Here are some great pics of the cars I saw at the Now & Then Vehicle Cruise Night in Hinsdale, New Hampshire. I did not get pictures of all of the cars today. There were over 60 cars at the show today, and many were coming and going. Moreover, some cars were blocked by chairs or people so I could not get clear shots of all cars. Finally, the sun was very bright in some areas and the shadows too deep in others so some of my pictures just didn't look good... even after editing. Overall, I hope these pics give a good rendition of the many types of cars we had at the show today. Enjoy! 1940 Plymouth Business Coupe! Pickups Were In Abundance!Plenty of Custom Hot Rods Too!How About This Beautiful Mercury?Lots of Chargers Too...Vehicles of All Types Were At The Show!PS - If you were at the show, and don't see your car, track me down at the next show and I will make sure I get a good pic to add to the next post!
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A Tribute to Jed Maxham By Sue and Leon Cobb On May 21, 2019, Bruce Gauld, the President of the Now and Then Vehicles Club said he had received a request from Lorraine Kelley whose nephew, Jed Maxham was dying from ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) to get a ride in a 1963-1967 corvette. This was her nephew’s last dying wish and he only had a few weeks left to live. According to Bruce, Leon and I were his last hope to find a car fitting his dream ride. Jed lived in Poultney, VT, near the NY border (Grandville, NY). Leon said we would trailer the car to Poultney, VT because we live in Vernon, VT, about 2 hours away. When I called Lorraine to make the arrangements, she started to cry on the phone, and I thought we were too late. As it turned out, she was so happy to hear from us, she couldn’t control her feelings. She said Jed was 38 and she had been trying for months to find anyone with this type of car who was willing to give him a ride in it. She had spoken to other corvette owners, but for one reason or another, everyone refused to agree to Jed’s last request. At this point, Jed was in pretty bad shape – paralyzed in both legs and barely able to move either arm. He was on an oxygen machine and was slowly losing his battle with this awful disease.
Leon angled the car, they had to raise the car with 2 by 4’s so that the winch that they placed Jed in would drop him safely into the corvette. As you can see by the pictures, Jed was not a small guy and it truly did take a village of men – Jed’s friends and relatives to achieve this task – but they did it. Once Jed was safely in the corvette, his oxygen tank was arranged so that he would be comfortable. As Leon started out of the drive, people from Hospice had arrived and they sang some of Jed’s favorite Elvis songs. Jed asked Leon where they were going. Leon said he told Jed that he was not familiar with the area and they would go anywhere Jed wanted to go, it was his ride. Jed had it all planned out – he wanted to do a big circle around Poultney/Grandville NY. Leon said that Jed was interesting, funny, and knew exactly where they were going. Leon said he was remarkably moved by Jed’s exuberance and thrill of finally getting a ride in this corvette. Jed’s excitement just emanated off of him. And Leon loved sharing the car with him! They were gone at least ½ an hour and when they drove back into the driveway Jed and Leon had brilliant smiles! Leon angled the car back to where it was when they started, and Jed was lifted out by the winch and placed back in his wheelchair. Jed beckoned me over to his chair and asked me for a hug. I leaned down to hug him, and I felt the overpowering sense of who Jed Maxham was. Here was a young man dying a horrible death, who radiated with life, happiness, and emotion. As I leaned in to hug him, I gave him a brief kiss, and we stared at each other for a few seconds, and I knew that Jed had become a part of my heart! Where Jed’s inspiration was a ride in a corvette, our inspiration was the courageous way Jed was approaching his impending death. It was a remarkable experience for both Leon and me. It had become our privilege to meet such an extraordinary young man. As Leon was loading corvette back on the trailer, Jed insisted I remind Leon to put the top back up – he didn’t want the car to be damaged by any rain. I did as Jed asked, and Jed was very relieved when he saw the top go up on the car.
On June 7, 2019 (9 days later) Jed Maxham lost his battle with ALS. According to his Aunt Lorraine, in his last words to her, he thanked her for finding us and that he told her he could still feel the power of the car’s engine and hear the roaring of the mufflers from the corvette. And he asked her to thank us! That same day, as we expressed our condolences to Jed’s family and friends, we thanked Lorraine for finding us, so we could find Jed. While Jed and his family and friends were profuse in their thanks to us for giving Jed his last dying wish to ride in this car, we were equally profuse in our thanks to having had the honor to having met Jed and experience his courageous fight against ALS. Ever Wonder What Car Captain Jean-Luc Picard (from Star Trek: The Next Generation) Would Drive?6/11/2019 You'll be happy to know that there is an answer to that question! You see, Patrick Stewart, the actor that played Captain Picard, is an avid car collector. In fact, he owns over 20 vehicles, and has raced some of them. Below are pics of some of the cars that he owns. See how many you can name! Remember, if you click on the pic, you will be able to see the full photograph and not just the thumbnail pic.
Being in the right place at the right time kind of describes how I found my 1972 Buick Centurion convertible. I had been looking for a classic car for about two years, without finding anything that fit my budget that didn’t need an entire rebuild. One night, while I was looking at the garage sale sites on Facebook, I saw the Buick listed for sale. Usually cars are sold on the market place, so I was surprised to see it in a garage sale site. The owner was asking only $5,000. convertibles are not well known, and actually are a bit rare. In fact, only 2,396 Centurion convertibles were made in 1972, a much lower production run than some of the more popular vehicles of that era.
around 13-miles to the gallon on the highway! It is a gas hog around town though. Although I will eventually prep it for a paint job, and clean up the engine, I have put most of my plans on hold for the moment. My oldest daughter, Maddie, just hit 17 and bought her first classic car! Together, we are working to restore her 1972 VW Bus. The engine is out, and we are gathering parts. It is our winter project. I will go back to restoring the Buick once she leaves for college in September… hopefully, with her restored bus with a camper conversion. I love to take my daughters on cruises throughout New England in my Centurion. Many times, we just go to the local car shows, but sometimes we take longer trips. This summer, we took a cruise through Vermont and came back through Massachusetts on the Mohawk Trail. We also traversed the Kancamagus Highway twice, took trips to Lincoln, and Franconia, New Hampshire, as well as trips to Mac Dowell Lake in Peterborough and Hampton Beach. In August, my car was picked to chauffeur the Grand Marshalls in the Rindge 250th Town Anniversary Day Parade! No matter how far we go, one site I never tire of seeing is the sights I can see from my own front porch. Below are two of my favorite pictures of my daughters with the Centurion. I made the picture of Ashleigh into a meme.
Today we have a guest post by club member Norma Arsenault telling the story behind her car. My 1968 Mustang Coupe is not just any car. It represents a journey, forges friendships, and is a dream come true for me. I have wanted a Ford Mustang since I was five years old in 1970. My dream car was a red, 1965 Mustang convertible. My very first car was a 1983 Mustang LX in red. I was 22 years old, but what's unique is that I didn't even have a driver's license! It was bought from a co-worker. It was even my home for six months while my husband (at that time) and I were separated. After reconciling, I let him trade it for a Ford Probe Turbo GT. I continued my Ford allegiance over the years. For my 45th birthday, I decided that I had to have a Mustang. My boyfriend, Paul, and I were always cruising the countryside in his 1967 Chevy Caprice looking for a Mustang for me. Every prospect was taken to Mark Gomez, a friend of ours and the owner of Green Mountain Classics (GMC) for review. I’d get the thumbs up or down. The first time I saw my current dream car (1968 Mustang Coupe) was at Mike’s Auto Repair in Westmoreland NH. It was 1989 and it had just gotten a new paint job – royal maroon in acrylic enamel, boy was it beautiful! Since it was parked in front of the shop, I’d make “excuses” to drive by to see it.
couldn’t get to it. I knew it was the same Mustang that I drove to Westmoreland just to look at. In June 2012, Paul and I took a red 1965 Ford Mustang to GMC for Mark to look at. He said, “You don’t want this Mustang it is full of bondo and needs too much work”. Mark knew I was on a tight budget and didn’t have the money to put into that red Mustang. He said, “I’ve got a car for you”. I said “really?” He replied, “Yes, I have a maroon Mustang in the barn, and the people that stored it want to sell it”. I couldn’t believe it! On August 31st, 2012, I signed papers for it and in September I took my belated birthday present home. I only drove it for 2 months that first year because I store it for the winter and I’ve been driving it ever since (except winters of course). I drive it everywhere. Paul and I have driven it to North Carolina 4 times including Mustang’s 50th Anniversary, we’ve driven it to Michigan for the Woodward Dream Cruise & Mustang Memories car show put on by MOCSEM at Ford Headquarters for 3 years in a row. We have driven it to Pennsylvania and New York. Paul and I will get in our classic’s and just drive, no place in mind… we just drive and when it’s time to go home we find our way by setting the GPS to “home”. Our local car club is the Now and Then Car Club which holds a cruise - every Saturday from May through October. Last year I was voted in as Club Secretary. I also belong to the Mustang Owners Club of South Eastern Michigan a.k.a. MOCSEM. At one of our local area cruises, a friend’s daughter eyed my car and said, “I know that car and who used to own it”. She introduced me to Chris Wilder who was the previous owner before the person who stored it in Mark’s barn. Chris was shocked that it had been sold, you see when he sold it, he had a First right of refusal written in as part of the deal, which means if they were going to sell it they had to offer it back to Chris first before anyone else, but he was very happy to know someone loved it as much as he did owned it. You see it was his very first car, but he had to sell it because he was going through a divorce and did not want the “soon to be ex” to get it. He shared an interesting piece of its history with me. When Chris owned the car, it was
The ride was comfortable which was pertinent since I’ve had 6 back surgeries. It takes about 12-14 hours to go from Vermont to North Carolina. At the North Carolina Welcome Centre, in a parking lot full of Mustangs, we met Chris Bolla and Chris Richardson from Michigan who were working on their friend’s (Pete & Sara Vistakos) 1964 ½ Mustang, which blew the right front wheel bearing. After offering to help, we exchanged phone numbers and subsequently met up at Mustang’s 50th.
We did all of the activities with the Chris-es from Michigan that trip. A deep friendship evolved, and they told us about the Woodward Dream Cruise in Ferndale, Michigan which is held every August. They said we should go - so we went that year (2014) and every year since, always meeting up with the Chris-es! That very first year that we went to Michigan was the best, because it was a celebration of Mustang's 50th Birthday everywhere we went. We also went to what was called the” HEROES” Banquet. There we hundreds of people there, all Mustang people! They had a full size cake for every year the mustang was made. I got to meet a lot of people that had their hand in the making & designing of all of the different mustangs, including the 50th Anniversary Mustang.
Another part of the Mustang's 50th celebration was a “50th Birthday Registry” book where you could display a photo of your Mustang with your name and location. It would cement your Mustang and your Name in Mustang History. Me being the proud new owner of a Mustang, I just “had” to register and pay whatever it cost to be in that book! When my book finally came in the mail, I was on the phone with Chris Bolla and found my name on page 37 – but it wasn’t my car! It was my dream car, because it was a beautiful 1965 blue (not red) convertible Mustang. Chris and I both looked through the whole book cover to cover but could not find my ’68 royal maroon coupe anywhere. I was devastated. I started crying. Chris tried to calm me down over the phone. Eventually I stopped crying and became very angry. Chris knew people in the Mustang industry and he said he would make some phone calls. On February 12th, 2016, I received a letter post marked New Zealand. I was going to just toss it in the trash because I didn’t know anyone from New Zealand, but I said to myself maybe it was one of the many people I met at Mustang's 50th . Sure enough it was from someone that went to Mustangs 50th celebration. But not the one in Charlotte, this person went to the one in Las Vegas. As I read the letter, I realized it was the owner of the Mustang that was attached to my name in the 50th Birthday Registry II book! His name was Rae Simpson, and he was looking for me… the lady whose name was in the book with his car! His car also appeared on page 169 with the correct car and name. In the letter he said he informed the powers that arranged the book about the mistake. He said he never heard back from them. Rae said he would love to hear from me and gave his e-mail. I felt such a warmth and connection with this man who tracked me down from across the world. We exchanged letters and emails. We’ve exchanged many gifts from Vermont maple syrup, a Vermont calendar, to the Taranaki Mustang Club Newsletter, a club vest and various Mustang key chains, and a New Zealand calendar. I also informed him that I received a second 50th Birthday Registry II book with my car and my name on page 37! I believe if it wasn’t for Rae informing the powers that published the book, I never would have received a corrected book which I can pass down to my granddaughter along with all of my Mustang 50th Birthday celebration memorabilia. I have saved every e-mail from Rae and I hope to meet him one day whether it be in New Zealand or when/if he and his wife, Norma, come to the United States. A bit of kismet surrounds my car too:
On June 3rd, 2018 MY Mustang turned 50! In August, I celebrated not only having my Mustang for 6 years, but I also celebrated the many adventures I have had with her and the amazing friendships with kindred spirits who share a common love of not only Mustangs but all classic cars. I look forward to driving her again to Michigan for the Woodward dream cruise and Mustang Memories car show.
Cloudy but beautiful! The cars were looking great too. Our first stop was at a Dunkin Donuts for coffee. We picked up a number of new cars there. The stops made for a good time to take some pictures... When it was done, the cars cooled down while we all got some snacks at Tom's Hot Dogs! Finally, here are some solo shots of some of the cars on the cruise. Unfortunately, some of my shots did not come out too well due to lighting or proximity to other cars, so not every car on the cruise has an individual shot. Some have more than one. Enjoy!
On Sunday morning I went to Cars & Coffee at the Kringle Candle Company in Bernardston, Mass, There were a number of Now & Then Vehicle Members at the Cruise. Below are some of our vehicles that were at the Cruise There were about 100 cars at this show. If you are a club member, and you were there, let me know. I likely have a picture of your car, and just didn't recognize it as one of ours. I can easily add your picture in here after the fact. If any of you would like to see the other cars that were at this Cruise, you can see them here: www.cruisingragtops.weebly.com My daughter, Ashleigh, likes to get in the pictures!
Saturday night was Now & Then Vehicle Club's annual Drive-In Cruise. About twenty cars turned out for the Cruise, likely due to the cloudy weather and chance of rain. It did not rain, however, and all who stayed got to watch a great movie from the past, "Up In Smoke".
I am going to try a different format for this post. Car pictures will be free floating so that everyone can see the pictures more easily. I'll also be able to put a little commentary between the pics. Meanwhile, I will throw category pics into a gallery to keep them neater. This is only the second Cruise Night rap up, so let me know what you like and don't like with a comment, and don't forget to share and like the page! Now on to the Plymouths! Plymouths!The last three pics are of a 1933 Plymouth Coupe. I am not sure if the owner of this car gave it a name, but I call it "Black Beauty"! Wow! There were likely more Plymouths out there on Saturday, I just maybe didn't recognize them as I quickly went through my pictures. If I did get any more Plymouth pics they will be down near the bottom of the post with the cars that were not picked out to be highlighted this week. If you would like to keep a picture of your car, put your mouse over the picture and click the button on the right side of your mouse. This will bring up a small menu, and you can then left click on "save image as". This will then allow you to save the picture as a file on your computer.
I could not find the exact hood ornament, I do know that a number of Packard cars had goose hood ornaments back in the '30's. If you know what car these were used on, leave the answer in the comments section below. Two more ornaments, before back to the cars! We always have a lot of Rat Rods at the Cruise Nights, so I think its only fitting to give them their own section. There was a nice mix of the home-built hot rods attending on Saturday, and I think I got pics of most of them. Let me know in the comments if I missed one of your cars. Rat Rods!This week's focus is on steering wheels and engines. I don't always get great pics of steering wheels... The lighting can be tough at times. This week I got some good ones and you can check em out in the gallery below! Steering Wheels of NoteDo you see your steering wheel in the gallery above? If so, save the pick and then post it on the Now & Then Facebook page. Tell everyone what type of car its from and a little something about your car! Then ask to see theirs! Time to get our Facebook page rockin' guys... And I guess you can say I am trying to steer you into it! Okay, that last line was just a little bit of car humor for a Wednesday night! Sometimes (lots of times) a car shows up for a Cruise Night that I know very little about. When that happens, I like to go talk to the owners and find something out about their cars. This week I saw four cars that I didn't really know too much about. There was a 1962 Volvo PV 544, a '63 Ford Galaxie, and a Rover. The Volvo was in great shape and was mostly original. The owner added some custom parts for his own convenience... tinted windows, power windows... Regardless it was a beautiful car, and the owner knew a lot about it. This model is similar to the type of model that was very popular in European racing. The 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 also had a story behind it. This car was hard to miss! It was immaculate, had very large racing tires on the back and a big blower and no hood on the front. The owner was from southern Mass, near Worcester, but he kept his car garaged in Wynchendon. He has brought it to some very large shows in the past, and one of his more memorable moments was taking home a second-place trophy for "Best In Show" at a show in Foxboro. What makes this a truly amazing story is that the show had over 2,900 cars in attendance! I must say that I knew absolutely nothing about the Rover. The driver had just gotten the car recently, and had just started to do work to the vehicle. It will be interesting to see what he does with the car going forward. ChevellesThere were at least three Chevelles at the show this weekend. The first, which usually sits right up near the top of the entrance in front of the tent is Pete's Red Chevelle. It sports a 502 engine. Dennis also had his green Malibu Chevelle in the first row of cars. Both of these cars are here weekly, and it's pretty easy to get a good shot of both of these cars. The third Chevelle at the show was blue and it was in the back row near the tree line. It was a Yenko Chevelle! If its a true Yenko Chevelle, then it is a rare bird indeed. How rare> Well, in 1969, only 99 Yenko Chevelles were produced. About 50 of these are still known to exist! I did not get to talk to the owner, so I don't know if it is a "true" Yenko or not. I am also not certain whether or not this car was a 1969 model. I just don't know Chevelles well enough to tell the model years apart yet. Classics At The CruiseFinally, There are just somethings that stand out so much that you know exactly where its from without having to look at the rest of the vehicle. Whether it be an iconic emblem or a piece of custom art, You just know that whatever it is attached to is going to be classy! See if you can figure out these symbols. Have a great week, and remember that THERE IS NO CRUISE NIGHT THIS WEEK AT PHANTOM FIREWORKS!!! Instead, we will be meeting at the Northfield Drive In in Northfield Mass on Rt. 63. The movie is Up In Smoke starring Cheech & Chong!
Below are some of the cars that showed up at the August 25th Cruise Night at Phantom Fireworks in Hinsdale, New Hampshire. If you see your car, like this page to spread the word about our Cruise Night! Each week, I try to take interesting pictures of the cars. Sometimes I will focus on a style, or ornamentation, other times the engines or the taillights. Below, I mixed it up a little bit. Hope you all enjoy it. Rat Rods'57 Chevy'sHappening Hood OrnamentsPickup TrucksSome Sweet Steering WheelsRocking Running BoardsClassics At The CruiseNote that I did not get good pictures of all of the cars at the Cruise Night. Some of my pictures didn't come out good, and some cars I just couldn't get a good shot of. If your chairs are too close to the cars, or if there is a crowd around the front of your car, it is very hard for me to get a good picture. Over the next few weeks, I am going to try different formats for this segment. I might add some commentary to break up the pictures a bit and possibly use larger pictures in the mix to make it visually more appealing. Let me know what you like and don't like on the Facebook page! One last thing, If you click on the picture, the full photograph should appear. The gallery cuts them down a bit to make them fit, but the full photograph can be seen by clicking on it.
Newsletter Editor: Chuck Ranney, phone: (802) 257-3053 email: [email protected] The Club's August meeting will be held on Monday, August 6, 2018 at 6:30 pm in the Events Room of the China Buffet Restaurant, 801 Putney Road, Brattleboro, Vermont. Agenda
Club Hats 3. Cruises to nursing homes 4. Other business President's NoteHello Everyone. Thank you to everyone that showed up for the Brattleboro On Wheels show. And a big thank you to everyone that helped promote it! The Rotary Club was very pleased with the changes we suggested. I have been contacted by the Guilford Fair committee and preparations are underway for this year's event. One more plea for someone to take over the newsletter. This is Chuck's last one. Please contact me, or any officer, if you might like to give it a try. Bruce Gauld Editor's FarewellAfter more than 120 newsletters, it is time to say "Farewell." For a person who flunked a marking period of English in high school, doing the newsletter has been a challenge! I have tried to keep the newsletter useful, and easy to read. The Maynard Area Auto Club deserves a heartfelt "Thank you" for it has been the primary source for the events listing. The current and past presidents, Bruce Gauld, and Gus Williams in particular, have been supportive, instructive, and reliable in providing notes for our readers. My late wife, Elaine, contributed a lot of help in the early years of doing the newsletter, particularly as a proofreader and as a grammar checker. As for my future, I hope to resurrect one or more of the vehicles hiding in my backyard, as well as do more traveling. I will still be available to "consult" on the newsletter and, maybe, even contribute to it. Thank you to everyone who has given me input and/or assistance in one way or another. Chuck Ranney Note that our Events section will now be found in our "Calendar" Segment on the website: Click the link to see the upcoming shows. Upcoming Events of Note:
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EditorWayne is a 52-year-old stock analyst with a penchant for classic cars and the martial arts. He takes his daughters on trips all over New England in his 1972 Buick Centurion. Archives
June 2019
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