How old's the oldest H.A.M.B. member?60+?Tell us a cool story

I was only six when this happend to my brother who was in high school.
Back in the early seventies my brother had a White 66 Thunderbird that he hopped up with a big motor, dual exhaust, scoop, fat tires out back (muscle style.) The only other muscle car around belonged to some rich kids from the nice neighborhood across town.There was always a big rivalry and plenty of fights & races between my brothers crew (The Mods) and the rich neighborhood kids (The Newarkies). (This rivalry lasted even until the 80's when I was in school.) Another customary weekend fight broke out over girls at a diner later that evening and some rich kids car doors got kicked in.

This is the part I remember: Around 4 in the morning our family was awakened by the sound of banging and glass breaking. My father and brother run outside to find everyone had run off. They smashed my brothers windshield and back glass and cut the tires. Now a full war was on. My brothers crew went the next weekend at night to the home of the guys he knew were responsible and, lit his muscle car on fire and the entire lawn went ablaze by accident as well. He tells me no one got in trouble for any of this to which I'm surprised. A family of cats moved into my brothers Tbird until he repaired the car and continued driving it for a few more years until ironically he sold it to one of the kids from the nice neighborhood. I have pics of the damaged TBird but they are on slides. I will try to figure out how to get them transferred. Man I loved going for rides in that car late at night with the 8 track player cranking Led Zeppelin. I was pissed when he sold it. -It was my first hot rod in a way.

 

How old's the oldest H.A.M.B. member?60+?​

The oldest member 60? HA! That's closer to the average age.​

Stories? Muscle cars, hot rods, low rider/customs, Lions Drag Strip, Bellflower Blvd, Carl's in Fullerton, Even Fremont Street downtown Vegas, street racing.​

Drive ins with car service (not drive throughs except Jack In The Box) McDonalds hamburger, fries (best ever), a shake and change back from a dollar.​

Gas wars. When stations tried to outdo the others with lower gas prices ...From $0.25 to as low as $0.19. Imagine gas costing less than you now pay in tax . Buying a dollars worth of gas, never getting out of your car, getting your windows washed, oil and water (not coolant) checked, even tire pressure if you asked.​

The transition from nylons with garters to pantyhose = Mini skirts, Hot Pants, bikinis, the pill...= party!​

Drive-in movie theaters ( see the pill) Sneaking in in the trunk when it wasn't a dollar a carload night.​

Even being in Viet Nam was a time I cherish.​

Now you younger people will never know the greatness of this country in the way we have.​

 

I am 57 in a few weeks, so just a spring chicken really.
BUT, 40 years ago, I was run over by an Ardun powered T bucket.
Probably the only one on the planet to have been.
Not nearly as bad as it sounds.
We were pushing it out of the shed.
I was running alongside trying to steer at the same time.
Somehow my foot got tangled in the rear wheel and down I went.
Several weeks off work and I had not been there long.
That T has a lot of memories for me.
It was where I learnt about rodding and was mentored by the best.

.

 

I'll jump on this. I just turned 61. When I got out of high school in 66, EVERYBODY was getting drafted so I joined the Air Force. I ended up being stationed at Hickam AFB in Hawaii from 67 till 70. I needed a car while I was there. I found this little red convertible with a wicked exhaust sound so I bought it. I paid $1895 for a 1965 Sunbeam Tiger. That was my daily driver for those 3 years. Sold it for $500 to another GI when I left.........I was so stupid

 

I am 60 this June and hope to carry on and on and on Rodding.

 

Rochester NY, 1962 WBBF senior prom night double date. After the dance (Bobby Vee & Roy Orbison, live) my gorgeous date and me in the back seat of my buddy's lowered, skirted 55' Chev, turquoise & white ragtop (down). The sound of those glass-packs under the downtown overpasses and the smell of her perfume will be with me forever!!!!!

 

another one from those who have gone before us.......
during WW2 my grandfather (Pappa John) couldn't join up for health reasons so he serviced his country by selling scrap metal for the war effort, with the non existent repair parts for the 1 1/2 ton Model A (I think) every day they had to pull the motor and put something in there for dammmaged rod babbit or bearing , they used leather! it would work for a day, but each evening it had to be replaced, he said they found boot sole leather lasted the longest.

 

.....and over the radio screams the ad for the drags - "Sunday Niagara", and if you had a good enough radio, you tuned in to WKBW 1520 in Buffalo and were REALLY cool....

Those were some very good days, my friend!

 

Yea, I remember..............THE HOUND'S AROUND!!! AWOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

 

There are some great story's here, and I would love to hear more.
Its kinda O/T but this got me thinking. Yeah history is happening all the time, for better or worse we should all record what we can you never know what you may be a part of until it hard to remember.
Me? I'm less than 40 but I realized I have lived some of our recent history. Not cool stuff but things like living through the Kibeho massacre in Rwanda, being on one of the first three vehicles to cross the border and lead the invasion of Iraq, (Yup, we Aussies were first to fight!).
To more mundane things like helping to restore some WWII Aussy aircraft, one a P40 that fought over Milne bay New Guinea, the first loss the Japanese ever suffered in WWII.
Were all a part of something, remember it guys and girls for we are tomorrows history.
Doc.

 

Got 61 yrs. as of this month - Back in high school I had a '47 Ford Woody wagon w/ a slightly bumped up flattie - not really a speed machine! - While cruising down the Bl. a '55 Chevy pulled up along side of me and just for the fun of it, I threw him a rev and he returned one in kind[only much nastier] and we pulled up at the light and he asked if I wanted to go - I said why not - Well, it turned green and away he went - BUT - I had a siren from Pep Boys that ran off of the fan belt - Well - I pulled the siren on - the '55 pulled over as I passed him - We met up later at Bobs BigBoy - I thought he would be pissed, but he came up to the car laughing his butt off, asking if he could borrow it for his big race Sat. nite - Been good friends for the last 40 yrs.

 

Deuce Daddy Don, I love your story !! I just hope no one at work is on the HAMB and gets any ideas. Could get me in trouble !!
LOL...... 59 and counting here

 

Great stories! I'll be 54 in Aug. Still writing my story. See avatar. I need to get Dick Moseley over here with a story, he grew up in Calif also and is I think 74 or so. He is almost done with his HAMB dragster! He has a Fiat altered, his wife says he can't drive it anymore so he built a chev 6 powered HAMBster!

 

Also grew in in Pasadena, will turn 67 on 1 June...drove a yellow 31 Ford roadster with a 56 Olds...full fendered...cruising Colorado Blvd every night, the line at Bob's Big Boy, must have run into you...what color was the 3-window? Even in the early '60s, hot rods were disappearing and more guys were driving late-models...back then we though that hot rods would fade away, so am really glad they have reappeared.

 

I'm 62 and also grew up in Pasa-doughnuts.....Colorado Blvd, Bob's etc. remember riding in Steve Agajanians '64 Plymouth HEMI in his driveway, he had the fastest car in Pasadena before he had his drivers license. Red, 426ci, fender well headers, American Mags, jacked up in front, trans beefed by BLAIRS, etc etc...what a sweet ride....not too many trad rods around then, mostly muscle cars on the streets, chevelles, dodges, chevys, plymouths and a lot of drag racing on Sierra Madre Blvd. just east of Pasadena High School....being poor I drove a '49 Chevy business coupe, cadillac seats, dumped in the front, three on the tree, Earl Schieb paint job ($29.95), Desert Gold....ahhh memories

 

In 1958, I was 16, and my folks went to Australia in the summer. I Stayed with my brother in Napa Calif. and he got me a job in a gas station. I was driving my 36 5 window that I had put a 259 Studebaker in. I was looking for a rear fender in all of the junkyards. One day this guy told me to try the Ford dealer in St Helena. So on my next day off, I drove up to St Helena, and went to the Ford dealer.The parts guy had me follow him couple of blocks to a warehouse alongside the railway. this was a building about the size of a boxcar. It was full of Ford parts, hoods,grills bumpers,fenders etc, all in red primer with tags, for 34-41 fords, he said I could have anything in there for $10.00. I had about $20, but there wasn't one piece for 36, so I didn't buy anything. years later, the building was gone, and I have to believe that someone gave them $5 apiece for everything in the place, and made a millon.

I'm 67, and building a 27 T roadster/392 Hemi

 

Bump........................it's story time again!!

 

I've held off posting hoping I would be old enough to win. Sadly, i'll only be 65 in another month. Actually I shouldn't say sadly as in 1988 No one thought I would live to see 1989 (a story for another time).
I've got so many stories I don't know which one to tell. The ones posted so far are great and I don't think I could top most of them. so....I'll just sit back and enjoy.

Frank

 

Sixty next month. Refuse to wear blue pants or white shoes and belt!
My dress clothes are my work clothes getting broke in. 1967 I worked
at an ESSO station in a wild ass area of New Orleans This was a full service, two man affair, the owner and me.
One Saturday afternoon I was tending the place by myself as my boss, the owner was next door at the infamous Five Daughters Bar. In comes
a sedan with four black guys for gas. As I was pumping they started
giving me grief and just being jerks. I stopped pumping gas and told them
pay up and leave. One guy in the back raises his t shirt and shows me a pistol. Then he tells me to pay him instead. This was a two door car! and he was in the back. As I realised I also had a gun in my hand I stuck it through the window an stated "shooting" so to speak. He was trying to bring his gun to bear while his buddy was grabbing at it and screaming
no no you'll blow us up. I was really getting into the spirit of the moment
and kept spraying,while I had my foot against the door, to block their escape from that side of the car. Finally the got out of the drivers door.
The guy with the gun wanted to shoot but with gas literally running
off his nose didn't dare. Meanwhile Big Bill, the owner,came out of the bar and quickly assessed the situation. The guys started screaming to Bill
that I had attacked for no reason. Bill was a crazy Cherokee Indian who
really liked to fight. He flipped his lit cigarette on the screamer and proceeded to thrash the whole crowd. When the cops arrived these
bad assed robbers were begging for the police to help them! About
this time the great singer Jimmy Buffet had a song out called "The Great Filling Station Hold Up." The song was popular in the Five Daughters and some people swear it was playing on the juke while this spectacle was taking place? I can't really say. The bar is gone, the station is gone and
so is Big Bill. I miss them all, but smile whenever I hear that song.
MickeyC from the bayou

 

i'm 60 now and most of my good stories involve some illegal act, but one dumb thing i did was, after finding an old junk yard out in the country filled with real old stuff, i bought a Ford AA dump truck instead of the 34 Ford 2-dr sedan next to it. while we were towing it home the radiator, hood and head lights fell off. didnt realize it till we were home.

 

Im only 40 but I love hearing these stories. I still have the car I bought with my grass mowing money when I was 15. I have a neighbor that tells stories of street racing on the St. Louis riverfront BEFORE they built the Arch.

 

Well, I'm 106 years old and I reckon I must have a lot of good stories, but I can't remember any.

 

I'd like to say thanks for the great stories and telling your age out loud. I'll be 40 in Dec. no good stories but just needed to say Thanks.

 

Back in '56 when I was a junior in high school, I met a buddy going the opposite direction down Speedway our cruising street. as he came by, he leaned out the window of his '34 sedan waving his steering wheel at me. Hearing a long screech of brakes, I looked back and saw him sitting side ways in the street with cars all over the place trying to miss him. Guess he couldn't get the wheel back on! Went on down to the polar bar drive in and he followed in about 10 minutes. We could hear that little cheerleader ragging on him from 4 cars away. Never knew they knew those kind of words!

 

I was driving this '40 in '56 so I guess I qualify for the old fart's club.

 

I am only 73, in 2007 a friend and I drove my 48 Plymouth with modified flat head six from central Texas to Bonneville and I turned 70 on the salt, best birthday present I ever had.

 

Wow I thought this thread was dead...I got a couple good belly laughs from the stories shared today...thanks to the 60yr old + guys sharing these great stories,your the reason the younger ones are here today-carrying the hot rod torch for the next generation

 

I'm kinda young for this thread at 54 but thought it'd be fun for others.

My first recollection of a souped-up car. Probably cool at the time, but at 7 years old in 1961, I didn't know much. I did know I liked this car.

Spending the summer at grandma's in Visalia, CA. My teenage aunt is getting ready to go out on a date. I hear a rumble outside and see a mean looking black car sitting in the driveway. (55 Studebaker Commander)

Grandma yells to Aunt Audrey... "Hurry-up, Lonnie is here"

Lonnie comes in and he's a tall guy with engineer boots and blue jeans.
Man, he was the COOLEST.....

My aunt comes out and asks me "are you ready to go to the drive-in movies with us?" I'm thinking yipeee!!! and Lonnie is thinking "oh crap".

These things impressed a 7 year old kid as unusual about this car:

engine sticking out of the hood
no hubcaps
no chrome on the sides of the body
exhaust pipes outside
tires on the back like I'd never seen
paint wasn't very shiny
windshield seemed small
wasn't as tall as a regular car
stick shift on the floor (I'd only seen in trucks)
no carpet
no headliner
back seat gone (had blankets & pillows)
metal pipe (chin-up bar) behind front seat with side bars to the rear area
very loud engine that shook the car
Lonnie drove fast

side note:
I must've been sent to the snack bar 10 times that night.
a hot rod, a double feature, all the soda and candy I wanted...
life was good..

 

hilarious!

 

I'm 65 as of this month...hate it!!!!!!!!!!

I grew up in a fairly small town in South texas where everyone knew you. Me and a bud got stopped by "the cop" one night doing dastardly deeds. Instead of jail, he took us home. Told my dad what we did and told him that if he promised to beat the hell out of me and pass it on to my buds dad, he would drop the deal. My dad obliged. Worst ass whuppin I ever got, but glad I didn't got to jail.