Shelby GT500

A few years ago, I owned a 2007 Shelby GT 500. I had ordered it from Ed Kenley Ford in Northern Utah, my favorite Ford dealership. The GT 500 was being brought back for the first time since 1970, and I had been on the waiting list since they were first announced. It was almost a year until the details were all finalized and they started actually putting in orders. That dealership would only be getting one Shelby GT 500 for the 2007 model year, and it would be mine. I picked out the color and options I wanted, the order was placed, and 6 months later, my new Shelby arrived.
I think I always knew that it may be a once-in-a-lifetime car for me. Being something special, I tried to keep the miles down, it was always kept clean and detailed. It was never driven is the rain, and was kept covered when in the garage. After we bought our place in Southern Utah, the Shelby was kept in the garage down here most of the time. I could drive it all year around in this climate, and I came down here often.
I made some performance upgrades while I owned the Shelby. It had an after-market cold air induction system, cat-back exhaust system, and some special trim items and the like. It was tuned to about 575 horsepower, and was a thrill to drive. I had it up over 150 MPH on a lonely stretch of  deserted Nevada highway one summer afternoon.
I owned the Shelby for about six years, and it had only 12,000 miles on it when I sold it. The main problem was, I'm a car-guy, and I like to drive my cars. I didn't want a "collectors item" that I felt I couldn't just drive as much as I wanted. When I sold it, I ordered a new 2013 Mustang GT to be my daily driver performance car.
Car enthusiasts may want to check out my book: "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing". Just follow this link; Grab Some Gears

My 2007 Shelby GT 500 , in the Red Rock country of Southern Utah , about 7 years ago.

What's Next ?

Over the last couple years, the miles have really started to add up on our 2014 Dodge Charger. This is mostly due to numerous 2000 mile trips to Washington state and back, from our Southern Utah home. The same situation was happening with our gray 2013 Charger, which was an all-wheel-drive model. We sold that gray Charger to our son, and replaced it with our current white 2014 we found at our local Dodge dealership.
These are excellent cars for many reasons. They are very comfortable to travel in, very roomy, even with rear seat passengers, and have plenty of trunk space. Our 2014 also has a performance tire/wheel package that provides excellent high speed highway handling. Equipped with the 300 horsepower V6 engine, and 8-speed automatic transmission, it has plenty of power, and also gets over 30 miles-per-gallon highway gas mileage.
I have always been a "car-guy", and the looks and image of my cars are important to me. The Dodge Chargers are among very few 4-door cars that can pull off the "muscle-car" look, especially with the 20" chrome wheels of our white 2014 model.
Now, as the miles are adding up, I'm starting to think about what I might get to replace this car when the time comes. I want it to be something with all the qualities we love about this one. What's next? That may be a tall order to fill.
Car people may want to check out my book; "Grab Some Gears - 40 Years of Street Racing". Just follow this link to read sample pages; Grab Some Gears

Our favorite traveling car,  our 2014 Dodge Charger.

Remembering Our History

Anyone who has ever been a car enthusiast, at any point during their life, has fond memories of at least one vehicle from their past. Maybe the first "special" car or truck they ever owned, or one that just brings back the most memories from the days gone by.
For me, that includes many vehicles I have owned over the years. That's just typical for any life-long "car guy". But for many people, that number may be very few, maybe just one or two. For some, it's a vehicle that was special to someone else, other than just our self. I once owned an old Ford Bronco, pick-up cab model, that my grandfather had purchased new at least 20 years before I bought it from my dad. I only owned it for a couple years before I sold it and moved on to something else, but it still holds some special memories for me.
Just this past week, my son sold the 77 Bronco that was special to his son Caden, who passed away last month after loosing his battle with cancer. They owned that vehicle for less than a year, but it will always be remembered as "Caden's Bronco" by the whole family. It will be one of those fond memories for all of us.
We don't have to be a collector, and keep these vehicles, or put them away in storage, for them to be special to us. We have the photographs, and the memories. All we have to do is remember.

Caden's Bronco, ready to be taken away by the new owner.