Dick Leehr
Driving with Michael's Vintage Racing since 2013"Best way to describe me is, as my sister Jeanette so aptly put, I have the car gene!
All my life I've been romanced by the sheer speed, elegance and sounds of iconic performance cars. I remember seeing my first Shelby Cobra in 1965 and vowed I'd have one before I left the planet. I watched Jim Clark drive his Lotus Ford to victory at Indy on closed circuit TV, courtesy of my Uncle John, and the Lotus dominance in F1 throughout the 60's. I imagined the rush of driving a Lotus formula car before departing the planet. My dad always loved German engineering of the Mercedes and Porsche Marques...again all during my teens, when the exotic cars and racing them were only but a distant dream of youthful exuberance of the unlikely future. When he died never enjoying some of those life's pleasures, I decided I would not be denied those adventures if ever given the chance in life.
So today, some 40 years later, i am very happy to report, as a successful pipeline executive in the Northeast US, and a father to three wonderful children, grandfather to four and a childish husband to my understanding wife Karen, I am now reliving all of those memorable dreams with some wonderful toys to play with. As you can see from the photos, they do happen and unlike that popular classic Rolling Stones song....You CAN always get what you want!
My thanks to Michael and Mike Clifford and their shop for the tedious, painstaking, meticulous restoration of my Lotus 41... My Lotus dream car, not to mention the sheer exhilaration of driving it!"