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We made Pocono around 1 p.m.
and, as you can imagine, were very
tired. I still couldn’t believe we had
done this, but I felt we could have kept
going! We hung out at the track with
Dave and enjoyed the races. Leslie got
us a room not too far away and we left
right after the Shelby race in Friday. I
planned to meet Dave at the evening
program but Leslie was too tired to go
with me. After we had dinner she set-
tled in and I headed to the Kalahari.
The evening program was great and
the only disappointment was Oscar
Koveleski’s early departure because
his wife was not feeling well. When
Rick found out that I had just gotten
in from Monterey he mentioned the
trip and asked me to come up to the
podium. A 7,000+ drive in a ‘66 GT350
is a rare feat today. Oscar had pro-
vided one of his new slot car sets and
it was presented to me in recognition
of my recent trifecta trip.
Peter Brock’s talk was very emo-
tional and moving. Rick gave a history
of how SAAC started and how it
evolved through the early years. It was
right on point and brought many
memories to mind because I was there
for a lot of it. I had picked up 6S336 at
SAAC-4 in Downingtown and was
even a SAAC Rep in New York for a
while. After relocating to Virginia I
dropped out of the club because a new
job and a growing family took all my
time and funds. I kept the cars and al-
ways planned to get involved with the
club again and now that I’m retired I’ll
be able to do that.
I had a chance to have a long talk
with Chuck Cantwell on Saturday and
that was a wonderful experience!
There were so many individual things
that made this trip special it’s hard to
list them all. Taken together, I can’t
imagine that anything could top it. We
left on Saturday afternoon after the
car show and arrived home about 11
p.m. The odometer told the story:
6S336 traveled 7,582 miles in three
weeks without a hiccup. I drove it all
and my leg felt great afterward.
EPILOGUE
Now that it’s behind me, I consider
this trip a great accomplishment and
I don’t think it’s likely to be repeated
as very few owners seem to be driving
their GT350s any great distances. I
plan on driving mine plenty and think
it’s the very best way to enjoy these
wonderful pieces of automotive his-
tory. I think they are one of the most
significant American cars of all time.
One of the Shelby’s goal was to provide
some competition for Corvette. From
1965 to 1967, GT350s dominated
B/Production. I only wish more people
were driving them. And what about
the five-speed? I think I’ll keep it in so
I can drive it long distances again.
Carroll Shelby wouldn’t have wanted
it any other way.
The SHELBY AMERICAN
No amount of complaining, arguing or pleading by Kilinski could convince Chuck
Cantwell to consider accepting a warranty claim for leaking oil pan gaskets on 6S336.
Last fill-up of the trip was in Ashland, Vir-
ginia. Only about 90 miles from home. 90
miles? That’s nothing! A cross-country trip
distorts your sense of time and distance.
302 Fall 2015