1972 Scamp "Smokey" - Saved From Wildfire

In 2020, Oregon had the largest and most destructive wildfire season in our State's history. If you didn't live here, it's hard to explain how widespread and awful it was. The strong southern Santa Ana winds made the situation even worse - with the winds carrying hot embers for miles and starting new fires.

However, right before the fires really started getting bad, I was in discussions to purchase an 'original' 72 Plymouth Scamp GA4 Winchester Grey with a 318/904. After several years of searching, the car was almost exactly what I was looking for to start my next project.

After weeks of negotiating with the Owner, we had the deal done and all that was left to do was go pick it up. This, however, proved to be an extremely risky affair. You see...during the weeks that the Owner and I were finalizing the sale, those wildfires that started in the middle of the State kept getting larger and larger. So big, in-fact, that the flames jumped the fire lines and crossed the main highway artery that allows traffic to go from West to East. This stalled me getting the vehicle even more as the fire lines were getting expanded miles each day. Things were not looking good.

Another week goes by while we wait for the highway to reopen. Then I get a text message from the owner that says "If you want this car, you need to be at my house by tomorrow morning at the latest. The fire is within 1/4 mile from my house and I'm about to lose everything."

My heart sank into my stomach and my brain went into high gear. I immediately hitched my trailer up and started planning how I was going to get from Central Oregon to the valley without getting caught behind a fire line. The decision was made to go South by the California border and then travel north up I-5 to get there. I left at 4am.

As you can imagine, the drive was horrendous. The smoke was so thick in parts that I couldn't see 30ft in front of me with all of my lights on. When the sun finally poked through it was crimson red. Aside from some forestry trucks, I was the only idiot on the road. It was like something out of an apocalyptic novel. But the deeper I got into the woods, the more determined I was to save this car from being burned up. I trekked forward.

After about 6hrs, I finally arrived in Marcola, OR. It was around 10am. The town was evacuated. EMT and Forestry trucks lined the roads and they were only allowing local traffic to pass through. They were especially skeptical of me because A) This was a small town and they didn't know me, and B) Looters had been going around and boosting cars while the town was being evacuated, so my trailer raised a red flag. Understandable. I told them where I was headed and they took my license plate number. Fine. I trekked forward.

When I finally arrived at the Owner's house, it was a race against time. If the winds blew westward, we were dead. Like literally dead, because there was no evacuation route near their property. 1 way in - 1 way out. Not an ideal situation to be in. Especially considering their property was on the outskirts of town. I understood that if we got into trouble, no one was coming to save us.

I'll tell you, boy. I've never worked so fast in my life. We had that sum ***** pushed out from under his carport and loaded up in roughly 15 minutes. I got the title, paperwork, took a quick photo, shook the man's hand and then we got the Hell out of there immediately. Thank God the Scamp's e-brake worked because I did horrible tie-down job since I was rushing like a mad man to leave as quickly as possible.

Thankfully, we got home okay. The car had some smoke damage to it, but ultimately was spared and it made for a good story. The owner's home was sparred as well. His property lost a lot trees, but his shop and the other cars made it. He and I still swap texts every so often.

After giving it a gentle power wash and detail, the paint cleaned up great. Now I'm in the process of getting it back together and enjoying it. We've named her "Smokey" as a testament of what we went through to get her.

Here's a photo of how close his house was to the fires: