8 minute read
SoCal Diaries
Former Custom Car editor Tony Thacker lives in California these days, and this month he’s been enjoying the weather out there…
I’m not sure I’d be taking my bare metal Deuce Roadster to the salt but hey, hot rods are for driving, right? Note the laid back Stanley Wanlass windshield and the exhaust exiting through the side rail
‘UnLucky’ Burton has been dragging this beautiful Stromberg-sponsored coupe to Bonneville since 2019 but because of the weather and Covid has yet to make a decent pass despite tons of exposure on YouTube
Chris Garcia of Los Angeles’s Bedlam car club drove the 700 miles from LA in his banger-powered ’31 coupe. That’s a long way on four cylinders The concept of lakes racing is not supposed to be taken literally. It’s supposed to be fast and fun, if a little dusty or salty depending on the venue. This year, however, despite global warming, nature put the kybosh on Bonneville Speed Week with a ood of biblical proportions.
I woke up to the sound of rain, rain in my room as water poured out of the light ttings.
Brit Geo Stilwell’s record-holding 7707 team gathered in the hotel lobby only to be told nobody on the lake today – it’s a lake. And it was.
When we nally drove out, it was axle deep for a couple miles and the pits were ankle deep despite being on higher ground. All we could do, along with ex-CC editor Kev Elliott, who was there with his roadster pickup now owned by Bruce Wanta, was clear up the salty mess and beat a retreat.
More than 350 teams from all over the world were left kicking their heels by the unexpected but not unprecedented storm. The not-for-pro t Southern California Timing Association, which organises Speed Week, was equally devastated by the conditions that they were tasked with cleaning up. It was a mess but, as Geo Stilwell said, ‘I’ll be back.’
This shot taken on the ooded lake bed gives a whole new meaning to the words belly tank and lakes racing. Sadly, this is about as far as anybody got
Oilers car club member Jeremy Baye drives and races this radical back-motored, at-powered ‘con-T-raption.’ Check out the driving position jammed up against the cowl. Al Clarke of Go Devil Garage built the engine Shades of days gone by and a ashback to the Pete Chapouris’ SO-CAL inspired ‘New Traditional’ look complete with laid back Stanley Wanlass windshield, ET mags and black n’ ame paint
There was a time when the US was littered with beaten up farm trucks but today the pickin’s are slim. Nevertheless, this pair of slammed Chebbys, a ’59 small window and a ’53-55 3100 from LTS Customs, Carbondale, Colorado had the look
There’s no real disrespect in trailering a car to Bonneville as it is in the back of beyond, and who could diss this impressive rig comprising a ’50 Chevy pickup towing a athead-powered, A-framed, deuce-grilled, ’23 T turtle deck? It was rough alright but this heavily hammered and nosed ’33 is a survivor as it raced on the salt back in the fties as the South Omaha Coupe. Discovered and resurrected by Tom Secora who searched for the car for 30 years
Below: How can you not like a bullet-nosed Studebaker even when it has a high-heeled, shnet-clad leg waving at you? 1950-51s were never as popular as the Lowey-designed ’53-55, but this one hacked into a convertible had some kerb appeal
It has a ’28-29 Model A grille and cowl but back of that I’m not sure what it is – maybe homemade? Either way, the small-block Chevy-powered ‘White Lightning’ roadster was kinda cute
If one Hemi is good, two must be better, and if two B&M blowers is good then four must be better still. Not my cuppa but you have to admire the builder’s ingenuity – and he drove it all over town Most people recognise the name Bill Niekamp from his 1950 America’s Most Beautiful Roadster, but this was Bill’s ’27 T-based lakes modi ed – the rst modi ed to break the 200mph barrier in 1955, with George Bentley driving
Brit Jonathan Suckling is in partnership with Ken Schmidt of Rolling Bones on this radically hammered, Hemi-powered ’34 coupe, but they didn’t even get on the salt this year and spent the weekend parked up at the Nugget
Above: Americans are very patriotic and there’s nothing wrong with that, in fact it’s quite endearing. So it’s impossible to fault this amed and ag’d ’57 two-door hardtop from the Old Farts Racing Team out of southern California Right: Transplanted Scot Shug Hanchard has been lakes racing 30 years and this was to be his last lap. Unfortunately, mother nature had di erent plans for Shug and wife Irene seen here exiting Lake Bonneville I don’t want to own it but I love looking at weird and wonderful American commercial vehicles such as this Spongebob-styled 1952 Fageol Super Freighter moving van that makes a perfect race car hauler Typical of the current trend, this ‘bitsa’ Model A appears to be assembled out of bits of this and bits of that. It’s powered by an 8BA athead tted with a vintage 2x2 Navarro and a couple of Strombergs
HILL SHIPPING ARE RAYS CLASSICS UK AGENT FOR OUR U.S. & AUS IMPORTS
Ray’s Classics Ray’s Classics
California collector car export sales specialist
Tel: 650-361-8083 | email: raysclassics@earthlink.net | www.raysclassics.com
1949 CHEVY 3100 PANEL VAN, 6CYL/3SPD BONE STOCK AND ONE CALIFORNIA FAMILY OWNED SINCE 1949, DOCUMENTATION INCLUDING ORIGINAL 1949 CALIFORNIA REGISTRATION PAPERS, EXCELLENT CONDITION, RUNS AND DRIVES AS NICE AS YOU WILL FIND FOR A STOCKER
1965 THAMES 400E LHD CALIFORNIA VAN, ROCK SOLID BODY, NO ENGINE TRANS $5,850
1964 1/2 MUSTANG F CODE COUPE, 260CI V8/AUTO P/S, ORIGINAL CALIFORNIA BLACK PLATE CAR, FACTORY BLACK STRIPPED TO BARE METAL, RUST-FREE, NEEDS RESTORATION $9,850
1978 FORD RANCHERO GT 251CI/AUTO, P/S,PB,P/W, A/C, ON THE BUTTON , ROUGH RUSTFREE RESTORATION PROJECT OR PARTS CAR $4,250
1953 CHEVY 3100 STEPSIDE, VERY SOLID SHEETMETAL, LATER OPEN DRIVELINE REAR END, NO ENGINE/TRANS, A BLANK CANVAS TO BUILD HOWEVER YOU CHOOSE $8,750
1980 DODGE SHORTY VAN V6/5SPD, CODDINGTON WHEELS, KEEP ON TRUCKING $9,450
1960 DODGE PHOENIX, V8/3SPD O/D GOOD SOLID BODY , STARTS &RUNS GOOD ,COMPLETE NEW BRAKING SYSTEM DUAL FLOWMASTER EXHAUST , NEEDS CLUTCH LINKAGE TO BE A DRIVER $9450
1949 CHEVY FLEETNIE 2DR FASTBACK , 235CI6CYL/3SPD MANUAL, SAME FAMILY OWNED SINCE NEW , LOTS OF SERVICE HISTORY , COMPLETE NEW BRAKING SYSTEM , NEW FUEL TANK AND SENDER, REBUILT CARB , APPROX 23,000 MILES ON REBUILT ENGINE ROCK SOLID CAR $12,750
1959 OPEL OLYMPIA 2 DOOR STATION WAGON 4CYL/3SPD, LHD US SPEC RUSTFREE CAR, TWO OWNERS FROM NEW, VERY GOOD CONDITION INSIDE AND OUT, SOME EXTRA PARTS, RARE CAR ON BOTH SIDES OF THE POND $16,250 1951 AUSTIN A40 DEVON LHD CALIFORNIA CAR, RUSTFREE EXCELLENT PAINT, COMPLETE RESTORED LEATHER INTERIOR, ALL NEW WINDOW/DOOR RUMMER, RECHROMED BUMPERS REBUILT ORIGINAL ENGINE $10,250
1953 STUDEBAKER COMMANDER 2 DR HARDTOP V8/AUTO, STRATS AND RUNS, NEEDS RESTORATION $6,850
1963 MECURY COMET 2DOOR HARDTOP, 6 CYLINDER/AUTO, NEW GAS TANK AND SENDER, NEW FUEL PUMP, REBUILT CARB, ON THE BUTTON DRIVER $7,540
1955 PLYMOUTH BELVEDERE 2DR HARDTOP, V8/AUTO GOOD SOLID BODY , ALL NEW BRAKING SYSTEM, RECENT NEW DUAL EXHAUST, STARTS AND RUNS GREAT WILL BE A DRIVER VERY SOON $12,750
