Bob Smith - 1927 Ford Roadster - Prowler of the Year 2007
Bob's first Prowler car was a 1927 "T" roadster. He got the Car from Carl Burnett in a trade of Bob's 1940 coupe and some cash. Bob brought the car home tore it down and made some changes and it landed on the cover of "Hot Rod" magazine in 1958. Over the years the car has appeared in many magazines and even in "HOT ROD" again in 1998 for their special collectors edition of the "50 Years of Hot Rod". Also in 1998 it appeared in " The Rodders Journal". The car had been a Prowler car since the late 40's when it was owned by Hoot Gibson and raced on the dry lakes.That car had been a Prowler, but Bob wasn't until 1967 after 7 long years of building a family and a new model "T". This one was a 1923 roadster pickup with wild flames by Robert Martinez. No fiberglass for Bob, the car had extensive body work by Kenny Eldred and a Cushman bed. It ended up in the pages of "Rod and Custom" in 1970.
For his next project Bob went to Carl Burnetts Antique Automotive and brought home a rare 1915 Model "T" Center Door sedan body in his pickup truck. It looked more like a rusted wired together chicken coop. Then he paid Monte Hale $15 for another pile of rusted metal that was in a fire to get more body parts for this jigsaw puzzle. His efforts were rewarded with a nice article in "HI-Performance Cars". In 1978 Bob said he was done with hot rodding "forever" and sold the Car and got out of the Prowlers.
"Forever" didn't last too long, after 5 years he was back in the Prowlers and back at hot rodding. This time he again visted Carl Burnett and rescued a 1927 Model "T" roadster body. He turned this into a modified track roadster and showed it for the first time at the Prowlers 40th Anniversary picnic in 1987. He still owns the car, but has made a lot of changes to it over the years.Bob's latest Prowler car a 1932 roadster is the easiest car he has ever had and reluctantly the first fiberglass. He bougth a "Turn Key" car and has enjoyed tinkering with it in his retirement.
