1955 Buick, Packard face off in California Youth Safety Run
Regular Old Cars Weekly readers know I love to hunt down black-and-white photos to share on the pages of OCW and www.oldcarsweekly.com. Here’s one I forgot was in my collection. It…
Regular Old Cars Weekly readers know I love to hunt down black-and-white photos to share on the pages of OCW and www.oldcarsweekly.com. Here's one I forgot was in my collection. It shows the Second Annual Youth Safety Run in Downey, California.
To be honest, I don't know much about this event except each car in the photo has a number in the windshield and contains a youthful driver and navigator. The cars before the checkered flag are a 1955 Buick Century Riviera four-door hardtop (left) and 1955 Packard Patrician sedan, suggesting these new cars were supplied for the competition by local dealerships. The dealerships were also promoted on each car’s license plate surround (Huck Finn is legible on the Packard). The Buick also has “Peace Officers Car Club” stenciled on its quarter panel, and the gentleman standing behind the Buick is wearing the uniform of the “Highway Nobles,” also suggesting some of the adult car clubs in the area were also involved in this event.
If you know more about the photo and the circumstances, I'd love to hear from you. And if you can explain why there's a checkered flag in a safety run, I'd like to hear your answer.
Angelo Van Bogart is the editor of Old Cars magazine and wrote the column "Hot Wheels Hunting" for Toy Cars & Models magazine for several years. He has authored several books including "Hot Wheels 40 Years," "Hot Wheels Classics: The Redline Era" and "Cadillac: 100 Years of Innovation." His 2023 book "Inside the Duesenberg SSJ" is his latest. He can be reached at avanbogart@aimmedia.com
