The Woebegone Berkeley By: John E. Aibel

492,328,492 these are not the latest BMW model numbers or the combination to my safe. No they are the displacement of my first sports car.

Ever since my brothers started to enter sports car racing I had the urge to do the same. After college and a marriage to the greatest gal in the world plus a new baby, sports cars were not in my future.

John Aibel (far right) with his wife Susan (2nd from the right)
and friends c. 1964

That was until Fred uncovered a Berkeley that was dirt cheap. There was no engine in the engine bay, but there were boxes of engine parts. The key word here was CHEAP. I bought it all!

Not John's actual car, but you get the picture!
1958 Berkeley

I rented a garage in our rented garden apartment, and brought the Berkeley to our new home. Working with the light of a Coleman lantern I started in on the new acquisition.

Fred and I located a new 328 cc engine for it. I was able to put this together with the transmission and drive train of the 492cc the car originally had. To my amazement the engine started right up, with blue smoke billowing out the tail pipe. It was a two stroke cycle engine, like an outboard motor, so this was to be expected. Next I had to adjust the multiple disk clutches just right. It took me a while to figure out how this motorcycle type clutch worked.

I registered the Berkeley for the road, and proceeded to learn how to drive a progressive transmission car. The engine and transmission were motorcycle sourced and the gear lever moved from first gear to fourth gear in a straight line, not in an H pattern. With all of about 28 horsepower, I was able to detect the slightest upgrade in an apparently level road.

One day driving in the city of Passaic, New Jersey, I had to stop at a red light. As I was stopping the engine sort of coughed, but kept running. When the light turned green I naturally put it into first gear and released the clutch. To my surprise the Berkeley went backward! I immediately put the lever into reverse and eased off going forward across the intersection. A two cycle engine will run just as well in either direction, and obviously that was what happened that day!

I took the Berkeley up to Lime Rock Park, CT for a Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) driving school. I must hold the record for the slowest lap of the circuit! It was so slow that the club would not issue me a competition license. I do not blame them at all.

At this event I met a fellow who seemed to be a Berkeley guru. He had factory tools and owned a beautiful restored 492 Berkeley. He told me to bring my car over to his shop and he would put in a center cylinder to increase my engine from a two into a three cylinder engine.

This unique engine has a built up crank, so he separated the crank installed an additional throw and crankcase and center cylinder. This cylinder did not have any cooling fins on the two sides that were adjacent to the two outside cylinders. This causes this cylinder to run much hotter than the outboard ones.

In the boxes of parts there were at least two sets of cylinder heads. One set appeared stock and the other ones were milled down for a higher compression ratio. I specified to this mechanic that I wanted him to use the standard heads.

The day I picked up the car the mechanic told me I had a real Hot Rod of a Berkeley. He proceeded to spin the car around in its own length gunning the engine to spin the front wheels. Wow, now I could get my competiton license!

Off to Lime Rock again. I sure had a lot of power until -  “Ka Boom” - the engine blew up!

Yes, the Berkeley "guru" had installed the milled heads and the middle piston had a big hole in it.

I never did get my SCCA license.

Back at the mechanics shop I had to work with a flashlight out in back of the shop to install a new piston. I put on the stock heads and sold my nightmare to the mechanic. As far as I know he still owns her.

Vicky II By: John E. Aibel

By the time I turned seventeen years of age my beloved Model A Ford continued to motor along quite well. But, it did not look any better than the day I bought her. Despite all my dreams of driving a gleaming Victoria, the reality was that my wishes exceeded my abilities as a body man. To my amazement a 1932 Model B Ford Victoria turned up on the used car lot of Hart Buick in our hometown of Clifton, NJ.

The B looked strange surrounded by late model Buicks and other current makes. Close inspection of the Model B revealed a good looking vehicle in jet black paint, and lurking under the hood sat a 24 stud dual carbed 100 horsepower Ford V-8. 

Originally the Model B was built with a 50 horsepower four cylinder engine. Mr. Ford introduced the V-8 60 horsepower in 1932 to compete with Chevrolet's smooth running 6 cylinder engines. They were known as the Model 18. The body styles offered by Ford of these two models were identical to each other. The only outside difference was the V-8 insignia on the headlight bar.

What could be better than owning two Ford Victorias? Nothing! I just had to buy my second car. I am sure the Buick dealer just wanted that old Junker off his lot because I was able to cut a great deal on that car. 

This time it was my middle brother Fred who drove the Ford up to Massachusetts. Fred and I had an uneventful run. Of course we just had to try out the power of that wonderful Ford V-8. Just as we were exiting the parkway in New York State, a Trooper signaled us to slow down. Those were the days!

Now I had a real car with plenty of power. My brothers had joined a sports car club called Scuderia X. They held track days at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut.  Whenever my brothers drove their Jaguar XK-140 MC and 1957 Corvette I would show up in my Hot Rod Ford. It was probably as fast as most the small bore sized sports cars as long as the road was straight!

The new Vicky had only two small drawbacks. One was the vacuumed activated windshield wiper. When it rained, and I wanted to see where I was going, I had to lift off the gas pedal so that the wiper would work. 

The other small item was the lack of a cooling fan. As long as I maintained a speed of about 35 mph all was fine. At slow speeds the steam would start pouring out of the radiator.

One night my friend Dewey and I were out diving around. The subject of who had the faster car came up. Now Dewey had a new 1957 Ford V8 with a standard transmission. 

We lined up on a dark country road to settle our disagreement. Off we went, and I stayed right next to Dewey until I hit third gear. That is when I “chickened out” and backed off. 

We still laugh about this moon race in our Fords. 

I was able to keep my Deuce for several years and always loved her. 

First Auto Competition By: John E. Aibel

When I was growing up regular American sports were not of big interest to me. While my friends could spout batting averages of the New York baseball times, the latest statistics of the hockey teams or basketball teams. I knew next to nothing of this. 

1954 Brooklyn Dodgers
picture from Getty Images

Now, I could quote the cubic inch displacement of just about all American cars, and the displacement in cubic centimeters of the European cars, and the various power outputs of these cars. 

Formula One and the results of the latest LeMans 24 Hour race were what I just loved.

1954 24 Hours of Le Mans

While my friends knew it all about sports, they were not necessarily the best athletes. I was not sports-oriented, but I worked hard and always was able to pass the Police Athletic League tests. 

In order to support my love of cars I decided to get a job after school. From the age of fourteen on I worked after schoolto earn money for my passion. This left no time for sports, other than riding my bicycle.

In my high school a course in “safe driving” was offered to those who had their learner’s permit. It was taught by Coach Grecco, a wonderful teacher and role model. His good friend was Roger Ward* of Indianapolis fame. 

* - Years later I met Roger at Lime Rock, CT. while he was being honored for winning a professional Formula Libre event opened to all classes of cars. Roger won that race driving an Offy-powered (Offenhauser) Midget race car. He raced against the fastest of sport cars, and came out on top! I was at that race and remembered seeing Roger's crew changing the rear axle gear ratios between the two heats that made up the race. 

Roger Ward racing at Lime Rock Park
circa 1959

Roger drove his Midget just like the road circuit was an oval track with long straightaways. It was wonderful to see him beat much larger cars with his little Midget. - *

Near the end of the school year the “Junior Chamber of Commerce” sponsored a safe driving Road-E-O competition. This test involved both a written test and a precision driving test. 

The driving section was made up of a course laid out in a parking lot. I had to drive between traffic cones, park, and do various maneuvers. It was the first automobile competition that I participated.

Fette Ford of Clifton, New Jersey provided the cars used in our school course as well as the cars we would use in competition. 

As I remember the day of competition, it was a warm June day and I was assigned to a brand new Ford convertible. I was one of the last to perform that day and perform I did! I took home the first place award, and even made the local newspaper!

This was the beginning of a lifetime devoted to auto sport.

Learning To Love Oval Track Racing By: John E. Aibel

Road Racing at Watkins Glen

Despite the fact that my first exposure to auto sport racing was of the road race variety, I must admit it is not the best way for a spectator to view a race. Yes, I was in awe of the spectacle, the fancy cars, the sound of the Ferrari screaming down the strait, the wail of the BMW, the earth pounding deep moan of the Allards, and Cunninghams, and the high pitch whine of the tiny Crosley-powered cars. It was just hard to follow the race cars.

Who was leading, and in which class a given car was running? The racers just strung out into a parade of color. Witnessing only a small section of raceway, I just never understood the totality of the event.

I was aware of the other forms of auto sport, but had not witnessed them. My experience expanded greatly when my family was visiting our winter home located in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Palm Beach Speedway
photo by Getty Images

Way out west past the airport was the local fairgrounds where the local stock car track was located. I knew about such places by reading the car magazines of the era. Names like Langhorne, Pennsylvania, Trenton, New Jersey, where the sprint cars ran under the AAA sanctioning. These race series of course ended in the Indianapolis 500 race in May. Knowing about a sport, but never having seen this type of racing, I just had no clue as to what it was all about.

All of a sudden oval racing was real as we attended the races. Not sprint cars but what was called stock car racing, and modified stock cars. The National Stock Car Racing Association ran the show in Florida at the time. These cars did not look like new cars of the day, no they looked like old 1937 era Fords without windows and all stripped down. You could see the engines as they whizzed by. Nothing fancy about these racers.

Now I could understand the allure of oval track racing. I could see the whole track from the stands, and see who was leading, and how many cars were right there fighting for the lead. No train like line of cars, no, a tight side-by-side racing. Close exciting competition. I was hooked. This was real racing!

We attended many races at the West Palm Beach Raceway over the following years. I even became the fan of a great driver by the name of Al Miller. This man could “Drive” and was usually in the winner of the races I saw.

During the summers my friends and I would go to the local stock car tracks as spectators. We would attend the race track located in Springfield, Massachusetts, and Lebanon, New York. We always had a great time watching the banging and shoving going on.

One sultry night the mixture of humidity, and fine clay dust filled the air and obliterated our view of the backstretch. It was a surreal experience to hear but not see the action.

Yes, I do get the allure of oval racing despite being a confirmed road race devotee.

Pine Brook Speedway By: John E. Aibel

I wonder if the people walking through the Home Depot  in Pine Brook , New Jersey realize they are actually walking on the Pine Brook Speedway known as the Home of Champions?!  The 1/10 mile raceway opened in July of 1962  on the banks of the Passaic River. It lasted for about 25 years.

My brother Fred and I found this “bull ring” sometime in 1963. Fred had a brand new Chevrolet Impala convertible complete with a 283 engine and a floor-mounted four speed transmission.  

It was only a  matter of time before we took a ride in his new wheels. We headed west on Route 46 and were soon pulling into the parking lot  of this little race track. That Friday night was the first time in years that I attended a circular race track.

c. 1970 parade lap before an event
Pine Brook Speedway

The three quarter (TQ) midget race cars that raced there were miniature versions of Indianapolis race cars, and they could really put on a great, and exciting shows. The track was so small there was only one groove to follow.  This resulted in a lot of action as the faster cars had a very difficult time trying to pass the slow cars. 

It was not until the Mini Coopers brought out good ten inch tires that the TQ guys jumped on these rubbers. These tires provided the traction needed for the little racecars to pass on the outside of the slower competition. 

I witnessed many racecar improvements filtering down to the local racetracks.

My brother and I both bought our first homes in the same town that the Pine Brook Raceway was located. This enabled me to attend many of the Friday night races. I started to hang out in the pits where I met a lot of the racecar owners and drivers. 

At one point in the Pine Brook Speedway tenure I had acquired  the patterns for Crosley engine racing parts, and made up Cam covers, and side water jackets. I was able to have them cast up and sold them to the racers. Names like Nick Fornoro, Jack Bertling, and Tony Romit where just some of the local heroes.

c. 1972 Tony Romit being pushed off to compete
in a Friday Night race at
Pine Brook Speedway

One evening I brought my restored Crosley Super Sport to Pine Brook Speedway in hopes of driving it on the track. No luck, they would not allow it on the track. 

A couple of years later Fred and I bought a Ford Model T board track race car that had raced at the Altoona Board Track. This car they did allow to slowly tour the track. That was a first for me to drive on an oval track!

Unfortunately, as land values increased this little race track was closed down. 

Before the track was destroyed I had an opportunity to drive on the asphalt. I had been lucky to purchase a very special Crosley race car. This car raced in the 1951 LeMans 24 hour race. I had it in a repair shop where a new engine was being installed. A young man saw the car. He was making a movie and this was the car he wanted as its co-star. He somehow got permission to use the defunct Pine Brook Speedway.

The movie crew set about making the Crosley look like an old Ferrari, and me like a racecar driver! 

Make-up! 

I drove around and around the Pine Brook track for what seemed to be an hour. They shot film and recorded the engine sound. 

It all came to a screeching stop when the land developers showed up. I guess the movie maker never did get permission to use the track!

That ended my very limited oval track racing career.

Pine Brook Speedway existed from 1962 - 1988. In 1989 it was torn down. 

My First Car or The Deal of the Century By: John E. Aibel

With the "carbug" bite deeply injected into my blood stream, my obsession to own a car was   

over-powering. I just had to have one. Forget the fact that I was very young boy of about twelve years.   

Now, my Dad was a very savvy business man and he must have just completed a really good deal. In a rare moment in time he told me he would buy me a Corvette when I was old enough. I never forgot this offer.   

Naturally much thought went into what would be my first car. While New York was not considered to be a hot bed of automobile interest, there were, in fact, a lot of unusual vehicles in my neighborhood. 

Within a block radius of our home there was an early circa 1910 Buick, a Franklin collector, and a fellow with two Cadillac V-16's. While these were truly great cars they were not for me.

No, it had to be a Ford Model A roadster or coupe. The reason for this lust goes back to all those HOT ROD magazines read to me. Almost every one of those hot rods were Ford Model A-based. These rods were stuffed full of Ford V-8 engines modified to produce more horsepower. Some used multiple carburetors, supercharges, Mercury stroker crankshafts, and overbored blocks. Some rods used the newly introduced engines made  by Oldsmobile, Cadillac, and Chrysler.   

By the time I was about fifteen years old the family had moved to New Jersey. Sitting on the school bus  gave me an excellent view of the local junk yard. 

One day in route to school I spotted a Model A Victoria in front of the junk yard. It did look like it would run, but the body looked very sad, in need of some bodywork, and paint. Getting Mom to drive me over to look at the "Vicky" revealed the fact that for the sum of $100 I could own the car of my dreams. Not a roadster or coupe, but a rare body style Model A.  

Next it was time to sit down with my Dad to get permission to buy the car. Knowing his business   

acumen, I made him a deal he could not refuse. I released his half-joking promise of a Corvette someday for the right to buy the Model A.

It worked, he made the deal with me. We both won.   

Next I had to get big brother Roy to drive my pride and joy up to Massachusetts so it could be stored in a barn and worked on by me during summer vacation. The 140 mile trip went well until we were almost at our destination. Going through a small town a car suddenly turned in front of us and Roy had to hit the brakes hard. Model A's are not known for having the greatest brakes in the world.

One rear brake locked up and screeched its tire. I was upset because the tires had almost no tread left on them.   

After inspecting the brakes we noticed that a screwdriver that was used as a poor brake fix had fallen out and that only the one rear brake was working! With a temporary fix of wire and that screw driver in place the trip was completed without further incident.   

That next summer found me sanding and playing with the Model A. The barn was located on a private dirt road and I would drive all over this road. I was always found visiting neighbors up and down the road.

I could not afford a new battery, so I always had to park the car on a hill so I could roll down hill, let the clutch out and jump start the Ford. I became good at this and knew just how much of an incline I needed.

By the summer that I was 16 I had my new license, insurance and registration. I never did get the Model A looking good, but I did drive it just about everywhere. 

One evening a girl friend and I were sitting, talking and it became time to go home. Well, I tried the starter, but I had never had a good battery, so it was no use, the Ford would not start. 

“Okay,” I said, “Joan please get out and push the Ford over the ridge to the down grade.”

Worked like a charm, and off into the evening we went!   

A Brief Autobiography of John E. Aibel or How the Car Bug Hit

The author John (center) flanked by big brothers Roy (left) and Fred (right)

I was fortunate to have been born the third boy child (kid brother) in my family. My brothers were five and eight years my senior. Naturally I learned everything I know from them.

As a small child, before I could read, my brothers would read the very early issues of Hot Rod magazine to me as bed time stories. Their girlfriends would also read car magazines to me.  This was the beginning of a lifelong obsession with not only Hot Rods, but all things that move on their own.

My Mom was a good sport, and would do anything her sons wanted her to do. She drove my brothers and me out to Bridgehampton, Long Island, NY to watch the Sports Car racing held on county roads.

The cars I saw there were out of this world. In the general parking areas there were Allards, Isotta Franchini, Maserati, and even a street Ferrari. I took my hand-me-down Brownie box camera to record this wonderful experience. I was able to get a picture of Dave Garroway, the first Today Show host, standing behind a telephone pole after he spun out while driving his circa 1939 Jaguar SS-100 powered by a then modern day XK-120 engine.  The noise, the smell and the spectacle of that day lives with me to this day.

The author John racing his 1951 Crosley Le Mans car at the PVGP

The cars I saw racing that day included two cars that I was later in my life able to obtain. One was a Crosley that was a real American Sports Car that you could buy in a local hobby store. I was able to locate and buy a very special Crosley that was specially made for the 1951 LeMans 24hour race. The other car that raced that day was an English car called an Allard, powered by a Cadillac engine.

The other interesting things I saw that day was a group of enthusiasts including Henry Austin Clark and Briggs S. Cunningham driving their very old racing cars as a pre-race show. They seemed to be having so much fun driving these old monsters around the race track!  This had to be the very beginnings of the Vintage Sports Car movement in this country. This was in 1951, 52, 53 era.

During 1951 my oldest brother Roy was able to buy a brand new red MG sports car. Wow, I can remember to this day the time I came home from school, went into the garage and saw this beautiful car just sitting there. It was not long before the three of us would drive to some sort of racing event in that MG. Yes, you guessed it, I had to ride atop the emergency brake handle until Roy bought a third seat that fit into the small space between the two regular seats. I was almost as tall as my brothers due to the box I was sitting on!

The die was now cast for my future life as a car nut.

Stay tuned for the rest of my car life here at My Lifelong Automotive Passion!