Volume 5, Issue 2 - March 1998

We Meet Dan Gurney?s All American Racers

by: earl gandel

the 75 fca southwest region members who attended the general meeting february 10 were treated to a really special evening at the home of all american racers, inc., dan gurney?s cart toyota champ car team. one of the many buildings at aar?s costa mesa headquarters was converted to bar and buffet service for the event, but there were plenty of new (and some old) race cars left in place for members to gawk at and admire.

highlight of the evening was dan himself, asked by president wally clark to say a few words of welcome. mr. gurney apparently warmed to the occasion by memories of his early days with ferrari, shared a few of these with the members present. they were priceless. a new kid from california, "auditioning" for a spot on the ferrari f-1 team, turning better lap times than the factory driver in cars he?d never seen before. and then, mixing it up with the likes of behra, hill, moss and brooks!

two of the funniest (which clearly show why dan?s reputation as the will rogers of racing is well deserved) involved a wad of 10,000 lire notes stuffed in his back pocket, causing his right foot to go dead in the middle of a driving try-out at monza; and an experience at the nurburgring involving the air force thunderbirds passing low overhead at just the wrong moment. he paints very vivid and unforgettable pictures.

gurney?s current passion is the building and management of his team of toyota-powered cart champ cars which compete in the newly-named fedex championship series. (even though these cars are far more sophisticated and faster than their irl counterparts, they can?t be called "indy cars" because of legal restrictions.) aar?s drivers are pj jones and, replacing the retired juan fangio ii, alex barron, winner of the 1997 toyota atlantic series. gurney?s first two seasons have been a development struggle, but he?s confident that this season?s ?98 reynard chassis with new and power-improved toyota motors will do the job right. the fca was privileged to meet and share some memories with a truly great american race driver, car builder and team owner, who also happens to be a remarkable person. in japan, there is a designation for outstanding people who bring credit to their craft and honor to their country; they?re called "living national treasures". dan gurney fits the designation.

thanks to dan and to kathy weida, his good right hand, for hosting the event. and to skip hudson (a great driver in his own right) for a tour of the facilities and an explanation of the inner workings of all american racers.

I jus gotta have one of them Vee Twelves

by: don prieto

i guess it was around 1952 in my home town of new orleans, when i first learned the word ferrari, and it wasn't long after that i got caught up in the mystique that surrounds the marque. you see i read car books as a teenager: speed age, sports cars illustrated, hot rod, and road & track. i became the practicing "car nut" i continue to be today. practically every autograph in my high school year book makes some reference to cars. and my favorite pastime was standing around and shootin? the shit about cars i had read about, like it was all first hand experience. i also hung around knots auto service because the owner, knot farrington had the fastest car in the city of new orleans. it was a 1939 ford coupe with a 3/8 x 3/8 flathead with all the other goodies: edelbrock heads and manifold, stromberg carburetors, and an isky 400 jr. cam. god! it sounded good. he used to let me fire it up and move it around the shop; and i actually got high from the experience. it wasn't so much the driving or the feel of the car, but the sound that stoned me. like so many other kids of my generation, i developed a tuned ear for something that has a powerful sound. listening to the rump rump of a stout flathead v8, the crack of a 6 cylinder chevy with a split manifold, a p51 mustang as it bored through the air, the spitting rumble of a 40 inch triumph twin motorcycle and the smooth purr of a lincoln v-12 really grabbed me.. my pal jack lagarde had a friend who used to come over to his house driving a 1939 lincoln zephyr coupe, complete with a flat-head v-12 and a set of straight pipes. "straights," as they were known are exhaust pipes with no mufflers at all, they were loud. louder than a chevy 6 with 10" true tones. i would hear that zephyr coming for blocks and i would even stop in the middle of supper and run over to jack?s house just so?s i could listen to that v-12 fire up, and drive away. my folks thought i was nuts. but the sound of that engine stirred my soul.

as i said earlier, shootin? the shit about cars was my favorite activity and i would eventually move the conversation toward ferrari. now you must understand that none of the guys i hung around with had even heard a ferrari much less actually seen one, including me. but i read every word that guys like john christy, steve wilder, griff borgeson, john bond, etc. had written about ferrari and i knew what they sounded like even though i had never actually heard one.

it wasn't until 1956 that i experienced my first real ferrari. i went to a delta region scca event, in shreveport, and there big as life was roy cherryholmes and the most beautiful 4.9 roadster imaginable. when it fired, the sound assaulted my consciousness like a five pound framing hammer assaults a sixteen penny finishing nail. all other activity kinda faded away, i was mesmerized. the rampant horse, the wire wheels, the red paint, the sumptuous curves, the egg crate grill, ah yes, the egg crate grill. sunavabitch-this is where chevy got the idea for the ?55 bel air grill, i thought to myself. and look at all them gawdam carburetors, a small amount of blue oil-smoke emitted from the two huge exhaust pipes and i stood in the cloud. the castrol "r" racing oil fumes engulfed me and the rumble of the idle pounded my chest. i glanced around to see if anyone was watching as though i were shoplifting or something because i felt so elated that it was like getting away with something akin to stealing.

as the giant v-12 clicked and clattered up to operating temperature, i stared. cherryholmes slowly brought the r's up to about 3000 and then ripped the throttle open --- instant seven grand. "now that's some kinda throttle response," i thought as there was much ripping and thrashing each time he gassed it. a nod from cherryholmes and the mechanic closed the hood securing it with the leather strap. as he let the

Oldtimer's Corner - Hotel Niles

by: ed niles

there was a time in our lives when we were traveling to europe every two or three years, and made many friends in the ferrari world. it became commonplace for us to stay with friends in europe, and vice-versa. one of our friends even had a plaque made for us announcing "hotel niles".

it became known, in our circle of ferrari friends, that ed and phoebe could supply a clean room with private bath, with (dare i say it?) gourmet cooking and potable wine. thus, we frequently had a guest or two in our guest room.

one day i received a telephone call from a total stranger, obviously british, who announced, "hullo, i?m so and so, from london, and godfrey eaton suggested i give you a call. i?m looking for a place to stay, as i just got into los angeles for a short vacation." i didn?t? get it. innocently, i asked him, "what part of town would you like to stay in?" "oh, no, old chap, godfrey suggested that i might stay with you!"

i suppose the fact that it took me at least four beats to say anything might have been a give-away, but i finally mumbled that our guest room was already occupied!

that great french ferrari enthusiast didier moreau even sent his 16 year-old son to us for an entire summer one year. what a cultural eye-opener that was for all concerned!

you haven?t lived until you?ve watched a 16-year old insist on eating a carl?s jr. hamburger with a knife and fork! or watched him squirm as the stripper we hired for his sixteenth birthday did her act!

one day another of our french pals (i?ll call him joe as that is as un-gallic a name as i can conjure up) let us know that he would be visiting us, and bringing with him cherie. "you remember cherie, you met her at mas du clos." indeed we did remember her. she had made a grand entrance after everyone else was seated for dinner, bringing all conversation to an immediate halt with her stunning posture and sexy attire.

well, joe and cherie, did, indeed, show up at our doorstep a week later. but by the time they got here, they were so deeply entrenched in a fight that they were not speaking to one another! this made interesting conversation. "ed, would you please ask joe to pass the salt?" "phoebe, would you please ask cherie to pass the wine?"

but the interesting thing was that although they didn?t speak for days, we would hear the bed banging against the wall in that familiar rhythm at least once a night! it seems that joe and cherie were able to put their personal differences aside for what seemed to be the heart of their relationship!

after a week or two, joe announced that he had to move on to new york for business, but cherie wasn?t ready to leave. she asked if she might stay on for a short while. thus began our long, if intermittent, relationship with cherie.

in many ways, cherie was the perfect house guest. she ate almost nothing, and always pitched in with the dishes and the household chores. her main expense seemed to be wine. she consumed at least a bottle per day. i guess that?s why god made cheap wine.

cherie was the owner of one of those magnificent french bodies. one could almost call it boyish, except for the curves and bumps in all the right places. and she was very fond of sun bathing in the near-nude. in the european fashion, she would exit the house for the swimming pool in nothing but a g-string, which she would then untie at the sides, lying on the float in the swimming pool with a little bit of string strategically placed, tanning her body without a single mark anywhere.

at the time, there were two teenage boys living next door on the swimming pool side of our property. while, from our side, it looked as though we had an 8-foot wall, their property was actually higher than ours by several feet, so that from their side, i

355 F1 Introduction at Ogner Motorcars

by: michael lederman

on march 5, 1998, ogner motorcars hosted the fca for a maranello f550 and f355 f1 shifter party. despite the rain, 107 people showed up to a very informative discussion by john ahmet (ferrari west coast tech manager) who kept a crowd of 75 enlightened and amused.

among the fca members present were our illustrious pres wally clark, cy yedor, shin takei, marshall leib, dr. ron singer, brain quadt and don medor. stan and irv ogner were present with their families and the ogner sales staff and service staff were there to answer questions.

some f1 shifter rides were given but the rain endured and rides gave way to coffee and dessert. an italian-theme dinner was served by ogner and the restaurant porta via of beverly hills did the honors. might i say they did an excellent job and the food was sensational. people lingered till way past nine o?clock and the "unknown" 3 from malibu colony arrived at 9:30 p.m. to have late dinner and discussion with yours truly. an f1 order was completed at the end of the evening. we at ogner motorcars welcome all fca members. please see michael lederman for the 10% service discount on parts and labor. we also offer tech inspections and the ferrari driving school held at willow springs raceway eight times a year. all members also have a 15% discount on all boutique tems. see michael lederman for a square deal on new and used car purchases. michael offers enclosed carrier pickup and delivery from house or office for any ferraris purchased from ogner motorcars. we also offer enclosed carrier delivery to the palo alto concours and monterey.

Tour of San Sylmar

by rose and murray cogan

on january 24th a group of about 25 members met at the nethercutt collection. it is always a special treat to visit this outstanding collection of classic luxury automobiles in the grand salon. on the second floor is a fabulous collection of hood ornaments and on the fourth floor is a unique display of mechanical musical instruments. we were most fortunate to hear the wurlitzer pipe organ. byron matson, as always, was a superb host and his articulate description of every part of the collection was most interesting. his gracious hospitality is always greatly appreciated.

an optional lunch at ?buon gusto? in mission hills followed the tour. the italian lunch was delicious and the service was superb. a special thanks to the manager sam for taking care of all the arrangements. we all look forward to many more enjoyable events.

If it Says......It Really Means

thanks to: judd goldfeder