Golden turned Dodge’s experimental A-100 pickup into the Little Red Wagon exhibition act and later brought the one-of-a-kind Magnum Illusion to the track.
A Marine veteran and successful Dodge Super Stock racer, Golden earned the “Maverick” nickname in Southern California in the late 1950s. A 1962 AHRA Winternationals victory helped establish his reputation before wheelstanding became his life’s work.
When the rear-engined Little Red Wagon repeatedly lifted its front wheels, Golden developed independent rear-brake steering and wheelstand-height controls. By 1965 he was turning those unlikely runs into an exhibition career that lasted decades.
Magnum Illusion and Little Red Wagon at Lakeland in 1978. Photograph by Fred Griffith, reproduced in The Commercial Appeal.
The machines
A wheelstander timeline.
Four numbered Little Red Wagon versions appear in Golden’s 1979 account. Photographs and chassis identity do not always line up with those labels. Each card gives the latest whereabouts that could be supported by the cited record; “unverified” means there is no confirmed public viewing location.
1964–65
Little Red Wagon I
Dodge engineers Jim Schaeffer and John Collier developed the original Hemi-powered A-100 as a Factory Experimental pickup, and Jay Howell tested it before Golden took the wheel. After its crowd-pleasing 1965 Lions Drag Strip outing, Golden developed rear-brake steering and other controls that made it a sustained wheelstanding act.
Where now: Mike Mantel acquired the wreck and has displayed it at events. No permanent museum or current public schedule verified.
1969
Little Red Wagon II
Following crashes involving the first truck, a new supercharged Wagon was built with added safety features and more developed steering and tailgate controls. Golden crashed this version in 1971.
New replacement truck1969 hauler photograph shared by a NitroMater contributor; the Wagon’s precise chassis identity is unverified.
Where now: This 1969 replacement was reportedly wrecked in 1971. No surviving display confirmed.
Early 1970s–1975
Little Red Wagon III
With Dodge’s A-100 pickup no longer in production, the team assembled a third Wagon from surviving pieces of its predecessors. A severe 1975 crash in Quebec ended this version’s career.
Built from earlier WagonsHistoric Wagon photo, date and version unverified. Tom McKinnon scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0; displayed unaltered.
Where now: Golden described a 1975 destruction in Quebec. Mantel says the wreck he owns carries the first truck’s serial number, so whether the named III was a distinct chassis remains disputed. The wreck is privately held; no permanent public exhibit verified.
1976–2003
Little Red Wagon IV
A 1967 backup truck originally prepared for car-show duty became Golden’s next working wheelstander after the 1975 crash. In 1977 he made a reported 4,230-foot wheelstand in this truck. He continued campaigning the final Wagon until his 2003 retirement.
1967 show truck · later converted for exhibitionLittle Red Wagon performing a wheelstand. Date and location unconfirmed.
Where now: Formerly displayed at the Don Garlits museum in Ocala, Florida; later sold into private hands and offered at Mecum Kissimmee in 2022. Current owner, location, and public access unverified.
Late 1977–1978
Magnum Illusion
Golden created a Dodge Magnum-bodied companion for side-by-side appearances with the Little Red Wagon. Owner-held concept sketches date to late 1977–early 1978; the date and location of the nighttime side-by-side pass are unknown, and a period photograph and newspaper story document both wheelstanders together at Lakeland in April 1978. Mike Burghart reports that Golden later sold Magnum Illusion to James “Jim” Crumpton and confirmed the sale in a recorded call. The purchase and physical handover may have occurred at different times; their exact dates remain unresolved. Burghart later acquired the car from Crumpton’s estate, a separate transfer documented by an estate bill of sale that remains private.
Mike Burghart identifies July 1980 HOT ROD coverage as reporting that Magnum Illusion’s former engine was being used in Golden’s Dodge Super Wagon. This is a reported milestone in the car’s mechanical history, not a confirmed date for its final wheelstanding exhibition. The exact date of Magnum Illusion’s last exhibition remains unconfirmed, and should not be equated with the dates of sale, physical handover, or publication.
Golden’s separate Magnum wheelstanderMagnum Illusion and Little Red Wagon performing side-by-side wheelstands, current owner’s archive.
Where now: With owner Mike Burghart in Topeka, Kansas, undergoing restoration research. Privately held; no public display announced.
By 1979
Hell On Wheels tank
A 1979 HOT ROD profile lists the wheelstanding tank as a recent Team Maverick acquisition. Its earlier builder and its later ownership require more documentation. The end of display and exhibition of Hell On Wheels seems to be either 1980 or 1981 depending on what sources you give the most weight to, but opinions vary.
Where now: No verified current location, museum display, or identified photograph in this archive. Read the contemporary account.
July 1980
DODGE SUPER WAGON
The “Super Wagon” Dodge D50 wheelstander was officially debuted in the July 1980 issue of Hot Rod magazine. A comprehensive update on the truck’s exhibition testing and mechanical evolution was subsequently published a few months later in the October 1980 issue of Hot Rod.
Similar to Hell on Wheels, according to published records the Super Wagon also seemed to stop exhibition and display in late 1980 or 1981. The Super Wagon was powered by the former Magnum Illusion wheelstander’s Chrysler 426 Hemi powerplant.
D-50 Littlest Red Wagon aka Dodge Super WagonPhoto date, location and source undetermined.
Where now: Current whereabouts of this particular truck are unverified; no museum or display has been confirmed for fans to visit.
TIME WAS RUNNING OUT
From the few well-documented articles in leading motorsports publications, getting drivers to run the Dodge Super Wagon and Hell On Wheels wheelstanders was difficult at best. With both basically no longer doing exhibitions in 1980 or 1981, and with Magnum Illusion’s sale to James “Jim” Crumpton at an unresolved date around 1979–1980, the only vehicle left was the fourth generation of the Little Red Wagon wheelstander driven by Bill “Maverick” Golden. With time running out, the Magnum Illusion wheelstander is realistically the remaining vehicle created, built and/or last driven by Team Golden.
The Magnum Illusion can never be restored to competition certification "as is" even with just a new body and paint job and would need a newly created frame with certification. To put it on full-time public display will realistically require restoration to the historical first published version to be an accurate hybrid display. By hybrid, I mean with original graphics by Bill and an unverified painter, and the remaining mechanical condition from James Crumpton, honoring both individuals and patriots in this, our 250th anniversary year of 2026 as a nation.
What counts as a Golden build?The first Wagon began as a Dodge factory experiment; Golden made it a controllable exhibition wheelstander. Later Wagons included a new replacement, a vehicle assembled from earlier parts, and a converted show truck. A 1979 HOT ROD feature also names the Hell On Wheels tank as a recent Team Maverick acquisition and mentions a proposed Dodge D-50 “Littlest Red Wagon.” The tank was acquired rather than documented as Golden-built; the proposed D-50, aka Dodge Super Wagon, debuted in HOT ROD in July 1980 and was covered in a feature article in October 1980. Mantel’s inspection of the 1975 wreck’s serial number also challenges the idea that all four numbered Wagons were separate chassis.
On the road
The support rig.
A period image shows the Little Red Wagon transport truck and enclosed trailer. It is captioned “1969” by the contributor; the exact model, registration, and ownership history have not been independently established.
Period hauler photo shared on NitroMater. Please contact the original photographer for reproduction details.
Where now: Current whereabouts of this particular truck and trailer are unverified; no museum or display has been confirmed for fans to visit.
Beyond the bumper
The lasting act.
Golden’s exhibitions helped establish wheelstanding as a feature in its own right. His rear-brake guidance system let him steer while the front wheels were high in the air, and his tailgate setup helped manage ride height. He survived multiple major crashes while continuing to revise the trucks.
In 1979, HOT ROD described Team Maverick as including the Little Red Wagon, Magnum Illusion, and the recently acquired Hell On Wheels tank. Golden was inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame in 2003. He died in 2015, leaving a history carried by the surviving machines, period records, and the people preserving them.
