sweet 16”

Burke also experienced with {with} fiberglass body work and entered the O - class {I don't know what O-class is} vehicle speed record. This streamliner has an enclosed body and It has a motorcycle engine that achieved a {a} top speed of 136.9 mph. The fiberglass body was developed with Mickey Thompson, leading {leading} to their partnership after 1952 when they created a {created a} fiberglass replica of the Cisitalia 202. The record was not broken until 1962.

The “Pumpkin Seed” belly tank streamliner:

The “Pumpkin Seed” belly tanker { -- so named for its shape -- }was the first vehicle that Burke built that achieved a {a} speed of over 200mph. The streamliner was built in 1960. It {It}had {had} an enclosed chassis made from fiberglass. Instead of putting in {in} a large engine, Burke focused on weight saving and decided to use a six-cylinder engine from Ford, called the Falcon. The streamliner was put together with the help of Vern Hule. During the first year, the Pumpkin Seed ran a two-way average of 206 mph at the Bonneville salt flats. The engine was then rebuilt {and supercharged} and supercharged by Mickey Thompson, referencing the Pontiac Tempest four cylinder engine. Burke returned to the Bonneville salt flats in 1961 and achieved {achieved} a top speed of 232mph. During one of the passes, the engine failed and was rebuilt again for further passes in 1962. The Speed 232mph {speed} remains the fastest achieved {achieved by} the Pumpkin Seed. In 1963, The Pumpkin seed was sold to Mickey Thompson.

After the Pumpkin Seed was under Thompson's ownership, he upgraded some fiberglass body parts and raced in Indianapolis. The Pumpkin Seed was passed to his son Danny after Mickey Thompson's death in 1988. The Pumpkin Seed was restored and donated to the Alhambra School District in Alhambra, California. During the time in the school district, Three different schools were assigned to work on the Pumpkin Seed but it was never completed. In 1999 Danny restored the vehicle with the help of Jim Travis and ran a record of 225 mph. The Pumpkin Seed was equipped with a GMC straight-six engine and had {had} reworked fiberglass and aluminum body work. In 2004, the engine was replaced with a Ford V8 and ran a speed up to 286 mph. The vehicle last ran in 2007 at Bonneville and was transferred to the NHRA Motorsport Museum in 2009, with an appearance at the Grand National Roadster show in 2014. The Pumpkin Seed was added to the Dry Lakes Racing Hall of Fame in 2017. {as usual, be sure to cite the sources for all of this information.}

EX-2143 Studebaker Aviant.

During 1963 when Burke was rebuilding the Pumpkin Seed. A Studebaker Avanti was donated to the Hot Rod office in Hollywood for advertising purposes. The car had clearance from the manufacturer to be converted as a race car in 1963. Burke partnered with his son and Mike Cook, a famous drag-racing driver. The Studebaker Avanti was built  as a land speed racer, equipped with a 259ci factory supercharged engine and for nearly 50 years, the Studebaker  Avanti set over 30 records and ran the fastest record of 252 mph. The Studebaker Avanti was first raced in Bonneville with Mike Cook in 1963. It was the first supercharged coupe {coupe?} that broke the record with a top speed of 147.39 mph. In 1972, the car was switched to a 331 ci Hemi and ran a top speed of 221.812 mph. In 1977, it ran a speed of 202.383 mph, setting a record at the El Mirage. In 1981, Burke’s son, Steve Burke, achieved a top speed of 252 mph with a supercharged Hemi. The car was also featured in a BBC documentary in 1997. The car was restored and sold to North Carolina. {sold to who in North Carolina; possible to find out?}

The Cisitalia 202 Fiberglass body replication:

The Cisitalia 202 Coupe is a two seater roadster designed by Pinin Farina from Italy. The car had a very limited production quantity. The Cisitalia 202 was on display in the New York Museum of Modern Art in 1951. The vehicle was famous for its technical achievements and a new change in body design. During 1950, Burke experimented with many fiberglassing techniques and building methods while he was the manager of the HotRod magazine. {do you mean Hot Rod magazine?} He gained access to the car from Robert Petersen. Burke had {had} connections with very talented fiberglass experts, and with his own experience, Burke replicated a model {model?} with the original Cisitalia 202. Burke Partnered with Mickey Thompson to create a fiberglass mold and body from the original Cisitalia 202. The mold was repainted and was ready for production in 1952. The production was under the partnership with Atlas Fiber-glass (later changed to Allied Fiberglass in 1953). made improvements of his own during 1953 for the production model of the 202 copy. The car has an optional 94 inches and 100 inches wheelbase and was officially renamed the Swallow. The fiberglass bodies were secured by steel tubes for {for} added body strength. The Swallow was equipped with a Ford flathead v8-60 and an MG-td. Allied Fiberglass built around 25-40 total coupe bodies. {coupe bodies?} During the process of the fiberglass molding of the original copy, Robert Petersen was never notified that Burke and Mickey Thompson were creating this replica mold.

Career and recognitions:

With the success of  his custom belly tank streamliners, Burke gained the respect of many other racers and was commissioned to build custom Streamliners for clients that had the same ambitions. Some of the most famous buildings were the So-Cal Speed Shop Streamliner. Earl Evans, a racers based in South Elmonte, Ca operating Evans speed shop as of 2008, was also one of his clients with a custom Streakier that famously set records with Earl Evans’s own modifications. Burke was the manager of the HotRod magazine and MotorTrend during his time as a streamline racer. During his time in Hot Rod, Robert Peteren assigned him to manage some of the first auto shows in Los Angeles, New York, and Detroit. He was part of the Western Timing Association and the Southern California Timing Association in 1950. Burke was part of the Victress Guy Mabee Special with Ray Brow and Denny Larsen in 1953 during their Glasspar G2 race car build that was soon featured in Forgotten Fiberglass. Burke was featured in the cover of HotRod magazine multiple times  with the Burke Cagle aluminum Strealiner and with Hot Rod contributor Don Francisco as “ The World’s Fastest Hot Rod” issued in 1949.

Steve Burke and Joshua Burke

Burke was the father of Steve Burke, who {who} was also a participant in the hot rod world. He was involved with many of his projects, such as the Pumpkin Seed and the Studebaker Aviant. Joshua Burke was Steve’s son, and all three generations of hot rod racers received their own land speed records {spell out what LSR means -- land speed record? If so, I assume you don't receive a license per se (which gives you permission to do something), but rather, a recognition of some kind, right?} license. {Say a bit more about this; otherwise it seems unrelated to the rest of the paragraph and things just kind of clunk to a halt.}