This Month in Cobra History - May
(Cal and I wanted to start this type of thread, once a month, to provide some interesting tidbits and pictures from the days at Shelby American during the Sixties. Bob (Snakeeyes) and some of the other historians will hopefully add some insight to the monthly topics)
May 1962-
Coming off a successful unveiling at the New York Auto Show, CSX2000 was let loose for the magazines to review. The first one was done by Sports Car Graphic, May 1962... a magazine that had a very close relationship with Carroll. Before the Cobra was reality, Shelby advertised his Driving School in SCG, with a small ad requesting one dollar for an info packet. It has been said that he used to pick up the mail once a week and take the editor, John Christy, from SCG out to lunch with the dollar bills from the emptied envelopes.
At that time (tested before the Auto Show, where it was painted bright "Dean Moon Yellow"), CSX2000 was bare aluminum, with no badges... the name "Shelby" was painted on the nose. They say it took the boys in the shop
one day to polish the bare aluminum, with steel wool. (....hmmmm?)
Christy wrote, "...Not even Shelby knew what he had by the tail at that moment; about all anyone could tell at that point was that whatever it was...
it was mean."
May 1965-
The racing debut of the first "REAL" 427 Cobra (CSX3002) was at Riverside, a USRRC Race, on May 2, 1965. Ken Miles drove number 98. Because the model was new and not yet homologated for GT class, the car ran in class with Chaparrals and Lola T70; it ran well but was not competitive in that class.
