Limited-Edition Print (13x19) of 350
Signed and numbered by the Artist
Al Vander Woude's " Flying Dutchman" 1967 Dodge Dart A/FXer, seen here at Bakersfield in 67..
Ten years ago when I painted Al's dark blue roadster Dart, people asked me why I didn't paint the prettier of his two Darts? In fact, I wanted to paint both, and in fact there are the same car.
After struggling through the 1966 with the ultra-long (topless) Dart, Al decided to take what he had learned and rebuild the car for the following season. First thing they did was to shorten the car back to a manageable length, as the roadster had a stretched wheelbase of 132". (At that length, with a square chassis, the car would flex so much, that it would literally bounce up and down going down the track.) The next thing they did was replace the roof, in hopes of creating better airflow over the car. I think Al must have been inspired by the color of fellow A/Fxer, Bill Rieck's "Quarterbender" Dart. He had the "Dutchman" painted in a similar color. It almost looks like they started with the Quarterbender's Aqua color, and then started faded shades of darker green into it...It's hard to describe just how "OUT-THERE ! " the color and paint job was at the time...It was then, and still is, one of the Prettiest Funny Cars ever built, and it certainly is one of my all time favorites!...
