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Wednesday, March 28, 2007 · Page 17 was soon to appear in my future." Do you have any photos of old cars to share with our readers? Email bill@car story.com or write to Bill Sherk, P.O. Box 10012, Leamington, ON, N8H 2C3. A flower child's VW Beetle When I was a student at York University in Toronto in the 1960s, I had a parttime job pumping gas at Harold Lehman's Esso station at Bayview and Broadway. One of my favourite cars to fill up was the Volkswagen Beetle because, with its rearmounted air-cooled engine, I never had to check the water in the rad. Most of the Beetles that came in were late-model ones ('58-'62) with the big square rear window, but every once in a while, an older one would pull up at the pumps. I remember one of the oldies had a wooden stick to check the level of gas because there was no gauge on the dash. One Beetle owner asked me to check his oil. I noticed a wire attached to his dipstick and asked him about it. He said the wire heated his dipstick, which then warmed up the oil in his crankcase for easier starting on cold mornings. To which I said: "What a great idea!" Alexa DeWiel remembers her first two Beetles. "My very first car was a brand new 1970 Volkswagen Beetle, which was unfortunately repossessed only three months after purchase when I left a good job as film librarian in the sparkling new Ontario Science Centre in Toronto to become a waitress/poet in a student diner. This career transition precluded my being able to keep up with my car payments. Off went Beetle number one with the repo man. "My first real car, then, was a used 1968 (I think) Beetle that I bought for about $50 and hand-painted with a floral design to cover the front end dents. The times were a-changin'. With friends, I was living on the outskirts of Toronto and harbouring draft dodgers and a Green Beret gone AWOL from the war in Vietnam. "It was useful to have a set of wheels. My VW Beetle also enabled me to be actively involved in the People or Planes movement, which successfully agitated to prevent the expropriation of farmland for the construction of a proposed air- CARSTORY I S SPONSORED BY port northeast of Toronto. "My Beetle carried me through a tumultuous winter, its heater never quite working to capacity ­ and of course, because of the flowers, drawing negative attention on Highway 401 during my infrequent trips into the city. But I loved the soft purr of its engine, the comfortable knob on its gearshift, and the fact that it didn't seem to mind the pot holes in the ludicrously long driveway of our rented farmhouse. "Then one autumn morning in 1972 it just wouldn't start, and we pushed it to the back of the barn. This Beetle's demise eventually convinced me to move back into the city, where streetcars operated night and day and a certain Datsun 500 Your Security. Our Responsibility. Harness Highlights 73's Hockey CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15 Bantam A Essex Source for Sports This past weekend the Bantam Majors finished up their playoff round robin games. Friday night Essex headed to LaSalle. Essex started off the scoring and lead 2-0 in the first. The first goal was scored by Tony Spidalieri with help from Blain Little and Colin Delaet. The second was netted by Tyler Raymont and the assist went to Ryan Morris. LaSalle tied things up in the second. Essex went ahead by one when Colin scored with help from Alex Thomson. LaSalle finished up the scoring and tied up the game. The game finished with a short bench and a tie. Evan Howson had an incredible game between the pipes. Saturday night Essex played host to the Tecumseh Eagles. The boys totally dominated this match up and easily walked away with an 8-1 win. Getting two a piece were Colin and Tony. Getting singles were Tyler, Travis, Blain and Alex. Assists were awarded to Tony, Blain, Lyle, Ryan, Colin, Jessy and Tyler. Weslie Strain stood strong in net tonight. The Ravens will now advance to the Bluewater Championship Weekend. This will be held April 6 and 7 in Tecumseh. Good luck boys! Skating season wraps up Skate Essex recently wrapped up its skating season with a test day. Anita Marinelli, left, was successful in achieving her Gold Level Dances and Senior Silver Skills. Other successful students were: Lindsay Hamelin - Viennese Waltz and Argentine Dances; Sydney MacPherson - Fiesta Dance; Sarah Zaarour Baby Blues; Casslyn Heil - Fiesta Dance and Preliminary Skills; Meghan Beutler Fourteen Step; Michlyn Fournier - Fourteen Step and Ten Fox Dances. "We have not played well this entire series," Hotts added. "We need to pick it up. We took some real dumb penalties today. Hopefully this was a wake up call. They have the momentum right now. We need to go into their building and take it right back." Essex 73's vs. Belle River Canadiens ·Wed. March 28 Essex at Belle River 7:30 pm ·Fri. March 30 Belle River at Essex 7:45 pm* If necessary: ·Sun. April 01 Essex at Belle River 3:00 pm* ·Tue. April 03 Belle River at Essex 7:30 pm *Revised start times Ambro Dismiss, owned by Marc Adams of Essex and Bernie Leboeuf of Blytheswood, won a conditioned trot at Windsor Raceway March 21. Al Cullen was in the sulky for the winning drive. Last Sunday, Unique Sam was first to the finish line in a claiming pace for ownerdriver Pat Barr of Essex. Lightly regarded at the mutuels, Unique Sam paid $22 to win. Mike Micallef leads the drivers' parade so far this season at Windsor. He has 76 wins. Al Cullen is second with 70 and Jason Brewerdriven horses have been first to stop the teletimer 62 times. Essex teamster Gene Piroski has 27 victories, and earnings of $118,982. Looking at the trainers' standings, Ray Farmer has 19 victories and purses of $78,843. Tony Piroskitrained horses have been in the top three finishers 23 times in 52 starts. They have earned $40,313. ESSEX CLINIC OPTOMETRIC Even healthy eyes * SATURDAY APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE * need exams Even healthy Even healthy DR. J BELL 186 Talbot St. S., Unit #2 DR. M.B. McDERMID Essex Medical Walk in Clinic) eyes need eyes need (Beside DR. T. WILBEE exams exams 186 Talbot St. S., Unit #2 (Beside Essex Medical Walk in Clinic) · Eye Exams · Glasses · Contact Lenses DR. J BELL · Laser Vision Correction Consultations DR. M.B. MCDERMID DR. T. WILBEE · Evening Appointments 776-9900