Thank you to Bill Josler and his many friends for a great race car turnout in Waterbury! There were 35 race cars at the show. Read more from Bill…
As Carrol Shelby said in the movie Ford V Ferrari, “If you are fortunate enough to do that which you love, you will never have to work”; I am that person. Raised on a farm, I had the opportunity to “tinker” on all sorts of mechanical challenges. Working on my first car which was a 1934 Ford vehicle, learning to drive a tractor at age eight, and my military time in the Air Force all created a “motorhead.” My first race experience was at a dirt bowl in West Lebanon, NH, and that has served me well over the past 72 years as a driver, a sponsor, a promoter, an official, and a fan to a collector of some 100 cars, 40 being race cars.
The past several years I have honed all of this into preserving the history of early racing — the heroes, the events and displaying these treasures in all of New England and Florida. Currently I am on the Board of Directors of North East Auto Racing, Board of Directors of the Living Legions of Auto Racing in Florida, and currently for the past few years organizing the VAE show, participating in NEAR events, the Waterford Speedway in Waterford, VT, Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, and some dozen or more events with many race cars in my stable.
My deep appreciation for the efforts, patience, investment and help from so many that support this effort. If not for friends, family, and a business that allows me time, I could not accomplish the results and success we all share.
Thank you to each and every one that continues to be a part of this story.
To the Editor:
John Emerson, Middlebury
I arrived home from Waterbury on Sunday and had a chance to reflect on the day’s events: a hearty early-morning breakfast, both my son Pete and I doing some judging, a chance to see many interesting and well-preserved (or restored) cars, a 3rd-place trophy for my ’52 Cadillac, and MOST OF ALL, many conversations with enthusiasts who love to share experiences and information and to tell their car-related stories. Even more than the cars, it’s the people who make the event so satisfying!
On behalf of those VAE members who live an hour or more away from Waterbury and Morrisville, THANK YOU to those members who invest all the hours and energy ahead of time to make this show possible. Special thanks to Bob Chase, Don Pierce, Jason Warren, Dave Sander, and the many others who work closely with them to create the show.
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