Two very good friends of mine had their entire rig stolen after the NHRR-please see what's pasted below. Photo of the car attached as well. -------------- Forwarded Message: -------------- From: Hfamer@aol.com To: EASTCOASTGASSERS@yahoogroups.com Subject: [EASTCOASTGASSERS] ALERT - Willys stolen after NHRA Reunion Date: Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:15:53 +0000 I HAVE BEEN ASKED TO POST THIS ON AS MANY SITES AS POSSIBLE: Paul and Pam Ballash had their 40 Willys coupe stolen from Springhill Suites on the west side on Knoxville TN last night after the NHRA Hot Rod Reunion in Bowling Green KY. The whole rig was taken. Truck - 250 Super Can Ford pickup (burgundy) with Virginia tags. The trailer length is about 26 ft., white, with Virginia Tags on it and also has a golf cart in it. The Willys has an antique Virginia plate that says "Low ET". The Willys is a really bright yellow (with an emblem on the side that says "Low ET" . It is an awesome car. It is steel and has a glass hood and front fenders. Please get the word out to as many people as you can. Many thanks. I think it is time to start using transponders and whatever else we can to keep these cars safe from these animals. Barb Hamilton Advey
Since this is happening a lot recently I suspect most of these stolen cars are going overseas, there are just to many "professional" thefts of car of all types right now, another board I attend which supports some OT cars has been seeing a major increase in thefts also and many of those people had alarms and many other forms of security and yet the thieves didn't leave behind and broken glass or any trace that they were ever there. I think I am going down to the boatyard and get myself some anchor chain from a cruise ship to lock up my stuff.
Any more details on the Willys? If it stays in the US, that bright yellow paint will be painted over in short order.
Beautiful car and rig. I hope the cops find it and they get it back. I hope they had Lojack installed. They had a lot of money tied up in a rig like that. There seems to be a lot more vehicles being stolen lately from car events.
This is about 4 miles from my house. I'll keep an eye out here but I bet they got out of town ASAP. JH
It was a top shelf car...pro built. Steel body except for the front clip, which was made of seperate pieces like a factory nose. Had a brand new 572 BBC, 4 speed M-22. Ansen slots on the rear and Hali-repro kidney beans on the front. Trailer was (I think) a Haulmark white 26', all the bells and whistles.
That SUCKS!! A lot of people I know are putting lojack on their cars and almost all their equipment as it has gotten so bad, anything to help recover them I guess.
some one on here , has a huge opportunity to make something inexpensive to render car, and equipment thieft impossible.. time delay ignition interupt? programmable by the owner? remote controlled..detonation device..heh heh..well you might as well have fun watchin them get sent to hell a bit early..right? really though, on a serious note..Im no electrical guru..but im sure something could be done to keep 30% of these Hot Rod thefts to a minimum. The ones where they hook up and cart off would be a different situation..maybe some type of driveline lock? or covert tracking device that the owner could activate and follow..(because you know jonny law has better things to do).. it just seems that these kinds of thfts could be stopped or at least slowed down. <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
It's already inside a shipping container.... That sucks to see a rare care gone, how in the hell would you replace that? I hope he had good coverage.
I Live In The Knoxville Area And Will See If I Hear Of Anything.it Is Probably Long Gone From Here Though.i Hope The Best For Them.
Thanks, That's probably better coverage than what law enforcement can provide in a situation like this. If everyone passes the word on these boards a lot of eyes will be looking. Thanks! As for insurance (someone else's post) and replacement...I talked to him this morning and everything including the car was insured. That's good for the truck and trailer...but even if you get the money-where the hell do you find another steel coupe like that. What a bummer.
Hey I was just thinking...if this thing is on its way to a container to go overseas...well there are a lot of people on this great board who are over there...Europe, Asia, everywhere. Post the info on your overseas websites and put the long reach of the HAMB into action!
I have a friend who is a policeman and we were in Pigeon Forge TN a few years back and he got to talking to one of the local police guys at a cafe. The local policeman told him that they had a truck/trailer rig STOLE almost every time a big car event in town. He said that the Police thought the thieves were from Alabama ... ( no title state ) and the police also thought they had a local Pigeon Forge resident ( with a big barn or building to hide the stolen stuff ) working with the thiefs from Alabama. One of my 32 Ford buddies from Ohio had his Surburan and new 24 foot Hallmark enclosed stolen from the Grand Motel ... in 2004 and never got it back. NEVER ... he is just glad his original 32 3W was not in the trailer. I hate a THIEF ... If the courts would cut their hands off ... the stealing would STOP. Hope they get their WILLYS back ... but I really doubt it.
Sounds like the "big buck" guys are making the pickings easy for the turds out there (likely well financed pro crooks). All they have to do is go to a show and follow a "trailer queen" from a discreet distance to see where they park it, then swoop in for the grab of the whole tidy package. Probably a rear facing camera on the tow rig would spot the jerks following,among the traffic,after a show. Maybe we could catch one,and post pictures of him with a "H.A.M.B Bone" stuffed up his ass as a warning!
start sleeping with your babies guys..I think if I owned something as sweet as that, and had rigs like that to pull them with, there would be a bedroom in the trailer..and I wouldnt be sleeping alone.. like clint said once....44 magnum..its the most powerful hand gun ever made..it could blow your head clean off..feel lucky? all it would take is these thiefs to find that one guy who is smarter than they think they are..and Finish the job.
Posted this on FordFE.com, a lot of vintage racers that were at Bowling Green frequent the board. I included your picture attachment, and a reference to Denise also. Hope this helps. Bill
I find it interesting that they got it in Knoxville. Did the theives know it was a truck, trailer, & hot rod or were they just getting whatever they could? You've gotta figure that the guys in Pigeon Forge that DR referred to had a pretty good idea of what they were getting. Stolen hours away from the event, you have to wonder if they were targeted & followed (doubt it) or just victims of circumstance. Raw deal any way it goes though. It is interesting, & makes sense, that we don't hear of open trailers being stolen. Whatever happened with the car Trepanier had stolen? Or Rocky's Model A truck? JH
They were parked right alongside of the Dave Hales rig with his original restored S&S Racing Willys coupe and associated hardware...golf cart, similar trailer, etc.. Hales' rig was not touched. I don't know what to make of that, but I was thinking it might have been a random theft. I think they were almost 300 miles from the NHRR (sound about right?)
If the theives had an "order" for a steel Willys from an overseas buyer, what better place to scout the goodies then the Hot rod Reunion. 200 miles to travel to have the opportunity to steal it without too many eyes watching, (unlike a hotel parking lot in BG) is nothing. They probalby would have followed it all the way to the east coast if necessary.
The Jalopy Journal
