The old days of car racing in L.A.

One of my favorite things to discover doing the Wilshire Boulevard book a few years ago was the story of the giant, wooden-board car racing track in 1920s Beverly Hills. It took up the entire south side of the street — today's Beverly Wilshire, Beverly Drive and the flats of Baja Beverly Hills, most of the way to Pico. Car racing was big in those days, and for decades before and after. Now Harry Pallenberg, longtime producer for Huell Howser and the director of "Shotgun Freeway," is making a documentary on the racing years in Southern California, based in part on Harold Osmer's book "Where They Raced." Pallenberg lists some of the old tracks, and is raising money for the project, at IndieGoGo.com. Here's his trailer, including footage of the road races held on Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica before the Beverly Hills track was built.