July 2013 - Volume 56
In This Issue
Glidden Registration Deadline
Eastern Fall Meet
51st Grand Ole Tour
Team Captains School
Night at the Museum
Library & Research Center
AACA Library's eBay Store
AACA Museum
Calendar Spotlight
Join Our Mailing List!
Quick Links
Welcome to SPEEDSTER

 

We hope that you've had a chance to enjoy some of our great summer meets and tours.  For a list of recent meet results, click here. Also, don't forget to check our Calendar of Events often for an up-to-date listing of automotive events.

  

2013 Christmas Cards

 

Present CardThese beautiful 5x7" cards feature artwork from renowned artist Ken Eberts, whose paintings have graced Antique Automobile Magazine covers.  "The Best Present of All" cards feature a 1937 GM Yellow Cab (Chevy) and the "A Christmas Pony" cards feature a 1966 Ford 
Pony Card
Mustang GT Convertible.  It's never too early to start stocking up on Christmas Cheer!  
 
Shop our merchandise store for other great gifts for your favorite auto enthusiast.

Glidden Tour Registration Deadline Extended

September 8 - 13, Chattanooga, Tennessee

Glidden 2013  

The Glidden Tour, taking place from September 8-13 has extended its reservation deadline to August 1, 2013.  Join the Chickamauga Region AACA for six great days of touring with new and old friends in the Chattanooga, Tennessee area. The Glidden Tour is limited to vehicles manufactured on or before 1942.  No modified vehicles will be accepted.  This tour is open to both AACA and VMCCA Members.

 

Eastern Fall Meet 
October 9-12, 2013 � Hershey, Pennsylvania 
Registration Deadline August 15 - FIRM 
 

2013 Fall Meet Logo Registration for the Car Corral, Car Show, Flea Market and Events for the 2013 Hershey Fall Meet can be attained by submitting the activity card included with your July/August issue of Antique Automobile Magazine or calling AACA Headquarters at (717) 534-1910.  Registration for the Fall Meet has a firm registration deadline of August 15, 2013.  No exceptions will be made, so be sure to be prompt! 

 

Vehicle registration can be printed online by clicking here and logging in then completing the form and mailing it to the Hershey Region AACA.

 

Judges registration deadline is September 13, 2013. Judges can register now online with Visa or MasterCard. 

   

51st Grand Ole Tour


Classic Memories Logo Join the West Texas Region AACA on October 10-14 for the 51st Grand Ole Tour in the Texas Hill Country.  
Attendees will visit Luckenback, Blanco, Kendalia, Sisterdale, Comfort, Bandera, Medina, Vanderpool and Leakey and tour some great places like LBJ Ranch and Street Dreams Antique Automobile Dealership. Click here for more information and a registration form.

  

Southeastern Fall Meet - Team Captains School

August 18 - 21, 2013 � Cleveland, Tennessee
 

SE Fall 2013 The Southeastern Fall Meet in Cleveland, TN will host a Team Captains School.  All Team Captains presently on the Team Captains List working toward certification and certified Team Captains are invited to attend.  This school will be offered at 2:00 p.m. and will run parallel with the 2:00 p.m. Judging School.   If you haven't satisfied your requirement of attending a Team Captains School this year, don't miss this opportunity.

   
Night at the Museum - Tickets Now Available

  

 

Celebrate with fellow enthusiasts during another great Meet Week in Hershey!  Try your hand at something new this year as we introduce a Monte Carlo Night theme.  Or, study up on your car knowledge and compete against other attendees in our car trivia game show contest.  Get your tickets now for - Wednesday, October 9 from 6:00 -10:00 p.m.  Click here for more information and to order your tickets today!

 
Member Submitted Story

AACA Founders Tour

Submitted by: Charlie Froehlich

 

My wife Ardie and I participated in the 25th annual Founders Tour in Madison (Huntsville area), Alabama the week of May 5th.  That was the reason we were not at the Louisiana Tour.  We hated to miss the LA Tour, but certain national activities take priority for us.  For several years we have been aware that the Founders Tour would take place in Alabama and I have been planning (plotting?) ever since to see if we could pull something off.  That something was to get our two daughters to participate with us.  They have joined in past AACA tours as passengers, but never as registered drivers. In this case the Alabama location was relatively close to all three of us living in Tennessee, Mississippi and Texas.  The plan was to get three Froehlich Fords from Mississippi to the location and have each of us register as drivers.

 

Everyone was agreeable so the plan went forward.  The following is a two part story:  First "The Froehlich Ford Story" is a copy of a write up that I prepared and handed out to Founders Tour participants so that they would know what was happening.  Second is an "Addendum" describing how it actually worked out - or did not work out as planned... 

 

 

Library & Research Center

Driving Against All Odds

By: Matthew Hocker

  

Here at the Library, we house more than just books, magazines and sales literature.  We also possess a collection of more than four hundred postcards, with examples dating as far back as the turn of the century.  One postcard which stood out from the crowd featured a man without any arms next to a modified Miller.   A glance at the reverse side revealed the man's name was Frank E. Fithen, a stunt driver from Steubenville, Ohio.

 

Born in 1882, Fithen's early childhood was fairly uneventful.  By the age of nine, however, a railroad accident turned his life upside down.  While he miraculously survived this disaster, it ultimately cost him both arms.   

 

However, the "E." in Fithen's middle name might as well have stood for endurance, for he didn't let his handicap hold him back.  Before long, he learned how to dress himself, write with a pencil between his teeth, and even how to swim.  As a young man, his most impressive feats were learning how to ride both a bicycle and unicycle.  After learning how to do tricks on his unicycle, Fithen was able to make money as a street performer.

 

While bikes were fun, the allure of the automobile proved far too great to resist and, by 1912 or 1913, he began driving cars from the likes of Oakland and Miller.  In order to drive his cars, Fithen modified them with a personally designed special steering wheel.  Its construction consisted of a series of metal rings, which allowed him to turn the wheel with the remaining part of his arms.

 

In order to make a living, Fithen drove throughout the country and sold postcards featuring himself and his cars.  He quickly built up a reputation for driving fast (a top speed of 58 mph - quick for the time) and earned the nickname, "the Armless Auto Speed King."  By January of 1916, an article in Popular Science claimed he had visited nearly every state and covered eighty-five thousand miles in just three years.

 

Unfortunately, the details of Fithen's later years have yet to be pieced together because not much was written about him after 1917.  Nevertheless, his story serves as an inspiration to all.  Fithen's accomplishments prove that with a positive attitude and enough motivation, one can accomplish seemingly anything.

  

Discover More:

 

Interested in learning more about vintage postcards featuring antique cars?  In addition to over four hundred examples, information on collecting auto-themed postcards can be found in our automobilia books.  Stop by for a visit and, you too, might make an unexpected discovery!

 

Source: Hemmings Daily featured an excellent and informative write-up on Frank E. Fithen and served as an invaluable resource.  Click here to view the original article. 

 

 

 

Interested in Doing Research with the AACA Library?

More info available on our website. Visit AACA Library or

contact our head librarian, Chris Ritter, [email protected] or 717-534-2082.

        

Visit Our Blog -  

Tumblr Logo

  

The AACA Library's eBay Store!


New ebay logo

Looking for the perfect gift for your favorite motor head?  The Library's eBay store offers a wide variety to choose from, with everything from automobilia and photographs to books and sales literature. 

 

We are currently holding our monthly eBay auction, with more than eighty great items, many of which are hard to find.  The auction ends Sunday, August 5th at 9:00 p.m. EST, so don't miss out!

 

To view our available selection, be sure to click the links below!

 

Items Available for Auction:

     - 1954 Pegaso catalog

     - Nash sales literature from 1925 through the 1950s

     - 1939 Buick catalog

     - 1948 Davis three wheeler brochure

     - Salesman & servicemen training filmstrips - Ford, GMC & Chevrolet

     - Vintage advertising postcards - Buick, DeSoto, Pontiac & Willys

     - And much more!     

 


Automobilia
     - Dash plaques 
     - 1913 issue of the Saturday Evening Post
Reproduction Factory Photos
     - More than 2,000 different vehicles!
Books:
     Pre-War
     - Racing
     - And much more!
Sales Literature:
     - 1950s Chrysler and Plymouth Brochures & Catalogs 

Trivia Question

Trivia Question Mark

 

 

What was the first modern US Hatchback?

 

 

 

AACA Museum

 

There are a lot of great car shows and activities ahead at the AACA Museum:

 

      Henry Ford's 150th Birthday - July 30

      Oldsmobile, Buick & Pontiac Show - August 11

      Tall Cedars 25th Anniversary Car show - August 18

      Porsche Club of America Concours - September 8

      Corvair Club Car show - September 14 & 15

      Matchbox Collector Show - September 22

      Lehigh Valley SAAC - Shelby Car Show - October 20

 

As an AACA Member, your admission to the AACA Museum is always FREE by showing your membership card at the Ticket Counter!   The Museum is open daily from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. For a complete listing of events, visit us online at www.AACAMuseum.org. .

 

Trivia Question Mark

 

What was the first modern US Hatchback?

 

The 1949 Kaiser Vagabond

 

 

Source: Automotive Milestones, Trivia of a Most Unique Machine, Edited by Clark Cassell and Charles Merritt, Braddock Publications. 

  

Enter to Win a 1973 Mustang!

  
Mustang

Each $20 ticket has a chance to win a 1973 Mustang (or $15,000 cash), $2,000 cash, or $1,000 cash. Proceeds benefit the Antique Automobile Club of America, The AACA Library & Research Center, and The AACA Museum.  The drawing will take place on October 12, 2013 at the AACA Fall Meet.

 

Winner need not be present to win and is responsible for all taxes. Mustang Donated by George and Margaret Vitale. 

 

Calendar Spotlight
Desk Calendar

  

AACA Eastern Fall Meet - Hershey, Pennsylvania
 
October 25 - 26 
 

 

Visit the Calendar on our website for a complete listing of AACA national events and much more!
 
The Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, is the country's premier resource for the collectible vehicle community. Since its formation in 1935, the Club, through its national office, publications, and membership, aids individuals, museums, libraries, historians and collectors dedicated to the enjoyment and preservation of automotive history.