Art Alfons "The Green Monster"

[@Steve-tl7zo]

Mu father had a small part in building the Monster. He was an engineer at Woodward Governor (now just Woodward) and he designed the fuel control system. I have a framed, autographed photo of the Monster on which Arfons thanked my dad for his help.

[@johnk6982]

Art Arfons was a incredible man. My grandfather lived down the road from Art's shop on pickle Rd. I had the honor of meeting Art many times! Godspeed Mr Arfons! Brilliant man.

[@TheCatfeeesh]

Now that man defined the true spirit of what an American should aspire to be - "you can't do that" - "just did".

[@donaldshannon6541]

Art sold one of his Allison V-12 dragsters to a relative of his who lived a few blocks from me .. he used to test it on the street in front of his house late at night ... wild sounds and sights for this 15-year old

[@Timinator62]

Art was The Man, there's such a fine line between Genius and Insane...Art WAS that line.

[@cjandthecompany]

Pretty cool stuff! Arfons shop is actually right down the road from my house

[@richardchambers3533]

Art was a legend in Tractor pulling also. I got see him building his Green Monster tractor puller in Akron, in the early 70's. He used to work on cars for the public. We were there to pick up my uncles car, and Art gave us a tour of his shop. 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲

[@marguskiis7711]

Hero of common man.

[@stevelindblom4372]

My dad designed the fuel control system for the Green Monster. One of my best childhood memories was seeing the GM fire up in testing where my dad worked at Woodward Governers in Rockford il.

[@850TREX]

A true hero and an unbelievable achievement. I love Art Arfons Green Monster...

[@jmathis3]

on nice days I can hear them running the jet engines. they even drive a jet powered smart car down the street. awesome shop

[@donaldheitger6731]

I'VE driven by there years ago you could see jet engines out in the weeds

[@davidb383]

i dropped by in '78, having grown up in utah & the flats... that garage of his on Pickle Rd was something to behold

[@Tremorwoodworks]

Thanks for posting this. I was there in '65. We met Walt Arfons in a diner in Wendover and he invited my family out to the salt the following day to be their guests. I was able to sit in Art's seat in the left cockpit (there is another one on the opposite side of the car). We also saw Cyclops run as well as the Summers Bros Streamliner and many others. Great memories.

[@unionrdr]

I saw a museum dedicated to Art & the green monster to one side of I80 near Akron on the westbound side. I'll have to see if it's still there. Like the teste brothers racing team, (joe cartoon) it takes real balls to drive that fast!!!

[@gregorygolden1296]

Art Arfrons is one of the bravest men to ever put on a helmet. To go over 500 mph with 60's technology and a $10.000 hotrod is truly incredible. There are brave men, and there are BRAVE MEN......

[@rocketcandy7]

What a hero ! The stuff of dreams ,be proud !

[@axial1680]

I find it amazing that Art built this in a shed himself, beating Breedlove who had all the backing of Good Year etc. Art the only man to survive a crash at over 600mph!

[@nunyabidness4946]

Look into the spirit of Australia. Water speed record holder since like 1978. Same idea. He has a new boat too.

[@racerxfile]

That was a hell of a crew and driver...going nearly 600 MPH in a car that cost about two grand more than a loaded Cadillac Eldorado of that era.

[@ollijokinen1571]

Awesome footage! Thanks for sharing. :)

[@RayLautenschlager]

My elementary and junior high schools were down the street from Art's shop. We heard the testing of the car every day and saw it out side the shop. I first met Art after he took the record the first time at the Firestone photo shoot which was done next to the Goodyear Hanger and Airdock in Akron. Art's son and I became friends in junior high and have known each other since then. Missed in the story of he did is the fact that he never graduated from High School. He left school to fight in WWII.

[@jeffreycampbellsr7597]

Ray , this might be a strange question to ask, was there a time in the history of the green monster, where the entire car was painted solid green, seems like i saw it that way at a drag race on tv as a child

[@RayLautenschlager]

Jeffrey campbell sr I do not remember any of the land speed record cars being solid green. All the jets were green, red and white. The only one that may have been solid green was the first drag racing car that was called Green Monster but was powered by an Allison V-12. Like everything Art did that paint was surplus. I just found out a couple weeks ago that the government supply company that he bought his jet engines from cut 150 employees including a gal that went to school with me.

[@erikb1842]

I am 60 and I remember seeing the green monster at Northland mall in Columbus Ohio back in the 60's. I remember it being green too. Can,t say it was all green when I saw it,but most of it was.I am thinking there was white or silver too,but I don,t remember it being red.

[@TLH442]

Wow Ray that's cool but still Art's name is spelled incorrectly. Bugs me very much. Long live the memory of Art and his Green Monster.

[@racer774]

Jeffrey campbell sr - Art's quickest and fastest jet drag car was indeed painted green. If I remember correctly, it also had a silver/black outlining of scales as well as a small amount of silver and red around the front of the car resembling a monster's mouth. If I run across a photo or video of that car, I'll post a link. Have a good one!

[@liverush24]

I love all this stuff. Thanks.

[@kh40yr]

Seen the Flying Caduceus(ka-do-c-us) at Bill Harrahs Museum in Reno. Truly backyard and eye peeling. Snapped a bunch of pics. Made sense for them at the time. Brave man/men. Rip Art A. $5000 for a J79,,,my god. I'll take 10.

[@racer774]

kh40yr - Awesome if you could afford to buy $50,000 worth of jet engines in 1969! Still awesome if you can afford close to $400,000 for 'em today! Even better if you have the extra cash and found 10 that were all usable without having to custom manufacture most if not all of the compressor. 2 out of 3 is not bad. lol

[@kylefisher1553]

Art's Green Monster is on display @ Peterson Museum in LA Awesome!

[@davehoward22]

Theres nothing left of it ,it crashed

[@powerz5280]

@@davehoward22That is true but obviously they rebuilt it. Do your research because it is on display at the LA Museum I went there this September. They were all original race cars at that Museum

[@BathSaltShaman]

Grandmother off hand mentioned once she met a race car driver back in the '60s. Finding interest in motorsport years later I asked who it was. Turns out she met Art during an appearance at a school function while working as a teachers aide at my mom's school. Said he was very friendly and down to Earth guy. They ended up shooting the breeze for two hours. Being far before my time and having heard he used to live on my side of Akron, not to mention something familiar about his name, I looked him up. And that's the story of how I discovered the meaning behind the "Home of the Green Monster" sign in front of the machine shop 4 houses down the street from my house.

[@fredtutaj17]

Arts brother whom I believe was older had his own jet cars that he exhibition drag raced around the country for years. The first was called "The Green Mamba" and was painted All green as were all of his cars. I saw him run several times at Union Grove Wisconsin at the Great Lake Dragway. He had Several display cars also that were shown around the country. This was during the 1960's.

[@AZCobraman]

Oof! That poor guy at 11:00 got himself a bad salt-blasting!

[@patgh63]

I wonder if he ever found his hat..

[@davidb383]

@@patgh63 the "beware of blast" signage is sometimes not noticed till its too late...

[@jimvandemoter6961]

Art Arfons, Graig Breedlove and all the rest of these guys were totally crazy and courageous beyond belief. This narration though is one solid hyperbole form start to finish. Not to mention the music.

[@Heavywall70]

I like the music Of all the LSR chasers he is by far my favorite, partly because I’m from Northeast Ohio but mostly because of the way he went about it. True ingenuity

[@kaseymorrow2857]

My Husband's Grandfather and his brothers build the Green Monster...Ed Snyder was my Husband's Uncle

[@davehoward22]

He got a classified engine from somewhere...true garden shed genius

[@onazram1]

Love this.. Thanks!!

[@grumpyoldman336]

lol the Crazy rocketman days ... everything was great back then. Cars, aircraft, power boats, everything was done off the cuff and balls to the wall.

[@thejiggsman961]

art was way ahead of his time !

[@ThomasDeLello]

I saw him around that time at the Dover Drag Strip...

[@nunyabidness4946]

Art blew out one of his tires almost every time he broke a record too. Guess his engine had more torque than others or something. I am horrified of a blow out at 60mph and he knew it would happen at 600 mph but did it anyway!

[@gameiingwithgamerbob1795]

art Alfons is my great uncle!!!!!!

[@racer774]

Gameiingwithgamer Bob - Really? That's cool. Check into the spelling of his last name. A hint; It's not Alfons. Both you and the video uploader misspelled Art's name.

[@davehoward22]

the man was a genius

[@gpdude22]

And you can't spell his name correctly?

[@mystro8295]

Awesome!

[@user-ellievator]

6:25-6:29 Hilarious when seen out of context. Bwyyyuip---"It's almost time." :-0

[@fellovercliff4525]

Back then $10.000 today's cost ten million!

[@nunyabidness4946]

I like the story about one of art's mechanics/friends taking a secret joyride in the passenger seat. I guess it could have been the English car that broke the record in like 1983 but I think it was art's car.

[@littlenige]

Heroic.

[@SLStolworthy]

I saw him run in Henderson NV in 1960, I'm not sure this is the crash they refer to but he did crash couldn't stop on a 1/4 mile run. They said he hit 500 mph on his first pass.

[@chrisscovitch7237]

I remember when I was in grade school listening to who could set the fastest speed record. It was far out...............

[@BobKontak]

+Chris Scovitch Same with me. I am 59. Check this. I live a little south of Akron, Ohio. I caught a ground hog (2005 maybe) in a trap in my urban "hood". Took it out to some rural road to let it go and ran across Art Arfons' shop. Small jet engines laying around in a yard with concertina barbed wire on top of a chain link fence. His kid, I think, still (or did) does the jet powered tractor pull thing. It was a simple set of pole barns, I mean not pretty with a cement yard between. Amazing he could pull off land speed records with not much at all. Mind you, I am that 9 year old kid at 50 years old, looking through the fence. Was way cool

[@lelonfurr4583]

of course he was crazy wish we all could be

[@wingfoot48]

Tom Green is my step dad was friends with Walter and Art

[@tylerlucas5773]

dam firestone, you had one job!

[@TheRSBrothers]

Only 10.000 $. I REPEAT: 10.000 $ !!!

[@GHSTTHERENEGADE]

The RS Brothers Add inflation

[@Heavywall70]

GHSTTHERENEGADE Add inflation to Breedlove’s car too. Now Art’s accomplishments are back in perspective

[@sanfranciscobay]

John Doe. The spelling in the title is incorrect. You have it as Art Alfons. It should be Art Arfons.

[@mynameis9057]

red white and blue, the new green? or are they color blind? that's not the real green monster i was expecting.

[@Timinator62]

I know, back in the 60's the Green Monster was in all of the Car Magazines...however only the Covers where in Color back then, all of the pictures I saw were in Black and White...I had no idea it was actually Red and Blue.

[@chrishenniker5944]

I heard Green Monster was built using truck axles.

[@andyharman3022]

I read that in his biography.

[@therealbadbob2201]

The first Green Monster had a truck axle. There were several Green Monsters. The car featured here is not the last.

[@sinistersparky9657]

Arfons is spelled wrong in the title of this video

[@unionrdr]

Art only beat the Spirit of America 1. The one that was a jet without the wings & wheels added. the low, black streamliner version did the 600.601 average. I saw him do it. Art couldn't top that. But he & the others had som3e hair to try just the same. We all watched every time we could.

[@TLH442]

Arfons not Alfons. Not liking your sloppy journalism as I have a great deal of respect for this guy. In some ways he was the greatest land speed record holder of all time. He did more than the rest of them on his limited budget. Hero man.

[@deronborghi5929]

Fabricated everything .. just like Burt Monroe

[@chunder27]

OP you did not research your comments! It says here the motor cost Art 5k!!

[@HenauderTitzauf]

Speed should have been advertised.

[@focusedmessagemarketing958]

Art was green before green was cool.

[@rlakeavhs]

At least spell his name right!

[@jdsol1938]

the narration is awful , the pic's are very good

[@stevehammel2535]

That is how they talked back in the day.

[@lelonfurr1200]

crazy?yes dreamer?check doer ::? positive ly

[@Mishn0]

I don't care a whit about any non wheel driven speed record. If it's not wheel driven, it's just a low flying jet plane.

[@lawrencemarocco8197]

There's a story that Mario Andretti was at Bonneville during one of Arfon's record runs. They were standing next to the Monster and Andretti was looking into the cockpit and said, "I don't know how you do it." "How I do what?" asked Arfons. Andretti replied, "How you fit in that tiny seat with the big balls you need to drive this car."