Graf #5 things

Graf #5 Things

It was a 1964 Pontiac LeMans convertible. This wasn’t your stock version Pontiac, oh no, dad and the guys got a hold of it and had made some changes over the years. I have to say I loved that car not only because it was manufactured the same year I was born, it was given to me on my 19th birthday by my dad. The exterior was painted bronze, the convertible top was cream color and the interior was purple. It was rear wheel drive, limited slip rear end with wide Remington tires, aluminum mag wheels and bucket seats. Boy oh boy was she a head turner and not just because of how she looked, but how she sounded. The engine had been replaced with a 400 cc big block 4 barrel, it had dual exhaust, a close ratio Muncie 4 speed manual transmission with lock in reverse and a Hurst shifter. I’ve heard the nick name “rock crusher” for those Muncie’s but I always thought the tranny made more of a whiney sound. That car would scream power and it was so much fun to drive. I swear it took me weeks just to learn how to go from stop to move without squealing the tires although it made me smile each time I spun them out. Once I got the hang of driving her, I learned how to get rubber and mean it! I could smoke those tires a half mile down the road. I was that girl with a hot rod at 19! How friggin cool was that!

My most memorable drive was one on I-95 heading north up past the Hogan road exit. I was alone in the car so I have no witnesses to attest the story except maybe the guy who was “trying” to race me up the highway. He had one of those import sports cars, couldn’t tell you to this day what kind, but he made it clear he wanted to see what my old car had under the hood. He pulled up beside the driver side, looked over at me and revved his engine. First time I looked back at him, I just shook my head back and forth, like I was saying “no, don’t think so pal”. This guy just wouldn’t give up and he was really beginning to irritate me. While driving side by side on his 4th attempt to race me, I turned my head to the left, looked over at him and gave him the “oh, yeah, you wanna race?” look…. So I dumped her down to 3rd gear and stepped on it. By the time I hit 4th gear, I was long gone. I glanced down to look at my speedometer and the needle was buried, I was going well over 120 mph. It was the one and only time I’ve ever done anything that crazy before as far as driving fast is concerned. I can still remember that feeling, not only one of victory but how the force of speed made my heart feel like it would explode out of my chest. Unfortunately, I don‘t have that car any longer, but I’ll forever have the memories created during the time I did own it.