The Shelby American (Winter 2021)

You can call it the Curse of the Street Car. All things being equal, a race car will always win over a street car. And with these cars, they were equal. The quality of both cars was nothing short of superb and beyond that, the attention to detail was as- tounding. Every part and piece was correct on both cars, including part numbers and date codes. Anyone with a criticism was simply demonstrating an outsized ego matched by a lack of their own knowledge. And as the inter- net forums demonstrate, there is no shortage of those people. Both Peter Brock and Chuck Cantwell were on hand, walking around the cars and clucking like proud parents. It was very satisfying to see them involved and so supportive of both Mark Hovander’s and John Atzbach’s efforts. At noon there was a special feature called “Special Cars, Special People” and Chuck Cantwell drove 5S003 to the podium along with Peter Brock driving 5R002. They talked about each car. Just before they were to drive up, 5R002’s left rear tire lost its air. In a parody of a Chinese firedrill, 003’s scissors jack was used (with a steel plate on the grass) to jack up 002 to replace the flat tire with the spare from its package tray. Later, on Sunday afternoon, both cars were driven across the show field together to receive their awards. And then the show was over. Except for a show car, the show is never really over; just the last show. There is always a next show and the primping and shining begins all over again. The perfection acquired by a new restoration is almost impossible to maintain for very long. Every car deteriorates; some faster than others. The first year following a restoration is the time to go for the gold. 5S003 was entered in a number of concours events that year and won the Triple Crown: a Gold award in the MCA, Mid America Ford and Shelby Nationals in Tulsa and SAAC-39 at Road America. It also won awards at the LeMay Con- cours in Tacoma, Washington and the Ford show in Dearborn, Michigan where Edsel Ford slipped behind the wheel (the keys were not it). The pinnacle of concours events is Pebble Beach. Hovander had bumped into Bruce Meyers, a noted car collec- tor from California and SAAC mem- ber the previous year. He knew Meyer was instrumental in getting 1950s vin- tage hot rods accepted at a past Pebble Beach event. He also owned a ‘65 GT350. Who better to propose to the concours committee that they include a 1965 GT350 class to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Mustang in 2014? Meyers made a formal suggestion and the Concours Committee handed down a ruling, as good as set in stone. “ There will NEVER be a Mustang on the grass of Pebble Beach because they are just too commonplace .” And that was that. It wouldn’t happen until the current members of the com- mittee either resigned or died. Slapped in the face by the reality of the Pebble Beach Committee’s arro- gance and elitism, Hovander and Atzbach contacted the movers and shakers at the Quail, and informed them that the two cars, which had been previously shown there in 2010 before they were restored, would be finished by the 2014 event and would be available for the show. They were quickly invited. The Quail show is held on the Fri- day of Monterey Car Week at the up- scale Quail Lodge and Golf Club in Carmel. It is not for the financially feint-hearted. The entry fee for the Quail - A Motorsports Gathering is $895. Admission is $950 per person and only 3,000 tickets are available so should you want to flaunt your dispos- able income, you’ll find your name in a lottery for a ticket. Admission in- cludes all the gourmet food you can eat and all the wine you can drink. Each entrant gets to vote for the car of their choice in their class (except their own). 5R002 was in the American Race Car group. It was an eclectic class and in- cluded another R-Model, a street Boss 302 converted into a Trans-Am race car, a ‘66 GT350H (because it was de- The SHELBY AMERICAN Peter Brock and Chuck Cantwell added their signatures to the car’s deck lid. It was the equivalent of putting a cherry on top of the sundae. The LeMay Museum in Tacoma, Washington is one of the largest in the country. Both Shelbys were right at home, literally. Winter 2021 36