"The fun thing about that car is that when it was done, we drove it!" Rick said laughing.
The Boss 429 may rank up there as one of the hobby's most trailered cars. Rick respects pushing restored gems on and off trailers, but he also respects revving the solid-lifter, hemi-headed big-block engine and shifting the four-speed through the gears. You have to keep the fluids running through the car to keep everything in shape, and Rick's cars are more than show worthy because they are run, as Ford intended.
When we arrived to take pictures, he fired up the black Boss and off we went. He says SAC gets a lot of positive feedback from his friends and customers for driving the exotic Mustang. "So many of these cars are restored, and then the owners are afraid to take them on the road. I wouldn't drive it from here to Florida, but it is fun to take out and drive."
Rick doesn't go to extremes. The car's first major show was the 40th Anniversary Mustang Show in Nashville in April 2004. He trailered his part-time driver to the track there and entered it in the Mustang Club of America concours-trailered class. It received a gold award.
We remember the car sitting under the bleachers. Rick was having a great time fielding questions from a steady stream of onlookers. The black-on-black was obviously a big attraction.
Raven Black was one of five Boss 429 colors for '69, in addition to Royal Maroon; Black Jade, which is a dark green; Candyapple Red; and Wimbledon White. The Grabber colors didn't debut until 1970. Rick likes the black color combination, but he's not sure whether it or Black Jade is more rare.
Today people think about the KK number. According to Strange's book, KK1201 through KK1214 were special use vehicles; Job No. 1 was KK1208, used for engine development. Also, of the first 50 built, "Extra care was taken in building these cars to assure proper fit and finish, for they would be given the closest scrutiny by the press and the public." KK1220 is still getting that close scrutiny today.
Editor's note: Rick Parker sold the black Boss 429 after the photography was done for this article. The subsequent owner sold the car for $308,000 at the Russo and Steel collector-car auction last January.