Meeting with an original owner...a special visit.

[NorCam]

With many of the Muscle cars now being in the 50 year old range, one thing many of us never get to do when buying or restoring an old muscle car is meeting with the original owner. In this case, today was very special as I'm restoring on old Green Zapper that Kym Miller ordered brand new in 1969 and has many good memories with. Kym and I have been in touch many times since learning through some racing friends that this was his old drag car that he ordered new in March 1969. It last saw the street in 1971 before Kym campaigned it throughout the PNW as a Super Stock drag car which in turn brought him many victories, and a Division Championship in 78.

We last talked a few days ago about maybe getting together when the car was finished up, and today he called me up out of the blue and said "hey I'm in town", can I come out with a couple bud's for a visit and meet with you? Well, an hour later we were introduced and Kym hung out for an hour while we shared in a few stories about him getting married as he bought this car, and how he got into drag racing with it. He checked out the progress on the car and is working with me to chase down the original motor which we now have a really good bead on. More on that when or if that turns into something special?

We enjoyed a great first meeting, and no doubt Kym and I will be getting together next summer when I hope to have the car finished up. Here are a few pictures taken with the car today. Very cool not only to talk with the original owner so many times, but to meet with the car here and share in a few stories while it's being taken back to stock form. So so cool!

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/001%20Meeting.jpg
(Meeting Kym Miller for the first time in person)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/002%20GB%20Kym%20Cropped.jpg
(A picture taken while we talked about his old Z/28)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/125956-cropped.jpg
(Checking out the paint and discussing the stripes)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/125559-cropped.jpg
(Checking under the hood while we talked about some fresh leads on the original block)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/130201-cropped.jpg
(Kym telling me why he ordered the Endura Bumper which he spotted sitting inside the car)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/125536-Cropped.jpg
(Discussion around the car and a great surprise visit today)

No doubt we'll be meeting again so Kym can bang some gears in his old Zapper next year, but here's hoping some new leads on the original motor lands it back under the original hood. Here's one more shot from Kym with the car just after he got it, and hitting his first drag race with it back in 1970. The rest of the drag racing shots can be seen on my website http://x77z28.com as this car was heavily campaigned across the Pacific Northwest for many years.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/Kym-Z28-1970.jpg
(Kym Miller with his factory ordered Z/28 in Kimberley, B.C. Canada - Circa 1970)

[NorCam]

Should also mention that I just tracked down three old 8mm videos of this car while it was being drag raced back in the 70's. I will soon be putting together a set of drag race & track clips showing burnouts and full passes against some heavy weight and notable Hemi cars that it raced with nearly every Sunday.

More on that soon...but here's a couple shots of the car in it's old race themes.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/001-KymMiller-SS-Seattle.jpg

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/007-KymMiller-SS-Seatlle78-Art-Congdon.jpg

[Crush]

What a really cool story, thx for sharing

[mockingbird812]

Well that is some great news. Is that a plastic front bumper. Congrats Earl!

[wundercluck]

Found and talked over the phone with the original owner of the JL8 Z I used to own. Never met him in person but the first thing he said was it came from the factory with four wheel disc brakes. Never will forget that!!!
Don

[NorCam]

Yes Sam.

He ordered it with the VE3 front bumper ($49.95 Option) and although he knew it was pretty heavy, he never took it off in all the years he raced it. It came with the car when I bought it although it had a fiberglass bumper on the car when I brought in home in full race trim. It was last raced in 2012 before being retired from the track, and was remarkably straight.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/IMG_6997.jpg
Shot taken while fitting the bumper before painting the car.

[DW31S]

I know exactly how you feel about finding, meeting, and becoming friends with the original owner of a '69 Camaro race car. You (me too) are very lucky to find the fellow and lucky in that the OO is interested in his old ride. Old racing stories are the best and some of the "tricks" those guys used are still in use today! I remember your car in Muscle Car Review. Please keep us posted on your restoration. Will the car be restored to original or as-raced? I'm doing mine back to the original race livery from the summer of 1969 (eventually).

[NorCam]

Dave, I struggled for a while about maybe leaving it back halved and restoring it back to race livery, then after talking with Kym and the other three owners, everyone stated they liked the history being promoted on the website and stated their preference to see it back to stock again. That's when I decided a nut and bolt resto would be performed on the car. I'm very happy I chose that route but really dig its race history as well.

[KenMaisano]

I love the story and the car.

[454_Malibu]

Cool Story. I recognize the Grand Stands of SIR.. now called Pacific Raceways.. Maybe saw this car race back in the day,, <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/headbang.gif

[DW31S]

Mine was a Super Stock as a brand new car in '69. Never cut, tubbed, backhalved; the only real body changes were the addition of front and rear spoilers and a swap from the standard SS hood to a &quot;Cold Air&quot; package---remember the term &quot;Cowl Induction&quot; officially started with the '70 Chevelle. The original owner of my car, Bill Izykowski, wisely chose the one he did because it fit perfectly in the same class with other cars that had a lower advertised horsepower. Bill won class in Stock Eliminator at the Winternationals the three previous years in 427 Biscaynes, but wanted to now field a Super Stocker. Savvy as ever, he discovered that the 396/350 and the 396/325 '69 Camaro both fell into SS/H, so it's not hard to figure out what drivetrain was originally in my car!
I see your car, originally a 302, was raced as the 350/255 combo that was so popular at that time.......and still is!!! A local Maryland racer named Gary Ewing just won the NHRA Division 1 Super Stock Championship in a '69 Z/28 (originally a 302), now running a 350/255! Gary bought the car brand new and started racing with his brothers (Ewing Brothers) within days of taking delivery!
At the risk of hijacking your thread, I thought the stories I shared were pertinent to your car's history as it is entirely possible that your car and the others I mentioned could have competed against each other and the original owner of your car might know Bill Izykowski or The Ewing Brothers.
Again, please share any and all history or racing stories involving your fine car!

[Bill Pritchard]

Great story and photos, thanks for sharing. You are fortunate indeed!

[njsteve]

Awesome story!

[NorCam]

Thanks for all the comments (no hi-jack concerns at all Dave). I was a bit too young to have caught all these cars racing in the early 70's as I was riding something with a banana seat and learning about dirt bikes. By the time I came of age with cars, it was 1980 and I had missed so much of the early race days. What's really cool now is how the Day II era has seen a resurgence where all these old race cars are more popular now than ever.

It actually has me on the hunt for a couple other well known cars from this same period that are still known to be tucked away, and if I can find the one I want, it'll be left mostly like it was back in the 70's. A 67 that was raced in the same area and took down many numbers. It's in the background of this next color shot with Kym's car below, and I have added a couple more shots of it in the pit lanes.

The 67 car was called Suddenly...and was a heavy hitter at the PNW tracks of the 70's.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/002-KymMiller-SS-Seattle-Suddenly.jpg
Green 68 (Suddenly) in the back ground.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/Suddenly1.jpghttp://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/Suddenly2.jpg

[NorCam]

And here are a couple more shots a few people with vintage stock have been sending me as of late. These 3 just arrived tonight and will going on the website tomorrow with a host of other race car pics that Kym raced against throughout the 70's.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/KM%20Staged.jpg
Kym staging left lane (right of this shot)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/KM%20Smoke.jpg
Heating up the stickies

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/KM%20Drag.jpg
Think this was 73 when he pulled the 302ci in favor of the 350/255

[DW31S]

Very, very cool indeed! What, if any vintage race parts were still present when you acquired the car?

[scuncio]

Awesome, the best situation you could hope for is finding an original owner who's also a big time car guy....

[NorCam]

Not much Dave. The original ladder bar setup and the original diff was still in it but the drive line, cage and just about everything else was updated as the car was bracket raced throughout the 90's and right up until 2012 when Dean Watts owned the car and raced it locally. See here with the wheels up in 2011 and the Rocky Mountain Nationals in 2012.

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/006%20Z28%20Start%20Line.jpg

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/008%20Z28%20Launch.jpg

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/010-Watts2012.jpg

When I bought the car, Dean had pulled the 540ci and the Jerico out of it and those went to one of his friends. I only wanted the car so I was all good with that and here is the way I unloaded it here at home 18 months ago. Since then I've been busy gathering a lot of parts including some original stuff from the earlier owners. I think I have 99% of what I need to put it right back to factory now except the born with block which lived and we are working at finding. Kym has tracked it through 3 owners now and is close to discovering who's car it's in now? (fingers are crossed)

http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd418/DBL_NKL/My%20Cars/69%20Z28/IMG_1058.jpg
As found 2015

[ZLP955]

Great that you've been able to meet and talk with the first owner!
Looks like the car originally had a flat hood (pic 7 of the first post), are you going back to that?

[Geoff Smith]

Nice work. Persistence has certainly paid for you and I hope it continues. Great opportunity to get the original engine and reunite with the original owner...

[NorCam]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZLP955</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
Looks like the car originally had a flat hood (pic 7 of the first post), are you going back to that? </div></div>

Yes, the car was born with a flat hood and a rear spoiler as seen in the early shots. Kym later removed that spoiler but also added the cowl hood. He told me that around 72 he ordered it from Bowes &amp; Herron Chevrolet and that same exact hood is still with the car today. He made it functional as well and shared a story about that with me yesterday. He said in racing S/S, if you had a cowl hood on the car it had to be functional. He found that out after going through tech in Seattle where the tech inspector brought a group of racers over to his car one morning and said to all of them; Here guys you see this, if you have a cowl hood on your car &quot;it better be functional&quot; with this rear flapper and the solenoid installed. Needless to say everybody showed up at the next couple races with functional hoods in Super Stock class.

I have a spare flat hood I may paint and put on the car someday, but will leave it as Kym had it for the interim.

[DW31S]

&quot;The thrill of the hunt&quot; (I think) is sometimes the motivating factor in restoring these cars. My fingers are also crossed for you; finding the original block will certainly take your car up a notch or two. Do you have the original trans.?

[napa68]

That's a really cool story! Thanks for sharing

Tim

[DW31S]

The cold-air hood rule has been changed you know?!? Recently, NHRA mandated that the car be raced/classed as Z/28 (302) or an SS (several combos) or a COPO (427 iron or alum.) in order to run a cold-air hood, as they were the only models to which that hood was originally avaialable. Many competitors now have a flat hood that doesn't match their paint scheme. A lot of racers either changed their heads (255 hp to 300hp) which moved them up a class or two, or saw it as the final straw and stopped attending NHRA races. The allowance of that hood was a loophole in the rule book/tech guide for a long time and is rumored to be lobbied by Lee Sherman (RIP, Division 1 Stocker) many years ago. The design of the hood gave enough room for an additional 2&quot; of carb. spacers providing some high rpm horsepower. The small block racers were furious about the new rule!

[ZAPPER68]

Great story about a cool car and one of the nicest guys around these parts. I get together with Kym and Gerry Demski occasionally just to listen to their stories. Gerry is an ex Super Stock racer from Winnipeg and now builds custom chassis/cars.

The pictures taken of the races on the highway are from Rolla, BC which is not far from Dawson Creek (Mile 1 of the Alaskan Highway). I used to tag along with the Dunbar brothers from Grande Prairie when they raced their 69 Camaro there. Those were memorable &amp; fun times.... bleachers in the ditch between the highway and the wheat fields filled with locals having a Sunday at the races.

[Woj]

Great to hear that you have been able to connect to the original owner and share the rich history of your car.

In the last 18 months I have made contact with almost all of the previous owners of my COPO Chevelle. I made contact with the original owner in May of 2015 and we exchange emails on a weekly basis regarding the car, the car-hobby and life in general.

Enjoy the connection with the original owner, it is priceless.

Phil Woj. <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif

[Ryan1969Chevelle]

Such a cool part of the car hobby, to chat and get the actual first hand stories about your (now) car.

When my car is back on the road Al (the OO) has promised to show me all the spots he used to burn rubber or race friends back in the day:-)

I am so spoiled now, I was after a shiny (done) car and wasn't too worried about the ownership history (just docs) Now that is the most important part to me:-)

Also OO's love the appreciation and dedication as we restore and bring their old cars back to life:-)

Ryan

[NorCam]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZAPPER68</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Great story about a cool car and one of the nicest guys around these parts. I get together with Kym and Gerry Demski occasionally just to listen to their stories. Gerry is an ex Super Stock racer from Winnipeg and now builds custom chassis/cars.

The pictures taken of the races on the highway are from Rolla, BC which is not far from Dawson Creek (Mile 1 of the Alaskan Highway). I used to tag along with the Dunbar brothers from Grande Prairie when they raced their 69 Camaro there. Those were memorable &amp; fun times.... bleachers in the ditch between the highway and the wheat fields filled with locals having a Sunday at the races. </div></div>

Awesome info Cal.

Just got those 3 shots sent to me early last night and had no idea where they were taken. Appreciate the info and wouldn't mind seeing any old pics that may be floating around with Gerry's old S/S. Cheers!

[ZAPPER68]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: NorCam</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZAPPER68</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Great story about a cool car and one of the nicest guys around these parts. I get together with Kym and Gerry Demski occasionally just to listen to their stories. Gerry is an ex Super Stock racer from Winnipeg and now builds custom chassis/cars.

The pictures taken of the races on the highway are from Rolla, BC which is not far from Dawson Creek (Mile 1 of the Alaskan Highway). I used to tag along with the Dunbar brothers from Grande Prairie when they raced their 69 Camaro there. Those were memorable &amp; fun times.... bleachers in the ditch between the highway and the wheat fields filled with locals having a Sunday at the races. </div></div>

Awesome info Cal.

Just got those 3 shots sent to me early last night and had no idea where they were taken. Appreciate the info and wouldn't mind seeing any old pics that may be floating around with Gerry's old S/S. Cheers! </div></div>

I'm going to speak to Gerry this coming week and will ask him for a copy of his S/S car(s). He has a few pictures of his old race cars hanging on the wall of his garage. If you have the patience, I can likely get you some more pictures of the 'Rolla Races' from back in the day.

Another racer from that era (ex Don Hardy Vega Wagon) lives close by and we get together for coffee occasionally. Ron will definitely have some photos from there too.

[BJCHEV396]

Cool story...thanks for sharing Earl.Good luck tracking down the original engine.