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Truck tango brings Bel Air backup

LeDuke's new ride ready for Cruisin' Classics Father’s Day COVID Cruise for a Cause

Sitting in a restaurant eating breakfast last summer, Bob LeDuke didn’t hear the sickening grind of metal on metal as a semi-trailer truck made mincemeat of his pristine 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air.

But something in the reflection of the window caught LeDuke’s eye as that truck backed into his car for the second time. Pushed into the curb by such an irresistible force, the cashmere blue car with the white hardtop, flipped up on two wheels sideways, and that was enough to get LeDuke’s attention.

When he came out and saw the damage, his heart dropped.

“You’re literally in shock,” he said. “You just can’t believe it.”

He’d given that car 22 years of love and attention. His $68,000 investment was left with a bent axle, damaged rocker panel and a driver’s side dent the size of Jupiter.

“He was backing out of Grama’s Inn delivering groceries, his first day on the job, it almost rolled it over against the curb, he hit it twice,” said LeDuke. “There were skidmarks from where he hit it sideways.

“Lots of trucks make me nervous but I took Rick Fewster with me and he said this will be a safe place to park, because they usually back out the other way. I had a hunch to park by another guy and hunches you should follow.

“I didn’t sleep for a couple of nights.”

That beautifully-restored chrome-decorated two-door sedan and its luxurious cloth and leather upholstery and painstakingly-detailed paint job, was near and dear to everybody in the LeDuke family. News that it was in suddenly in grave condition, in need of intensive care, sent out ripples, almost as if there had been a death in the family.

“It’s gone through all the highlights of our family life – grads and proms and weddings,” said LeDuke’s wife Tammy. “You just can’t replace it.”

Or can you?

This past January, George Windsor, LeDuke’s Cruisin’ Classics car club buddy, found a car for sale in Port Coquitlam nearly identical to the accident victim. It was the two-door-hardtop sport coupe painted in the same tone of blue as LeDuke’s car. The only noticeable difference is there’s no post between the side windows. After a bit of wrangling back and forth with ICBC, the insurance payout came through and LeDuke bought the car and brought it home on a trailer.

“This is a hardtop and looks better but the other one was a solider car because of the post,” said the 68-year-old LeDuke, who was just four when his Chevy left the assembly line in Oshawa, Ont. “The other one had no rust but this has had a lot of work done to it (to repair rust).

“This one will have to do the trick.”

The hardtop is powered by a 350 cubic-inch Chevy engine and three-speed transmission, same as his wrecked car had. It has a similar suspension, with power steering and power disc brakes to make it safer and nicer to drive. Fitted with 18-inch low-profile wheels in the back and 17-inch in the front, the car sits a bit lower than his original did. The trunk comes with a surprise, a hidden storage drawer that slides in under the back seat.

There is a bit of a happy ending to the story. Dwayne Harvey, another car club friend and neighbor of LeDuke’s, bought what was left of the old car and has entrusted Scott Russelo at Your Way Autobody to start fixing the damage. That’s possible because of the thickness of the metal frame and body parts, which still maintain their integrity under the hammering needed to straighten all those creases. Still, the repairs will likely end up costing $35,000.

“It’ll be back on the road, and I’ll get first dibs to buy it if I want,” said Bob.

Bob and Tammy rode together in their new (old) car Friday as part in the seniors tour, a procession of about 60 vehicles that visited seven long-term seniors care homes in the city, and he plans to be part of an even longer parade being assembled on Sunday.

The usual Cruisin’ Classics Show and Shine has been canceled due to the pandemic and in its place will be the Father’s Day COVID Cruise for a Cause, a 51-kilometre parade of classic vehicles that will follow major connecting roads into residential neighbourhoods. Their slow-speed passes will bring some of the nicest vehicles in the city to spectators who will line the route.

The big cruise, which starts at 1 p.m. at Exhibition Park, is expected to last a couple hours and it’s a fundraiser for the Salvation Army For Bank, with parade participants and spectators being asked to show their support with cash donations. Spectators will not be allowed in the staging area at the CN Centre parking lot.

You can find the route map here: https://bit.ly/315TFKy