JON Van Daal is a rarity in the magazine business, having been a major player on both the creative and commercial sides of the game.
As a photographer and journalist, Jon has contributed to countless magazines, including Australian Hot Rod, Street Machine, Performance Street Car, Street & Strip, Dragster and Drag News. He also edited both National Drag Racer and The Drag Racing Yearbook. In 2014, Jon was awarded an Australian Nostalgia Fuel Association Pioneer Award. As an ad guy, Jon led the commercial charge during the golden era of HOT4s and Auto Salon. He has also penned three books: The History of the Summernats, Traction Action and The Boss: The Brett Stevens Story. Jon is currently working on a biography of his father. We sat him down to spill the beans on a crazy career.
What was your first exposure to drag racing?
In 1970 I was on school holidays from Sydney up in Brisbane. My brother-in-law took me to Surfers to see US Top Fuel racer Steve Carbone. I had my dad’s Kodak 126 camera and took some not-very-good photos. But it really fired up my interest.
What was your first published image?
That was a shot of John Lumb’s ‘Panic’ Torana Funny Car at Castlereagh in December 1974. A mate lent me a Nikon F2. The windshield posts on the Torana broke and the roof collapsed down over the roll cage. It was published in some Aussie mags and it won a photo competition with Car Craft in the US. I thought: “This is a piece of piss!” and bought my own camera. And the Torana did the same thing the very next meeting!
This is easy!
This story is from the October 2020 edition of Street Machine Magazine.
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This story is from the October 2020 edition of Street Machine Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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ROYAL CARRIAGE
BENNY ROYAL TOOK A FAMILY HEIRLOOM TOYOTA CORONA, SHOVED A 1JZ IN IT AND HEADED OFF FOR FIVE DAYS OF DRAG-AND-DRIVE
DEBUT TOUR
WITH A SCREAMING HOLDEN SIX, DEAN TROUNSON'S HOME-COOKED HR STEERS WITH THE BEST OF 'EM
FULLY FRANKED
A SNEAKY 670 HORSES OF FRANK MARCHESE POWER MAKES ROB GORGIEVSKI'S CONCOURS XW A PROPER TREAT
NOMADIC LIFESTYLE
DON'T BE FOOLED BY ITS DEMURE APPEARANCE THIS '57 CHEVY NOMAD IS A RAUNCHY RESTOMOD PACKING MODERN MUMBO
PERFECT 10 '!!!!
THE SYDNEY HOT ROD & CUSTOM AUTO EXPO TURNS 10
VAN WILDER
PETER MARRIOTT BUILT THIS TOUGH, 350 CHEV-POWERED HK PANEL VAN IN TRIBUTE TO THE LONG-LOST HT VAN OF HIS YOUTH
EXPRESS DELIVERY
IF YOU'VE ever been to the Bright Rod Run (and you damn well should've), odds are you've seen Joel Beatson lapping in an early Falcon.
RED HOT & BLUE
A REBORN PROGM8 SHOOTS FOR THE TITLE OF AUSTRALIA'S BEST SHOW-AND-GO COMMODORE
PEOPLE LIKE US
WHEN Michael Gonzalez isn't busy making eight-second passes in CHOCTOP, his street-driven, LSA-fed VC Commodore, or cruising one of the many other cars in his collection, he can be found managing Springmount Raceway, home to Far North Queensland's biggest horsepower hoedown, Northern Nats (see p. 48 for full feature).
DRIVING INNOVATION
EVER WISH YOU COULD HAVE A BRAND-NEW VERSION OF AN ICONIC 1970s AUSSIE MUSCLE CAR, FULL OF THE LATEST TECH? DRIVE SOUTH IS WORKING TO MAKE THAT A REALITY