My First Studebaker R2 Driving Experience

or Why Tailgating in South Bend is a Good Thing!

 

It was another beautiful day in Southern Georgia. The date was April 11, 2008, and the South Georgia Chapter of the Studebaker Drivers Club was hosting the 5^th Annual Georgia State Meet, in Albany. This meet was looking to be one of the best thus far. Some outstanding cars were to show up, and lots of wonderful Stude-Lovers were to attend. My good friends, Joe and Nancy Bacon, were driving all the way from Indianapolis, IN, just to attend this meet. And even better than that, their ’63 Daytona R2 was in the trailer coming with them.

Before I go on, I must tell the story of how I became acquainted with these fine folks. I met Joe and Nancy up in South Bend during the 2007 International Meet. I spotted their gorgeous ‘56J in the motel parking lot one evening, walked around a bit more, and happened upon a group of people ‘tailgating’ behind a white ’63 Daytona R2. Owning a ’63 Daytona HT myself, I commented on it, and the owner started telling me all about the car. Also sitting there was another couple, the ones that owned the pretty ’56 Golden Hawk. They introduced themselves as Joe and Nancy Bacon from Indy, and the ’56 was their first Stude after a ‘break’ from the SDC. After chatting for a bit, a chair was offered and I joined in on the ‘tailgating’. (If you’ve never stayed up ‘til 2:30 AM just yakkin’ about Studes in the parking lot, you’re really missing out! It’s a highlight of any Studebaker show I go to.) And for the rest of the week of the meet, every night I was out in the parking lot, sittin’ around with some great people, taking in some great stories, and just having a great time. It was great!

John, the owner of the white Daytona, wanted to swap his valve covers for some showier ones before Concourse the next day. So, here it is about midnight, and John and Joe proceed to get the job done. I’d never seen anyone change valve covers at midnight with light from a streetlamp, but hey, this was an International Meet in South Bend! All sorts of odd, Studebaker-y things are going on!

Once they were finished, and I get to hear the Orange Whirly Thing (AKA, a Paxton SN60 Supercharger) whine a bit, Joe slipped behind the wheel and drives the Daytona back over to the ‘tailgating area’. I could see the look in his eyes; Joe was lovin’ that R2 Lark! It wasn’t but a month or so after that, Joe began looking for a non-Avanti R2 Studebaker.

And find one he did! He was told of a very nicely restored, factory R2 4 speed ’63 Daytona HT, which was looking for a good home, belonging to Freddy Freeman. I’d heard all about Freddy’s Daytona from several prominent SDC guys, all saying that it was one of the nicest Daytona HT’s in the country, and one of the fastest as well. Well, Joe liked the car so much; he sold his ’70 Corvette to buy it. After swapping several emails over the next few months, and seeing a couple pictures of the Daytona, I just HAD to see it for myself, someway or another! It wasn’t long before Joe told me that he and Nancy were planning to drive down to the GA Meet in April, with the Daytona in tow. I don’t think I’d ever been more excited! Not only would I get to reunite with my tailgating buddies from South Bend, but I’d also get to lay eyes on one of the best ’63 Daytona HT’s extant. I was secretly hoping to go for a ride in this car, and knowing Joe, I knew I’d get one. But, it got better than that. He told me I was to actually DRIVE this car! I’ve only driven a couple of 4 speed cars as it is, and never an R2. I couldn’t believe it. This meet was going to be one of the very best yet.

So, getting here as fast as Christmas, April 11^th finally rolls around. Mom said it was OK for me to play hooky from school that day, so my granddad and I loaded up and headed west for the meet. Just as soon as we arrived, I spotted a shiny black ’63 Daytona hardtop. There it was!! I nearly lost my breath at the sight of that thing. I knew I really should go and help my granddad unload the car of his trailer, but I couldn’t resist, I just HAD to go and give South Bend’s Finest a once over. It was exactly like I pictured it; nearly flawless, and yea, it had the Orange Whirly Thing under the hood. And the sight of that DID take my breath away for a moment! Shortly after, I fetched my ‘Official-Studebaker-Meet-Tailgating-Fold-Out-Chair’, and joined Joe and Nancy for some good Studebaker conversation.

After catching up with them, and hearing all about the Daytona, Joe tosses me the keys and says, “Let’s go.” The grin on my face had to be at least a mile wide! I got in the car, put the key in the ignition, turned it, and the Studebaker R2 289 V8 roared to life. I’ve heard R2’s before, but this one really had a sound like no other. (Of course, all that internal engine work and straight-through mufflers might have had something to do with that.) I get the feel of the Hurst shifter that’s coupled to the T-10 4 speed, find first, and away we go! Just by the lopey rumble of the engine, and the feel of the throttle, I knew that this car had some power, and wasn’t a run of the mill R2. (Regular R2’s don’t REQUIRE 114 Octane gas, if you get what I’m tryin’ to say here.)

I make it to the street, leave the parking lot and head on out. Still getting used to the car, I pushed the throttle down a little more, I get pushed into the back of the seat, and the car just launches off. Hehehe! This thing was AWESOME! I wind it out a bit, do a run through the gears, and just listen to the rumble of the engine and the sweet whine of the Orange Whirly Thing. At this moment, the grin on my face had to be at least two miles wide. I was having a blast! The drive was short lived, so it seemed, and it wasn’t too long before I was pulling back into the parking lot of the Hotel. Friday night was spent mostly in the parking lot; tailgating with Joe and Nancy, of course.

The meet itself was, indeed, a really good one. Some rain came down on Saturday morning just before judging began, but nobody’s spirits were dampened and the weather cleared up soon enough. By Saturday afternoon, Joe was ready to put the Daytona back in the trailer for the long haul back to Indiana. He must’ve saw it in me, and offered me another drive in the beautiful machine. Not one, but TWO drives in this car? This time, after having a good feel for the car, I opened it up a bit more. Once I got on the highway, I stomped down in first gear, wound it out while being pinned to the back of the seat, and headed for second. Wow, that Hurst really has a nice feel to it, and heck, we’ve not gone 1/8 of a mile and the 160 speedo is nearing 100 MPH. Did I mention that this car was really something? We’re passin’ cars like they’re road signs, and the grin on my face is three miles wide by now.

Up ahead, what looks like a cop car is nearing us. “Shut it down; police!” is what I hear from Joe. No problem. I hit the brakes, down shift into 3^rd, and slow it down enough so I’m even with traffic. Then the ‘cop car’ turns out to be a minivan with a ski rack on the roof. Haha! I mash down on the throttle and here we go again! I’m havin’ the time of my life at this point. What I was feeling is really hard to describe, it’s just awesome! Those R2 Studebaker V8’s are really some amazing engines. It’s no wonder that they why they do so well at the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drags each year!

That was by far one of the most memorable Studebaker experiences I’ve had in my 18 years of life. Sure I was missing out on my Senior Prom, but that’s OK, a ’63 Daytona with an Orange Whirly Thing REALLY makes up for it! And the weekend was a perfect one indeed. I don’t know how Prom would’ve really been for me, but I can’t imagine it coming close to the time I had at that car show. The SDC is really a great organization, made up of many wonderful people.

Joe and Nancy really made that weekend something special for me, and for that, I’m glad to be a part of it all. Thanks guys, I’m proud to have driven the wheels off your R2 Daytona, but even prouder to call you friends. Can’t wait ‘til the next one to get another drive! Like someone once said, “It is an addiction!” Now, where are the keys to MY Lark R2 that’s supposed to be in the driveway…?