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Dale Reed has been having a lifetime
affair and it’s okay with his wife. That’s
because the object of his affections is the
American automobile. Dale can’t remember
a time when he wasn’t a “car guy”. “I started
out building model cars and then I got my
first “real” car when I was only 15,” he
smiled. “It was a '46 Ford coupe that needed
a lot of work.”
In high school he graduated to a '48
Ford convertible that he kept far into his
adult life. “I dated my wife Julie in that car
and even brought our first baby girl home
from the hospital in it.”
Currently Dale and Julie own six cars:
a '55 and '70 Volkswagen, a '67 Nova and
Corvette, a '32 and '34 Ford and a '37 Chev.
Dale says he’s done most of the work himself
on the cars. “I pretty
much do everything but
the body work and
I leave that to the
experts,” he commented.
A good example of his
handiwork is the 1937 Chev
pictured in this article. Dale
says he put a 9" Ford rear end
and 350 Chev V-8 engine and
a five speed transmission in the
car. He did, however, keep the
stock body. “I literally brought
the car home in pieces,” he
chuckled. “The secret to being
a car guy is patience. It takes
time to put a car back together.
For instance, this Chev took
me 14 years to collect all the
pieces and carve out the time
and money to finish it.”
Dale and Julie, members
of the Rose City Street Rods
Car Club and Northwest
Motorsports Association found
a way to marry their love of the
automobile with an important
need in the community. For the
last 13 years they have helped
produce the annual Rockin’ Round
the Block Car Show in downtown Gresham.
“We love the fact that the show raises money
for automotive scholarships at Mt. Hood
Community College. It means a lot to know
we’re helping students build their future in
automotive technology.”
13
One Man’s Love of the Automobile