Bill “Maverick” Golden
One of the pioneer showmen of drag racing was Bill “Maverick” Golden and his Little Red Wagon wheel standing truck. However, before the “wagon”, Bill was one of the early pioneers in the super stock wars. Competing in a Chrysler sponsored S/S Dodge, Bill soon became a star in the 60s, racking up hundreds of wins and track records with an enviable 95% when record. It was also during the super stock years that Bill learned the value of showmanship as well as performance. Without showmanship especially in the stock classes, it was nearly impossible to get exposure in the print media.
Bill started life in the same way he has lived it; very uniquely. Born Billy Lawrence Golden to a fur trapper father and a Cherokee mother in the wilderness of the Wabash River bottoms of southern Illinois, he competed in and won his first race on his horse “Thunder” at the local county fair. Even with only one horsepower, Bill was hooked on the speed it provided. In 1953 Bill joined the US Marine Corps to see the world and do his duty for his country. While the Marine Corps exposed him to many foreign countries, it was during his tour in California that he decided this was the place to stay. The climate was great and the life was good, but above all there was an abundance of drag strips in the area.
After settling into the California lifestyle, Bill soon started showing up at the various strike strips within the local area. Before long he had earned the reputation of being a winner, and under the guidance of Gordon and Jerry Williams he soon became almost unbeatable. Up until sometime in 1968 he was simply known as Bill Golden, but one Sunday afternoon at Santa Ana dragstrip, CJ “Pappy” Hart called for Bill to “get that Maverick Dodge up here and let’s finish this race!” The name stuck, and from that time forward he was known to all as “the Maverick”.
Mavericks list of accomplishments during the 60s is still one of the most impressive ones in the history of the sport. In 1962 his super stock Dodge held both ends of the national records, and in 1964 his Dodge held both ends of the A-Modified production record and racked up a win record of 35 out of 36 races. In 1965, Car & Driver Magazine named him the “Golden Boy of Drag Racing” and placed the 1964 Dodge at number one. In 1969, Super Stock Magazine named Mavericks 1963 Dodge one of the top 10 stock cars of all time. With this record behind him, in 1995 Bill was in ducted into the Super Stock Magazine Hall of Fame. In 1964, Dodge Director of PR, Frank Wiley, came up with the idea of building a rear engine, hemi powered, A-Factory experimental wheel standing Dodge compact pickup for a Dodge truck commercial. Maverick was tapped to drive it, and shortly thereafter the Little Red Wagon began appearing at the local drag strips. While there has been a lot of publicity and notoriety for the “wagon”, it hasn’t come without its problems. The initial truck put Maverick in the hospital for a week from too many high wheelstands and coming down too hard. From 1964 through 1975, Maverick crashed seven times, destroying three trucks. The 1975 crash in Québec City, Canada almost cost him his life after he flipped nine times end over end and rolled another five times before coming to a stop. When wagon number four was built, Maverick asked his good friend Eddie Campbell who was also a priest to bless it and asked God to watch over him and his wheelie truck. Bill has been responsible for many of the safety measures incorporated into the wheel standing vehicles of today including the guidance system that allows the drivers to steer the vehicle with the front wheels in the air. Bill is also credited with coining the term “wheelie”. Bill was also one of the first wheelie drivers to start “racing” side-by-side with another wheel stander.
In January 1975 the man who gave Bill his Maverick nickname, Pappy Hart, was able to give him another giant boost by booking the Little Red Wagon at his season opening feature attraction. In 1977 Bill set a wheelie length record of 4230 feet which still stands today. Over the years the man known as Maverick has received countless awards such as the Car Craft Magazine All-Star Racing Team, Car of the Year award from HRA, King of the Wheel Stands, to name only a few. But the thing that stands out above all the others is that when anyone thinks or talks of wheel standing vehicles, the first name that comes to mind is Bill “Maverick” Golden and his Little Red Wagons.