The featured car for the month of May was Ralph Ganleys 1965 GTO.

When Ralph was 12 years old, he was given a ride in a 58 Pontiac. The car was brand new and it was the first time Ralph had ever ridden in a convertible. That great style sparked his interest in Pontiacs. That smooth ride home got him thinking about the great timeless machines GM engineered. Ralphs interest in Ponchos continued on. Years later, a 1961 Bonneville that sat in the parking lot of Chanel High School certainly got his attention. Looking out of the classroom window, Ralph stared at that luminous car everyday. In 1980, Ralph saw that a 65 GTO was for sale. He found the car (from Twinsburg) sitting in mud and learned that she hadnt run for a year. It had a 4-barrel and the wheels turned. Well, that was good enough for Ralph. He purchased the car for $700.00 and drove it home.

He took the car down to bare metal and painted it white. He parked it in the garage and there she sat. In the meantime, Ralph bought a 66 GTO for $1100.00. He drove that GTO back and forth to work. He definitely enjoyed cruising, however, on his way home from work one day he gunned it down and the frame cracked. The car was out of commission. Ralph decided to take the motor out of the 66 GTO and put it into the 65. In 1998, he continued to restore his 65 GTO. His neighbor, a body man and painter by trade, was interested in the 66 GTO. Ralph took the opportunity to exchange the 66 for his neighbors expertise and assistance in helping complete the restoration on the '65 GTO. That car is the GTO Ralph presently owns and proudly takes to car shows. The car was a 4-speed. Ralph decided to change the 4-barrel intake to Tri-power. The second year the GTO came down the assembly line was in 1965. That year the factory offered 15 different colors. Ralph decided to be distinct and combined the colors of Nightwatch Blue-Code E and Blue Charcoal Code B. This extraordinary shade gleams.

Ralph has won several awards with his beautiful 65 GTO. It has been said that the 1965 GTO was the fastest of all the GTOs. Ralph gets to experience that fact first hand. When Ralph takes his car cruising, he realizes hes never Lost That Lovin Feeling. The purring of his GTO engine truly sounds like an Unchained Melody to Ralphs ears.

We are looking forward to the Poker Run on June 19th and our annual club picnic on July 25th. Some of our members will be in Charleston , WV for the POCI Convention. We will certainly be busy in the weeks ahead.

For more information on the North Coast Pontiac Chapter of POCI, contact Carolyn Kucia, 127 Willard Avenue, Bedford, OH 44146, or email onecleannut@aol.com , or please check out our web site at http://northcoastpontiacchapte r.org &You can also search for North Coast Pontiac Club on Facebook.

Meetings are held the third Wednesday of each month at 7 PM at Jay Pontiac, 18800 Rockside Road, Bedford, OH