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HOGS ‘67
Remember the late 60’s ? What a time to be a
teenager. Things were good, clean and fun. Growing up in Orange County
California meant the beach, girls and fast cars. The girl thing was OK,
only the usual problems. Too much sun at the beach, my fair skin is
paying the price now. But the cars, how about those cars?
My parents let me drive the family 1958 Ford Fairlane
500. I drove it to school one day to change the oil. When I got to 7th
period auto shop I discovered the engine had been taken apart. The
earlier classes must have thought it was a school project. It never ran
the same again.
The trust was gone along with my chances of having one
of those fast cars. Ted had a 1965 Super Sport with a 396, Larry had a
Roadrunner, Ken had a Plymouth Fury, I had to walk.
My passion was the Corvette. 1967 with a 4-speed and
tri-power. In 1979 I tried to satisfy that passion with a 1974 Corvette.
It was not the same. Everyone was still driving fast except for me. I
thought the Corvette would get me girls. My wife assures me that was not
the case.
In 1997 my wife Nancy, my daughter Jennifer and I set
out for Hot August Nights. What a great experience. When we returned we
all had the fever. We had to have a fast car, a muscle car. The answer
was obvious, GTO, the original muscle car. It had to be a ‘66 or ‘67
(I didn't know at the time that ‘66 was the best year, still don't).
After looking high and low we found a ‘67 in Carson
City, Nevada only 30 minutes away. A 1967 with a 4-speed and original
400/335. It was flame red with a white vinyl top and parchment interior.
It had all the receipts, original owners manual and protect-0-plate.
After I did some research I discovered the color was originally plum
mist. In 1985 it was painted Pontiac flame red. At first we were
disappointed that it was not the original color, until we saw plum mist
Everything on the Goat worked. It was in good condition but needed some
tender loving. Jen did the engine detailing, Nancy worked on the interior
and I did the body. I still have photographs of Jen head first in the
engine compartment.
Since the first time we brought out our Goat it has
been a big part of the family. Many wonderful family times have been
spent driving, showing and tinkering with our Goat. When we thought we
had done it all we joined that crazy car club called Golden Gate Goats.
Cherry's Jubilee (Flynns), Hot August Nights, Cinco de Wangers have all
been the best.
Now that we have moved back to Southern California we
are excited about new car shows. We even drove the Goat on Christmas day,
something we never could do in Lake Tahoe. We may have to invest in a
trailer so we can haul the car north. We are not going to miss any of the
fun.
See you soon,
The Hogbin's
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