Carroll Shelby Tribute thread. Be a part of it.

[Madmiles442]

When I was a junior in high school, I had a poster of the David Kimble 427 cutaway. In 1981, other guys wanted Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, BMW M1's, etc. All I ever wanted was a Cobra.
The lines of the car are just beautiful. But the idea of stuffing a big motor into a small, low, wide car is genius in its simplicity. There's no replacement for displacement. And to have a fellow Texan take on the world and win on racing's biggest stage is greatness. There's also the rags to riches chicken farmer aspect to the story, but my interest lies is in the racing portion.
Growing up, my father had Jaguars, Audis, etc. - no interest. That Cobra was still on my mind. I'd often seen Superformance ads in the back of Car and Driver and the like, but had never investigated.
My father passed away last December. He kept saving his retirement because one day, he was going to get a little covertible hot rod as a weekend car. He never did. After his estate was settled, I took some of the proceeds and bought SPF 867, of which I'm enormously proud. A tiny vial of my Dad's ashes ride in the glove box. Carroll Shelby's autograph is on the box.
Carroll, thank you for staying involved and following your true love and passion. I remember the days of the Chrysler Shelby GLH! Then the Viper and of course the continued Mustang lineage. There has never been nor will never will be someone who's influenced racing in the country the way you have.
I'm proud to describe the car and the story of the original when someone asks, "Cool car, what is that?" Then I do tell them about the chicken farmer from Texas.

[rwall49]

I can remember when my friend and I used to sit in his parents basement after school and build plastic car models, until my mom, called his mom and said, send the kid home, it's getting dark. I can remember turning sixteen and just waiting to get my drivers license so I could drive a car. That meant now we could go to the drag races, the stock car races, and especially the car show in Denver, Co.
I think that's where I saw a Cobra. Man that was the car for me. Only problem was I didn't have a job, and I was still in high school and my dad wouldn't let me own a car anyway. But I thought someday I might get the opportunity to own one. And now maybe that wish will come true soon. I just want to thank Mr. Shelby for making a car, that to this day, still makes people look when one drives by. I'm sure all you dreamers out there had the same wish as I did once.

Ron