It was just another Wednesday night at the Orange Julep. Robert and I were there as usual - but something very Pantera was in the air. Maybe it was the Monterey vibe, but there was something different in Montreal tonight.
We had been talking to a few local Pantera owners over the last couple of weeks telling those we had not met before about our upcoming Canadian Classic event on September 23rd in Kingston. Our phones and emails have been busy.
So as I pulled into the parking lot beside Robert's GTS tonight I noticed not one, but two red Panteras.
The other belonged to Alain Trottier. Robert and I had visited him at his home this past weekend. His garage was something to behold - but as usual I left my camera at home. Aside from the polished floor, the beautiful bar, the leather couches, some classic sports cars and vehicles suspended on the walls and ceiling, there were models and memorabilia tracing the careers of some great drivers - including Alain himself. He is an ex F1 World Ski-Doo Champion who drove with Gilles Villeneuve on the Bombardier factory Ski-Doo Team.
And there in the corner of his garage, on a nice four-poster, was his pristine 1971 Pantera. Just beautiful! So it was real nice to see him at the Orange Julep. Alain owns one of the top motorcycle shops in town. The biggest bonus of his work is that they look after the sales and maintenance for all the QPP (Highway Patrol) BMW bikes and he is on a first name basis with all of the boys. Which has saved him many a ticket, he explained, saying that all he has to do is show them his business card if he gets stopped. Sweet!
As we were chatting, a wild roar and blur of yellow and chrome streaked by. A few minutes later, Carmello rolled into the parking lot. His car, originally from Georgia is a modified '72, with 560 HP. Robert and I dropped by his big propane business after we left Alain on the weekend and found him hard at work on his car. Carmello will definitely be joining us in Kingston. He drives his Cat day and night, rain or shine. Our kind of guy.
While the crowd was gushing over FOUR Panteras among the many muscle cars in attendance, we caught a glimpse and recognized the rumble as yet another red Cat rolled by. It was Romano, an old friend of ours that I met 25 years ago at John Scotti's. We bought our cars about the same time. But while I've been driving mine (for the last 5 years anyhow) he has been at work in his garage for at least 15 years. I called him a few days ago and was happy to hear that he finally was out and about. His car is really special. Yes, as would be expected, the batteries in my camera died. I only got one shot of him but none of the detail of his car that would take pages to describe. Some of the highlights include a Fontana block, twin fuel cells, stacks and EFI churning out over 600 HP with lots more to come. It's all complemented with muchh carbon fiber, a super roll cage and a real nice interior.
We spent the evening leaning over each other's machines and sharing our experiences. All of a sudden who walks up but John Scotti - the original grey market Pantera dealer. This is the guy that we all went to with our Corvettes back in the day - and the one who sold just about every grey market Pantera in the Northern US. In fact, most GT4s and GT5s that made their way from Italy to the US somehow sneaked thru John's shop. And John knows everything about Panteras. We all got our cars and cut our teeth at John Scotti Auto. Today he's a big Lambo dealer and also owns franchises for Land Rover, Volvo, Suburu and Jaguar among others. But he still owns, sells and loves Panteras. We hugged and laughed and showed off how far we all went with our cars. He said it was the most fun he's had in years!
So there we were, five Panteras where once there was only one. It wasn't Monterey, but it sure wasn't like Montreal either. Thank you Robert for the effort you've made to find these guys and get them out. You have enhanced the pleasure of Pantera ownership for me and for everyone else in our group. And there are still a few more we haven't yet reached.
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