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The car is lifted onto its side in front of the Chamber of Commerce office.

'Art car' finds spot at Chamber

It's moved through front door with 2 inches to spare

WATKINS GLEN, June 14 -- An "art car" that used to be raced in the 1980s SCCA Spec Renault series found a long-term home Thursday at the Watkins Glen Area Chamber of Commerce.

The vehicle -- donated to the International Motor Racing Research Center in December and garaged until late May in Florida -- was maneuvered from a trailer to the street to the sidewalk fronting the Chamber office at the corner of North Franklin and Third Streets in Watkins Glen Thursday afternoon. From there, bit by bit, it was edged toward and then through the Chamber front door -- with two inches in width to spare.

Waiting for it inside was a place of honor in the middle of the Chamber's primary room, a section with a race-themed checkered pattern affixed atop the polished floor.

The workers who muscled the vehicle -- and used, under the direction of developer Bruce Nelson, rollers and large boards to propel it gradually forward -- were from the Research Center and from Nelson's development firm. It took them more than an hour to accomplish the task. The vehicle, minus its fitted body parts, weighed about 1,400 pounds.

Chamber President and CEO Rebekah LaMoreaux said she had been seeking a vehicle since last August to provide the main room in the Chamber office with a third theme. It already had a running waterfall and a wine display to reflect two strengths of the area's tourist industry. "Water, wine and racing," she said. "That's what I wanted."

She approached Watkins Glen International, but it had no vehicle to fit the physical needs of the Chamber site. The car had to be small enough to squeeze through the front door on its side, and light enough not to overburden the floor.

Then the Research Center stepped forward with the "art car," a vehicle that was raced in the 1980s SCCA Spec Renault series. After it was retired, it was painted by a Freeport, Maine artist named Gary Buch, and was recently -- until it was donated to the Research Center -- on display in a Florida museum.

In late May, the Center moved it north, and on Thursday sent it on to the Chamber office. The vehicle's engine has not been operational for years.

Center Administrator Glenda Gephart Phoenix pointed out that the artistic design on the vehicle is a tree, its base in white on the car hood and its leaves in a streaming design farther back.

The vehicle is on long-term loan to the Chamber, with the idea being that it will not only be an attraction for locals and visitors alike, but will signal to visitors unfamiliar with the area's racing background that Watkins Glen is, indeed, and has long been an iconic racing locale.

Further background on the car -- a detailed history of its racing career and post-racing usage -- is being sought by the Research Center.

Photos in text:

Top: The car is maneuvered onto the sidewalk in front of the Chamber office.

Middle: Rick Hughey, left, and brother Kevin affix the hood section to the car. Body sections were removed from the vehicle outside before it was pushed onto its side.

Bottom: Bruce Nelson, who oversaw the project. Workers from his development firm joined with Research Center workers to maneuver the car into the Chamber building.

Workers ease the car down from its side in the Chamber office.

A panoramic shot taken outside the Chamber office, showing the car on its side, a couple of workers and some of the spectators who gathered to watch.

A Chamber worker, left, watches as workers prepare the car in front of the building in this panorama of the Chamber entrance and interior.