Hollywood has held a fascination for the concept of time travel through countless films over the past decades dating back to the 1930s. Within these films, the ability to move forward or backward in time has allowed our imaginations to run wild and dream up infinite possibilities of what we might do if we could take it on.
For Bob Covino, it would be an easy task because he would take his two sons and his grandson back to the time when he was 14 years old to see hot rodding in all of its glory in the early '50s. Bob just so happened to be fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to grow up in East Watertown, Massachusetts, where he and good friend Jimmy Karalekas were able to experience hot rodding right as its fuse was going full tilt. They kept their eyes on the "older guys," who happened to be none other than Jimmy's older brother George "Greek" Karalekas, along with Mudd and Shag Sharrigan-members of the well-known Nomads car club. This was at a time when hot rods ruled the streets, and drag racing was starting to tear up the tracks across the country. For these guys, it was all about '32 Fords with '39 boxes, '40 Ford rears, and 3.78 gears!
Bob has owned countless old Fords over the years, including a '31 coupe bought back in 1960 that he still has today. Bob decided almost a decade ago that it was time to gather up the makings of the car he always wanted when he was growing up, that being a Deuce roadster. The car would have to embody the soul of a true late '40s-influenced hop-up complete with a killer Flathead and period-perfect stance.
Being an old friend of another East Coast rodding legend, Jim Lowrey Sr., it was easy for Bob to meet with his son Jim Jr. of Jim Lowrey's Hot Rods in Tilton, New Hampshire, to discuss his ideas for the roadster. Lowrey's well-known style for late '40s- influenced Fords hypnotized Bob and he knew he had met a true master of time travel after being shown a gennie '32 chassis and firewall for the start of the project.
Harkening back to the days spent listening to wicked Flatheads racing through New England, Bob enlisted Ted Wingate to load up a '46 Flattie block with every conceivable speed goodie available so the car will sound every bit as evil as he remembered when the ignition is lit. With the chassis rolling, the fresh Brookville body was handed over to the metal masters at Lowrey's to cherry it up for its coating of Go-Fast Maroon glamour. A period-perfect leather interior by LeBaron Bonney was added to keep with the theme. For Bob, this car has been a dream come true, and Lowrey's has created a perfect way for Bob to take his sons and grandson back to where it all started for him. We can all dig that vibe!