ꌗ ꀤꌗ ꎇꂦꋪ ꌗꉓꃅꍏꁅꃅ꓄ꀤꉓꂦꀘꍟ
𝕗𝕣𝕠𝕞 𝔸 𝕥𝕠 ℤ… ℙ𝕖𝕓𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝔹𝕖𝕒𝕔𝕙 ℝ𝕠𝕒𝕕 ℝ𝕒𝕔𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝟟𝟝𝕥𝕙.
S is for the 𝟏𝟗𝟓𝟐 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐤𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥. “Schaghticoke”??? What the… ??? Only a few of our most ardent fans know that the full title of Rob Manson’s Manning contains not just the name of its co-builder John Streets but also the name of the place it was built, Schaghticoke NY. Yes, that was in Wally Chapman’s grandmother’s top bedroom (featured image above). Read all about the car’s birthplace at my field research article “Where’s Wally” at https://dmtrg.com/wheres-wally/.
How do you pronounce Schaghticoke? Schaghticoke is pronounced SKAT-uh-coke (/skæt.ə.kok/) or SKAT-uh-cook (/skæt.ə.kʊk/). Locally, it is also commonly heard as SKAT-ee-cook or SKAT-ee-coke. The first syllable sounds like “scat,” and the stress falls on either the first or last syllable depending on local preference. As long as the first SCH is hard, Skat, you’re fine.
One of the most characterful, pugnacious and hot-roddy of Rob Manson’s various California Road Race Specials is the Schaghticoke Streets Manning Special. Their most significant feature is Chuck Manning’s ultra-lightweight, rigid, tubular chassis… pre-War Ford suspension and drum brakes are used. Conceived, and each of the three cars built, as race cars, they were all street-legal in period and today to be able to qualify for the SCCA historic races. The very essence of The Manning Special is that the plan set was made available by the creator so that others could build Manning Specials. That is what happened, in numerous cases of which two survive; thank goodness… otherwise there would be no Manning Specials showing and competing today. Chuck Manning raced his own Manning at Pebble Beach, but Rob’s car was not raced there.
You can read the complete details of the car at https://dmtrg.com/rob-manson-1952-streets-manning-special/
Marcus Bicknell, your web master, social media executive, DMTRG archivist and writer of these pieces, will be the driver of the Manning again at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion next week, 12-15 August at Laguna Seca (photo left, Marcus in the Manning there in 2024). I thank Rob for the privilege of driving a unique and historic car, a one-off. I thank Mike Ryan for re-sleeving the cylinders and rebuilding the flathead V8, John Buddenbaum for working on the transmission in the recent past and the last few days (see photo with Rob), and Rocky Nunan, Slim Pepperdene and Rob for helping him. Fingers crossed for a car ready for qualifying Wednesday.