Curt Six submitted a new blog post: Drunk Willie and the Naivety of Youth Continue reading the Original Blog Post
Such a GREAT story, Curt. We were all so naive and adventurous in our youths. I would like say we were brave, but we just didn't know any better.
I'm thinking it wouldn't hurt most of us to throw caution to the wind a little more as the years go by. Great story!
About 12 years ago,the guys at Jim Bunting's machine shop suggested a trip to Williams for a rebuild of my 1954 Oldsmobile transmission. My 324 Olds engine was in J.B's shop for a rebuild. That little trip turned into a time travel. First, there were many broken windows in Mr. Williams shop and there were lots of birds flying around. He said he liked birds. The shop was very cluttered. I explained what I was looking for. He made no notes but rather moved around his shop while talking......picking up a piece here and another piece there. After about 5 or 6 minutes of talking, Mr Williams announced he had found everything needed for my rebuild. Yep !!!!! While talking, he had pulled all the parts.....every part. It was a real adventure. I drove down Eastern Blvd a few months ago. His sign is still there but I'm not sure about him. Thanks for singing Mr Williams song. He, for sure, deserves it
Great story. Loved the Buick. Reminds me of our trip returning back from the Turkey run near Cincinnati. Four hour drive. My 37 running an original 85 horse flatty decided its generator was going to give up the ghost halfway home. One car offered their mini-start battery. We opened up the front window, laid the battery at my wife’s feet and ran the cables directly to the engine compartment. It was dark at this time so we positioned the car between the rest of the group and drove two hours on four lane highway and through towns without the headlights on. We made it without a hitch.
I'm not positive, but I believe Willie p***ed away within the last couple years. He was a true character, wizard with a transmission, and a very cool person.
We all did foolish things in our youth, thank god there were no camera phones or internet then to do***ent them.
Great story and sounds like the Turkey run was a lot of fun. As to foolishness; I say no. Everyone is so used to having everything figured out. Cars doing exactly what you want, and a cell phone in hand if the inconveniences do pop-up. Pre-smart phone times; inconveniences when just part and parcel of life. As one of my buddy's used to say "Always a F****** Adventure!" We just knew how to live life back then!
Man, I love your stories. Well written. My favorite part: if it’ll make it 18 blocks, it’s surely good for 850 miles. Hahaaa. The joys of youth, right?
In my teens, I'd sometimes leave the house to go to a concert, etc., drive all night to get there, knowing my car likely would have problems. Don't remember that ever stopping me, but do remember being stranded. Late 60s, early 70s? A 6 pack of beer, driving by flashlight after the generator coughed its guts, yep. 40 miles on a flat tire, because being looked at by LO was going to be much worse than ruining the tire at 3 AM.? Uh huh. Hitchhiking with long hair in the south when my car died in 70, 71,72 in the middle of the night? You do what you gotta do. Being alive past about 1974 is a constant source of amazement to me. Some of my stories still don't get discussed, unless you were along for the trip.
I didn't even think so much about things I did in my early years until later on in life I would get together with people I was around with back then and I would hear them entertaining other people with stories about me.
Seeing the pic of your Buick and reading your story.....my own adventures just being young and dumb! It reminded me of a editorial the late Pat Ganahl wrote in his second year of Rod and Custom magazine, about "Forget Harper Seals, Save An Old Car"! Just how many older rides HAMB friendly or off topic STILL out there to make someone new memories and friends!
Great story, love every bit of it. I think that this illustrates why it’s so important to get younger guys not only into old cars but on the road. That sort of adventuring is both essential in the learning curve of any good hot rodder, and nearly impossible to kick start in your 40’s. When you’re a kid not only is the energy there but you generally aren’t thinking about this dominos that fall when you spend an hour getting the car back on the road instead of picking up your kids on time, probably don’t have kids yet! really great work, I could close my eyes and see it clearly.
Some of it was naivety, for sure. But, I think a lot of it is the simple fact that, when you are young and have not yet got responsibilities stacked 10 stories high, it's waaayyyyyy easier to just deal with any problems as they happen and not worry so much. At least that is how it is for me.
Hello, I had just bought a flathead powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery as my first teenage purchase. I drove it away from my friend’s garage and it ran fine. Since it was a flathead and it was 1960, almost every gas station wherever I drove could do some repairs as needed. But, much to my surprise, that never happened. This flathead powered sedan delivery was the best running motor and drive line, ever. Reliable with all of its 80 h.p. glory during all sorts of weather conditions. We could drive it in the muddy dirt, like stock cars on a rainy day dirt track. But, this was just down the street in an industrial area empty except for a field full of jumps, curves and a flowing water source on the right side. But, boy, was it empty all of the time. So, on rainy days, we drove around, sliding sideways as we tried to ride on the mini track we created all around the large dirt field. It was next to part of the big oil refinery. So, since it never broke during our teenage shenanigans, then it would be ok to take it South on Coast Highway to our southerly surf spots. Namely Baja Mexico. Our philosophy for those very long road trips was… any gas station can fix any flathead since they were the most popular motor in those old cars we saw on the road and parked all over the countryside. We were anxious to get to the surf spots, but worried we would get stuck south of the border with a broken motor or something serious. Jnaki So, after many trips to the San Diego surf spots, one weekend, we planned on continuing across the border in the middle of night and find those hidden surf spots and coves. So, a packed flathead powered sedan delivery chugged onward across the sleepy guards at the border check point and waved us through. The roads were paved, but in bad condition, with pot holes and side of the road starting to wear down and crumbling. Unless one was in a city, with paved streets and sidewalks, the rest of the other places with folks living and working had nice streets, but no sidewalks. So, it was a different adventure. We found a couple of different surf spots each time and had a blast, surfing unknown surf beaches hidden by tall cliffs, unseen by traveling cars on the main highway. It was an adventure just to search the various coves and curves in the roadway as the cliffs allowed waves to come in around points and peaks of the rocks below. The flathead sedan delivery strained on hills, as we were packed with a weeks worth of food, coolers, and surf gear, as well as heavy longboards… so, it was underpowered. As much as it was not a speedster, it got us to those unknown surf spots with so much reliability, I was surprised and thankful. We even used the local Pemex gas at its lowest price and grade of gas. The flathead ran as well as possible and we all had adventures after adventures in a reliable surf transportation that everyone chuckled when we arrived somewhere. Except at surf movies playing at various So Cal auditoriums and theaters. Now, that was an exception and also some admiration of a different kind of surf transportation… not a woody or simple station wagon…YRMV
All of this plus other people were more accommodating or understanding to motorists having "opportunities". Seems like people were more likely to stop to offer help or answer their door at odd hours. Go in the ditch and need to to use a phone for a ride? Get stuck while 4x4 ing in a swamp and need a tractor? Need some bailing wire for a dragging exhaust? Water for a leaking radiator? I've got a million of em'. I don't remember anyone even really acting inconvenienced, in fact it usually triggered a few "war stories" of their own. Not sure about now days
Really great story! Immediately conjures up visions of my own youthful carefree at***ude. I've recently realized that overthinking and worrying about every little noise in our 440 powered 55 Dodge was sapping all the fun out of it. Going to try and worry a little less and just drive it. Thanks!
Riding an old Panhead on the way to Daytona . Put it in gear ease out on the clutch nothing , not moving . My Bud looks down says “ hey you sheared off the rivets holding the drum and sprocket together . “ Wrested the old tank up on the center stand , wrenched it apart . Not one bolt and nut to be located anywhere . A guy stops and has a bucket of old rusty nails . Shoved them through the holes and bent them over , back together and moving again . Amazing what you can do with nothing when you’re in a bind . Found bolts at the swap meet , installed them and lasted until it moved on to a new care taker .
Reminds me of driving my Banger A RPU on a similar length journey with a a very similar enthusiasm. It was '05 & I was mid 20's, Thanks for your story @Curt Six makes me smile I resemble that remark! Haha
Enjoyed your adventure. Used to be there was a guy like Willie around in most areas. Not sure there are many left.
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