By R.A. Jetter

I knew it’s huge trouble, just by that tone. Why? Well, Dave talked his Mom into secreting him the keys… told her he’d just cruise around town… besides, his Dad pulled his license a few days earlier… here we are, 27 miles from home with a Buick Eight rod hanging out the side of that straight eight blok. Dead on the side of the road and him without a driver’s license.

Fun? Sure, at first. Life-changing… weee-ll! Definitely five minutes of adrenalin… at speed… and 300 seconds of knowing we were going to be car-less for six months. Those five minutes stretched into an hour on the road home in the cab of a tow truk!

Ever wished you had five short minutes back? Maybe for something really stupid you did. Then again, ever do something that you really liked for 300 seconds and wish you do could it all over again, with all the same pieces in place?

Whether stupid or intelligent… five minutes can change your life… and probably did… for most of us.

Five minutes in a showroom fresh 409″ was memorable. A friend, Dick, decided he needed a branny new-off-the-showroom-floor 1961 Impala Sport Coupe when they debuted in September of 1960. He had a very nice ‘56 Bel Air two-door hardtop… pure white, slammed, 3-two’s on a built 283″, four-speed, whitewalls, flippers, rumbling exhausts… but those brand new, deep blak, red interiored ‘61 hardtops were oh-so-cool.

I didn’t run with him much… he was one of those guys that hung around with nearly everyone in town… and everyone knew him… once in a while we’d cruise together when we were the only two out looking for trouble… ehhrrrr, uh, looking for fun! His ‘56 was fast and the V8 sounded a lot better than my six’s splits.

He procrastinated all winter… finally ordered it late spring, 1961… “No sense getting it in the dead of winter,” Dick said. “It’s a bitch keeping the ‘56 clean, don’t wanna dirty up a new car.” Took two months to get the ‘61 in… factory shipped the Impala with a four-barrel… mainly becuz the order was so late in the model year and the new ‘62 production run started. Dick wanted 3-two’s, swore he’d ordered it that way… wanted it that way or he wasn’t buying. He was one of those guys that had cash-in-hand when he was ready to buy something and the dealer didn’t want to lose that! Four days later the 409″ had three deuces on it… and chromed, reversed wheels to boot… he’d also had the white trim insert painted blak… it was a gorgeous car.

Before he accepted it he had to have the front end lowered… sat too high… with cut coils the Chevy garage would take no responsibility for the car once it left their service department… “voids the warranty” Dick was reminded… he didn’t care…a new car shouldn’t have any mechanical problems, right?

Out cruising Friday nite a few weeks later, this butt ugly ‘61 Fury hardtop rolled into town. I’d always felt the 1960 Plymouth’s weren’t exactly the best looking car Plymouth built, but they really whipped the car with an ugly stick when they brought out the ’61’s… peee-yewww…

Dick got into an argument with the Fury owner at the A & W… said argument resulted in a $50.00 wager… Plymouth owner said his 383″ could whip any 409″ that ever existed… hmmmmmm.

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