 Elden Mk10B #AM73-49 - 140/1 post-paint. The build begins.
Its going to be a stunner when it fires up for the first time. Cheers Mike.  A few months back, All American Racers offered up for sale a selection of commemorative bottle stoppers with the famous Gurney "G" with one of the famous numbers run by Dan Gurney and other AAR team entries engraved within.
So you can imagine our heartfelt surprise when these arrived on Friday. #46 was never an AAR factory team number, but its the number we run on our privateer Eagle DGF which we have raced for the last decade, often at the pointy end of the grid, greatly loved for its rarity and association with AAR and the legends that created it. Its a thrill to race, and an honor to take to the track for each outing. #66 is the car number of the first Eagle that joined our collection in 2004, as famously driven by Mark Donohue for Roger Penske in 1973. It was the car that got us into vintage race cars, and the rich heritage that is ingrained in every inch of an Eagle racing machine. Its a great privilege to be associated with AAR, and we're thankful for these amazing gifts. Seeing #46 within the Gurney "G" is something we will never forget.  Today, Elden Mk10B (#AM73-49 - 140/1) gets painted. It'll be a midtone grey, just a pinch lighter than dove grey.
 Our 1962 Lotus Seven in May, 2008 when it took part in the Hershey Hillclimb with former owner Jim Sieling.
Sieling had parked the car decades before to raise his family, and this was his final outing with it, brought out for one last go.  That metallic green? Our 1962 Lotus Seven's paint color from around 1964-1968. Still found in patches beneath and around the nooks of this delightful little gem of a car.
It'd make a luscious nail polish color, not so much a Lotus Seven color.  New AVO shocks for the Seven, as delightful purchased from Tony Ingram of Lotus7.com. #SB1290 was sitting on dead shocks when it came to us, so these will be much needed relief for the 1000 lb. beast.
A while back, the extraordinary duo of Aaron Schuster and Ethan Shippert said they had some items soon-to-be enroute to KMPR to join our collection. Some stunning Gotti 73S wheels to give the proper period look for our All American Racers Eagle DGF arrived a few weeks later, and this past Friday, another package arrived.
Its contents included Gualter Salles' 1999 All American Racers suit in which he contested seven races for the pride of Santa Ana during its final season in CART competition. Its a unique suit in that it is not in the normal Castrol team colors of green, white and red for 1999, but blue and black. Salles replaced Alex Barron mid-season, but was himself replaced by Raul Boesel and Andrea Montermini after his stint, which included an 11th-place finish at Detroit. Salles actually raced for three teams during the 1999 season, including Payton/Coyne Racing, AAR, and Bettenhausen Racing, with his best finish of 10th coming aboard Bettenhausen's Reynard 98i / Mercedes IC108E at Surfer's Paradise. As well, the Shippert Racing Services squadron sent a wicked vintage hoodie adorned with a bunch of early 1980s racing patches and even more SRS swag for the seasons to come. Way too cool. The generosity displayed speaks volumes as to how much they care about the history of motor racing, and the genuine camaraderie that exists in our niche layer of the sport. Top blokes- unreal actually. A ridiculous amount of thanks are in order!  Its weird not having the annual KMPR Holiday Shindig this year. But as previously stated, it has merely been postponed until a better time.
Sadly, 2020 has taken a few of the wonderful people who make the journey to see us every December. It hurts. Yet we make sure those closest to us are remembered, as we do the memories that those who made the cars in our collection more than just sheets of aluminum, steel and fiberglass. So this holiday season, give a thought to those whom we lost this year, and make sure those nearest to them are doing okay- holidays are always tough without those we care for. Perhaps moreso this year. [Ron Nelson Photo from 2016] |
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Kettle Moraine Preservation & Restoration
KettleMorainePR@gmail.com Hubertus, Wisconsin 'Where History and Integrity Meet' |