UTAH IN JULY WAS HOTTER THAN A 427 COBRA FOOTBOX...And that changed nothing

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "UTAH IN JULY WAS HOTTER THAN A 427 COBRA FOOTBOX...And that changed nothing"

Gladys Hood
5 years ago
Views:

UTAH IN JULY WAS HOTTER THAN A 427 COBRA FOOTBOX...And that changed nothing T he SAAC-32 story has to begin somewhere, and Larry Miller is probably as good a starting point as any.

In fact, he was one of SAAC s first members in 1976 and he has maintained his membership ever since.

In 1970 he moved to Denver to become the Parts Manager of a pair of Toyota dealerships. In 1978 he was promoted to Operations Manager over five Toyota dealerships.

Over the next twenty years he acquired a number of car dealerships in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. By 1993, Automotive Age listed him as the fifteenth largest U.S.

SAAC-32 SPONSORS The dealerships provided the capital to expand into other business endeavors in the Salt Lake City area: movie theaters, sports clothing outlets, a television station, a restaurant

Miller s business successes have also allowed him to pursue his passion for cars especially Cobras and GT40s. He purchased his first Cobra, CSX2175, in 1978.

1 UTAH IN JULY WAS HOTTER THAN A 427 COBRA FOOTBOX...And that changed nothing T he SAAC-32 story has to begin somewhere, and Larry Miller is probably as good a starting point as any. Fortythree years ago he was working in a Utah Ford dealer s parts department, doing a little drag racing and lusting after his dream car a Cobra like most of the rest of us. In fact, he was one of SAAC s first members in 1976 and he has maintained his membership ever since. Larry s hard work at the dealership eventually led to a promotion to Parts Manager and then to Parts and Service Manager. In 1970 he moved to Denver to become the Parts Manager of a pair of Toyota dealerships. In 1978 he was promoted to Operations Manager over five Toyota dealerships. A year later he teamed up with his uncle to purchase a Toyota dealership in a suburb of Salt Lake City. Two years later he bought his uncle out. Over the next twenty years he acquired a number of car dealerships in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. By 1993, Automotive Age listed him as the fifteenth largest U.S. automotive dealer, with nineteen dealerships. Today that number is forty. In fact, they ve sold more that a million cars. SAAC-32 SPONSORS The dealerships provided the capital to expand into other business endeavors in the Salt Lake City area: movie theaters, sports clothing outlets, a television station, a restaurant and shopping complex, the Utah Jazz NBA team, a AAA baseball team, a professional hockey team and construction of Miller Motorsport Park in nearby Tooele. Miller s business successes have also allowed him to pursue his passion for cars especially Cobras and GT40s. He purchased his first Cobra, CSX2175, in The car needed some work and that led him to the shop of Cobra racer and restorer Bill Murray. They have maintained a close relationship ever since, and when Murray became involved in the Shelby American Collection museum in Boulder, Colorado, it was a perfect place for Larry Miller s growing collection of Cobras and GT40s most of which drip with racing history to be displayed. Murray maintains the cars, virtually all of which are restored accurately, and each one eventually becomes race ready. It s Bill Murray, an experienced racer, who gets to drive them when they are vintage raced which is often. The new track includes a large museum and many of Miller s cars are on display there. For SAAC-32, all of his cars were shipped to the track for display. And some display it was. The latest acquisition was the Cobra Caravan transporter which SAAC member Tommy Thompson recreated. It is the perfect home and at SAAC-32 the correct cars were parked next to it just the way they were in the famous publicity photo taken in 1965: a 427 Cobra competition car, a Daytona Mustang Racing Technologies The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

2 Coupe, a GT40 MK I and a GT350 R- Model. It was a beautiful sight. We were so impressed with Virginia International Raceway at SAAC- 31 that when we learned the owners were working on creating a sister facility in southern New Jersey which was scheduled to be completed by the spring of 2007, we immediately requested for a date for SAAC-32. The date we wanted was the July 4th weekend; contingent, of course, on the track s being completed. It was also at SAAC-31 that we spoke with Bill Murray, who along with Steve Volk, had brought five historical Cobras out from the Shelby American Collection in Boulder (including a Daytona Coupe, CSX2299, the Ken Miles Heim-Joint USRRC roadster, CSX2431, and one of the original Dragonsnakes, CSX2019). Bill described the new track Larry Miller had built in Utah, Miller Motorsports Park, and suggested that we might want to consider it for a future SAAC convention. With Larry Miller s enthusiasm for Cobras, it was a natural. The wheels began turning and we were thinking We anxiously kept abreast of the progress of the new track in Millville, NJ. There were a couple of SAAC members living in the immediate area and they gave us progress reports on a monthly basis. By November it was obvious that the track s construction was behind schedule so rather than cross our fingers and hope, we contacted Larry Miller. He was happy to hear from us and excited about the possibility of SAAC s traveling circus landing on his doorstep. He could not have been more helpful. We attended the Shelby American Collection s annual Christmas party in Boulder, the first weekend in December. The following day, Sunday, we flew to Salt Lake City for a meeting out at the track on Monday. It provided an opportunity to stay at the Little America hotel and check it out. We were impressed. Even better, Larry Miller was good friends with the hotel s general manager, so the fix was in. We were picked up by Alan Wilson, the track s general manager. He is one of the premiere race track designers in the world and Miller Motorsport Park was his baby. The track, itself, is very challenging. Like most new tracks, it is made up of two smaller circuits (2+ miles each) which can be connected to form one huge 4+ mile circuit. As a race facility it has every modern amenity you ve seen at other tracks, plus a handful of things you haven t. Simply put, there was nothing at MMP not to like. We couldn t wait to get there in July. As the end of June approached we started keeping one eye on the Weather Channel. The temperatures in the Salt Lake City area were hovering over 100. As much as we tried, we could not will it to go lower but at least there was a high probability that it would not rain. We got to the track on Thursday morning to set up registration so we could start getting people inside at noon. A half-day load-in has become necessary due to the increasing number of 18-wheelers the convention attracts. The big rigs, carrying large manufacturers displays and cars being shipped from other parts of the country, need maneuvering room in the paddock. Their drivers know that if they arrive on Friday after the convention has begun, hundreds of singlecar trailers are already parked and unloaded and maneuvering between them to where they would like to set up will be just about impossible. When we visited MMP back in December, 2006 the paddock looked huge. We could hardly see the far end of the asphalt. But we also knew that we d need most of it although the people from the track were skeptical. As it turned out, they had scheduled a go-kart race the same weekend as SAAC-32. It was the karting equivalent of a Formula 1 race, bringing together the stars of that sport (and they all seemed to have either big rigs or large RVs. Their event began a couple of days before we got there and they were given half of one of the garages. So much for our elaborate advanced planning. Rather than hold the driver s meeting in a garage or on the pit wall The first thing you saw as you came through the track s main gates was the Cobra Caravan tractor trailer with a cluster of historically significant Cobras splayed out in front of it. All of them belong to Larry Miller and the rest of his collection was parked in the museum building on the grounds or in tents which were spread around the paddock. Included in this display were about a dozen competition roadsters which were all historically significant, a factory Dragonsnake, three Daytona Coupes, an GT350 R-Model and a GT40. No matter how many times you passed by them they never lost their ability to mesmerize you. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

THE LURE OF THE SALT TRUMPS THE FINE PRINT IN THE HERTZ CONTRACT B onneville is unique in the world of speed. It provides the outlet for a single purpose: to go as fast as you can in a straight line.

In fact, if you look at the horizon you can see the actual curvature of the earth. Cars have been testing their limits there since the 1930s.

As soon as we settled on Miller Motorsport Park for SAAC-32 we got out the Rand-McNally to see exactly where Tooele, Utah was. Our finger wandered about an inch or so west to Wendover, UT.

3 THE LURE OF THE SALT TRUMPS THE FINE PRINT IN THE HERTZ CONTRACT B onneville is unique in the world of speed. It provides the outlet for a single purpose: to go as fast as you can in a straight line. And you have ten miles in which to do it. The salt flats are a remnant of what was once a 159 square-mile glacial lake. The densely packed salt is six feet thick and billiard table flat. In fact, if you look at the horizon you can see the actual curvature of the earth. Cars have been testing their limits there since the 1930s. The current record is held by Gary Gabelich in his Blue Flame Special rocket-powered car: mph. As soon as we settled on Miller Motorsport Park for SAAC-32 we got out the Rand-McNally to see exactly where Tooele, Utah was. Our finger wandered about an inch or so west to Wendover, UT. Then we began thinking that maybe a day-beforethe-convention-visit to Bonneville might add something to the SAAC- 32 experience. Chartered bus trips before SAAC-27 and SAAC-30 were a big hit, enabling some 300 convention goers to visit sites where Shelby history was made, to see some of the legendary speed shops and visit some real dream garages. How difficult would it be, we caught ourselves thinking, to contract someone to set up timing equipment on the salt and provide one timed run for anyone who wanted to walk away that experience tucked under their belt. We imagined presenting each participant with a suitable-for-framing certificate noting their top speed. This would be way cool. Rather than jump into the deep end of the pool, our first step was to contact someone with some Bonneville experience. Trans-Am Registrar Gary Underwood has been racing ing in southern California for over forty years. From drag racing to offroad, sports cars to motorcycles, drag boats to go-karts Underwood has raced them all. Yes, he had been to Bonneville. And he offered the warning that it was the last place on earth a sane person would want to drive a Cobra or a Shelby. Naturally that caught our attention. He gently reminded us it was SALT corrosion producing salt that starts eating away at metal as soon as you arrive. Driving a car on it, even at low speed, would coat everything and would work its way into places you didn t even know existed. He explained that the guys who come to Bonneville to compete each August have dedicated trailers and tow vehicles used only for that one event... and they begin to corrode on the way home. Cars are stripped down completely and thoroughly cleaned after their attempts to set a record. After only one run on the salt, someone with a Cobra or Shelby would have to spend a couple of days on their back with a power-washer and they still wouldn t eliminate every trace of salt. As Underwood continued to talk we envisioned the scene near the end of Frankenstein where the villagers, waving pitchforks, rakes and torches, chased the monster into the windmill. So much for Bonneville. Yet the magnetic pull was strong. As the convention progressed, more than a few participants revealed that they were drawn inexplicably drawn to the dry lake they had been reading about in hot rod magazines for years. Most just parked near the edge, walked around taking it all in, and snapped a few pictures of their car at this famous spot. However, one intrepid convention goer (who shall remain nameless for obvious reasons) ventured out onto the salt in a Mustang V6 convertible rented from Hertz to see wottleshedo. The record books didn t need to be updated. Three drivers took turns flogging the car and the fastest it would go was 115 mph. By the time their adventure was over the rental unit looked like it had followed a salt spreader through a blizzard in northern Michigan. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

where someone would have to shout over running engines, as we ve had to do at some previous conventions, MMP had a large drivers meeting room.

These were just a couple of the advantages of this track. Another made a lot of people happy: each garage had its own rest room.

It was located outside of the track s gates but still well inside it s property, off of the road.

4 where someone would have to shout over running engines, as we ve had to do at some previous conventions, MMP had a large drivers meeting room. In fact, they had two of them so we were able to hold the open track drivers meeting in one of them and the vintage race drivers in the other, simultaneously. Both were air conditioned. These were just a couple of the advantages of this track. Another made a lot of people happy: each garage had its own rest room. We were given the use of an air conditioned registration trailer (which made registration workers happy). It was located outside of the track s gates but still well inside it s property, off of the road. There was plenty of room for participants to pull in and park while they attempted to negotiate the registration gauntlet. Once through the track gates and past security, the first thing convention attendees saw was the Cobra Caravan tractor trailer rig, with an unbelievable array of Cobras and GT40s surrounding it, all courtesy of Larry Miller. Four were parked to recreate the original Cobra Caravan public relations photo: a GT40 MK I, a 427 Comp Cobra, a Daytona Coupe and a GT350 R-Model. An example of just about every other Cobra competition car you could list was parked just beyond this magical semi-circle. It was nothing short of magnificent. The track was less than a year old and even the asphalt smelled fresh. We used the East Course for open track and vintage race practice and the race on Sunday. Concurrently, the West Course was used, alternately, for parade laps and demonstration laps. MMP driving instructors used the white-with-blue-stripes Miller Mustang school cars to give rides at speed. This proved very popular especially to those convention goers who flew into the convention and expected to merely be spectators. Both of these activities took place all three days: Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

If Larry Miller has nothing else, he has a terrific sense of history.

The third floor has a gourmet restaurant on race weekends and the rest of the building is used as a VIP area open to members with annual tickets or track memberships.

One wall has a three story high Wall of Fame with giant photos of some of the more notable sports car road race and Grand Prix drivers. When one shows up in person, he is asked to sign his photo.

5 If Larry Miller has nothing else, he has a terrific sense of history. One of the larger structures at the track is a three-story hospitality building with a glass wall which offers an unobstructed view of the East Track. The third floor has a gourmet restaurant on race weekends and the rest of the building is used as a VIP area open to members with annual tickets or track memberships. At SAAC-32 the VIP/membership requirement was waived and the building was opened to all convention participants. One wall has a three story high Wall of Fame with giant photos of some of the more notable sports car road race and Grand Prix drivers. When one shows up in person, he is asked to sign his photo. At SAAC-32, Bob Bondurant put his John Hancock on his picture. After a day at the track everyone headed back to the Little America Hotel & Resort in Salt Lake City, SAAC s convention headquarters hotel. It was a first-rate facility, large enough to accommodate everyone and there were no complaints about that. The first half of Friday evening s schedule called for tech tables (questions answered on a one-to-one basis by some of the more knowledgeable club members in attendance: registrars, parts manufacturers, restorers and technical experts. The second half brought some of the former Cobra Team members and drivers together to share some of their remembrances and answer questions from the audience. The program began with a powerpoint presentation by Peter Brock who explained some of the things he did at Shelby American. Everyone knows that he designed the Daytona Coupe but many were sur- Bob Bondurant was a busy boy at SAAC-32. In between signing autographs and posing for photos with convention participants, he was able to reunite with CSX2299, the Daytona Coupe he shared with Dan Gurney at the 1964 LeMans 24 Hours where they finished 4th OA/1st in GT. He was also paired with Jo Schlesser in CSX2601 [foreground, #26] at Reims in 1965; they finished 5th OA/1st GT. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

Peter Brock [above, left] has a seemingly unending series of interesting stories about the early days of Shelby American where he did everything but drive a race car.

Bob Bondurant [above, center] was a typical hot shoe driver, always wanting the fastest ride.

In the late 1950s/early 1960s, Lew Spencer [above, right] was known as Mr. Morgan and nobody was faster in those cars.

He also raced one of the early Sunbeam Tigers.

manager. Chuck Cantwell [below, left] was also a SCCA club racer who signed on as the GT350 project engineer. He also filled in as a GT350 driver when necessary.

He became the SAAC s Chief Trans-Am Technical Inspector in the early days of that series. The job was like being a sheriff in a wild west cattle town.

6 Peter Brock [above, left] has a seemingly unending series of interesting stories about the early days of Shelby American where he did everything but drive a race car. Like everyone else there, that s really what he wanted to do but Shelby recognized he was needed in other areas; drivers were a dime a dozen but talented graphic designers were in short supply. Bob Bondurant [above, center] was a typical hot shoe driver, always wanting the fastest ride. He was driving Corvettes when the Cobra came out and immediately recognized that if he wanted to win races, there was no better car to do it in than a Cobra. In the late 1950s/early 1960s, Lew Spencer [above, right] was known as Mr. Morgan and nobody was faster in those cars. He was the Morgan distributor on the west coast and had experience in the business end of selling sports cars. Shelby tapped him as a driver and he joined the Cobra Team, driving roadsters and coupes. He also raced one of the early Sunbeam Tigers. He quickly moved into the business end of things, first teaming up with Shelby in the Hi-Performance Motors dealership and then becoming Shelby American s competition director and Trans-Am team manager. Chuck Cantwell [below, left] was also a SCCA club racer who signed on as the GT350 project engineer. He also filled in as a GT350 driver when necessary. He was also on Shelby Racing s Trans-Am team. Walt Hane [below, center] began as racing a GT350 in 1965 and then a Trans-Am Mustang. He became the SAAC s Chief Trans-Am Technical Inspector in the early days of that series. The job was like being a sheriff in a wild west cattle town. prised to learn that some of Brock s other projects included design of the round Cobra nose badge, the CS, the GT350 stripe layout and exterior styling cues, various Cobra and early GT350 print ads, Shelby s driving school curriculum, the design of the 427 Cobra Super Daytona Coupe and a dozen other special projects. Brock was a veritable jack-of-all-trades for Shelby American. Some of the others to take a turn at the microphone were team drivers Bob Bondurant and Lew Spencer, team mechanic and recent author Phil Henny (Cobras and GT40s in Europe and a new book about Bob Bondurant which was unveiled at the convention), GT350 driver Walt Hane (who runs a race prep shop in Colorado and is still vintage racing and embarrassing drivers half his age), and R- Model and Trans-Am fabricator Bernie Kretzschmar. Saturday was back at the track, which was about a 45-minute drive from the hotel; most of it on the interstate. It was a good excuse for those with cars to stretch their legs and those without a ride of their own (i.e. rental cars) to watch the show and take pictures. This year the Concours competition took place on Saturday and the concours schedule began with a brief entrant s meeting at 9:00 am. That s where the ground rules are reviewed and any changes in procedures or scoring are announced. Entrants are always anxious to let the games begin so the Q and A is kept to a minimum. Cars were parked in the only shade available, under a large bleachers. Garages, although providing shade, just don t offer enough sunlight Peter Brock s powerpoint presentation held everyone s attention even those who had been there and seen it all before [left to right] Brock (at podium), Bob Bondurant, Lew Spencer, Bernie Kretzschmar and Phil Henny. Hidden behind Brock are Rick Kopec and Walt Hane. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

for judges to examine cars thoroughly. The shade of the bleacher area also allowed a light breeze to keep the temperatures down somewhat. At least, it felt cooler.

Twice each day it was possible to take your car out for a parade lap session consisting of 5 laps; passengers were allowed and speeds were limited to 55 mph to comply with insurance requirements.

7 for judges to examine cars thoroughly. The shade of the bleacher area also allowed a light breeze to keep the temperatures down somewhat. At least, it felt cooler. The track s West Course was kept busy with a schedule of two intermittent activities. Twice each day it was possible to take your car out for a parade lap session consisting of 5 laps; passengers were allowed and speeds were limited to 55 mph to comply with insurance requirements. The grid always seemed to be full for these sessions. In between the parade laps, instructors at the Miller Motorsports driving school were on hand to take thrill seekers out for some high speed laps (they drove) so you could get a taste of what it was like out there. The cars they used were from the fleet of white and blue-striped 07 Mustangs (the school has about 30 of them) that were outfitted with a serious selection of Ford racing engine, brake and suspension upgrades. One rider in the hot lap session exited car in a state of amazement. I have never been in a race car before I ve driven fast on the street now and then, and watched some in-car camera stuff on TV. That s nothing like this. I can t believe what it is really like. Everything happens so fast and your senses really are overloaded. I can t imagine what it must be like to experience all this AND to be actually racing against other cars, having to keep an eye on them as everyone accelerates, turns and brakes. What an incredible rush! Now I have a lot more respect for anyone who drives any kind of a race car. Is he ready to start trying on driving suits and helmets and get fitted for a racing seat? Well, I d sure like to but I think it could get real expensive real fast. I think I ll start slowly, preparing my car for the open track first and see where it leads. The SHELBY E-MERICAN WINTER/

July 7-8-9, 1995 Watkins Glen, New York

The Graybeard Chronicles July 7-8-9, 1995 Watkins Glen, New York The planets all fell into alignment for SAAC-18. Watkins Glen was a slam-dunk. Who would not want to have a convention at this historic