Roger was a long-time family friend ... and a long-time Hot Rodder! He was one of the charter members of the Nor Cal Early Iron car club (established in the early '70s) ... and at the time, drove his home-built 1938 Chevy coupe: circa 1974 circa 1977 photo by @49ratfink Roger was a gifted machinist, fabricator, & certified welder ... working at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) ... and lent his talents to the building of the club's give-away car: click thumbnails to enlarge
Here's Roger's most recent Hot Rod ... a garage-built '29 Hiboy ... that he drove the wheels off : circa 2014 photo by Sherm (@fuely32) Porter circa 2016
Condolences to the Garcia family and friends on the passing of Roger. Thank you @HEMI32 for the eulogy on your friend and Hotrodder. Our kind of people. Regards, Stogy
@Roger Garcia joined the H.A.M.B. in February of 2006 ... but never posted (i.e., he was a so-called "lurker"). I believe he assisted @SamIyam, @38Chevy454, & Tim Sage in building the "Bomb Factory Digger": click thumbnail to enlarge
Here's a pic of Roger driving his (still in primer) '29 Hiboy in the pits at the 2003 March Meet: photo by Jay (@C9) Carnine from the roadster Interiors... Got pix? thread
From the GOODGUYS Rod & Custom Association website: Danville Duke and Friend Roger Garcia Has Passed Away September 28, 2017 Written by John (@John D) Drummond We lost a Bay Area hot rod friend this week in Livermore’s Roger Garcia. He was 75. Roger was a close friend of our late founder Gary Meadors and was an ardent Goodguys supporter since our first Get-Together in 1983. A fixture in the Bay Area hot rod and bike scene, Garcia enjoyed a successful stint building custom motorcycles in the 1960s at his shop Wayne Engineering in Hayward. He was a member of the Nor Cal Early Iron hot rod club in the 1970s, and served as chief safety inspector for the NSRA with Meadors before joining the Danville Dukes as one of the club’s original early members. He gained notoriety during that time with a rowdy, supercharged ’38 Chevy. In subsequent years, he and his wife Connie campaigned their popular black ’29 Ford hi-boy roadster. Garcia was a superior craftsman and machinist. During his career he served as a machinist, fabricator and technician retiring from the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. When he wasn’t doing hot rod runs and events with Connie, he was busy making cool things in his garage including miniature wire and solid wheels for models and tether cars. “He was such a creative person,” his wife said. “He built a lot of things with this hands.” Roger never trailered his hot rods, racking up countless road miles. In recent years, he was instrumental in Danville Duke’s club activity helping plan the Gary Meadors Memorial Hot Rod Week as part of the West Coast Nationals – an event he never missed. Funeral services will be held at Noon Wednesday, October 4th at Callaghan Mortuary, 3833 East Ave, Livermore, CA. A reception will follow at the Robert Livermore Community Center, 4444 East Ave just down the road from the funeral service. Of course, hot rods are welcome. On behalf of the Goodguys Gang, we send our deepest condolences to Connie and the entire Garcia family.
From my father's Kodachrome slide archives ... ... a couple pics from an October 1977 Rod Run: GAS STOP Left to Right: Jim (@34's father) Robinson's '31 Model A Sedan Delivery, Ed (@plywude) Lee's Chopped '32 Tudor, the @HEMI32 5wd Coupe, the roof of Gary "Goodguy" Meadors '32 Tudor, & @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy
... and some pics from a couple of Rod Runs in the Fall of 1978: @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy and George (@DropTopD's father) Solimine's '32 3wd Coupe Left to Right: @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy, Dino (@fremont32) Ramacciotti's '32 Roadster (behind Roger's Chevy), Jim (@34's father) Robinson's '34 5wd Coupe, Gary "Goodguy" Meadors '32 Tudor, & our @HEMI32 5wd Coupe @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy ... in the rain @Roger Garcia's '38 Chevy ... with a bit of snow
Here's Roger presenting an award to a winning creeper racer at the 1982 NSRA Western Street Rod Nationals in Merced: photo by Weldon Ballard NOTE: That's the late Gary "Goodguy" Meadors on the stage, and the late Jerry (@JERS36) Gaskill in the white shirt & pants. Creeper Racers in action: photos by Weldon Ballard
I attended Roger's "Celebration Of Life" on Wednesday (October 4th 2017). There was a packed house at the Mortuary Chapel (and at the Reception). In addition to Roger's friends & family, his fellow Hot Rodders (from Nor~Cal Early Iron, NSRA, Goodguys, Danville Dukes, and many other "Who's Who of Northern California Hot Rodding") were in attendance. Here's some of my snapshots from the day: Roger's Hiboy at the Mortuary at the Reception
May he rest in peace. I never met the man but that orange coupe was a staple item in California car event coverage in the magazines for several years.
Correct! ... Roger's '38 Chevy got a lot of ink when he painted it orange with flames ... some company even created a 1000pc puzzle of the car. Here's another photo of the car in all its 1978 glory: @Roger Garcia's Chevy parked in the Fremont (Baylands) Drag Strip pits
I rode in Rodgers 38 when Bruce Harris owned it, that thing could fly. Anybody know where it ended up? I heard it caught fire but was rebuilt.
@nochop - Sorry, I don't know where the '38 Chevy Coupe ended up. Last I saw of the '38 when Bruce Harris owned it, was when it was featured in the September 1985 issue of HOT ROD Magazine. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
After the '38 Chevy, Roger drove a '40 Ford Coupe. I've searched through my archives ... but haven't found a good pic of Roger's bitchin' Forty. Anyone have any pics of Roger's most "HAMB-friendly" (Traditional) Hot Rod? Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Found a pic of Roger's '40 Ford Coupe ... and his "Eyeball Engineering" Creeper Racer at the 1982 NSRA Western Nationals held in Merced:
Here's a pic of Roger (and first wife Donna) in period costume posing with his '38 Chevy at the 1974 Lodi Mini Nationals:
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