Wednesday, December 22, 2021
Southpoint Sun - 27A
A 1952 Chevy truck from Saskatchewan
A charming story arrived from Leamington resident Mike Thibodeau: “In 1952, a truck rolled off the GM production line in Oshawa and went to the prairies to begin 30 years of farm work. In 1982 it was stored in a barn for the next 40 years.” Last June, Mike and his son Dave visited Saskatchewan. Dave bought that truck and they began the 1,400 km journey home on a trailer pulled by its new owner. “I liked the look of this model, and it appeared in really good condition,” said Dave, who pulled the ’52 home with his Chevy Duramax 6.6L diesel. Mike continues: “It is a Model 1430, one-ton truck with the 216 cubic inch straight six engine and weighs just under two and a half tons. A standard three-speed transmission has a bull low gear. “On the farm stood a huge vehicle crusher. Did Dave save the truck from the crusher? Probably. “Just weeks before Dave reached the truck, thieves had also spotted it, steal-
THE OLD CAR DETECTIVE Bill Sherk
ing the radiator for its brass content. “On the trip home, the old trailer hauling the truck quit, but a welding shop in Thunder Bay helped Dave by giving him the run of the work yard, unloading and reloading the old truck on a new trailer. “An hour later outside Thunder Bay, two municipal workers stopped to chat while Dave inspected the trailer. When one of them was told of the stolen radiator, he immediately offered a replacement. He rebuilt roadsters as a hobby and the radiator, a left-over item, was a perfect fit. Ontario’s north is full of great people. “Today, Dave is pondering the restoration. The truck sat for 40 years and he is in no rush.” Always looking for stories. Email billtsherk@sympatico.ca
SKATING INTO THE HOLIDAYS
LEAMINGTON — Group 2 of the Under 6 division of Southpoint Minor Hockey was busy playing a game on Saturday, December 18 at the Highbury Canco rink. This was the group’s final weekend leading into Christmas holidays. Here, several players converge on the puck as coach Josh Carnevale officiates. SUN photo
U13 Local League team drops heartbreaker LEAMINGTON — Southpoint Blue U13LL took on a strong Erie North Shore Green team on the weekend. As are a lot of teams right now, Blue was playing with a short bench, which was not an excuse for the two quick goals Erie scored in the first. Blue had to battle back
Dave Thibodeau’s 1952 Chevy “barn-fresh” truck.
into contention and they did with two goals coming from Gavin Butineillo. Both came on rushes down the ice. Southpoint’s Brent Pimental scored a third goal which put Southpoint in the lead. His shot came from the point and was set up by Gavin’s face-off draw back.
Erie scored early in the third to tie things up. As the third continued, Southpoint forwards were becoming visibly fatigued. They had played extremely well both ways, but nearing the end of the game Erie popped in the final goal of the game to win 4-3. It was a great game to watch.
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SOUTHPOI NT CREATIVE GROUP A l l i s o n , J i m , K e i r a , L o r i , M a c k e n z i e , M a l l o r y, Mark, Melissa, Roberta, Rylee & Tom
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