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My story begins on Friday, August 20, 1965. I was driving a 1955 Chevrolet past a car dealership in my hometown and I saw the Red 1962 Ford Galaxie sitting on the lot for sale. As soon as I saw it, I recognized the car. The car was previously owned by the father of one of my high school friends. When I would see his mother drive this car to the school to bring him his lunch I would daydream about someday owning a car like this one. I remember a couple of times that we went on field trips and I was one of the fortunate ones that got to ride in the Galaxie. The car had a tremendous amount of power compared to the Chevrolets I had owned and I was scared to death that my friend would get us all killed by driving so fast. At that time I did not know what size engine was in this car. After buying it, I found out the reason that this car was so fast and produced so much power. It came from the factory with a 390 hi-performance engine with 375 horsepower. This particular engine was 390 cubic inch with an aluminum 4 barrel intake with Holley carburetor, dual point distributor, factory cast iron headers, solid lifters, high lift cam, and adjustable rocker arms. It also had a 3 speed on the column. Most of the hi-performance engines that I had seen were 4 speed on the floor.
After seeing the car on Friday, I knew I had to have it some way or another. But the question was "How?" I got home as fast as I could in a Chevrolet to talk to my mother about buying this car. At that time, you could not have a car in your name in North Carolina unless you were 21 years of age. I was only 18. After talking to Mama, we went to the dealership the next morning which was August 21, 1965. We asked the salesman if we could take it for a test drive and he agreed and handed me the keys with the stipulation that Mama had to go with me as co-pilot. We went to a very steep hill to try it out. This was a popular place where most everyone went to try out a car. This practice was referred to as "seeing how fast it would go from the 105 Bypass to the Hilltop Drive-In." At that time, my Mama was 61 years old. When I turned the car loose up the mountain, I turned to her and said, "I am going to run it real hard to make sure the motor is in good condition." We smoked the tires in first gear, burned rubber in second, and by then we were at the top of the mountain. When we crossed the top of the mountain running over 100mph, Mama looked at me and said, "If the motor was no good, it would be laying in the road back behind us. We would never have made it to the top." We went back to the dealer to finalize a deal. I traded a 1955 Chevrolet with a 265V8 Engine, manual transmission, 3 speed on the column and $1400.00 for the 1962 Ford Galaxie. It was the best trade I ever made. I have owned this car now for 53 years. If cars could talk, I wouldn't be in jail, I would be under it! The older picture included with this article was taken in 1966 just before I received my invitation from Uncle Sam to spend the next 2 years in the Army. One of these years was spent in Vietnam. My wife drove the car back and forth to work during my time in Vietnam. When I returned to the States, I was stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia. At that time, my wife was able to join me. After I completed my 2 years in the Army, we returned to North Carolina. When we came home from Fort Benning, we had everything we owned in the back seat and trunk of this Galaxie with the exception of a washing machine that had been stored at her mother's house. We both returned to civilian jobs while keeping the Galaxie. I worked in the electronic industry and my wife worked in insurance. I was always tinkering with the car with every spare minute trying to get one more horsepower. In 1969, I was running from the law when I wrecked the car for the first time. I went for a short visit with the Sheriff and was given a ticket for running a red light (which I did not do), speeding, reckless driving, driving on the wrong side of the road, failure to stop for a flashing light and attempting to evade arrest. When I went to court, all charges were dropped except running a red light which was the only thing I did not do. The law works in funny ways sometimes, but I am glad it did in this case. Everything went along good for several years with me and the car. In July of 1970, my wife was expecting our child. We were at my mother's house and I was out in the garage tinkering with the car when my wife went into labor. I am glad to say that she delivered a healthy 6 pound girl who has been the joy of our lives. Once again, in 1974 I was racing against a co-worker and while in the process of passing him on a hill that had a blind spot in it, I met a car and had to leave the road in order to avoid a collision. I hit an embankment going about 110mph and bounced off the bank several times. Needless to say, the front end and driver's side were gone from the Galaxie. Somehow I again escaped unharmed. I worked on it for about 4 months to get it back on the road and it is still running today. I lovingly restored Big Red and he holds a special place of honor in our family. The car is no longer raced and enjoys a well-deserved and peaceful retirement. At the present time, we have 2 other 1962 Ford Galaxie 500s which I have restored. Both of these cars are 406 cubic inch hi-performance. One is Black and the other one is identical to the one in this article and is Rangoon Red. My daughter has a Rangoon Red 1963 Ford Falcon Sprint Convertible. We are a Ford family for sure! All I can say is that I am proud to be a Ford owner.
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