Sleek and sexy as a super model, there it was in the showroom
of my local Dodge dealer. My yellow and black Challenger.
The year was 1974 and I was 17 years old with a taste for adventure and
anything that looked like it would go fast.
At that tender age I was flying solo in a Cessna 172 with the ADF tuned into
the local radio station listening to CCR crank out Suzie Cue in time with
the propeller. Nobody was going to tell me, I didn't have the world by the butt.
As we were walking by the showroom and spotted the beauty, I told Joe the friend that was with me "that's my car".
Two days later I had my Dad talked into co-signing a loan for me and the fun started. My girlfriend hated it because she was afraid I was going to pick up
the odd extra girl that wanted a ride.
She hated it so I loved it even more.
Now the 74 Challenger was not necessarily a muscle car with a 318 3 speed on
the floor but I didn't see it that way and pushed it to every limit I could find.
It just seemed to "stick" right to the pavement. Pavement yes but gravel?
No.
One afternoon I found it's limit and looking back at how crazy I was, I'm
surprised I didn't find it sooner.
We were at a friend's house, I was one month away from age 18 and we were
indulging in a cocktail or two.
I know, drinking and driving don't mix. This was 1974 remember.
Anyway, it was time to go for a ride. With me was my older brother Greg in the
passenger's side and my buddy Ed in the back seat.
Left turn off of the main street onto the highway and a green light.
What's this in front of me? A slow going half ton with a camper on top?
Well, why wait to pass on the left, why not just pass on the right in the
gravel? Ya, that sounds like something this Challenger should be able to do
and besides, I don't think too many guys have tried this before.
A crank to hard right and drop her down into second, hammer down.
Hey this isn't bad, hope I didn't spray the truck with rocks.
We're past him and I see the blacktop to the left calling me.
I'll just crank it hard left, get back on and we'll be on our way.
Oops, there's something I wasn't expecting, we're fish-tailing like we're testing
rudders. Ed later informed me that I was trying wildly to straighten it out
and about the fourth swerve over we went.
It was like eveything just went into slow motion.
I can still recall the sound. It was a slow motion crunch, crunch, crunch.
Everything seemed black.
When we came to rest on the roof, I called out, Greg you ok...yep, Ed you ok..
yep. Everyone was alive. You don't know how many times I've counted my lucky
stars over the years that nobody was seriously hurt, or worse yet, killed.
It was a good car my Dodge Challenger. Even though the passenger's side
was crushed right down to the door none of the doors opened and nobody
was thrown out. None of us had our seat belts on either.
There probably wasn't a square foot on the car that didn't have a dent and the
roof was flat so it was a total write-off. But nobody was hurt. I had a sore knee
from the steering wheel, Ed had skinned knuckles from putting his fists tight
against the roof when he realized we were going to roll and Greg had a lense
missing out of his glasses. We rolled 4 times.
There was a Police officer right in front coming towards us and he
opened the door to get us out. He said if he'd have been a couple of
seconds sooner we'd have smashed right into him so it seems that we rolled a
couple of times right down the middle of the road and then off to the right
hand ditch. I estimate we were doing about 80 miles an hour at the time
of the roll.
We were lucky. I owe that Challenger something because I had pushed it beyond
what it was designed to take and in the end, it came through for us and created
a safe place to flop around in like rag dolls.
One of my greatest ambitions is to restore a 1974 Dodge Challenger
and drive down the exact route with my brother and Ed and be given a
second chance. It would be like going back in time and for me it would "full
circle" the Challenger.
I'm off to find one. Hope you find yours.
Mark Saville
