Another Chapter of Team Hoghead's adventures:

Team Hoghead is at it again... but his time they are double-teaming by using TWO trucks and TWO trailers and having TWICE the fun!!

The mission today is to travel to an undisclosed location near Knoxville, TN to extract a 1977 Firebird Esprit parts car AND a 1972 Formula 400 Firebird...it just sounded too good to be true...

Team Hoghead had received information that these two Firebirds were for sale.  A couple of phone calls revealed that the 1972 Formula was pretty much complete, NUMBERS MATCHING, and had PHS documentation!!  A recon mission was quickly set up using a Toyota, a driver incognito, and a father-daughter team to check out these Firebirds.  The recon mission was not without excitement... the snake in the road was quite interesting.

The recon mission proved to be successful with a deal struck.  The next day, the extraction phase was implemented.  Team Hoghead called in family reinforcements to assist with this extraction.  The 1977 Firebird Espirt was easily loaded first... with no engine or transmission and four people pushing... no problem!!  It's always nice to find a parts car with a complete set of 15X8 snowflakes on it!!  The body and interior are in good condition, but the rear frame rails are rusted incredibly bad... some of the worst ever seen.

Then it was time to load the 1972 Formula.  The numbers were checked and sure enough, this Formula has the original 250 HP, 4 BBL, 400 engine and turbo 400 tranny!!  Not only that, but it is equipped with factory air conditioning, gauge package, deluxe interior, and other goodies!!  This Formula will NOT be a parts car, but will be restored... especially since Team Hoghead already has a very complete 1972 Firebird Esprit parts car acquired during a previous adventure!!  Interesting chain of events... don't you think??

The loading of the Formula started out to be easy... the truck and trailer would be parked in the front yard in front of the Formula.  The Formula would be "driven" up on the trailer by an anonymous Team Hoghead member after being given a gentle push by the rest of the crew to get it going down the hill toward the trailer.  This way no one would have to push this 3800 pound beast and Team Hoghead wouldn't have to use the electric wench to load it.  No problem... right?  The brakes were checked and they worked OK right when the brake pedal hit the floor... that'll be enough to stop it.  The Formula started rolling and Team Hoghead wanted to make sure the rear wheels rolled up on the trailer before stopping.  The "driver" didn't realize the speed built up when the rear wheels were up on the trailer... so when the brakes were applied... everyone learned an up close and personal lesson about linear momentum.  The Formula stopped on the trailer... BUT the momentum caused the TRUCK and TRAILER to start SLIDING down the STEEP front yard!!  Man, talk about a ride!!  The "driver" just sat there and watched the truck begin to jack knife and it was sliding sideways down the yard and the trailer and the Formula were plowing straight down the yard!!  The Lord took pity on Team Hoghead and the truck stopped sliding just before total disaster struck!!  Nothing was bent, broken, or torn up!!  The look on everyone's faces was priceless!!  The truck, trailer, and loaded Formula were eased back up on the gravel driveway to finish chaining the car down to the trailer.  Now that all of the excitement was over... it was time to EAT!!  Team Hoghead decided to adorn the parking lot of the local Pizza Hut with their newfound treasures... what a sight!!

Team Hoghead enjoyed a nice meal and some great fellowship... but it was time to head for home.  A quick stop was made to feed the thirsty trucks, allow the folks at the gas station to admire the Firebirds, and head home.

So there you have it Firebird fans... another successful adventure for Team Hoghead!!