The 2009 Racing Vehicle Extravaganza was SUPER !! Bill Bissell had his best Extravaganza ever with over 140 outstanding cars on display. The Trademart building was wall to wall with Race Cars, Trucks, Street Rods , Motorcycles, Go Karts, Boats and people. Everyone had a super time.
The "Little Widow" was there and owner Mr Bud Patterson had her ready to race. Mr Paterson had a wonderful time at the show. He said that he met people there that he had not seen in years. Mr Patterson told me, " folks don't have time to visit anymore. This weekend we visited with many old friends and talked racing".
This was the first time in 45 years the Little Widow and Miss Chicken has appeared at the same event. Mr Patterson told me that he built the car in 1957 from the ground up. He built the frame from the drive shaft of a ton and a half truck. He said that the driveshaft's gave the frame more flex which put more power to the track. He said that Ellis Palasini only lost 2 races in the Little Widow during the 1958 racing season. He also told me that the Little Widow started out as a 1934 Ford 5 window coupe just like Miss Chicken. To reduce wait and size he cut 15 inches out of the side and 15 inches from the middle of the body and welded her back together. I would have never guessed it even looking at the cars side by side.
The staff at MissChicken.com would like to give a big THANK YOU to Mr Patterson's grandson Caleb Langford. Caleb's coordination with the Miss Chicken staff insured the two cars could be displayed together. I understand that Caleb did a lot of work in getting the Little Widow to the Extravaganza. Without his persistence the Little Widow might not have made the show.
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