The purveyors of “the secrets of speed” for Model A Fords converged on Chattanooga, Tennessee recently. The local Model A club with some help by Honest Charley Speed Shop and Coker Tire hosted the First Annual Hill Climb. The course was the hill at 6th Street and Market in downtown Chattanooga. Honest and Coker welcomed the hillclimbers to town with a well attended reception Thursday evening at our headquarters in the historic southside of southside of Chattanooga. Friday these FAST A’s toured the Chattanooga area and stopped by to see my folks’ (Harold and Lill Coker) car collection at Coker farm.

On Saturday morning, “Honest” Mike Goodman and Honest Louis Johnson set up the Honest Charley tent for the use of the registration folks at the corner of 6th and Market.

Coker Tire’s Andrew Givens brought out my Coker Special, a 1937 Shafer 8 Indy Car to do a few timed runs without competing. Honest Louis’s daughter had a blast riding in the Shafer.

It was really fun to see those flathead fours burn rubber! What music to my ears! You know it has to take a lot of engineering and hard work to get these little A’s to turn such horsepower! I love to see and smell the burn outs created by these hot A’s!!! And do you have any clue what that burning rubber smells like? Come on….you gotta know what I think it smells like any way. Money!

David Moore and the local Model A club did a great job with the first Hillclimb. I hope this was the first of many Chattanooga Hill Climbs. So did most participants I spoke to also feel we should have an annual event. So… Let’s all get working on our Model A’s so they go fast! Just don’t forget you can get your Model A speed parts at Honest Charley, and when you burn rubber in your Model A, remember where to come back to for new rubber!

From the road,

Corky Coker