Who are we?
The Washington Shelby American Automobile Club (WASAAC) is a regional member of the national SAAC club and is dedicated to the preservation, care, history and enjoyment of the World Championship cars from Shelby American, 1961-1970. These cars include the AC Cobra, GT350, GT500, GT500KR, Boss, Pantera, Tiger, and GT40.
The club is open to all people who share an enthusiasm for the cars recognized by SAAC. You do not have to own a Cobra or a Shelby ... you just have to have an interest in them.
Quicky Member News
July 24, 2008 at 7:00pm is the next meeting.
It will be held at the Issaquah Triple XXX Drive-In. The address is:
The Triple XXX Drive-In
98 N.E. Gilman Blvd.
Issaquah, WA 98027
425-392-1266
Triple XXX Drive-In:
Here is a map
Important Meetings Notice: Beginning in 2008 meetings will switch between a North and South location every other month. We will update the Calendar page as soon as we schedule meeting locations, please check it often as the times and locations are subject to change.
New WASAAC Forum
Most of you who have been following the Shelby vs. SAAC issue are aware that SAAC now has a web forum at saacforum.com. WASAAC now has a forum for our members in the "Regional Forums" section of the main SAAC forum page. The direct link is saacforum.com/index.php?board=47.0. Let's have some fun! Anything car related goes so please feel free to post topics, replies, pics, concerns, technical stuff, etc.
Important Member News: Carroll Shelby vs. SAAC
Hello WASAAC members,
As many of you are aware there is a legal battle brewing between Carroll Shelby and the national Shelby club, SAAC. As strange as it may seem, Carroll Shelby is in the process of suing SAAC for the use of several words which may have been trademarked by Carroll Shelby. This suit also includes a demand for the original documents pertaining to the cars produced by Shelby American, which actually encompasses 4 separate sets of documents:
- Original Shelby American documents provided to SAAC by Carroll Shelby.
- Ford Motor Company records given to SAAC by Ford.
- Original Cobra records provided to SAAC by AC cars in England.
- History recorded by SAAC and its members as well as non-members on the cars produced by Shelby American subsequent to a vehicle's original sale by Shelby American.
Note that item 4 includes all of the information gathered on these cars by SAAC subsequent to their original sale by Shelby American and Carroll Shelby is demanding everything since its last produced registry in 1997. In some respects, the information Carroll Shelby is requesting will tear away the core backbone of what SAAC has stood for and maintained so well since its inception in 1975. Should Carroll Shelby be successful in his demand, then SAAC will be unable to maintain the registry in the future.
The national Shelby club over the years has performed a fine job in promoting the unique history of what once was Shelby American; from the various cars it produced, to interviewing its employees who made it all happen, to Carroll Shelby himself. Annual national conventions held at various racetracks around the United States allow for enthusiasts and friends with similar interests to all meet in person. These gatherings also provide a chance to safely experience these special cars at speeds that we are normally not able to obtain elsewhere. One of the major focuses of this club has always been the preservation and documentation of the cars produced by Shelby American. Without the countless hours put in by the registrars for the individual listings of Shelby American automobiles, it is safe to say many of the cars with us to enjoy today would not be around, nor would the database of information to draw from be so complete. Make no mistake, the SAAC Registry is unique when compared to any other automobile marquee in the world. The vehicle identification numbers which these particular cars contain and the history they possess must stay within SAAC. This is not information that should be open to the public or handed over to an entity that has no background history as to their true intent or when it is questionable as to how long they may be in existence.
WASAAC had the pleasure of having Peter Brock, one of Shelby American's most talented employees, at their last club meeting on November 27, 2007. As much as the people in attendance would have enjoyed listening to Peter's fascinating experiences in motor sports that continue to this very day, Peter traveled a long distance on a very short notice to discuss with WASAAC members his views on Carroll Shelby and his various business dealings. Peter has the distinction, if he considers this a distinction, of being one of Shelby's first employees in 1962 that ended abruptly in early 1966 with his leaving of Shelby American. As Peter is quick to mention, he is very proud of what Shelby American accomplished both on and off the racetrack. Carroll Shelby brought together a very talented group of hot rodders and drivers from Southern California and almost immediately started to win races at the local level and in a very short time on a national scale. The expansion of their efforts on an international level almost resulted in the World Championship in 1964, but they kept their momentum going and dominated the 1965 season. Peter and Carroll's paths have crossed both on a personal level and on a business level all the way through the current production of Peter's Superformance Coupe. Peter spoke for over two hours during the night of November 27, 2007 and answered every single question anyone could throw at him. Pete's feelings on the matter can be summed up like this "I still have tremendous respect for what SAI accomplished in those special years between '62 and
'68. But the structure of the club (SAAC and it regions) that has done so much in the last 30+ years to maintain the history of what SAI built and raced when it was a great American team should be preserved. I think the new "Team Shelby" club that Carroll is starting certainly has every right to its own identity and purpose and that should be to promote and maintain (in the same way that SAAC has) the history of the newer Shelby Mustangs and whatever Carroll decides is important from this time forward. Let SAAC be the guardian of all past history. They've spent years collecting information from a vast variety of sources that Carroll didn't have any interest in and didn't have access to. That information rightly belongs to those who discovered it." Without a doubt, 95% if not 100% of the members present at that meeting were in full support of SAAC by the end of Peter's talk. Personally, I walked away with only one thing in mind, not to let what Peter said wither away on a local level and to possibly try to build upon this on a region-by-region level. The WASAAC members present that night agreed to a $500.00 contribution to the SAAC legal defense fund on behalf of fighting the suit brought upon by Carroll Shelby and SAAC.
There are perhaps three possible courses a club could take in response to the pending legal battle between Shelby and SAAC:
- Sit back and do nothing, simply waiting for the legal teams to duke it out to see who will prevail and then roll with the consequences of what may happen from that decision.
- Join Team Shelby, instead of backing SAAC, and see how they handle things. Also be prepared for the day when Shelby passes away and another "family" member inherits his holdings. What will happen to the historical documents when the core of this group breaks down and crumbles?
- Back SAAC and try to leave things intact as they are. I will be the first to admit WASAAC is not a perfect club, it is impossible to please everyone. We all have our complaints about SAAC on the national level, again no club can be perfect. Perhaps a showing of regional support of SAAC in a time when they need us will result in SAAC listening to what its members would like to see in the future. For myself, it is quite easy, of the three choices; I feel WASAAC should back SAAC. To take this step one further, I move if sufficient membership numbers agree, WASAAC should be proactive on this measure and be swift as to supporting SAAC as soon as possible.
I contacted Howard Pardee, one of SAAC's Board of Directors on Monday, December 3, 2007. Howard mentioned to me that SAAC will be meeting today (12/5) to discuss several areas in respect to the upcoming legal battle. One of the areas that will be looked at will be the possible role the individual regional clubs may have on a grass roots level as well as pooling club members in each region in favor backing SAAC in their endeavor.
With holidays approaching, I am sorry to bring this to you now, but momentum is important, things may change in the next 2 or 3 months, if we are serious about this club both on a national and local level let us be prepared to act soon if needed. For those who were privileged to hear Peter talk last Thursday, don't let his efforts that night and his life experiences go unnoticed.
If it is found to be needed, we may hold another club meeting before our next scheduled get together on December 27, 2007. I will keep the club members informed if I hear of any new information, but you may find it as soon as I do at www.saacforum.com. Finally, no money will leave WASAAC's treasury to the aid of SAAC's legal fund until it is voted upon by the club members as a whole. I may be reached at my home email of: hov@blarg.net if you have any questions. Place your vote as to the direction which you feel will represent our club's best interest today and in the future as well if you are in agreement of offering $500.00 of our club's treasury to SAAC's legal defense fund at dmgt350@aol.com. In no way will a club member's view on this issue affect in anyway their position within this club.
As usual there are two sides to every story and Carroll Shelby has responded to the comments posted by SAAC regarding the legal situation. In all fairness here is the link to Shelby's response: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/071208/clsa003.html?.v=27. Please take the time to read it. Also, if you haven't voted already on whether WASAAC should donate $500 to the SAAC legal fund please do so. For now our club is going to wait and see how things play out.
Sincerely,
Mark Hovander
WASAAC President
Other links of interest concerning the Shelby vs. SAAC issue:
News Flash !
WASAAC Prez Mark Hovander's beautiful 1965 GT350, 5S284, is featured on the cover of the recent issue of Hemmings Muscle Machines. Get your copy now, Mark will be signing them at the next meeting.
In Memoriam: Dick Smith
Most of you have probably already heard that on April 18th we lost another true Shelby American legend, 427 S/C Cobra driver Dick Smith passed away along with his stepson in an airplane crash. Here is a link to a more detailed news story: http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/42877.html. We have set up a Dick Smith Memorial Page to post stories and pictures of Dick and his famous Cobra. If you have a story about Dick or pictures, please send it to us and it will be posted, his presence at the SAAC Conventions and historic races will be greatly missed. Our sincerest condolences go out to his family and friends.
WASAAC's Presidential Annual Address - March 25, 2007
(what....did you think I would do this more often than once a year?)
Hello fellow WASAAC members,
A new year has already started, but the message to you, the club members, may be very much the same as other years. The reason for this, is the basis of why WASAAC is together, for the enjoyment of the cars which were produced through Shelby American from the years 1962-1970. The first thing a person learns early on when being the President of a car club let alone just about any club is the fact that you cannot please everyone. There are different reasons for joining this club. For myself, there are several areas under Shelby American which interests me: the history for one is something that books have been written about and that a movie should be made of, there are also the employees who were behind the scenes as well the drivers' whose names will always be remembered. Then there are the cars, whether it be a race or a street car, they were all beautiful in one way or another.
Living in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest has its disadvantages at times for a car club. Events are difficult to plan for since some of the months have weather patterns which are hard to predict. At best, we have four months to get our cars out and enjoy them for what they were originally designed for.
As you can see from the Calendar of Events elsewhere on this web site, there are the usual yearly events which we can join other individuals as well as other car clubs in celebrating the automobile as well as those summer months around us. A few events I would like to touch on is first, The SOVREN Historic Vintage Car Race at Pacific Raceways in Kent. The date is June 29-July 1, 2007. The special feature this year is the hard charging authentic Trans Am race cars which will be coming from all over the West coast. Kent is one of the last original tracks still in use from the 1960's. The honored celebrity this year will be the fiercely competitive Parnelli Jones, who clinched the Trans Am Championship for the Boss 302 Mustangs in 1970. Another event, which is strictly for WASAAC, is the tour of Paul Allen's military airplane collection, this will be on July 21, 2007. You may visit their website at www.flyingheritage.com. Paul has assembled an incredible collection of warbirds. The tour guides are usually pilots that actually flew those same types of planes in World War II, offering their own personal insights. Lastly, former Cobra Team Driver, Allen Grant, has opened up his race shop in Sequim, on August 11, 2007. So as you can see, there will hopefully be a little something for everyone. The door, however, is always open for if a club member would like to plan another event during the summer. You may contact me at hov@blarg.net if you would like to set something up. After all, this is YOUR club, come out and join us this summer.
Best Regards, Mark Hovander, President WASAAC
Got Pics?
Dave McDonald is now posting member pictures. No, we don't care what you look like -- just your ride. Send your pics to Dave (and remember to delete the 'NOSPAM' text within
the email address).
Why is that phrase 'NOSPAM' in there? The spammers have webots running around to websites and 'farm' the email addresses found. Wanna get hit with a ton of email? Put your name on a webpage. So before you hit the send button (Or after it bounces) check the To: list and remove the phrase
'NOSPAM' .
Bounced emails
If you did not receive notice of the meeting contact WASAAC (see bottom of page). We usually have half a dozen emails bounce because of dead accounts, over size limit and other problems. We don't have time or resources to go through these refusals and send again.
Lost Members and Email
The club is now on an almost total email distribution. There are about a half dozen members with no email. Because of the limited amount of time the officers have to run the club we find we do not have enough time to chase down members whose email addresses are no longer valid. If you have not heard from us in a while and have changed your email address in the last year, that's probably why. We will not call you either. Your mother calls you to remind you of stuff.
We've also noticed that when you use the 'Freebie' services there is a limit on the amount of mail they store online before they reject any more. If WASAAC sends an email and it gets rejected we do not send out a second round. It's just too hard to keep track of these rejections and bad email addresses so we don't try.
Not a member?
For our non-member visitors, take a look around. If you like what you see
join the club!
Modified: 7/1/08
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