The parking lot at the Town...
The parking lot at the Town Square Mall on the south end of the Las Vegas strip was packed on Wednesday night. Ger Gervasi, manager of the Las Vegas Guitar Center and a Shelby owner himself, arranged the Bash.
At every Shelby Bash, members are on the lookout for the great man, Carroll Shelby, himself. The event revolves around spotting him. However, Carroll couldn't attend this year's Bash. His condition wasn't clear, but attendees heard he was in the hospital. Waiting in line at the banquet, Team Shelby member Tom Raber received a text message from Cleo, Shelby's wife. We were all encouraged to hear that the doctors had taken Carroll off sedation and were hoping to have him out of the hospital soon. (Editor's note: Carroll unfortunately never improved from his hospitalization and has since passed away on May 10).
The first Bash was held in 2008 to celebrate Carroll Shelby's 85th birthday--as in birthday bash. It has become a January tradition at Shelby American, with open-track activities, car shows, shop tours, cruises, and more. This year, the Bash was part of Shelby American's tour to celebrate the company's 50th anniversary.
On Thursday morning, owners...
On Thursday morning, owners of Shelby Mustangs waited in line to sign waivers and receive wristbands before entering Spring Mountain Motor Speedway for the open track activities.
During this year's event, held January 13-16, someone pointed to a young man entering the Friday evening banquet at Shelby World Headquarters in Las Vegas and said, "That's Henry Ford."
Indeed, it was Henry Ford III, the 31-year-old grandson of Henry Ford II, who was known as The Deuce. Visiting with him in line, I discovered a down-to-earth person.
"Is it hard to be Henry Ford?" I asked. He looked at my name badge and responded, "Is it hard to be Jerry Heasley?"
Henry Ford III appeared comfortable with his historic name. After we walked down the red carpet, through the factory, past an impressive display of Shelbys and Cobras, and finally into the big white tent for dinner, I discovered that Henry III was there to accept the Shelby American Hall of Fame award on behalf of his grandfather. Carroll Shelby chose Henry Ford II as the first recipient.
On the podium, Shelby American President John Luft paraphrased Shelby's words: "Without this man, we wouldn't be here," explaining that Henry Ford II thrust Ford into its Total Performance racing campaign in the summer of 1962, of no coincidence the same time that Shelby American got underway 50 years hence.
Henry Ford III accepted the award on behalf of his late grandfather, telling a story that had the crowd laughing.
John Keller cooked hamburgers...
John Keller cooked hamburgers for lunch and eggs for breakfast for Team Shelby members. The guys rent a travel trailer to bring the comforts of home to the track.
Most of the Shelby American...
Most of the Shelby American crew came out to the Guitar Center event. Designer/test driver Vince LaViolette and his wife visited with George Munsterman, who had driven his new GT 350 on the LA-to-Vegas run earlier in the day.
Open track participants could...
Open track participants could choose from four different groups--yellow, red, green and blue--according to their level of experience. Dale Blandin from Ft. Collins, Colorado, drove his '11 GT 500 on Thursday at Spring Mountain. He mounted a Go-Pro camera to the inside of his windshield for pictures.
It seems a couple of years ago, Henry III was working at Galpin Ford in Los Angeles when he received a call from Carroll Shelby with an invitation to dinner. "To me, he's this icon," Henry III said. "Of course, I said I would go to dinner with him.
"I had no idea how he got my number and sort of wanted to ask. But if you get a call from Carroll Shelby, I don't think you ask, 'Where did you get my number?' So after I hung up, I called my dad (Edsel) and told him I just got a call from Carroll Shelby. And he's like, 'Oh yeah, I gave him your number.'"Henry III said he told his father, "The next time Carroll Shelby asks for my phone number, can you give me a little heads up?"
Two weeks later, Henry III met Shelby and Cleo for dinner. He said his hands were sweating as he wondered what to say. He had no worries because Carroll is a big talker. "We sit down at the table and I haven't said anything," Henry tells the crowd. "Carroll looks at me and says, 'Henry, your grand-pappy was a mean, old son-of-a-bitch.'"Ford went on to explain that his grandfather loved Carroll and Carroll loved his grandfather. Their partnership started 50 years ago.
I had already mentioned to Henry that the name Shelby should be forever synonymous with Ford. He agreed wholeheartedly, telling me about his '08 Shelby GT 500 KR that he would display at the show.
The Vegas event had kicked off in usual fashion with check-in at the hotel on Wednesday, March 14. But many people on the West Coast had gathered previously at Shelby's Gardena, California, facility to blast over to Las Vegas.
Entrants attached these signs...
Entrants attached these signs to each door. Each car had a unique number.
Mac and Mary McCarthy brought...
Mac and Mary McCarthy brought their '07 Shelby GT to the Bash. Mary named the car Lucy and painted
John Luft (left), president...
John Luft (left), president of Shelby American, visited with Kenny Adam and his new GT 350 during the show. Kenny says his Shelby is the only one built with the rear seat removed to save weight. It has a rear brace from the '12 Boss 302 Laguna Seca.
George Munsterman (left) was...
George Munsterman (left) was the high bidder at $3,000 for this signed poster during a benefit auction for the Carroll Shelby Foundation. He posed for pictures with Jenni Shreeves from the Carroll Shelby Foundation and master of ceremonies Dennis Pittsenbarger from Hot Rod Radio.
Members of Team Shelby posed...
Members of Team Shelby posed for our camera in the pits at Spring Mountain Motor Speedway. Many of them parked their cars in front of the club motor home, which served as headquarters for food and fun.
Shelby American VP of Operations...
Shelby American VP of Operations Gary Patterson handed out awards and posed for photos with class winners.
Although I did not traverse that leg, I did meet some of the caravan crew at the hotel. One of them was George Munsterman from New York. Readers may remember our feature about his '70 Twister Special Mach 1 drag car. Last fall, he bought a new GT 350. Munsterman told me about jumping into the throttle on a stretch of road outside of Vegas and snapping a photo of the speedometer at 160 mph.
Judging by the Wednesday night turnout for the cruise-in at the Guitar Center, the 2012 Shelby Bash appeared larger than previous Bashes, as hundreds of cars parked in a roped-off area at the Town Square Mall on the south end of the Vegas Strip.
On Thursday morning, entrants met at Spring Mountain Motor Speedway, 45 miles west of Vegas in Pahrump. One trademark of any Carroll Shelby car show is track action. The event is not technically a race, but instead an open track, where owners can enjoy their Shelbys in a no-pressure, non-competitive event.
Former Shelby American employee...
Former Shelby American employee Jim Wallace wore this shirt, which he traces back to Sebring 1963. He said the shirt has been hanging in his closet for 49 years.
Susan Schafran Warne worked...
Susan Schafran Warne worked as Racing Secretary for Shelby American during 1964-1966. She visited with Team Shelby members during the Thursday night mixer and dinner at the host South Point hotel.
Older Mustangs and Shelbys...
Older Mustangs and Shelbys were in the minority. Colorado’s Donnie and Deb Beson displayed their ’68 coupe. Donnie is a former Shelby employee.
On Friday, participants could go back for another day of club racing or opt for the Poker Run, where entrants pick up a card at five different stops to make a poker hand--the best hand wins. The route this year took the group about 115 scenic miles, consuming three hours from start to finish and edging into California at Shoshone. The final checkpoint was actually the track at Spring Mountain.
The Friday night banquet was not the finale, but it did cap off the event.
An event this long requires wisdom in pacing oneself because of the early morning starts and late evening get-togethers. The mixer Friday night was a must-go for just about everybody. Held in a relaxed atmosphere of the South Point's huge ballroom, this event allowed everyone the opportunity to eat from a variety of foods on five different buffets and even bid on signed Carroll Shelby memorabilia.
Helaina Semmler (Mt. Laurel, New Jersey) attends every Shelby Bash and said she saw people at the 50th she hadn't seen in years. Events like the 50th pull the enthusiasts from everywhere.
Fittingly, the sign-off to this event was, "See you at the 100th."
Shelby American rolled out...
Shelby American rolled out the red carpet–literally–through the factory en route to the white tent for Friday night's banquet. Here, we see former Shelby American employee and Cobra driver Allen Grant and his wife walking that route.
Shelby American's 50th Anniversary...
Shelby American's 50th Anniversary trailer, filled with 50th Anniversary goodies, was the most popular stop every day. Here, people waited in line before the Friday night banquet to buy a piece of Shelby history.
After the Friday night banquet,...
After the Friday night banquet, Henry Ford III (second from left) took time to sign autographs and pose for pictures. Later, he signed cars in the parking lot, and before he left, he asked if anyone else had a question or needed a signature.