Over the Memorial Day weekend, my girlfriend and I drove from near Eugene,
OR to Lake Tahoe and got married. The weather was absolutely outstanding,
so we took the Viper and made the 550 mile trip in about eight hours. The
last half of the trip, from Mt. Shasta, over Donner pass and to the
California side of lake Tahoe was on highway 89 which is one of the most
scenic and fun to drive two lane roads on the West Coast.
We reversed course on the way home Sunday and after we reached I-5 and
crossed the border into Southern Oregon, I noticed what looked like a 55
or 56 Plymouth in the rear view mirror. Not a single vehicle had passed
us in almost 300 miles and we certainly hadn't even seen a FL automobile
on the road all weekend, so I wondered if I was seeing some kind of
mirage.
Anyway, a few miles later, what turned out to be a 55 V8 Belvedere (light
green with a white roof, dual exhausts and very straight except for a
dented passenger front fender) pulled out into the passing lane and went
around us. At this point they must have been doing at least 80-85. The
occupants, two middle aged men, smiled and waved as we gave them the
thumbs up. They were almost out of sight when the freeway became a little
more challenging with steep grades and sharp curves. The Viper hardly
notices such things, so we maintained our 75 MPH average speed and
repassed the 55 in a few miles with more smiles and waves. I wish I had
some film in the camera. Just before dusk, we let them go by again and
saluted with a flash of lights prior to stopping at our favorite Southern
Oregon restaurant, Heaven on Earth, which is at the Quines Road exit.
Their Belvedere had Washington plates, so I expect they had several more
hours of driving ahead of them, but I would have loved to had a chance to
hear about their adventures in the Plymouth. Just a year ago, on the
Memorial Day weekend, I drove a newly purchased 56 Savoy home from
Sheridan, Wyoming (1,100 miles in a day and a half) and averaged 65MPH
despite having to cross the Rockies.
What makes this sighting so interesting (to me at least) was the last time
I saw a 55 Plymouth on the road it was on this same section of I-5. This
March, my girlfriend and I made a trip to Northen California to visit
Richard Main and tour his World Famous Plymouth Ranch before picking up
another 56 Plymouth Savoy near Placerville. On the way home, we were
passed several times by a young man wearing a cowboy hat and driving a
primered 55 Plymouth 4 door that was adorned with quite a few speed
equipment contingency stickers. I drag race fairly frequently, but had
never seen this particular Plymouth at the track. In any event, I am
starting to wonder if Southern Oregon is some kind of 55 Plymough Twilight
Zone...
Finally, I noticed what looked to be a fairly complete and clean 55 2DR
Plymouth Suburban station wagon for sale outside of Susanville, CA. If I
didn't already have two 56 Plymough wagons, I would have stopped and
checked it out.
Thats all for now. If the driver of either of those 55 Plymouths are on
the list or if you know who it might be, I would sure enjoy talking to
them.
-mel
Mel Lester Jr. meljr@xxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.connet80.com/~meljr
Plymouths:
56 Suburban Deluxe 2DR SW (2) 56 Savoy 2DR Sedans 56 Suburban Custom 4DR SW
56 Savoy 4DR Sedan 63 Sport Fury Convert. 63 Fury 2DR HT (440)
63 Fury 4DR HT Race Car 65 Belvedere II Convert.
Dodges:
73 Dart 340 Sport Pro St. 74 B300 CarryVan 76 D100 Adventurer SE PU
76 D100 Warlock PU 79 D150 Custom PU 89 Shelby Dakota Race Truck
93 Viper RT/10 98 Dodge Intrepid ES
Others:
63 Austin Healey 3000 71 Triumph Spitfire 81 Fiat 2000 Spider
84 Chevrolet Caprice wagon 00 Honda Shadow ACE Tourer 1100
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