[middletown]

My story is really not mine. While I had always loved anything with wheels and or an engine I had a particular sweet spot for Hot Rods; still do. I love all types of cars and desire to own many types but when I could not afford a 57 Chevy in High School, 1983, I settled for a Mercury Montego MX which I was very hard on but loved. This purchase moved me into the Ford camp and while I love some aspect of many cars it’s cheaper and easier to stay with what you know. My next car was a Red on Red 64 Galaxie 500XL 390, 4sp that I brought back to life, hopped up, from 1988-1992. So how does this relate to this topic…I’m getting closer. In 1995 I was taking classes at our local JC on course for a career change and I met a beautiful young woman on the first day of one of my classes. A couple mornings later my brother needed my Galaxie so he dropped me off for class and she was outside and saw us drive up. She loved the car and that sealed the deal and we will have been married for 10 years this September. Now for the A…... We got married in 2000 and I sold the Galaxie to get the down payment for a house. During this “toy” carless period we happened on a Model A meet while driving around checking out yard sales and she fell in love with a RPU that was at the meet. She explained that she had always wanted one but did not know what it was; she liked old cars but knew nothing about them. At the spring Pleasanton 2001 meet I found a little yellow 1928 RPU sitting on a trailer for sale. I not seen others for sale but I never really looked either. I could not afford the little truck and it needed a lot of work but the gentleman selling it told me it did run and drive but needed work. I made a call to a buddy to secure a loan and then called my wife to tell her I had just bought her the truck; she was very excited. I picked up the truck after the check cleared and fiddled with it for a weekend to get it started. I borrowed a trailer from a buddy and we took it to a car show in Lakeport in June. We parked a few blocks from the fairgrounds so we could drive it into the show. My wife spent hours talking with people that came to look at her little truck. Local MAFCA members offered assistance and knowledge and she was very excited. We moved into our first home that summer and drove it around the neighborhood on nice evenings but never ventured far from home. I enjoyed the truck but I wanted to hot rod it fortunately I got a huge thumbs down each time I broached the subject. In 2003 the driver’s side rear tire blew up with a bang while I was watching TV in the house so I pulled it into the garage and life flew by while the A languished under a pile junk in the garage. In December of 2009 I needed the garage space so the kids and I cleaned up around it a pushed it into day light for the first time in 6 years. We got it all cleaned up and I put on a used tire and tube so I could move it around. My son and I started working on it in the evenings and on a crisp January morning we took a spin around the block; the bed loaded with smiling kids. In March I had all the kids helping me put new tires and tubes on it and I showed my son how to drive it. This April my wife asked me what I wanted for my birthday so I told her I wanted to drive the RPU into town for Breakfast; a whopping 3.5 miles each way - we made it. The whole family is now hooked on this little truck. It runs rough, smokes, blows oil, the doors don't stay closed well and I don't fit behind the wheel very well but lately I have been moving my 64 Galaxie Convertible out of the way to get it out for short jaunts around the neighborhood, I guess I’m addicted. I’m not sure if I’ll add another A at some point but you never know, after all I didn’t even know I wanted the first one.

Have a great day,

Joe