So this will go down as one of the worst days of my life…
I get home from what felt like a fairly successful test session at Sears. The car’s in one piece, seemed to run ok, probably not any faster than it was but at least I seem to be over my distributor problem and I have a list of improvements I want to make over the winter.
I start unstrapping the car and as I release the last strap (drivers front) my world instantly turns to shit… The car starts rolling backwards (I live on a hill) and FALLS off the trailer and keeps going. I haul ass and grab the car and dig my heels in and try to slow it down but it just keeps gaining momentum. I hang on as it drags me along for a few seconds and finally it’s going fast enough that I know I just have to let go…
The next several seconds are agonizing as I watch the car go rolling downhill, backwards. I know there is no possible way this will end well. If it keeps going straight it will go right through a house at the bottom of the hill. Then at pretty much the last second the front wheels hook and it takes a hard 90 degree turn to the right (still going backwards) and slams into the side of a concrete staircase of a neighbors house…
I don’t know this at first. I can’t see the car. I just hear the sickening sound of the impact. Still running I catch up to the car and the rear is completely destroyed… I’m in shock and sick to my stomach. The next hour is a blur. The neighbors come home. I call a tow truck. We pull the car out (the driver’s rear wheel won’t turn because the rear qtr is flattened against the wheel). The tow guy is awesome though and we get the car on his flatbed and he drives it up the hill and helps me get it back into my garage.
Wow. It’s a miracle that no one was killed/injured. It’s also amazing that the damage to the staircase seems to be cosmetic. If it had hit any other part of the house it would have wound up INSIDE the house…
So that’s the good news. But, I’m CRUSHED 🙁 if you’ve been following the blog over the last year and a half you know how much time and energy has been invested in this car. It’s such a huge setback and I don’t even know if the car is repairable… I’ll update more later but I need some time to decompress…
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