All I know is when my time comes, and I'm at the Pearly Gates, my first
words will be: When's the first practice session? Or, worst case
scenario: Rookie stripes again!?!?
GS (rookie)
58 Sprite (vintage)
82 Vette (street)
Cedarburg, WI
brian@uunet.ca on 04/05/99 07:35:38 AM
Please respond to brian@uunet.ca
To: Gregory Schulz/MED/IT/ATLAS COPCO
cc: vintage-race@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: Car(s) In The Barn -- A True Story (fwd)
I also found the story of great interest. I in fact found my car - Merlyn
MK6A - in a barn, but Ollie Clubine already knew it was there, since he'd
put it there!
In my more introspective moments I worry about the cars, the race shop, and
so on, once I pass on. Not that I'm old or anything, nor am I failing, but
the 100 grand or so I probably have in vintage racing cars, machine shop,
wood shop, car collection, trailer, tools, etc., is going to be a hard
thing
for anyone to liquidate when the time comes, and if I'm not there to do it,
I'll probably be spinning in my grave!
I know you can't take money with you, but how about racing cars?
Brian
At 09:24 AM 4/1/99 -0500, you wrote:
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>Enjoyed your story very much. Personally it made me realize just how much
>we all should appreciate what we have - no matter how humble our
efforts...
>and the fact that we still have the time and ability to pursue and enjoy
>our sport. Oh what a lucky man he was.
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>Greg "Sgt." Schulz
>58 Sprite (vintage)
>82 Corvette (street)
>Cedarburg, WI
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>gr743@csc.albany.edu on 03/31/99 08:04:33 PM
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>Please respond to gr743@csc.albany.edu
>
>To: vintage-race@autox.team.net
>cc: (bcc: Gregory Schulz/MED/IT/ATLAS COPCO)
>Subject: Car(s) In The Barn -- A True Story (fwd)
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>While the facts which follow will primarily be of interest to
>residents of the northeast, the spirit of the allegory may, perhaps,
>hold wider appeal.
>If you've been involved in the automotive hobby, be it as a rodder,
>racer or, restorer, you've probably heard stories about automotive
>treasures discovered in
>out-of-the-way barns and byways. Some of these tales become legends
> of Bunyan-esqe proportion. But how many of us ever take the time
>to follow innocuous clues and hunches?
>My friend Dick Stewart is a racing veteran, and he's ALWAYS got an eye
>for a bargain. Not too long ago he was looking to upgrade to a larger
>car trailer. An ad in the local classified gazetteer caught his
>eye "enclosed trailer, and assorted racing parts and tools". The phone
>number was for a small town along I88, southwest of Albany NY.
>In the midst of a snowstorm he took a cursory look at the trailer. The
> return visit, with spring's promise in the air, turned into an apocryphal
>pilgrimage for a handful of us.
>There was indeed a barn of sorts. Regrettably the half-dozen
>Austin Healey Sprites/MG Midgets that were gathered around had never
>made it to the inner sanctum, and showed the ravages of this
>inhospitable clime.
>Collectively they could offer up an array of parts, but only a
>couple would seem to have any potential for restoration. There was also a
>Jaguar sedan; lettered up to signify its roles as "official pace car of
>Bridgehampton Motor Sports Park" it
>regrettably too has probably rolled its last mile. Within the barn
>there were assorted BMC engines, transmissions, rear ends, and
>probably at least 4 or 5 sets of wheels, some steel,some wire, and some
>aftermarket. When was the last time you saw a Goodyear Blue Streak or a
>cardboard sided, metal-topped quart of Kendall GT?
>The barn, however, was only an appetizer.Out behind the log cabin
>was a plain looking over-sized garage, belying the fully outfitted
>racing shop within. The gentleman who had owned this fine spread had a
long
>career racing with EMRA and RCCA. In his early 70s, he had passed away
>after a brief illness around Christmas, but had been actively
>campaigning as late as last summer.
>>From Dick's newly acquired trailer we unloaded 2 Formula Fords
> -- a Lola T342 and a PRS 002, complete and looking ready to run.
>There was also another Formula Ford in kit form; no one knew
> exactly what it was, and we couldn't find a manufacturer plate on the
bare
>chassis, but the bodywork hanging on wall suggested it might be
>another PRS. For Ford 1600 devotees, there were engine blocks,
crankshafts,
>cylinder heads, dry sump systems, pistons, gaskets, Hewland gear sets,
>more FF wheels and tires, and even an in-assembly short-block,
>never to reach the completion its owner had planned.
>Enough? There were also two TVRs stored in the race shop; one
>was a Triumph-engined 2500, the other an earlier model of the English
>sportster with a four-cylinder engine. Unlike the Spridgets these
>were finely preserved, though far from road-ready. I also spied a
>bare TVR frame in the undergrowth, all that remained of a
>burned-to-the ground shell, but perhaps with some utility left.
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>The owner's widow and her family had invited us to view this
>collection to get some ideas on value, and also were agreeable to
>selling some of the garage hardware: besides Dick's trailer, various
>members of our expeditionary force purchased a nearly new TIG welder,
>band saw,precision milling machine, and hydraulic press. And even after
>that a fair bit remained; there was also a complete woodworking shop built
>above the auto shop.
>My acquisitions were more prosaic: a souvenir program from the
> '68 Bridghampton CanAm, a copy of the New York Region SCCA
>"Regional Review" from the same event, some photocopies of
>newspaper articles chronicling the endless travails of "The Bridge"
>and a couple of EMRA jacket patches.
>Where does the story go from here? The real estate market will to a large
>extent determine the disposition of this collection. For now the
>family is open to offers on an individual basis; should the property be
>sold
>before the collection is dispersed its likely there'd be a one-time
>auction.
>Unless of course there's an enthusiast out there who doesn't do things by
>half-measure, and wants the whole package: rural living halfway between
>Watkins Glen and Lime Rock, acreage with pond, picturesque log cabin,
>barn, race shop, and extensive,and eclectic,car collection. I do have two
>lottery tickets for this Saturday's drawing.........
>In the interest of privacy I have not included specifics such as the exact
>location or the owners name. If you have an interest in any of the cars or
>remaining equipment I'd be happy to convey contact info. to you privately.
>Let me add that I have no financial interest in this transaction --
>in fact my offer, which my son INSISTS was only our initial bid, for
>one of the TVRs was politely turned down -- but I've always had
>this altruistic idea that captivating cars belong in the harmonious
>company of captivated owners. I'm kind of an automotive yenta.
>It was bittersweet to be among these cars; they were a part of a
>life now over, plans unfinished. But they were also testimony of a
>man who had savored his days, his cars, his sport.
>When someone tells you they heard about this car in barn, let your
>sense of curiosity be your guide -- it won't steer you wrong.
>You might catch a glimpse of someone's dreams, maybe even your own.
>Cheers !
>Greg Rickes
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