the cars up for a photo op. Steven
Smith had a photographer who had
joined us for the day. He was there to
do a photoshoot for Smith’s magazine
article. After the shoot we headed back
up into the mountains, stopping for
lunch at a scenic area and eventually
climbing 5,400 feet in the clouds be-
fore heading back to the Snowbird for
cocktails and another fine meal.
We headed out on Wednesday for
the last day of the tour. Our first stop
was a visit to a private car collection
that Tom had made prior arrange-
ments to see. The host of the car col-
lection was very gracious and had
plenty of good stories behind each of
the cars in his collection.We stayed for
about an hour and a half, but could
have easily spent the entire day and
still would not have seen everything.
Next, we headed for a small town
in southwestern North Carolina called
Hayesville. Tom had met the mayor of
Hayesville and he personally invited
us to park our cars around the town
square and enjoy lunch in their
gazebo.
After lunch, Lee Cross invited the
mayor to drive his 1965 GT350 around
the block. The local police chief, who
had also joined us for lunch, took par-
ticular delight in ribbing the mayor for
all the noise he was making with the
‘65’s side exhaust. We headed out of
town attracting plenty of attention
with all fourteen cars lined up, sound-
ing like the starting line at Riverside
in 1965.
Along the scenic route we made a
stop at the Hiwassee Dam and Lake.
Like a miracle, the sun popped out
briefly and we were able to get some
good group shots of the cars. Driving
the Cherohala Skyway back to the
Snowbird was like a wonderful jour-
ney, stripes and pipes winding through
sweeping turns with breathtaking
views around every corner.
The last evening’s dinner was a
great way to wind down and relax
with all the new friends we made dur-
ing the week. Even with all of the
great cars and driving, the best part of
the event was the group of partici-
pants that Tom had assembled for this
special event. Mollie and I left feeling
like we had known everyone for years,
not just a few days.
The SHELBY AMERICAN
Winter 2016 34
Day 3 - A Thrill Fit for the Mayor
67 #1413