THE BALLAD OF CRAZY ROCKETMAN

WHAT A BUILDER OF PULSE-JET-ENGINE VEHICLES CAN TELL US ABOUT MOTORING PASSION.

BY A. J. BAIME

BOB Maddox’s stage name, Crazy Rocketman, is a misnomer. Maddox doesn’t build rockets. He builds pulse-jet engines. There’s a difference. As for the crazy part—that may be true. Maddox is the world’s foremost builder of vehicles powered by pulse jets. He builds them in his garage starting with nothing but sheet aluminum, stainless steel, and stuff he gets on Amazon. He makes engines that glow at around 1500 degrees Fahrenheit, produce about as many decibels as Top Fuel dragsters, and launch him toward the horizon at crazy-fun speeds. He once built the world’s largest pulse-jet engine and mounted it in a 1965 Jaguar. Star Wars audio engineers recorded his pulse-jet engines for the movie Solo. You may have seen Maddox, who’s usually wearing his trademark sparkly blue 1973 Bell helmet emblazoned with…

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Road & Track (Digital) - 1 Issue, December/January 2025

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