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Paul Yaw and I have been in touch for around 15 years due to me trying to find information about the Cicada Racing team and their owner/driver, Dan Murphy. Dan was Paul's friend, business partner and mentor.
Last year, when we purchased Dan's old Cicada Mk. I Formula B car, Paul said he'd be sending a box of Dan's photos and things having to do with his time in racing our way. The Cicada in many ways carries over a lot of bits presumably from Murphy's Winkelmann WDB2, which we think he may have written off late in 1970. That said, I contacted Locke de Bretteville earlier this winter regarding Winkelmann blueprints, and he was blown away at the percentage of Winkelmann bits in the Cidada. So for the Winkelmann registry's sake, and to help better see one of the key players in Cicada Racing, here are some of the snapshots of Murphy's two Winkelmann Formula B cars. The green car lives today in the hands of Bob Burnside. If anyone is friends with Bob on here, feel free to tag him. Cheers - JD  Thanks to Paul Yaw, a close up photo of the 1971 Cicada Mk.I has emerged from the archives Dan Murphy.
This shot was taken in downtown Plymouth, Wisconsin with Murphy behind the wheel, Harvey Weisse next to him and designer Don Hunt by the left-front wheel.  Sadly, we read that Skip Peterson passed away last night. Our sincere condolences to his many friends, family and the city he held so dear- Dayton, Ohio. We cannot think of the city of Dayton without thinking of Skip.
We first met at opening day at Indianapolis in 2011 when we saw a tall guy in glasses get choked up next to our 1981 AAR Eagle and slip an invite into the cockpit for a Concours event. Skip knew Chip Mead and helped chronicle his month at Indy in 1981 for the Dayton News, and was incredibly thankful that we pulled his Eagle out of a shed and saved it. He invited us to Dayton in 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2016 for the Dayton Concours d'Elegance, a world-class event that he helped shape and was forever championing. A park full of buildings that were moved from the city to commemorate their historical significance. An amazing place for rolling history to visit. He introduced us to so many people... his ability to connect people over the allure of automobiles in Carillon Historical Park was awe-inspiring. Without our chance meeting, the story of Chip Mead's Eagle would only be a sliver of what it is. A great human. He will be missed.  Late 1977: Bill Fickling, David Loring, their respective Eagles, and our AAR trailer in the background
The worst company we have ever dealt with. Unannounced to us, Rapid Auto Shipping sub-contracted getting our historic AAR trailer across the country in August, 2023 from California to here in Wisconsin. We paid Rapid to have it shipped to us on a flatbed and taken to our location safely, out of the wind.
What actually happened? They attached it to a pickup and drove it across the country on 40-year-old tires and no working lights. Of course a tire blew, but not before the roof of the trailer blew off somewhere on I-80. We have massive damages, and they won't do a thing about it. They are also not insured, and put it all on their subcontractor, Nexus Auto Transport. Sadly, Nexus didn't pay their premiums and they too were uninsured. We then found out that Rapid's Texas headquarters they mentioned in 2023 when we did the deal with them was actually a vacant lot. STAY AWAY.  .. and then a package arrives in the mail and floors you.
Dan Murphy's racing lifetime in press clippings and photos. Thank you to Paul Yaw for the chance to document all Dan's history, featuring the Cicada Racing outfit he ran with Harvey Weisse and Don Hunt. Some photos of Cicada Mk.I are enclosed that are goosebump-inducing. How such an amazing car in-period could be reduced to so little makes me sad, yet hopeful. Also: the @winkelmanncars guys are going to love what is inside. |
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