Recollections

[SPF604]

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you are surviving the cold weather! I decided to throw out a story I wrote from a road trip my son and I took in the summer of 2006 to VIR and SAAC 31. My story is titled is "Seven States, Seven Days...SAAC 31". Maybe it will give you something to read and help inspire you to take a road trip in your Cobra! Happy reading and I hope you enjoy it. I planned to attach a pdf, but it was too large to attach! Even the text in a thread is limited to 17,000 characters, so I've broken it into two posts to this thread.....



Seven States…Seven Days: SAAC 31


The Shelby American Automobile Club made its first visit to VIRginia International Raceway over the weekend of June 30-July 2, 2006 for its 31st Annual Convention. The event was a big hit with participants and fans alike. The Shelby American Automobile Club Convention is open to all Ford performance vehicles. Car shows, track time, driving schools, vintage racing, vendors of Ford performance parts, auctions, all types of Ford performance automobiles, and most importantly, friends. Sounds like the formula for a road trip!


Recollections... 1 and Recollections... 2 follow....

[SPF604]

Seven States…Seven Days: SAAC 31


The Shelby American Automobile Club made its first visit to VIRginia International Raceway over the weekend of June 30-July 2, 2006 for its 31st Annual Convention. The event was a big hit with participants and fans alike. The Shelby American Automobile Club Convention is open to all Ford performance vehicles. Car shows, track time, driving schools, vintage racing, vendors of Ford performance parts, auctions, all types of Ford performance automobiles, and most importantly, friends. Sounds like the formula for a road trip!

Taking a trip in a sports car whose design dates to the 1950’s is a trip back in time. My best friend made that comment to me once and I am always reminded of it while planning a road trip. Words do not describe the lines of the Cobra. It is aggressive, low, and mean, but smooth and gentle appearing from some angles. Difficult, it is very difficult to describe these cars with words. I have never been reluctant to leave home in my Superformance Mk III, Cobra replica. There is very little protection from the elements; the heater/demister is practically non-existent, very little luggage space, and no radio. Nevertheless, no radio can be a good thing. The song of a Ford V8 is entertaining and little storage space means packing wisely and light! The confined cockpit requires that you have a close relationship with your companion. The transmission tunnel only gets warm, not unbearable, since the manufacturer provides excellent heat shields. The seats are very comfortable and break in nicely to support extended driving experiences. The instruments work as well as any British sports car with Smiths and Lucas gauges. Subtle chromed ringed black faces with white numerals are easy on the eyes. The tachometer is constantly in your natural sight line, while the speedometer is off center, proper for a race car. Lucas, the Prince of Darkness does not lurk within a Superformance. I have not experienced problems with the gauges or electrical system. The Superformance Mk III happily lacks the electrical gremlins that early British sports cars harbor. With these thoughts in mind, nothing stood in our way to plan a 1,000-mile road trip!

I received notice from Mike Stenhouse that Second Strike and Olthoff Racing were planning a gathering of owners at this years’ event, my son, Will, and I began making plans. It is about 500 miles from Murfreesboro, Tennessee to Danville, Virginia. Preparation is imperative to making long trips successfully. Of course, the obligatory oil change is in order. One, for the assurance that you have clean, fresh oil in the engine, and two, it provides the opportunity to check the tightness of all fasteners under the chassis. Essentials to carry along are a daunting list, but it all fits in the boot of the Mk III with ease.

First, we assembled the necessary tools and spares to make minor roadside repairs, for example, spare alternator with matching pulley, accessory drive belt, assorted fuses, tire repair kit, extra small nuts, and bolts, and tools among other things. Second, the afternoon before departure, we washed, waxed, checked air pressure, and verified that our wheels were tight. Third, on Thursday morning, we packed our digital camera, handheld GPS, maps (who relies solely on electronics?), a pillow, pocket change, credit card, a couple of camp chairs, and bags. One last whack on each knock-off and we were ready for our trip at 4:30 AM.

During the planning stage, I estimated the roundtrip at 1000 miles. From previous trips to VIR, I knew we would drive at least 1200 miles. I began thinking (dangerous) that surely we could make more of the trip than that. Dead week for Will’s high school football team practice occurred the week prior and during the Independence Day holiday. His high school football coach could not hold practice. With time off from the weight room, we thought we would make the most of it. Will is a senior and plays Right Guard on Offense and Nose Guard on Defense. It was great to be able to take this trip with Will! At 5’ 9”, 200 pounds, and all muscle, he’s an aggressive Single A football player that enjoys soccer and is a state championship Trap Shooter! What more could I ask of a traveling companion, my son, Guard and ‘dead-eye’ shooter all in one! My wife, Charlotte, made the SCOF SSR IV trip with me to Branson, MO. This time she wanted to leave for the Florida Gulf Coast and give Will and me a few days together. Charlotte picked up my nephew that is the same age as Will and they left the day after we did with our miracle dog Buddy (Buddy is a another story!) Gears started turning, why not leave VIR on Saturday, drive to Atlanta, and spend the night in Acworth with Jerry Witt, owner of SP410, then leave at 0’daylight early for Panama City Beach? Plans confirmed! Our short, 1200 mile, trip would now be a circle without backtracking estimated at 2,000 plus miles. This would be a nice trip!

We would leave Tennessee and travel through Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. Then back through the Heart of Dixie into the Volunteer State of Tennessee and home again, seven states, seven days, only a small feat in our reliable Superformance Mk III.

I kissed Charlotte good-bye, scrubbed Buddy on the head while Will gave his mom a big hug and moments later we had the car started, idling roughly in the cool early morning air. The Windsor settled down, liquids at the requisite temperatures, off we headed into the morning chill. Top? Who needs a stinking top? Of course, we had our soft-top and tonneau on board, but at the bottom of the trunk buried under all our gear. Besides, it’s June 29, it will be 90? by 9:00 AM! Easing away to prevent disturbing neighbors we picked our way through the tree lined lanes with streetlights glowing overhead. We took Tennessee 96E which leads out of town and into the countryside, the scenic route to I40E. The sun rose in all its glory just as we arrived at I40 in Silver Point, TN. We pointed the long nose east, and down the ramp. We rolled along, gathering speed to merge with a herd of transport trucks. In a burst of speed, our backs shoved into the leather seats, we pushed ahead of the pack, air horns blaring in support of our entrance! We waved at each smiling face looking down at us as we shot past. Back down to cruising speed, we savored a long ribbon of asphalt in front of us, the sun rising over the mountains, and chilly air blasting all around us!

First stop was Cookeville, for a bite of breakfast and coffee at McDonalds, after answering all the usual questions, “is it real”, “does it have a 427”, etc… we were ready to get back on the road. Will has just turned seventeen recently and is a responsible driver. Through no fault of his own, he recently totaled his Mini Cooper S. I replaced it with a ’06 Mustang GT; five speed with the optional polished five spoke 18”wheels. On occasion, Will has piloted SP604 for short distances. Feeling confident in him, as we walked across the asphalt toward the parked car, I handed him the keys and asked him to take the wheel for a while. With a big smile, he said, “sure”! Back on the interstate, he smoothly accelerated and took us up to cruising speed. As we climbed the Cumberland Mountain, the air got much cooler, time for the heater. The warm air stirring around our legs felt good! We welcomed the warm air from the anemic heater.

Taking a cue from Hal Copple, the most experienced civilian Mk III driver, we cruised into the rest stop just past Crossville. According to Hal, “Rest stops give your senses a break and let you relax for a moment, even if you just cruise through and give the gawkers some pipes.” We quickly exited the car for a restroom break. As we walked to the building, Will commented that he could see his breath! I tested the air and agreed! This is a wonderful crisp, cool morning in the mountains of Tennessee. Back on the road, Will the pilot and me the navigator, we soon crossed the mountain and headed toward Knoxville. We changed from Central time to Eastern before we reached Knoxville, so we arrived after the rush hour. I pointed out the hotel on Cedar Bluff Road where SCOF met for SSR V, the base site of the Tail of the Dragon, US129, and the tour where the Dragon bit the Snake! Jerry Witt, SP410, can explain how this can happen! The traffic flowed smoothly as we traversed the hilly town and pushed east toward Bristol, the holy city of NASCAR short tracks. Bristol, known as the ‘bull ring’ of Nextel Cup racing, is a popular NASCAR venue. By now, the sun began to warm us and the heater was no longer necessary.

A few miles east of Knoxville, we picked up I81N and pressed on toward Bristol. The higher mountains of East Tennessee loomed ahead of us. We stopped for gas after 230 miles. Not on fumes, it only held about 12 gallons! As we passed through Bristol on the interstate, Will was shocked that there was not much to see. We looked over our shoulder and said goodbye to our home state for about a week as we entered Virginia. Just above Abingdon, we exited the interstate onto US58E, which is a winding two lane for most of the trip to Danville. At Independence, we circled the old county Court House and paused a few moments at the monument for the Veterans of the War Between the Sates. My great-great-grandfather, a Sergeant Major in Confederate Army of Tennessee, lost his life in the Battle of Murfreesboro, a bloody siege in January of 1863. Many of my forefathers fought for the Confederate States of America in War of Northern Aggression (in the South, we have many names for the war, but we don’t call it ‘Civil’, as there was nothing civil about it). My great-grandmother instilled in me respect for those that lost their life fighting for their land. We stopped in Independence for lunch at Brown’s Restaurant and had a long break at the local establishment. The packed parking area provided a clue that it was good or it was the only place in town! As we left, a local deputy stopped to admire our car. The deputy spent several minutes looking the car over; we knew we were safe!

As we traveled east, the road began to rise in elevation and a natural twisting ribbon stretched out in front of us. Will developed a smooth rhythm diving in and out of each curve with an easy blast of the throttle for the short connecting straights. Not a ‘Tail of the Dragon’ but, equal to most roads in East Tennessee. Hwy 58 stretched about 200 miles toward Danville. We enjoyed the beautiful mountain scenery and wished all the while that we had brought some trout fishing gear with us. Mountain streams babbled along side the road for several miles of the trip. Once again, we passed through another Southern town famous for its NASCAR roots, Martinsville. The navigator fell asleep at the map and Will took the business route in lieu of the bypass. I awoke at the first traffic light as we toured downtown and enjoyed the old historic district. At the next gas stop, we flipped a coin and I got to drive! I took the wheel for next thirty miles. Outside Danville, Will took over again with me working as navigator, awake, we found the Holiday Inn Express.

The first person we saw happened to be Mike Stenhouse. After a greeting of loud pipes, we laughed, shook hands, and left SP604 under the canopy with SP218 and checked into our room. After unloading our gear, we followed Mike out to VIR to pay our gate fees for Friday and Saturday. Along the route, a few attendees that were lost joined our caravan to the track. Once there, we ran into Mark Ray, Bob Jordan, Larry Miller, and others from the Olthoff Racing shop. They had arrived early to set up an area for the Superformance Paddock.

Being proper Southerners and connoisseurs of bar-b-q, we freshened up at the hotel and raided Short Sugar’s Barbi-Q for supper. We had a great time at supper inhaling some fine ribs. Rubbernecking came into the conversation and we received a lesson in fluid dynamics from Mike. Mike’s dissertation prompted me to offer the difference between a Yankee and Damn Yankee to Anthony and Carol from Pennsylvania, and others around the table provided similar profound life changing advice. Mike said that later he would explain the difference between ‘naked’ and ‘necked’, a term that sounds similar but have profoundly different meanings to a Southerner. Sadly, I do not recall that Mike ever provided an annotation. Later, I shall leave that to Mike for later.

Friday morning, we ventured out to VIR in the midst of Cobra’s, GT350’s, Mach I’s, Boss 302’s, new GT’s, a thundering herd of Mustangs of every color, and trucks pulling trailers with who knows what inside! Great, people are enjoying their cars and making friends along the way. You know what? For the first time, no one asked if it was real or a kit! I think that there is about as many GT350 knockoffs as there is replica Cobras. It is only eleven miles from Danville to VIR, what a parade of Ford iron! The route takes you through beautiful countryside, in and out of North Carolina, and through Milton, Virginia, a quaint, rural Southern town.

At the track, we found our parking area with the rest of the Superformance group and renewed many friendships. Soon, we ran into Hal Copple from Rock Hill, SC, Steve Bush from Kennesaw, GA and many others that form the Superformance family. Will and I walked down through the parking area with Hal and looked at the various Cobras and other Shelby Automobiles. At the Shelby American trailer, Hal commented that there had to be millions of dollars of original Cobras under the canopy. He was right! We all prayed that a gust of wind would not topple the canopy and cause the destruction of the priceless Cobras. That would have been a tragedy!

GT350s........

[SPF604]

Seven States…Seven Days: SAAC 31


GT350’s were running laps during a track session; the sound was not the hi-performance 289 that came in the cars. It was suspect that several of them were running Windsor Stroker motors. While walking through the tech area, Hal recognized a fellow he knew from Kershaw. He was in a ’65 Mustang fastback snaking his way through the crowd. We learned that his car, built from used parts out of Mooresville discarded by Nextel Cup teams had a Cup engine making 750 hp at the rear wheels! What a beautiful track car, only the essentials. Plenty of GT40’s, original and replica as well as one de Tomaso Pantera set up for the track. The Pantera shape is as timeless as the Cobra. This example, painted black with small fender flares, no bumpers, cooling vents in the hood, and Halibrand Cobra style wheels looked extremely fast!

One of the most astonishing cars to see in person is Dick Smith’s original Cobra “198.” The car sounds as good as it looks, once clocked at 198 mph at Daytona. It was exciting to see this car on the track doing what it does best. It would be a crime to set this car up in a museum for viewing. There were several FFR Spec Racers turning laps as well as other replicas on the track with our large contingent of Superformance owners.

Unique Motorcars showed up in force with five cars from Knoxville, TN and one Superformance among their group. This Unique group from Knoxville started in 1993 with one enthusiast. The owner had a 428 engine in the garage from a sedan, rebuilt and trimmed out like a Cobra engine. A friend convinced him to go to Gadsden, AL to visit Unique Motorcars. By 1996, he had made a decision to purchase a kit and start building. His effort resulted in a very nice car in silver with bolt-on Halibrand wheels and a C6 automatic. His wife passed away in 1998, but he says she was thrilled with the car and loved to ride in it. He has been to ever Cobra Fest that Unique has sponsored. At 78, he is a very active and adamant Cobra fanatic along with his four other friends that cruise together regularly. This small group of Unique owner’s represents our hobby well.

Factory Five Racing owners showed up in force with several cars representing their coupe, roadster, and spec racer. Vendors offered complete spec racers along with information and advice on the series. It was exciting to see so many reputable replica companies in attendance.

In the shade trees, a contingent of owners of original Cobras gathered. The famous Car & Driver cross-country 289 Slab Side was parked there along with an English 289 coil spring car, a 427 Roadster, and others. The Superformance name would fit nicely on a 289 Slab Side. Several owners who have been around awhile all concur that the initial attraction of the Cobra is the timeless body shape, the outrageous engine sound from the side pipes, wide tires, etc… Time and life with the ‘in your face car’ seem to cause an owner to mellow over time and begin to appreciate the little car that started it all. The slab side is a graceful car that has the same enduring qualities of the 427 S/C. Perhaps, Superformance will someday seize the opportunity to satisfy this market niche.

Saturday morning brought another beautiful day to the Virginia countryside. Will piloted SP604 to the track and parked us in the Superformance Corral. Our goal on Saturday was to watch a few hours of the Vintage practice and then get on the road to Atlanta. A group of Superformance owners went to the observation deck and watched the beginning of the practice session. Everyone began picking favorites and listening for their return on the long straight. Speeds appeared to be at a race pace for several of the cars. It was exciting to see the GT350’s and the occasional Trams Am Mustang battling it out on the track. The next session brought out the original Cobras, Daytona Coupes, and GT40s. At about 10:30 AM Will and I decided to pack it in and head for Atlanta. After a few goodbyes around the paddock, we loaded up and Mark helped us push a car out of line so we could begin our journey toward Atlanta.

After we topped off the gas tank, we took a compass heading south on Hwy 29 into North Carolina. As we passed through Charlotte on the I77 Speedway, Will decided that North Carolina drivers need some lessons. Wow! We were in the Saturday night 600 passing through Charlotte. North Carolina was plagued with State Police similar to our home state! It did not seem like we had been in North Carolina very long when we found ourselves in South Carolina. South Carolina seemed to be at a little slower pace even though we did not see any State Police as we passed through. In South Carolina, we got more complements per mile than anywhere else we visited. Lots of cars on big rims with guys hanging out the windows, dread locks in the wind, thumbs up saying things like “sweet ride”, “that’s a bad car man”, “love your ride dude”, and so many more expressions that I can’t begin to recall them all. All the 70’s Caprice convertibles and big Buick’s are in South Carolina wearing 20” – 24” chrome rims! Now you know where to look for them!

It is a short trip across the corner of South Carolina and then you enter Georgia. Atlanta, here we come! At about 3:00 PM we were on the North edge of Atlanta and realized that in only six hours we could be gazing into the Gulf of Mexico. We called Jerry and cancelled our room for the night in Acworth. Will pointed the nose south and took us through a relatively calm Atlanta, even though we passed through as traffic was building at the exit to Turner Field. Perhaps the Braves were in town, but our radio could not tune in an Atlanta station (Joke, Just a Joke). In Columbus, we stopped for gas so that we would be in range of Panama City Beach. At this stop, the gas station attendant wanted to know if our car still had the original Corvette engine! The questions and comments created by the presence of the Cobra never cease to amaze. Columbus is a quaint town, but the streets are poorly marked and a challenge even with GPS enabled! After finding Eufaula, we enjoyed the scenic tour of the historic district. Eufaula is a beautiful old town, well preserved and worth visiting. Saturday night, our singular mission was to roll into the Gulf Coast around 10:00 PM.

As the sky began to fade, we continued to push toward the coast. Tourist and locals continued to rush along side, thumbs up, to get a quick glimpse of the Mk III. Often, they would fade back, the children’s faces plastered against the windows, eyes locked, and smiles wide. As the traffic thinned, a blue haired granny lady in her Saab entertained us with speeds well above the posted limit making US 431 rather fun. After granny passed us the third time with a black Benz from Montana in our draft, the next 50 miles flew by. In Dothan, we stopped for fast food, really fast food, and back on the road again. The coastal air reeled us in!

We arrived in Panama City around 9:00 PM, the holiday traffic was 4th of July thick. We idled along in 2nd gear crossing the bay bridge, two teenage girls in a Mustang, saw the Mk III and pulled along side. We heard the passenger sigh, “Oh, it’s two old guys!” Well, that didn’t hurt my feelings, but it really made my seventeen year old son feel old! I guess twelve hours in an open roadster can even make a teenager look old, I don’t want to know what I looked like at this point! At about 10:00 PM as planned we rolled into our place on the coast. I backed the car into a space out front, unloaded a few things and went inside. Seven states later and we’re in Florida. Twelve hours on the road and still ready for more. Actually, despite the searing heat, we’re in pretty good shape. We went inside hugged and kissed everybody, told a short version of our road trip and crashed! We spent a few days here on the coast, our deck overlooks the gulf and provides a memorable sunset every evening.

Wednesday morning, day seven, just as daylight began to appear, we loaded up our trusty car, fired up the Windsor, and headed north toward Alabama. The morning air was cool and refreshing. The day to come was going to be hot and humid as we traveled across the length of Alabama. We had left Panama City Beach on the back roads and headed toward Troy. We made fast progress on the deserted back roads flashing past roadside peanut and bonsai tree stands. We were on a long stretch of two lane after exiting a shady, wooded area, the bright morning sun didn’t foretell the next series of events. All instruments were in their normal range, then silence! They say silence is golden, but not when you’re expecting to hear a V8 rumble.

This leg of the trip, Charlotte was riding with me and Will and his cousin were driving the Mustang GT home. Coasting to the side of the road, hand up to signal pulling off the road, my first expectation was that the distributor gear had broken. But, before jumping to conclusions, I checked the cut-off switch in the trunk to insure that it had not accidentally been switched off by luggage. Check. Switch is ok. Next, off with the air breather to determine if fuel is available. A stab at the accelerator proved the primaries were pumping fuel. At this point, I assumed that there was an electrical component problem.

Will and his mom headed to Enterprise about 10 miles north to pick up a new coil and an electronic ignition box. A really nice lady, most likely someone’s grandmother, stopped in her ’83 Pontiac, with a rag tied round her head. She begged me to let her go get me some water, or perhaps ride over to her house with her and wait on my wife and son to return. She pointed across the way to a small, white frame farm house and exclaimed, “child, you’ll be in sight of your little car the whole time!” I declined, even-though the small front porch, rocking chairs and thought of ice tea looked inviting; I thanked her for the hospitality. At this point, I only wanted to concentrate on solving the problem at hand. Time passed slowly as I awaited the return of my family. A few other cars stopped, one family on the way home to North Alabama, as well as others, all offering to help. I had a cooler filled with ice and bottles of water, but graciously, everyone that stopped offered a bottle of water!

In the meantime, to begin a contingency plan, I called Jerry Witt at home in Acworth, Georgia to get any ideas he might have and find out if his trailer was available. I had already popped off the distributor cap and tried to spin the rotor. It wouldn’t spin freely, so I assumed that the gear was intact. Jerry suggested cranking the engine over with the cap off to insure that the rotor would turn. Check. It turns. Problem definitely eliminated. Jerry suggested calling Dennis Olthoff to get any additional ideas. Fortunately, I had the shop number with me. I called and spoke with Dave. Dave suggested checking for fire by pulling a plug wire and letting it ark off a head bolt. When Will returned, we tried this and knew that we definitely had an ignition problem. No sparks!

The Car Quest salesperson told Will to try the ignition module first since we couldn’t return the coil if we tried it. My coil was the original, seven years old. In spite of his money saving advice and to expedite repairs, I tried the coil first. Voila! The Windsor fired right up. With the coil secured by the strap, we headed north again. I called Jerry and Dennis to let them know that the problem was solved. Thanked them both and stepped up the pace a notch to try to make up the time. We lost about two hours facilitating the necessary repairs. After a few miles, I slacked off the pace a little and decided that we had all day to get home and there was no need to rush. Soon, we arrived in Troy, Alabama and got some lunch. At Hardees’, a conversation with a local digressed into a discussion on rock crawling! How do you get from Cobras to off-roading? We headed up US 231 N toward Montgomery, the first capital of the Confederacy and Alabama. Yes Hal, Charlotte piloted us from Troy to Montgomery! We jumped on I65N in Montgomery, racing toward our regular stop at exit 205, Peach Park. A great place to relax for a few minutes.

As soon as we left Peach Park, a friend from home called and said he was heading south on I65 and was passing through Birmingham. We planned a stop at exit 246. He was heading to Panama City Beach with his daughter and her two friends. One of the teenagers saw the Cobra and remarked that those cars are made in South Africa. Looking astonished, I asked how she knew that. She said that her family had moved here recently from South Africa and she recognized the Cobra because her friends at home talked about them! It’s a small world!

We moved on toward home, and soon passed through Birmingham without any problem. When we neared the Tennessee River, we got into an afternoon shower. Not a real soaker, just a shower. Perhaps, an omen of what was to come! Top? Who needs a stinking top? We pressed on. Crossed the Tennessee State Line in the rolling green hills of Southern Middle Tennessee. Feels like home! As we neared our exit for the last thirty mile stretch of TN840, we ran in a rain shower that followed us all the way home. No Top! A top is not really necessary, unless you have to stop. There’s only one traffic light on my route between TN840 and home. We had to stop briefly until the traffic was flowing again. By now, the rain had slacked and we cruised home in the dry.

Fantastic trip! Seven Days…Seven States! Over 2,000 miles! Next time I’ll take along a few ‘more’ extra parts just in case. As soon as we started unloading the car in the garage, we were planning the next road trip!

[TN Shelby Cobra]

Bill, Sounds like an awesome trip! I wish I could have been following you! All those Cobra's and Shelby mustangs in one place would be neat! Mike Stenhouse is a very nice guy!!! I had the same problem with my Cobra. I replaced the distributor also! Thanks for posting the story!! Mark

[SPF604]

Mark, We've made several trips through the years! It's a lot of fun, especially with a little planning. On the open road, these cars are great for traveling.

[TN Shelby Cobra]

We need to do one this summer!!!