The Silver Fox

He was known as “the Silver Fox,” “the Racing Grandfather,” and “Merle the Magician.” These nicknames might indicate a gentlemanly racer, older than most of his peers, who raced for fun. His silver hair, glasses and relaxed demeanor fit the nicknames, but underneath that calm exterior beat the heart of a fiercely competitive racer. He raced cars of his own design and manufacture, including a rear-engine sprint car, a dragster, Formula Junior and the “Brennan Beast.” He moved on to a variety of production cars, formula cars, sports racers and Can-Am cars. Regardless of the type of car or series he raced in, Merle Brennan was a consistent front-runner, leading to Regional, Division and National championships. His racing career spanned an amazing five decades but, even more impressive, he remained competitive throughout all those years behind the wheel. However, what made Merle Brennan unique was not just his long racing career, but the fact that he was also a self-made, successful businessman, and a master mechanic, who built and maintained his own racecars.

Brennan was born in Turlock, California, in 1927 but spent his life in Reno, Nevada, after his family relocated there when he was still a young boy. By the time he was in high school, Brennan was already showing his mechanical prowess and at 16 years of age, built his first car, a Ford, flat-head V-8-powered hot rod. After graduating from high school in 1946, Brennan took his first job as a mechanic and, shortly thereafter, took his first step toward racing. At 19 years old, he competed in a hard-top, stock-car race at the Dry Lake Oval in Reno and won everything but the main event. After a short stint in the Merchant Marine, Brennan returned to Reno and resumed racing on ovals. Always in the search for speed, he competed at the Bonneville Salt Flats where his flat-head, V-8-powered, 1932 Ford reached 130 mph. He also built more hot rods and continued to hone his skills as a mechanic where he earned a reputation as a very good engine builder.