FALL 2011 ~ ISSUE 118!

CHANGE was in the air as I put together this issue. To speed up delivery of the magazines to Midwest and Eastern members, I moved the printing/mailing of the magazine from Arizona to Illinois. At the same time, I made the magazine dimensionally larger and went to a higher grade of paper.

Then, there was this great photo David Miller shot of Ron Normann's pickup at the Nats. The horizontal photo didn't work for my typical vertical front cover, but it worked surprisingly well for both covers. Looking at the front cover alone, you might have thought it was a coupe. Open to both covers and...a little bit of a surprise.

Since I was changing the covers, I decided to put the Contents section on the back cover as well. Hard to stop change when it gets rolling. LOL

None of this would be possible without your articles and photos. A VERY special thanks goes out to our photographers: Bob Wenzelburger, David Miller, Charles Whetstone and Ron Updike.

I'll see you at the races! Ernest

ISSUE 117 IS IN THE MAIL!

SUMMER 2011 (Issue 117) was put in the hands of the US Post Office this morning.  If your membership and address are current, look for it in your mailbox in the coming days.

DOUBLE COVERS!  I couldn't decide between Richie Coury's photo of Rocky and Bob Wenzelburger's wheelstand shot of Mike, so I went with both of them.  Definitely a 'collector copy'.

Coverage of the historic 10^th Anniversary event includes: fun-to-read event stories by Dana Ford, Vic Young and Richie Coury; amazing photos by Bob Wenzelburger, David Miller, Richie Coury and Mario DuCre; and featured car articles and photos by Charles Whetstone.

My thanks again to Beaver Bob, Jack Olcott, Kurtis Hicklin, Gina 'GASSERGAL' Kozak, trophy-artist Ken McIntyre and all who attended for making the 10th Annual GASSER Reunion the best ever.  

Ernest 

Club Rep Bill Darland Passes Away

Sadly, we have to report that Club Rep Bill Darland, age 62, passed away on July 28 in Eugene, Oregon.  Bill had a great sense of humor, as evidenced in the top photo.  Bill and friends were cruising in their rods to Vegas in the Spring of 2008 and, of course, had to stop by 'Area 51' for a photo shoot before heading on to the rockabilly music and car show known as Viva Las Vegas.

It was at Viva that Ken and I met Bill.  We put him and his Willys sedan right next to us in the Club Display.  His enthusiasm was infectious and his willingness to support the club was overwhelming.  From that moment on, he became the Club Rep for the Northwest.  I enjoyed his car and event articles as well as our conversations by phone and email.  It doesn't seem possible that I won't see his smiling face ever again.  Our condolences to his family and friends.

A Celebration of His Life will be held at 2pm on August 14th at the 1052 Fairfield Avenue, Eugene, OR 97402-2070  (541) 689-0247. 

Rest In Peace Ol' Friend....   Ernest & Ken

THANKS!

When Club Rep Gene Catoe's health took a turn for the worse and he said, "I'm not going to be able to make it to the Reunion," the New York state team of GasserGal Gina and Kurtis Hicklin eagerly volunteered to work the club booth.  It wouldn't have happened without them.  If you were there, you know they were a hard-working, courteous, friendly and fun couple.  

Look for them at the upcoming GASSER Nationals!

Thanks Gina & Kurtis!

ISSUE 116 is in the mail!

May 9th:  Spring 2011 (Issue 116) is in the hands of the US Post Office.  If your membership is current, you should be receiving it very soon.  I think you'll like it.  This issue includes:

• Catoe's Corner by Gene Catoe
• Richie Coury's coverage of this year's 4Wide at zMAX
• Gerry Sevigny's gorgeous black '40 coupe
• The GG's Del Mar show by Ron Updike
• Jim Bleil's reporting on the Dr. George Car Show
• Jeff Cryan's article on the Cavalcade of Cars
• The SWC Swindler II by Richie Coury
• Tracy Pendleton's historic T-Bird Gasser
• Reunion & Nationals Updates & Hotel Information
• East Coast Gassers coming to Reunion by Jack Olcott
• Swap Meet (new listings)
• AND Vic Young's coverage of a cool GASSER Garage!

If you need to renew, now is the time to do it.  

You won't want to miss this issue!   

RACING BACK TO THE SIXTIES!

GASSER REUNION 2011

June 10-12, 2011:  It's been ten years since we held the first Gasser Reunion and this anniversary event shirt design takes us back in time.  'Big John' Mazmanian racing 'Ohio George' Montgomery!  Sadly, John is no longer with us but his son, 'Big Vic', will be at the Reunion along with 'Ohio George'.  The response to having the event at Beaver Bob's dragstrip has been unbelievable.  I have to thank Jack Olcott for 'encouraging' me to "Give Beaver Bob a call."

See you there!  Ernest

FIRESUIT PHIL: 1940-2011

Sadly, 'Firesuit Phil' passed away on Monday. Phil and his historic '46 Ford Gasser were a vital part of all of our events. I was stunned to hear of his passing.

On behalf of all the club members, I sent a stand of flowers to be displayed at his funeral service on Thursday. I included a note that in part read, "Those aren't clouds in the sky. That's Phil doing Heavenly Burnouts."

Ernest

ISSUE 115 (Winter 2011)

IN THE MAIL!

• Issue 115 is being mailed today (Feb. 2)!
  
• Gene Catoe's column starts us off and leads into...
  
• Richie Coury's article on a 'A Promise Kept'.
• Ken McIntyre & photographer Bob Wenzelburger have a great multi-page article on the 19th California Hot Rod Reunion.
• Bob WOW'd me with his 'Tale of Two Garages'...and the photos only hint at the cool stuff in the garages. I've been in one of the garages, Don Moyer's, and was in awe (OK, envy) of his collection.
  
• England's 'Nervous Nick' Brooke-Langham sent us his article on K.S. Pittman to reprint here in the states. You'll love it.
• Vic Young, So Cal Club Rep, had the joy of having his 'Bad News Travels Fast' Willys cast in Faith Granger's new hot rod movie, 'Deuce of Spades'. Vic wrote about his experiences and the World Premier that he attended. You'll definitely want to see the film!
• Eldon & Nancy Miller's 'Black Widow' was elegantly photographed and written-up by Charles Whetstone.
• Club Rep Jeff Cryan covered both the Jalopy Show Down and Sunday Niagara drags.
• Before you get to the Swap Meet section, get the 'Lowdown on Lowhorn, Part II' by Ron Updike.
• The beautiful cover photo of Jack Warren's 'Barn Find' Willys was shot by Ben Ryan. Thanks Ben.
  
• And thanks to all of you who contributed photos and write-ups for the Gasser Gossip section. I love reading your stories.

Ernest

Tucson Tragedy

Fellow Members: The Safeway store that was the scene of Arizona's terrible tragedy was my grocery store. It was only by chance that I was not there that morning. Chance was not so kind to Maureen's step-mom's friend and Maureen's sister's friend who both died that morning. Let us all remember our humanity, regardless of our political differences. See you at the races! Ernest

STUCK IN THE SIXTIES?

Is it just me?

I listen to songs from my high school years and am pulled back into those wonderful times. I remember feeling bad when I graduated high school in '64. I didn't know why, but I had the feeling that something joyous was now gone forever.

Memories: I was in Junior English when it was announced that Kennedy had been shot. Until his burial, nothing else was on the TV. The weird thing for me was that when he was elected in '60, a fellow freshman classmate said, "He'll never live out his term. He's going to be assassinated." Although my guess is that the kid was referring to the fact that Kennedy was Catholic, it was such a strange thing for anyone to say that it stuck with me.

Drugs in the early Sixties were things like Penicillin or polio meds (1962's Sabin Oral Sunday memories). Marijuana at that time was considered to be on the same level as heroin. Boy have times changed.

I can't say I like everything about those times. Racial hatred, the KKK and even religious bigotry were rampant.

However, I would LOVE to be able to go back to those years, attend once again the high school dances, and go drag racing. I did all that but would love to do it again and again and again.

Sorry, but I REALLY do miss the Sixties!

Ernest