Hey Kurtis, I'm not having a go just relaying that Terry has asked me not to post any pics he has sent me of the progress and I'm sure this is true to others he has shared them with. I will take as many pics as I can when I see it at Pebble Beach and I'll post them then and the progress shots if I get the ok for those. Cheers Jimmy
_____________________________________________________________ This is the way I understand it. Dean Batchelor was an old rodder that ran the lakes back in the day among others things. A car guy like the rest of us. He became a well known journalist about the car scene. Later on he bought a Ferrari and was into that crowd. What he found in that crowd were a lot of friends that were rodders at heart. He's the one that wrote a book that a lot of us drool over, with the pictures of the early lakes etc. It's called "The American Hotrod," It think it was renamed something about lakes and dragstrips. Anyway he was dying or had died and his friends wanted to honor his memory, and the fact that a lot of history had come out of the hot rod scene, and a lot of them with it, so they tried out a hot rod class, but the cars had to be the real deal, authentic milestone cars like the Doane Spencer '32, and Dick Flint's '29 track nose. These guys, like Don Orosco, were getting a real kick restoring these cars for a change. Then they allowed some milestone customs. There are still some snooty people that get their undies in a wedge about it but who cares. The money goes to mostly local charities like United Way and Boys and Girls clubs. Still way too rich for my blood, I've never been.
I suspect that Bruce Meyer was instrumental in opening Pebble to hot rods and customs. He was already a concours guy and a Pebble Beach exhibitor before he started collecting hot rods, and I imagine that he lobbied to include some limited classes for them each year.
Exactly, Bruce Meyers was/is one of the greatest mover's and shakers. Don Orosco used to live in Fresno, and was a great mover and shaker for our local Concourse. He owned/owns one of the original Chevy powered cars the Reventlow Scarab after having other classics like D-Jags and a cool Maserati Birdcage. He moved to Monterey, and was responsible for getting improved recasts of the old Ardun heads, before passing them to someone else. There are some others but I can't recall all the details right now. There is a cool new book on "Hot Rod Garages" that you can glean a lot out of.
Dean Batchelor, also had a very long and respected career as an automotive journalist, for "Road & Track" magazine, hence the connection with the "Sports Car" crowd. Then thankfully before he passed away, he finished his incredibly fine book,"The American Hot Rod". A true gearhead "Icon" in my eyes. After all, aren't Ferraris, just Italian Hot Rods?
Don't confuse Bruce Meyers (creator/manufacturer of the Meyers Manx) with Bruce Meyer (hot rod collector and Petersen Museum patron). I'm sure it happens all the time, but they are two very different figures in the universe of car enthusiasts.
sorry, my bad on the spelling! Bruce Meyer then, I remember the little Manx as well, but that guy is not who I was talking about, I noticed that after I posted but didn't change it, thanks for catching that. He really got the ball rolling with the restored milestones.
If I screwed up I screwed up Terry and I been friends for years. I am sure he'll forgive me. Pebble is only a few days away. I'm worried he'll not make it. It's tough being so far away and unable to help all my friends thrashing.
Found this today, sometime in the 1950's there was a Hot Rod feature in Popular Mechanics or like magazine that Dad had in the basement work shop. I cut out all the photos I liked and added them to a scrap book I'd started, must have been 9-10 years old. I used Scotch tape to attach things, over the years the glue dried up and all the clippings are fine. Hope the last minute restoration is going well.
DSCF0890 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr DSCF0889 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr DSCF0888 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr DSCF0887 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr
SANY0823 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0822 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0817 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0820 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0814 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0813 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0812 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr
SANY0811 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0810 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr SANY0809 by Jimmy Bs 1925 Chev, on Flickr
Jimmy, It's a shame I couldn't have met you while you were in Utah. I would have LOVED to hear all about Pebble Beach. Thanks for the photos!
@50Fraud is correct ... Hot Rods & Customs At Pebble Beach by the Auto Editors of Consumer Guide. Since 1950, the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance has been the ultimate car show. Steeped in tradition, it is an exclusive and elegant celebration of the history of the automobile. To be invited to display a car at Pebble Beach is an incredible honor. To win your class is an affirmation that your car is the best of its breed. This Dick Williams 1927 Ford Model T was entered in the 1997 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Held each August at the Lodge on the 18th green at Pebble Beach, which overlooks Monterey Bay, only 175 cars are invited to participate each year. Anyone willing to pay the triple-digit admission fee is welcome to attend. Known primarily as the purview of blue bloods and their vintage Ferraris, Duesenbergs, and coachbuilt classics, hot rods had never appeared "on the lawn" prior to 1997. In fact, the rebellious hot rod spirit was somewhat at odds with the staid atmosphere of such an elite car show. Initiated by longtime Pebble Beach competitor Bruce Meyer (@Deuce Bruce), a group of crossover automotive enthusiasts changed all that. Meyer, along with Pebble Beach judges @Chopperken Gross, Gordon Apker, and Glenn Mounger, as well as regular competitors Kirk White and Dennis Varni, appealed to event organizers Jules Heumann and the late Lorin Tryon to include a class for hot rods. After years of asking, their wish was finally granted with the introduction of the Historic Hot Rod class in 1997. Gross established the class criteria and invited the first hot rod competitors. He chose nine fenderless roadsters from the 1940s and '50s, all of which had pedigrees as either street/show or street/lakes race cars. Gross, Ray Brock, Alex Xydias, and Don Montgomery (@Rockerhead) were the judges at that first event. Ray Brock, Ken Gross, Alex Xydias, and Don Montgomery were the judges at the '97 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. The winner was Bruce Meyer (@Deuce Bruce) with his restored Doane Spencer Deuce, which also won the Ford-sponsored Dean Batchelor award for the most historically significant hot rod. Kirk White took second with his '32 Ford lakes racer originally owned by Ray Brown, and third place went to Don Orosco for his Tony LaMasa Deuce roadster. Kirk White (and Ray Brown) in the 2nd place Ray Brown '32 Ford lakes racer. When the winners drove across the ramp to accept their awards, the standing ovation they received confirmed that hot rods belonged at Pebble Beach. A hot rod or custom class has been part of the Concours every other year since the 1997 event. Don Orosco won in '99 with his Dick Flint '29 Model A roadster, then took first in 2001 with the Alex Xydias So-Cal Coupe. Brock Yates won in 2003 with the ex-Duffy Livingston Eliminator track roadster/sports racing car. The 2005 event marked the first-ever custom car class. Given the number of legendary rods and customs being restored today, they should be well-represented at Pebble Beach for years to come.
Way back at the start of this thread, there were questions as to why the big bucks ($175.00 at the gate) for a ticket to this event. There are several logistical reasons for keeping the crowd at a managable size. Formost is the lack of parking. They actually run shuttle busses from school parking lots several miles away due to minimal parking at the grounds. Where does all the money go? It was announced that this years event generated 1.4 MILLION dollars for the charities Pebble Beach, Inc supports.
This year was the first (but not the last) time I ever attended the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance ... I pre-ordered my ticket ($150.00) ... and it was worth every penny! Like Rich mentioned, there's a lack of parking ... I parked in what the PBC organizers called "Coast Lot #6" (near Spanish Bay Golf Links on the 17-mile drive) ... and was shuttled to The Lodge @ Pebble Beach ... Here's the view from my "parking space": ... not too shabby, huh? The PBC folks (both employees & volunteers) do a wonderful job of organizing and running the Concours ... I'm actually surprised that they don't charge more for this first class event ... also glad to hear that $1.4 million went to charity!
I was wondering if anyone had any more news of this car since Pebble please? Is it now finished and running, and have there been any articles written about it either in magazines or on the net? It would be great to see some photos under the skin and of the engine! I'd also like to know more about the running gear and changes made through the life of the streamliner. Thanks for any leads!
Terry Baldwin had the car at this year's GNRS, in a hall mostly filled with lakes and Bonneville cars. It's changed very little from the form in which it was shown at Pebble -- numbers and ALBATA lettering added, but otherwise the same. To my knowledge the engine is still incomplete and has not been run. Terry is retired and has other projects, so funding for further restoration is scarce. Here's how it looked at GNRS: