Two Long Time Fans of Beltsville Shell

This week I had the very special privilege of visiting with two of Beltsville Shell's biggest (and most famous) fans -- Bill Hatch and Lou Bingham.

Bill Hatch

Readers of this blog are familiar with my neighbor, friend, and hero, Bill Hatch. One of Bill's many claims to fame is that he is the Guinness World Record holder (pending final notification from GWR) for "The Longest Ownership of a Vehicle from New".  He purchased his 1957 Corvette on August 12, 1957 at the age of 25, and now, at the age of 94, he still owns (and regularly drives) the same car!

Bill stopped by the house on Tuesday so that we could go to lunch together and cruise down the beach here in San Diego.

 

Our first stop was at our usual place -- In N Out Burger.

While enjoying our lunch, Bill asked some questions about the book, and the characters in it.  I was amazed at how many details Bill had remembered from his reading of the book. 

We had a good time comparing some of my buddies to Bill's and the similarities of the people and the crazy things we all did in the late 1950's and 1960's.  When Bill spoke of his friends, it was always in the past tense, but there was no sadness in his voice.  His outlook on life is a model to emulate -- remembering the good times, and living every day.

Next on our agenda was to drive south on the Coast Highway through the beach cities of Carlsbad, Cardiff, and Encinitas. Bill has never tired of feeling the performance of the Corvette -- I love this about him! 

 Our destination was one both Bill and the Corvette have visited often --- Moonlight Beach.

For a while we sat on a bench facing the volleyball courts -- Bill was an avid volleyball player for many years into his 70's.  He commented on the players and their skill level.  I think he misses the competitiveness of the game and the camaraderie of the players.

 

Next he wanted to walk on the beach.  Before long we encountered a woman who was enjoying the sun and sand, and I asked her to take our picture.

It was a great surprise to learn that she and Bill had many volleyball friends in common.  It was fun listening to the two of them reminisce, and to just enjoy the beautiful November day at the beach.  I asked Bill if he was also a surfer, but he told me he wasn't, even though he spent so much of his life at the various beaches all along the Southern California coast.  Bill described the stress of being a vice-principal, and what a blessing it was to retreat after school to the tranquility of the beach to relax and rewind.

When it came time to return home, Bill asked me to drive.  The car still has the original engine and drive train.  The 283 starts instantly and runs smoothly. The transmission is the standard issue 3-speed.  I had forgotten that there is no synchromesh on first gear, so I had to adjust my driving style through the slow back streets of the beach communities.  

At the end of our perfect day, I watched with complete satisfaction as Bill drove the Corvette back to his house! I think we need to do this again soon!

Lou Bingham

Regular readers of this blog will also remember Lou Bingham, the legendary Southern California Timing Association (SCTA) land-speed racer and hot-rod icon best known for his long history of competing and setting records on the Bonneville Salt Flats.

I was introduced to Lou through the biggest fan of Beltsville Shell in the WORLD -- Thomas Payne.  Together Thomas and Lou hosted me and Don Kingery to an amazing experience at Bonneville Speed Week in 2016.

Bonneville Speed Week 2016 

Thomas and his wife, Chris, came to San Diego this week to celebrate Lou's 95th birthday and invited me to join the party.

Lou spends each summer in Philo, Illinois, with Thomas and Chris. Every day he would go to a local ice cream store called Jarlings Custard Cup.  Here is Lou wearing the signature shirt.

 So . . . Thomas had the frozen custard flown in to San Diego from Illinois as a surprise for Lou!