Quint Meland

Quint with a homemade racer. The photo was taken in South Dakota when Quint was 10 year or so before the family moved to California. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Quint on his Jeep scooter. He was 10 years old when this photo was taken, and he used the Jeep to deliver groceries with. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

The Cushman Eagle was Quint's pride and joy. "I was 12 years old when this photo was taken, and I still have some scares from a few wrecks way back then," Quint told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2018. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

The Cushman was also used for delivering groceries. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

A photo of Quint with his first car, a 1939 Ford. He was 16 years old when the photo was taken. The Ford ran a full race flathead and it saw plenty of street racing before Quint became an Oiler. "I was working on the car and it was cool at the time to primer the areas. I used white primer to be different. Most used black." Quint sold the Ford in 1957 or so when he bought a 1954 Buick. The Buick was lowered and fitted with dual pipes. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Quint Meland's 1931 Ford Model A Roadster. Quint bought the basic car, without an engine in 1956. After spending countless hours in school auto shop and at his father's gas station the roadster was finally ready for its first trip to the Paradise Mesa Drag Strip in 1957. In 1958 Quint was asked to join the Carlsbad Oilers car club and the Dragmaster racing team. He owned the car from 1956 to 1961, and he only lost two races with it.

Quint's Oilers membership card for 1958. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

In 1998 Quint's wife bought The Phil Cool 32 Highboy from Gil Nickel. In 1978 the roadster won the America's Most Beautiful Roadster award at the National Roadster Show. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

A dream come true! In August of 2020, Quint finally made it to Bonneville, racing on the salt with his newly completed 1929 Ford Model A roadster. Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Quint was restricted to 150 mph as a rookie on the first pass. He made it ok, and advanced to have a license from the SCTA to run up to 175. "We were all set to try but ended up with oil pressure and water circulation problems," he told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020. "I hope to go back in October and get a license to run 200." Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Photo courtesy of Quint Meland.

Quint Meland of Oceanside, California. Quint is a member of the Carlsbad Oilers car club, and he raced with the Dragmaster racing team back in the late 1950s and the early 1960s.

Quint's grandfather and grandmother came from Bergen, Norway. They settled down in South Dakota, where Quint was born. In 1954 Quint and his family moved out West to California.

In 1956 Quint bought a 1931 Ford Model A roadster that he built into an A/SR roadster. He campaigned the roadster with Jim Nelson and Dode Martin's Masters Auto Supply and Dragmaster team in the late 1950s and the early 1960s. In 2017 Quint told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama that each car in the team had a special name attached to it; "For example, Jim and Dode's two dragsters were The DragLiner and The DragMaster. Others were The DragStar, The DragCoupe, etc. My roadster was "The RoadStar". I was only 18 years old when asked to join the race team and the Oilers car club. How proud I Was!"

Quint owned the roadster from 1956 to 1961, and he only lost two races with it. In 1961 he sold it to fund his honeymoon with his late wife, Shirley; "I believe I sold the roadster to a guy by the name of Green. The sale price was $ 1,500 which seemed like a lot of cash back then. Wish I still had it!" In 2018 Quint was still an active hot rodder, owning two 1932 Ford roadsters, one which won the National Roadster Show in 1978. He was also a member of the Carlsbad Oilers, and he still raced with the club at events such as The Race of Gentlemen.

In August of 2020, Quint finally made it to Bonneville, racing on the salt with his newly completed 1929 Ford Model A roadster. A dream come true for Quint. He was restricted to 150 mph as a rookie on the first pass. He made it ok, and advanced to have a license from the SCTA to run up to 175. "We were all set to try but ended up with oil pressure and water circulation problems," he told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020. "I hope to go back in October and get a license to run 200."

Quint Meland's Cars

Quint Meland's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster - The LakeStar
Quint Meland's 1931 Ford Model A Roadster - The RoadStar
Phil Cool's 1932 Ford Roadster
Quint Meland's 1939 Ford Convertible