Editor's Notebook - July 2008

the editor's NOTEbook
BERT EISENHOUR

WITH SUMMER OFFICIALLY HERE, we look forward to an improvement in the weather, and the sight of "topless" 'Birds on the highways and byways of the Midwest!

Apologies to new members, Don & Kathy Roerkohl, whose name was inadvertently misspelled in this column last month. (The correct spelling appeared on page 5 - WELCOME.)

photo caption: Jeff Mahl, Great Grandson of George Schuster, winning driver of the 1908 Great Race, cranks the (American entry) 1907 Thomas Flyer. This winning car, on loan from Harrah's Reno collection, was also a participant in the 1986 Great American Race! Photo courtesy of Jeff Mahl - http://www.thegreatautorace.com/

The CTCC Calendar for July features the 2nd Annual "Keil Special" on the 19th. As an added attraction this year, Len and Mary have included Brats in the food service line-up! If you don t care to have your T-Bird out after curfew, plan to join in the cookout portion of the event. See page 7 for the schedule.

The cover photo this month features a 1955 Ford Motor Company advertisement, one of the fifty-five 1955 photos included in the Thunderbird Anthology CD. The August issue will feature a stock '55 at Daytona!

The CTCI 48 in 08 driving extravaganza will be in the Midwest as indicated on page 10. Area overnights are: Thursday, Aug. 21st - COMFORT SUITES, 2620 S. Dirksen Pkwy., Springfield, IL (217) 753-4000. Friday/Saturday, Aug. 22 and 23 - MADISON MARRIOT WEST, 1313 John Q. Hammons Dr., Middleton, WI (608) 831-2000. NOTE: If you plan on staying at the Marriot, ask for the S. Wisc. T-Bird - 'Birds in the Dells' - club rate. For complete info/routing, see http://www.home.earthlink.net/~48in08

A highlight of the upcoming edition of the Geneva Concours (August 22-24) will be the appearance of Jeff Mahl, Great Grandson of the winning driver of the 1908 Great Race, George Schuster. To commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Race, we include a picture (back cover) of Jeff with the (original) 1907 Thomas Flyer!

Be sure to mark your calendars for a busy month of activities in August: ANNUAL CTCC PICNIC on Saturday, the 16th (page 9) and the DAY AT THE HANGAR outing on Sunday, the 24th (page 8).

From our Letters Dept:
Dear Mr. Eisenhour, I very much enjoy the CTCC web site and especially the Tech Tips link. I was wondering if I may submit an ad for your next printing of Birdland? I have an original '56 soft top for sale. I have included a print out of the ad and $2.00. I also do have the car it came off of but do not wish to sell that. It's a very nice western car. Thank you.
Yours truly, Tony Kiedrowski


FATHER'S DAY AT OAK BROOK....
While visiting the Annual Classic Car Club display of approximately 100 vehicles at the Oak Brook Shopping Center, my son and I ran into some CTCC members who had their cars in the show. Mike Pavlak showcased his '57 Star-mist Blue while Ron explained their newly acquired 1957 Super-Charged Studebaker Golden Hawk's history. A bit of tweaking to raise the boost on the Super-Charger resulted in an engine output rated at approximately 340-hp! Pete Kramer had his 1956 on display at this well attended event, in spite of the rainy start to the morning. Some of the "regular" Classics were not on-the-scene due to the threat of more rain. Fortunately, there was no further deluge, and the owners were on their way home at 6:00 p.m.

Enjoy A Safe And Happy 4th Of July!