[55chevy]

Here is another post of Larry's I feel is fitting for this feature. This is when Larry announced he was bringing his '70 Baldwin/Motion Phase III GT 454 to SCR7 back in 2004.



"I finally picked up a good used '97 Dodge Diesel Dually to pull the Motion vette with. So many on the forum have expressed a desire to see it unrestored, this will be your chance.

Please remember to be kind to it when you see how shabby it looks. It was a long time ago and I had a bad case of Racing fever and when I spun a bearing in it setting FTD at a auto-X at Hallett motor raceway, I just took it home and parked it in the back yard. I fully planed on going through the motor and getting it out to cruse the local drive-in with but never seemed to have the time.

Back then, I was working all the time on my 69 L-88 SCCA Vette, so both of my Motion cars were just sorta forgotten.
I even opened a body shop and it was too successful for me to ever get much done on the Black car. I did get as far as striping the black paint off the body. It still is setting there as far as I got on it today.

The 69 Motion was wrecked from behind and I just was too interested in winning my division and going to the runoffs at Alanta GA. in the SCCA car.

Between my used car business two teenage boys turning of age to learn to drive. I had a rageing ambition to be the next Mario Andretti, everything I did was for SCCA racing and it was just too much to try to work on the Motion's. Then I had the misfortune of getting passed like I was tied to a tree by a Can AM Lola Chev powered racecar. This was not just a pass but I was flat out in my vette on the back straight of Dallas's old airport when this blip went by on my left. I looked down to see if I had broke or something. Nope I was taching 7 grand in top gear with a 3:70 rear. He was just gone in a moment. This was a long runway and I got to see him take the corner at the end so fast it was not funny. From that moment on I just had to have one.

Well I bought a old F-5000 chev powered car just to see what it was like to go that fast. Well it was fast and fun but the motor blew up and I sold the roller and kept what was left of the motor. Next I traded a pair of used midyear vettes for a Can Am Lola like the one that blew me into the weeds.

That cost me a small fortune to put together and I never have gotten to drive it. One of these days I will finish it. About that time I decided to refinace my property and hire a professional mechanic to finish the car for me. I had dreams of makeing a "name" for myself in Can AM so I bought all new bodywork called a "Frissbee" and making the new car a ground affects class killer. I have the same car as a Lola that won at Mossport in 85. It was owned by Horst Kroll but he rented it to a new driver that went on to be a big name in Indy cars.

Unless you have ever gotten the racing fever you may not ever understand how you can put a nice car like ether one of my Motion cars out to pasture and just let them set and go to pot. I am so ashamed of the way they look. I hope that you all will be kind to me for my folly.

I am so glad that I never sold either one of them and you all have been so great to me on here. Going through the divorce back in 94 was fortunate as if she knew what they are worth today I would have been forced to sell them.

I has taken me many years to pay off the cost of that divorce and you can't know how I feel to find this forum.

So ragged as it is, you are all welcome to see the White W/gold stripe vette that I have horded all these years. Hope not too much of the paint flakes off on the trip up to SCR7. I am only using a open trailer to get it there. We will be out at the Drags on Fri. Then it will be in the building later that night.

Perhaps next year you will get to see both of my cars all dressed to kill and looking like new?" Larry Clain, 8/31/04