Rods & Relics of Lincoln Hills, P. O. Box 93, Lincoln, CA Volume 4 Issue 4 April 2011

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1 INSI DE TH IS ISSUE : Club Meetings are held on the 3rd Thursday of each month at 6:30 PM at Strikes 5681 Lone Tree Blvd Rocklin Everyone is welcome! Rods & Relics of Lincoln Hills, P. O. Box 93, Lincoln, CA Volume 4 Issue 4 April 2011 Here we go. A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT March was a wet and windy month! Two outings were canceled due to the weather: the ENGEO Open house and the Little League Parade. We are all looking forward to sunny days in April and May. The car shows/ events will start to pick up. Your Board is busy planning and looking ahead to the rest of the year. New activities are being studied and you will hear more as we move forward. Little League games have begun. We are sponsoring the Junior Lincoln Pirates (PIT). Local games are played at the Mc Bean Park on the D Street side of the park. All games start at 6:00 p.m. Here are April s local games: Friday, April 8 and Thursday, April 14. The away games are played at the Tri-City Field located at 3rd Street in Rocklin, just off of Sunset: Tuesday, April 5; Monday April 11; Tuesday, April 26 and Thursday, April 28. Be sure to wear your Car Club apparel. Let them know you are there and say Hello! to the coaches. Members, show your support! Your help is needed to assist in various roles to ensure a very successful Car Show on Saturday, June 4. Call Ray Geiger ( or Kent Parsell ( ). In the meantime, get that vehicle of yours ready to show and share! Rich Ragan ACTIVITIES FOR APRIL MISSION STATEMENT The Rods & Relics Car 10 - Club STOCKTON is an organization SWAP MEET & CAR formed SHOW, by SAN individuals JOAQUIN FAIR- GROUNDS, 6 AM TO 3 PM INFO AT: with an interest in the restoration, preservation and KOOL enjoyment APRIL NIGHTS of REDDING OR collector vehicles such as: Antiques, Classics, Special Interest, and 6 Modified vehicles. AM 4 PM. INFO SACRAMENTO-CLASSIC CAR & PARTS SWAP MEET, ARCO ARENA, BAKERSFIELD SWAP MEET, KERN COUNTY FAIR- GROUNDS, INFO: GREG AUBURN OLD TOWN CAR SHOW, 4 PM 8 M, INFO: JIM CAPITAL CITY CRUISERS 7TH ANNUAL SPRING FEST, RED HAWK CASINO, AM TO 3 PM 29 MAY 1 BAKERSFIELD 35TH ANNUAL NSRA WEST ST RODS NATIONALS KERN COUNTY FAIR- GROUNDS INFO; HAPPY TRAILS BOARD OF DIRECTORS Rich Ragan President Ray Geiger Vice President Craig Kirkpatrick Treasurer Julie McVey Secretary George Funk Membership Alan Taylor Activity Director Kent Parsell Member-At-Large MISSION STATEMENT The Rods & Relics Car Club is an organization formed by individuals with an interest in the restoration, preservation and enjoyment of collector vehicles such as: Antiques, Classics, Special Interest and Modified vehicles. IN THE HEADLIGHTS 2 MINUTES-GEN MTG 3 MINUTES GEN MTG 4 ACCC, PAL, C SHOW 5 GLOVEBOX NOTES 6 TECH TIPS 7 CORRECTED CALENDAR 8

2 2 Caught in the Headlights GETTING TO KNOW Rich Ragan I was born in 1936, in Cleveland, Ohio. My Dad was involved in sales in automobile-related businesses. My Grand father designed the Columbia 2-speed rear end. He was associated with the Duesenberg Company. I lived in Oroville, Ohio and Battle Creek, Michigan before moving to Chicago. This was home during WWII. After the war, it was off to California in the family s 1939 Packard convertible, in the back jump-seat. We settled in Oakland and then moved to Arcadia and Sierra Madre, where my Dad worked for the White Motor Company. On my 13th birthday, my Dad said, Let s go for a ride. We drove to a used car lot and he pulled up next to a black, two-door car. He said, Happy birthday! WOW!! My first car a 1933 Plymouth! We had a long driveway and I got pretty good at driving back and forth and learning how to operate a floor shift. I was hooked! When I got my driver s license, I bought a door Ford Sedan for $ It had a flathead engine and column shift. Only a few cars could keep up with me during local street races. I was invited to join a car club sponsored by the Monrovia Police Department called The Varmints. Our drag plaque was like a license plate with the Bugs Bunny character and our club name on it. Our club, along with two others, was involved in overseeing and running a drag strip located in the parking lot of the L.A. County Fairgrounds. The Pomona Valley Timing Association was born. (I still have my club jacket!) Little did I know the role this would play in nation-wide drag racing. Wally Parks, publisher of Hot Rod Magazine showed up one Sunday to see what we were up to. As a result, the first drag race sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association was held in The top speed was by a modified track roadster driven by Art Chrisman: 125 mph. That was fast and the rest is history! My Dad was transferred to Salt Lake City. At seventeen, I worked in the parts room for the local White Motor Distributor. I sold my 40 Ford and bought a 1949 white Ford convertible. It was stock except for the muffler which had a nice low rumble. Another transfer took us to Denver, Colorado where I graduated from East High my third high school. After graduation I was off to the University of Colorado in Boulder. My family moved into the mountains above Golden. The road from Lookout Mountain down to Golden had lots of hairpin turns. I bought a red 1952 MGTD. I remember roaring up and down the mountain in the good old days! My family had moved, once again, settling in Tiburon, California. College became the main focus and it was there that I met the girl who would become my wife. I joined the Air Force and was stationed at Hamilton Field in northern California. We got married in 1958 and one week later bought one-way tickets to Hawaii. I completed my college work at the University of Hawaii and worked as a night manager at the Waikikian Hotel located next to the Hilton Hawaiian Village. I found a 1955 black Ford convertible and it became the family car. My son was born in 1961 and we would drive around the island with the top down. We returned to the mainland and I continued my education at Boulder by completing a Masters Degree in Personnel and Industrial Relations. The family vehicle was now a 1963 new Buick Station Wagon. Upon graduation, it was back to Marin County. I joined Wells Fargo Bank and served as a Personnel Officer at the Data Processing Division. I ended my career there as Manager of the Corporate Training Department. My daughter was born in 1965 and we moved to Concord. I had bought two 1955 Ford convertibles with the idea of ending up with one great car. Unfortunately, a divorce came along and the cars were sold. In 1976, I started my own consulting business, The Ragan Group. I kept my interest in hot rods alive by attending the Oakland Roadster show every year until they went south. I spent Sundays at the Fremont Drags. I soon owned a 1969 Ford Mustang Grande which was one hot car. Then came a 1973 Camaro. When I married Elna in 1978, and became stepdad to her three children, we had a total of five teenagers! The family took center stage until they went off to college or married. In 1989, I bought the 1923 T-Bucket at the Good Guys show in Pleasanton. I entered it in local car shows. In 1999, I did a body-off restoration: Steve Martinez did the paint job: House of Kolor s Candy Apple Red (Elna s favorite color) and Bob Devine, noted upholsterer, did the soft top and interior. We moved to Sun City Lincoln Hills in I joined the Club in 2006, shortly after it was chartered. I was elected to the Board in March, 2008 and served as Treasurer for two years, was re-elected in March 2010, and was selected as President. My term will end in March, Elna and I enjoy the many friendships, the camaraderie, and the extensive variety of activities that we participate in. Rich Ragan

3 3 GENERAL MEETING OF THE RODS & RELICS CAR CLUB MARCH 17, 2011 President Rich Ragan introduced the speaker for this month, Steve Krueger of the Police Activity League. PAL is one of the local organizations to receive a third of the donation from our yearly Car Show. His presentation was well done and inspired members to be proud of our donation. Following a short break, Rich Ragan opened the meeting by calling for the Secretary s report. Julie McVey, Secretary asked if all had read the minutes of the February 17, 2011 as posted in our Newsletter. Judi Fibush made a motion to approve the minutes, Dennis Doane 2 nd the motion and the membership approved the motion. Craig Kirkpatrick, Treasurer reported a beginning balance of $2, with no new revenue and $84.55 in expenses for plaques, leaving an ending balance of $ Julie McVey made a motion to approve the Treasurer s report, Ralph Garcia 2 nd the motion which was then approved by the membership. Alan Taylor, Activity Director first thanked his wife, Donna, for helping him get started in his new job. Recent events: Murrill Conley won the Peoples Choice Award at the 21 st Century Car Show on Saturday, March 12 th. Ralph Garcia won 3 rd place at the same car show. Tom Atkinson placed first in the Modified category at the Westside Elementary Car Show. A really good start to the Car Show season. With the possibility of rain so high for the Little League Parade planned for Saturday, the 19 th it was postponed to March 26 th. Kent Parsell will be the point person for this activity. The team we are sponsoring, the Pirates, will be in the parade. Alan then defined what the Point Person for a sanctioned event will be responsible for: Identify location and time to meet to begin the trip. Keep members who have said they will attend informed of the status of the activity: to go or not to go. Keep a list of those who are participating along with their cell phone number. Contact the activity to see if parking for the group together is available. Lead and rear cars in the caravan should have cb s or cell phones to keep in contact if someone develops a problem or breaks down. Identify the route everyone is taking, such as a Google map, and where they should meet up if someone gets lost. All cars should have their headlights on so others can see they are together. Criteria for a Club Sanctioned Event Charitable donations for Car Show proceeds. Car Club sponsored car shows Feel good shows Where we will make a statement promoting our club Where our club would like to go as a group. Rod Runs as defined, also need a Point Person Activities where members drive to attend a garage tour, or other activity such as lunch out of town at Whiteys, Attaberry s Reefs Garage in Woodland, a wine tour in Calistoga etc. These could be one day trips or weekend trips, whichever several members would like to attend.

4 4 The Red Hawk Casino Show on April 23 rd has 200 entries so far with a limit set at 300 so if you want to attend, fill in your registration and send it. They support toys for children at Christmas and is a Capital City Club hosted event. Clark Smith and Dennis Malone will be the Point Persons for this event. Rich Ragan is the Point Person for the Open House at ENGEO s open house on the 24 th of March at 4:30. George Funk, Membership Chairman first thanked his wife, Karen, for all of her help and support. He is now keeping the list of those who attend our meetings. He introduced Jerry Annis & wife of Sun City who own a 1936 Ford convertible sedan. Jerry was attending his 2 nd meeting and was overwhelmingly voted in by the membership. Ed Banco was then introduced as a prospective member to our club, he owns a 1960 Chevy. George is working on a Membership Kit for new members. It will include the Mission Statement, a Renewal Statement to update information, a Membership Roster (which will have updates in the Newsletter) and a Club pin. George stated that although membership is $25 a year we have only charged $12.50 for new members after January. Ray Geiger asked the members if they agreed with this practice and if so, it would go into our new Mission Statement. The members voted and it was approved. Kent Parsell, Member at Large & Car Show Co- Chairman reported that he & Ray had attended the Vendor Class in Auburn the class explained food safety and how to spot bad vendors. It clarified the current rules for food vendors, in addition to the fees involved. We have 63 cars pre-registered and 20 T shirts sold. Ray Geiger reported trophies have been sponsored at present. Murrill Conley and Dennis Malone both said they wanted to sponsor a trophy. The Umpqua Bank and Thunder Valley Casino are confirmed as sponsors. Sierra Pacific Foundation, a division of Sierra Pacific will also be sponsors. George Funk and Dwight Johnson are co-chairmen for the Judging of the cars on Car Show Day. Those that are interested in helping on this committee can join them to set up the ground rules on Monday, March 28 at 313 Prunella Ct, Sun City Lincoln Hills. Jon Solander will be photographing the cars as they come in to the show, a member of the Parking Committee will also be helping. Safety/Informational Vests will be purchased for the members to wear to identify those able to help our participants and guests. OLD BUSINESS Patches: the 3 size was selected with a white background. The 2" decals with a white background were approved. NEW BUSINESS Karen Funk of the Assistance League of Greater Placer County, which was founded in1987, gave a brief rundown on all the assistance their organization has given to over 8000 people. School supplies, tutoring, clothing, visiting seniors, toys for children and raising funds for help in general. Murrill Conley & Dennis Malone wish to host a party at the Pavillion Sports Center in Sun City. They will make the arrangements. It will be a club potluck. Their request was approved by all. A request for a Halloween Party was delegated to our new Activity Director, Alan Taylor. Clark Smith made a motion to adjourn and Dorothy Atkinson 2 nd the motion. All approved, the meeting was adjourned. Respectfully submitted, Julie McVey

5 5 VOLUME 4, ISSUE 4 ACCC REPORT BY RAY GEIGER The ACCC Spaghetti Feed Fundraise was a great success. The event was sold out and a good time was had by all who attended. It was a chance to see old friends and meet some new ones and also visit the California Auto Museum. I understand they signed up a number of new individual members. The Legislative Committee meeting, originally scheduled for March 5th, was cancelled and proposed legislation is on hold pending a clarification of existing law. Assemblyman Jefferies office has sent a letter to the Legislative counsel ( the lawyers for the legislature ) for an official legal opinion about the protection currently enjoyed by pre-76 vehicles. When we get a response we will determine the best course to follow. ACCC now has a Facebook page, you can access it from a link on ACCC homepage at or directly from Facebook if you are a Facebook user. On display at the CAMBER POLICE ACTIVITY LEAGUE CAR SHOW SPONSORS President Rich Ragan presents Youth Services Officer Steve Krueger of the Police Activity League with a plaque commemorating his visit to our March Meeting to inform us of what the PAL does for the youth of Lincoln. PAL has been selected by our membership to receive a third of the donation from our yearly Car Show. The Lincoln Youth Center s purpose is to give the kids a secure place to go after school. The Center is run primarily by part-time paid staff and volunteers from 3 to 6 PM daily. They are the bridge between the cops and the kids, and with our help it will continue to work. Gold Sponsor Gold Sponsor WAFFLE FARM 815 Twelve Bridges Dr Lincoln, CA RIEBES AUTO PARTS 20 Locations Bronze Sponsor Sierra Pacific Foundation Sierra Pacific Industry 1445 Hwy 65, Lincoln 64 DAYS LEFT

6 6 Trivia Question In what years were the Edsel model available? NOTES FROM THE GLOVEBOX ( Answer below ) Breakfast at the Waffle Farm has become a regular tradition for many member families. Everyone is welcome to attend, sunny days bring your show ride. Waffle Farm Breakfasts for April are the 12th & 26th. We don t caravan anymore, we meet up at the Waffle Farm, 815 Twelve Bridges Dr. Lincoln at 8:30 AM for a fine breakfast with a bunch of really nice folks who have even better cars and love to talk about them. 'Ya'll Come! CENTURY 21 HOSTS FIRST CAR SHOW OF 2011 March 12th was the first Car Show this year in Lincoln. A Spaghetti Sauce Cook Off, a Bake Sale and three bands to entertain the crowd of people eager to enjoy the sunshine and warm weather. Century 21 Real Estate hosted the event which will benefit the Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. Members enjoying the day were: Murrill & Elaine Conley who also took Best of Show 1st Place, Ralph Garcia came in 3rd place. Craig & Donna Kirkpatrick, Pat & Tom Kirkbride, Judy Rezendes, Jon Solander, Ed & Julie McVey, Al Mangini brought his son-in-law and 2 cars &, Dave Baxter. Dennis Thorn & Dennis Malone also attended but left their cars home just in case it decided to start raining again. SUGGESTION OR REQUEST This must be the Request Page for this month. I have had several members tell me how much they enjoy the Tech Tips page, and have used the suggestions Steve is sending our way. Is there anything you really want to know about, something you are working on or would like to work on if you knew how? Steve has a wealth of information just waiting to be tapped so just let me know what you want to hear about and I will send it on. You don t want me writing a column like his FOR SURE! A request from Ray Marchese of the Cappuccino Cruisers: I received a request from a young lady getting married May 1st outside of Lincoln. She is looking for someone with a 40 s or 50 s restored truck to take pictures with. I thought of your club as you are a lot closer than I am. I saw from your web site there are one or two, please contact me at: HARDLY A DRIVER IS NOW ALIVE WHO PASSED ON HILLS AT 75 Burma Shave How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire? Trivia Answer: 1958, 1959, The 1959 Ford Edsel

7 7 TECH HINTS & TIPS ARE YOU REALLY READY TO RUMBLE? By Steve Fowler The weather is finally getting better, the rod runs and car shows are coming, and your winter project is finally ready to hit the road, whether it be a whole new car or just some improving on your current ride. But is it really ready, or have you perhaps forgotten to tighten some bolt or fill the rear axle? So perhaps a bit of a checklist is in order to prevent mishaps that could damage the car, endanger you, or at the least, earn you a Yugo (as in you go for parts, cause the car is stuck out on the road) Award. Are all the lights working? Low beams, high beams (and aimed well so you can see and not blind others). Taillights, brake lights, turn signals? And are they bright enough for drivers behind you to see clearly? Remember, they are used to really bright lights, and a third, high mount to help them anticipate your moves. What about a clutch switch so it won t start in gear? With a modern, fuel-injected engine, it may start with just a tap on the key and the idle speed control acts like a cruise control- the car will drive off on it s own! Is the throttle linkage set up correctly so it can t go over-center and is there at least one, preferably two, return springs, like production cars have had since the 70 s? If you are using a solid linkage like older cars had, is it set up so it won t jam wide open if a mount breaks and the engine torques over? Or it may tear up a fan shroud, chew up a radiator, or bang into other parts (like the battery). Maybe a safety strap or torque link is in order. Does the brake pedal go all the way to the floor before it stops? Are they bled, and if so, do you need more travel or a larger bore master to get better pedal action? And is there a return spring on the brakes? You can easily add one by using a hardware store compression spring over the top of the pushrod with a couple of washers to push against. Are the brake hoses long enough to allow for full suspension and steering action, and are they secured in such a way they won t get pinched? What about a parking brake? Do you have one, and will it hold the car on a slope? Check your lug nuts while you re at it, just in case. Did you recheck all the fluids, including that axle, and are all the drain plugs secure? Okay, it runs and stops. Will it steer safely? Check all the bolts and nuts, and make sure cotter pins are in place, and by the way, is the steering wheel attached properly, or did you leave it loose for the upholsterer so he could get it out of the way? Is the steering linkage smooth all the way and consistent both left and right, and is the column and shaft positioned so it won t interfere with engine motion and vice-versa? If not set up correctly, it could go over-center (like locked Vice-Grips) in a full-lock turn. In coming up with this list, I utilized much of what NSRA looks for in a safety inspection as well as a couple of articles on the topic. With 40+ years of working in the industry, modifying cars, and observing students and other rodders, for every item I ve mentioned, I could relate a horror story, but there isn t room for that here, that s for bench racing with my friends. But there have been some very scary moments along the way. I used to play in the homebuilt aircraft hobby, and you never left the ground until at least a couple sets of eyes went over everything, and you stayed close to the home field for quite a while until you were sure of everything. A mistake in an airplane can be more than just embarrassing, ask John Denver (oh, that s right, you can t! It cost him his life). Not a bad plan with your latest car project, as well. So check it over carefully, make sure the car is ready for the road, and have fun driving this season. Hope to see you out on the highway- Ya gotta drive em! Happy Motoring, SF

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