I.M.C.A. Old Timers was formed to promote and preserve I.M.C.A. (International Motor Contest Association) history, including the preservation and excellent restoration of former I.M.C.A. race cars; to maintain records and documents of I.M.C.A. history; recognition of former drivers, owners, mechanics and others involved in I.M.C.A. history; and provide an opportunity for the social and technical interchange of members interested in auto racing history.
My first experience in a racecar was when I was about 7 years old. I sat on the floor and held onto the roll bars while Pat O’Reilly drove up and down township roads breaking in a new “Straight Eight” in the old Buick Coupe.
Next came the coupe. We campaigned this car through the 1964 season with first Pat and then Dale Shillinger at the wheel.
Zuki Wrobel was driving for us by then and only put one dent in this car. But it was a doozy. July 4th 1969 down at Fairmont. It was the third restart cause by the same guy who hit Zuki going into turn one. About the only thing not bent on the car was the roll cage. The torque tube was ripped off the rear end, the transmission case was cracked, the front axle came out of the car. We thought the engine was OK, but even a main cap came off.
The next car the family was involved with was the Lake Ranger. Pat was again the driver. This was a beautiful car and I understand it is now in California. I remember how upset my mother was when she found my little brother wandering around the yard with his hands taped together. Harvey and Arleigh found him trying to help with an engine overhaul by stuffing nuts and bolts in the spark plug holes. Needless to say it is not easy to pull the top end off a Ranger just to make sure he was not succesful. (bottom end if it is in a plane) This was a beautiful car and I am not sure if there was a single bolt on the chassis that were not allen head.
We built a new car for the ’65 season. Over the winter, Harvey took the old sedan we had had behind the barn for several years and put a new race car together. This is the first car I helped to build and maintain. I was 12 and began doing solo mechanical work on the family and race cars, changing the oil, water and fuel pumps etc. I also had the job of siphoning the methanol from the 55 gal. drum into the fuel cans. At 15 I was building and tuning the engines.
