Monthly calendar report:
Two of my July calendar-entries have images worth noting:
-1) My Howard Fogg railroad-calendar has a print of Fogg’s painting of a train on the famous Florida Keys extension of Florida East Coast Railroad.
The Florida Keys extension of the Florida East Coast Railroad was the most audacious railroad project ever completed.
Henry Flagler, promoter of the Florida East Coast Railroad, extended his railroad all the way to Key West in 1912.
It involved building a huge number of bridges over open water, and a hurricane took out some of those bridges in 1935, and washed out much of the railroad.
The train is on one of those bridges — a long, narrow viaduct of continuous concrete-arches.
After the hurricane the railroad was never rebuilt, but the bridges were converted to highway use, and washed-out sections rebuilt.
The highway bridges were rather rudimentary, so the highway was rebuilt as a newer, grander thoroughfare that skirts Flagler’s bridges.
The remaining Flagler bridges still stand, and are used as fishing-piers.
Like the partially-collapsed Kinzua Bridge (in northwest Pennsylvania), the bridges just end where what’s gone is gone.
-2) My Oxman sportscar-calendar has a 1964 289 Cobra for its July entry.
The Cobra was a sensation when it hit the market while I was in college.
The AC-Cobra was the British AC sportscar chassis and body with a Ford Small-Block V8 installed in place of the Bristol inline-six.
The Cobra was intended to put Ferrari on-the-trailer, but it was not to be. —It was instigated by Californian Carroll Shelby, an ex-Ferrari driver.
Too many compromises — the AC-Cobra was more a road-car than race-car; which the Ferrari was.
But even now the Cobra is still in demand.
Later Shelby re-engineered the chassis and installed the 427 Big-Block. A huge cottage-industry has arisen making 427 imitations and kit-cars.
The 289 V8 in this car has four double-throat Weber carburetors. That’s a throat for each cylinder.
Just imagine trying to synchronise all those carbs — only in a race-car.
| SUNRISE OVER THE KEY WEST EXTENSION |
 |
| Painting by Howard Fogg. |
The Florida Keys extension of the Florida East Coast Railroad was the most audacious railroad project ever completed.
Henry Flagler, promoter of the Florida East Coast Railroad, extended his railroad all the way to Key West in 1912.
It involved building a huge number of bridges over open water, and a hurricane took out some of those bridges in 1935, and washed out much of the railroad.
The train is on one of those bridges — a long, narrow viaduct of continuous concrete-arches.
After the hurricane the railroad was never rebuilt, but the bridges were converted to highway use, and washed-out sections rebuilt.
The highway bridges were rather rudimentary, so the highway was rebuilt as a newer, grander thoroughfare that skirts Flagler’s bridges.
The remaining Flagler bridges still stand, and are used as fishing-piers.
Like the partially-collapsed Kinzua Bridge (in northwest Pennsylvania), the bridges just end where what’s gone is gone.
 |
| 1964 289 Cobra. |
The Cobra was a sensation when it hit the market while I was in college.
The AC-Cobra was the British AC sportscar chassis and body with a Ford Small-Block V8 installed in place of the Bristol inline-six.
The Cobra was intended to put Ferrari on-the-trailer, but it was not to be. —It was instigated by Californian Carroll Shelby, an ex-Ferrari driver.
Too many compromises — the AC-Cobra was more a road-car than race-car; which the Ferrari was.
But even now the Cobra is still in demand.
Later Shelby re-engineered the chassis and installed the 427 Big-Block. A huge cottage-industry has arisen making 427 imitations and kit-cars.
The 289 V8 in this car has four double-throat Weber carburetors. That’s a throat for each cylinder.
Just imagine trying to synchronise all those carbs — only in a race-car.
-3) My Oxman hot-rod calendar for July has a ‘32 Ford Phaeton hot-rod that looks rather ugly.
Like all phaetons it looks rear-heavy; a motorized bathtub.
Actually, it’s a two-door sedan with the top cut off; Ford didn’t make two-door phaetons in 1932.
posted by BobbaLew at 7:40 AM
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