Cotter Tom - Barn Find Road Trip: 3 Guys, 14 Days and 1000 Lost Collector Cars Discovered

TOM COTTER

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

MICHAEL ALAN ROSS

First published in 2015 by Motorbooks, an imprint of Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc., 400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA

2015 Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc.

Text 2015 Tom Cotter

Photography 2015 Michael Alan Ross

All photographs 2015 Michael Alan Ross unless labeled otherwise.

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Digital edition: 978-1-6278-8762-5
Hardcover edition: 978-0-7603-4940-3

Acquisitions Editor: Zack Miller

Project Manager: Jordan Wiklund

Design Manager: Brad Springer

Cover Design: Kent Jensen

Layout Designer: Brad Norr Design

Dedication

To Peter Egan,

who unknowingly taught me everything I know about writing. (Unfortunately, he failed to teach me everything he knew.)

To my two car-hunting buddiesBrian Barr and Michael Alan Rosswho made this trip productive, memorable, and fun! To Zach Strait, who totally embraced the social media platform of our trip and guided us to a number of terrific discoveries in the central Virginia area. To friend Chuck Goldsborough, who not only turned us onto a number of really cool finds, but arranged for us to work on our disabled Woody in his brothers repair shop when we were stranded in the Baltimore area. To Keith Irwin and the guys at Keith Irwin Restorations, who have managed to keep the Woody roadworthy enough for our extended road trip. To the fine folks at Street and Performance, who are making good on the Woodys front belt drive system that gave us issues on our journey. To my Motorbooks publishing crew Zack Miller, Nichole (love the H) Schiele, Kathy Littfin, and Lara Neel, who wholeheartedly bought into the crazy concept of searching for cars and writing about it! And to my long-suffering wife, Pat, who had to do all the housework for two weeks.

How many times have you driven down a country road and wondered what rare car or motorcycle was in the garage, barn, junkyard, or shed you just drove by? Lots of times, I bet. Tom Cotter, through his series of books, The Cobra in the Barn, The Hemi in the Barn, The Vincent in the Barn, and 50 Shades of Rust, has given us a peek into garages, barns, junkyards, and even a bedroom (easy now, it was Henry Wilkinsons Cobra), supporting that dream we all have of finding the car weve always wanted and at a price we could afford.

All of the following stories were collected through Toms myriad contacts, rumors, and whispers, but now he and his cohorts have taken it to a new level. Driving his 39 Ford Woody (a barn find itself) on a 2,700-mile odyssey through Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvaniaand without the benefit of a television production company choreographing the tripthey dropped in on likely candidates. Taking the Woody was a good idea, as it was a great icebreaker and I am sure kept the guys from getting shot nosing around somebodys premises.

Tom, along with Brian Barr and ace photographer Michael Alan Ross, found a treasure trove of Chevys, Fords, a Cord Beverly sedanhey! Read the book. They are all here. And the guys did it the old-fashioned way: cruising the highways and byways and just following their noses.

Maybe this book will influence you to hit the road with the same goal. If you dont, Tom will beat you to that lost Cobra, Ferrari, Duesenberg, or Bugatti. To quote the ever erudite Bluto from Animal House, you know what this meansROAD TRIP! Enjoy the ride and savor the dream.

Bill Warner
Founder and Chairman
Amelia Island Concours dElegance

For adult males of the gear-head persuasion, discovering an old car is a very special occasion. I say male because I have not met too many women who get their jollies by digging through mechanical trash, sneaking into barns and outbuildings, or risking tick and snake bites in the hopes of finding a vintage vehicle. But for certain guys, an environment like this is utopia.

Perhaps there is an endorphin release, similar to the high that distance runners experience when going on a long run. For hard-core, truly addicted barn-finders, the search is at least as exciting as the find, and many times more so. As my friend Peter Egan says regarding intensive automotive restoration, Its about the journey, not the destination. After years of wrenching to complete a restoration, enthusiasts like Peter simply sell the car into which they have invested so much blood, sweat, and tearsand simply purchase another project.

Peter wrote this in the Foreword of The Cobra in the Barn, my first book on this subject: Finding that car in a barn and making it run again are as close as most car buffs will ever get to God.

Well said.

For serious car finders, its much the same way. The simple task of following up on obscure leads that might yield a car is reason enough to waste away a perfectly good Saturday. And actually finding the car is gear-head nirvana.

I speak as one of the thoroughly addicted. Since way before I actually held a drivers license, I have been searching for old cars. Perhaps it was because I showed no interest (or ability) in organized sports or education; from grade school through high school I was more absorbed in reading my favorite monthly magazine, Rod & Custom, than in academics or throwing a perfect pitch.