First Studebaker

[Bamajak]

This is a picture of the first Studebaker I really remember. I was a Chevy guy so it was not a priority the notice other brands.
My brother worked at the Texaco station 3 blocks away. The owner Paul Cartino had this 53 Studebaker and raced it in B gas
with a 283 Chevy with 6 2's. Paul owned the dragstrip so he would pay me with a free pass written on my arm for cleaning the
valve covers after the weekly valve adjustment. I would ride to the strip in the race car on the trailer.

[Caso wannabe]

[JRoberts]

Gee Jack I have seen that picture in a number of places and always wondered what the history behind it was.....and now I know. Good to know a friend is part of that history.

[T.J lavallee]

Jack...that's a great story. How old were you when all this excitement was happening?

[t walgamuth]

I had a paper route from age 11 til I graduated hi school. There was a young fellow who had a nice 55 chebby two door who lived on my route. It started out as a nice clean shiny car.

Then he started going to Bunker hill drag strip and running the car. Soon it had rough radiused wheel wells like the study in the pic, and then fuel injection and finally traction bars made from rough plate steel, which were about six feet long with a bolt holding the front end so it cold pivot and the other end welded to the axle...and in place of the nice shiny paint was red oxide primer.

Got bit by the racing bug.

[junior]

what a cool photo... riding in the car while being towed? man those were the days! I remember being allowed to ride above the roof in my uncles camper on his pick up truck. It was one of the 'new' style campers with full width Plexiglas bubble style windows above the cab. Stuff like this modern day kids don't get to be a part of...our society sure has changed. Across the street from my grandfather's house was a guy that street raced a really raw 53 stude coupe with a big block mopar in it with a 4spd. I never saw the car running, but my cousin raced him in his 69 charger 440/4spd and could not take him. I also remember a sweet 55 chevy stockbody dragcar at our local gas station with a small block engine with what seemed like 2 feet of setback to it...the owner would take it out on the highway in front of the station to test and tune it...nobody ever said a word, cops never blinked an eye. I was a little too young to participate in such fun, but old enough to remember seeing all the cool car action. I needed to be born 10 years earlier. Cheers, junior

[Bamajak]

Jack...that's a great story. How old were you when all this excitement was happening?

I was around 14 or 15 did not have a drivers license yet I would ride up to the station on my bike.