Regio

nal Group #130 Volume 32 Issue #10 October 2020 Mission Statement The El Dorado Early Ford V8 Car Club is based in El Dorado County, California and is dedicated to the restoration and preservation of Ford, Mercury, and Lincoln vehicles designed and built by the Ford Motor Company from 1932 to 1953. Meetings are held the first Thursday of each month. Locations change so check newsletter for location. President’s Message

Hello V8er’s,I’m sad to report that this past week the El Dorado Early Ford V8 Club lost Past President and longtime Early Ford V8 Club member Vince Barisic. Thoughts and prayers goes out to Sandy and family. Rest in Peace Vince.

In other news, it was good to see the Covid19 restrictions relaxed in September and also good to get out to local restaurants and other establishments. Hopefully we’re on the downhill slide from this pandemic and get back to some sort of normal. The Eskaton drive-by parade was

certainly fun and I want to thank all members who participated. It was good to get the old cars out for spin. Let me know at the next meeting if you have an interest in doing more events like this. Don’t forget to RSVP to Patty or Sue if you plan on attending the Hot Rod BBQ Saturday October 17th. In the meantime, stay healthy and I’ll see you at the next meeting Thursday October 1st at Colina de Oro in Diamond Springs. Dinner at 5:30 with meeting to follow. Rex

Meeting Minutes On September 3rd, the Early Ford V8 Club monthly meeting was held at the Diamond Springs Hotel restaurant on the outdoor patio. There were 13 members in attendance who enjoyed dinner at 5:30pm prior to the meeting being called to order at 6:33pm by president Rex Roden. Rex shared that there is no legislation pending at this time that affect classic cars and hot rods. He did share that a No on Prop 15 might be a good way to vote as it supports businesses, where a Yes might force businesses to increase cost

to customers to cover the impact of their doing business. It was shared that there has been an email fraud scheme asking for amazon gift cards. The schemers are pretending to be one of our club members. Advice is always call the person directly to check and see if the request is legit before giving any money/gift cards. There were no minutes for August as a meeting wasn’t held, due to Covid 19 issues. Treasurer Sandy reported all is well in our financial world. Report from Sunshine Barbara through Rex is that Nadine is doing well, but recovery slower than anticipated; also Don’s recovery is going really good. Our birthdays for September are Stacy Rotondo and Peggy Brewer. Jim Moore spoke and is putting together an album on Marie’s life, and would appreciate if anyone in the club has pictures with Marie in them, or would just like to write a short statement on their impressions or experiences with her, he could include. If you can send them to him via email jamesgearheadmoore@gmail.com or regular mail at P.O. Box 469, Placerville, Ca 95667 it would be greatly appreciated. He would like any input by November. Vince Barisic brought up that during these times we are not having events that are sanctioned by the national association but instead are having gatherings of friends and just old guys having fun.

Rex brought up that Art Hardie has resigned as Vice President and asked that members give thought to nominees for a replacement. If things continue to improve in our county regarding Covid 19, possible fair weather cruises might still be considered.

September’s ladies luncheon will be held on Wednesday Sept 16th at high noon. It will be held at Patty Plant’s house, 6120 Quartz Dr, El Dorado. It will be held outside on her deck, weather permitting, otherwise inside. Notice will be sent out directly to the ladies.

Don Haynes brought in a book to share with the club which Rex auctioned off. Jim Moore was the winner and proceeds

were added to the club coffers. Meeting was adjourned at 7pm. There were 15 club members at the breakfast Saturday at Beef & Brew.

Submitted by Secretary, Patty Plant

Meeting Thursday October 1, 2020 The meeting is scheduled for Thursday October 1, 2020 at Colina de Oro Diamond Springs. Dinner at 5:30 with meeting to follow.

Breakfast Saturday October 3, 2020 Breakfast is scheduled for Saturday October 3rd 9:00 AM at the Dennys Restaurant 3446 Coach Lane in Cameron Park. Bring your Hot Rod weather permitting! Breakfast Schedule 2020 November – Rex & SueDecember - No Breakfast

Birthdays & Anniversaries5tBirthdays: Art Hardie 3rd; Len Brewer 6th;Patty Plant 29thAnniversaries:

Howard & Judy Madison 5th

In Memory of Marie Moore At our meeting in September Jim Moore mentioned he was doing an album of Marie Moore memories. If you have any pictures, fond memories, or items of interest Jim would like to receive them. Please email to jamesgearheadmoore@gmail.com.

Sunshine

So sorry to report the passing of Vince Barisic. Vince will be missed. Rest in Peace.

Sunshine reporter Barbara Erb has asked for a temporary leave of absence and Sue Roden will be taking over for Barbara temporarily.

Ladies Luncheon The next luncheon will be discussed at the Meeting October 1st.

Men’s Luncheon

The October Men’s luncheon is scheduled for Thursday October 15th at 12:00 Noon at Mel’s Diner in downtown Placerville.

Hot Rod Bar-B-Que Save The Date!

Saturday October 17, 2020

If you are planing to attend and have not RSVP’ed please contact: Patty Plant at 530-621-1180 Sue Roden at 916-342-

0919

For the Love of the Flathead V8By Ron Adams Speedway Tech Services

What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word Hot Rod? Maybe it brings back a memory of your neighbors 1956 Ford Crown Vic Hardtop machine, a family members classic car you remember riding in as a kid or even your very own old Ford Coupe or Sedan.

If you are reading this I would be willing to bet the term 'Hot Rod' triggers some kind of thought, memory or emotion. For me it’s all about emotions. I rarely remember or store any memories for something that didn’t have an emotional effect on me. If it didn’t make me feel some kind of way, I pretty much dismissed it.

Fortunately for me my very first “Hot Rod” memories definitely come with emotion. The roots of these memories come with the time spent with my grandfather. I was the oldest of four children and from a very young age I spent the majority of my summer days with him. We did all kinds of things from chores, to checking the irrigation pipes, keeping the cattle in check or spending time at the local German Club playing cards. It was time well spent with a true all American. He was a Korean War Vet and my Hero.

During this time I learned some basic mechanical skills servicing the fleet of tractors and tow rigs we had. I learned what it took to take good care of something that absolutely had to last. These machines had to work at the right time. Usually to keep something functioning you must service that

machine and service it with good parts. I believe this is where my love for mechanics started and never really stopped!

On this farm the vehicles we drove were FORDS! Some of the Tractors were even Fords. My Grandmother LOVED Ford vehicles. From the 1958 Ford Sedan my Grandfather bought for her right off the dealership floor, to the later model Supercharged T bird and the Ford Escape she currently drives. He purchased the 1958 Ford sedan to pick up my Grandmother and my new baby Aunt up from the hospital! One of the many stories I love to hear about him.

Ford offers a heritage unlike any other and this heritage has been passed down to me. My father still takes care of the family farm to this day. Can you guess what his beater truck of choice is? Yep, you guessed it, an older Ford F150.

Even though I mostly worked on tractors at a young age, some people would argue that those aren’t Hot Rods. I would probably be up for a debate on that. Especially when it’s the first four wheeled machine I was allowed to operate at eight years old by myself, and I was able to bump that throttle rod until it won’t go any higher and scream down a gravel road free as could be. I’d say it’s a Hot Rod! Although, by today’s standards my parents could probably go to jail for letting an eight year old operate a tractor, it was something from my past that shaped who I am today.

In their defense I was only able to drive about a quarter mile to the first drive of our cornfield. That was still pure freedom and 10-20 mph at eight years old felt amazing! Seeing the exhaust flapper fly up, some smoke barrel out the pipe and the tone of the engine revving up was more than enough for me, at least for a short while. The wind blew through my hair and the smile on my face couldn’t get any bigger, it wouldn’t take long for the go fast bug to get into my blood.

The reality would hit when I would have to throttle down and make my turn. It was time to work! I would do whatever I could just to get the job done and get my chance at driving the tractor back to the homestead. I just wanted to rip down the gravel again. It was something I lived for. The next time grandpa would let me drive any vehicle I could, was the next best moment of my life.

There were things done in my grandmothers supercharged T bird that I wouldn’t dare to speak about or even tell that story in public! I still

remember my grandpa questioning why she needed tires so often and that he wouldn’t buy ‘such and such’ brand ever again because they didn’t last. HaHa! Stories about cars and life? I have got them.

I have many stories about the machines I was able to drive and operate at a young age that I could write a book about that alone. I also heard a lot of stories about my grandfather and the things that happened in his lifetime. You would think it would be the fact that my grandpa started a farm with literally nothing and that farm is still here today. Or that fact that he had dozens of War medals for his sharp shooting ability.

However, my favorite story of his has shaped basically everything I believe in that makes a Hot Rod a Hot Rod. This story starts with my grandpa purchasing a brand new 1949 pickup from the local Ford dealership. This truck was driven and worked hard on the farm from that very day until 1971 when he traded it in. Do the math- that’s twenty-two years of service.

The power plant was a super smooth running “powerful” 8BA Ford Flathead V8. The story is told to me like this- My grandpa drove this 1949 Ford Truck for twenty-two years with regular maintenance only and the flattie was never torn open for an issue. No blow by, over heating or cylinder head issues and he never even replaced one of the water pumps! He changed the oil and air filter often. He worked it hard, serviced it and then repeated it over and over for more than two decades.

This story is incredible when I think about my LS powered 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe LTZ dropping a valve at under 100,000 miles and the fact that it “loses” a quart of oil per oil change! The base of this Flathead story and a few particular Flathead powered Hot Rods I ran into was all I needed to shape the way I feel about these motors and the term Hot Rod in itself.

It only took one time of me hearing a heavily modified 8BA to ensure my love for these motors wasn’t a fallacy. This motor was cammed out, had loud pipes and ripped! That combo was enough to make me fall even harder for the Flathead V8. I will remember that feeling and the tone of that motor revving up till the day I die.

I would argue with anyone that Speedway Motors would not be the business that it is today without the invention of this motor and I would not be writing to you today with so much passion had that motor disappointed my grandfather or myself in any of my endeavors with them. Even though I may only be

able to wrench on Flatheads for a short while they will be in my Heart FOREVER.

Upcoming 2020 Car Shows &Events in the Greater Sacramento Area

Be sure to confirm before you go

Oct 3 - CruiseFest on Fulton Ave SacramentoOct 17 – Plant’s Rogers’ and Roden’s Hot Rod BBQ El Dorado

Sacramento Autorama – April 9-11, 2021 (New Dates)Grand National Roadster Show May 14-16, 2021(New Dates)

We’re having a Hot Rod Bar-B-Que Saturday October 17, 2020 and would like to invite you and your family to attend. We’ll be firing up the BBQ at 11:00 AM and plan on eating at 12:00 Noon and will have food available all day. Feel free to drop in Saturday 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM for some good food, good friends, and good fun. It will also be a good opportunity to view some great old Classic Cars and Hot Rods!We’ll be serving up your favorite BBQ Tri-Tip, Chicken, Beef Ribs, Ranch Beans, Bottled Water, and Soda Pop. Bring your favorite casserole, salad, or dessert and BYOB. Don’t forget your chairs. The BBQ will be at Dean & Patty Plant’s home at 6120 Quartz Dr. Please R.S.V.P to Patty at 530-621-1180 or Sue at 916-342-0919. We look forward to seeing you and yours at the BBQ!

Dean & Patty Plant Rex & Sue RodenKen & Pam Rogers

6120 Quartz DriveEl Dorado, CA 95623

Dean –530-919-6421Ken - 530-344-1037Rex – 530-748-6181