When you grow up in a rural area, even a rural area of California, cars equal freedom. I remember around the age of 10 or 11 thinking that I would never make it to 16 and my driver's license. Saving money for a car was an early task. For two summers in high school I had the opportunity to work for the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC), planting trees and building trails in the El Dorado National Forest south of Lake Tahoe. I saved those earnings with maniacal ferocity. At the end of the second summer I had amassed around $3,000.
I knew I wanted something fast and something cool. But what? A friend from the YCC worked part time at a wrecking yard in Elk Grove, CA and he had a lead. The shop had a Chevelle SS that was partially damaged. My friend said all it really needed was a front fender. Dad took me down to look at the car and wrote the check. We found a front fender off an El Camino that fit. I was officially a car owner!
 |
| State Highway 88 - Pioneer, California |
The Chevelle was dangerous. Amador County, California is full of twisty mountain roads, the worst possible environment for a muscle car, particularly a muscle car driven by a 17 year old. To be blunt, I'm lucky I did not kill myself or any of my friends in that beast. But it was fast. And it was fun. I had "the fastest car in the county" until Rick Cutsinger got that damned Hemi Charger.
Anyway, I owned the SS for less than a year and sold it when I started college for about what I'd paid. But it was a good start.
Car: 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS
Owned: 1980-81
Music: Elvis Costello, The Who, The Clash
Rating: 3/5 stars (Not great–but my first!)
No comments:
Post a Comment