A few tidbits. While looking for other things, these assorted Ford items have accumulated on my desktop. Some of you may find them interesting.

Henry Ford stuck with the planetary transmission long after most auto makers abandoned it. Below is a somewhat famous quote by Ford in 1911:


Henry Ford made his feelings known well before 1911, as evidenced by this 1906 Ford Mo. Co. brochure (with a portion included):




This 1907 newspaper article may help support Ford's attitude. With two weeks down, and the equivalent of $1,800 (today's approx. value) repair cost, this Rambler owner may have felt the same way about sliding gear transmissions:


Two of the first Ford "speedsters"? These stripped down Model R participated in the 1907 Detroit Twenty Four Hour race, won by a Ford "six:"


The first Model T "prototype cars appeared in late 1907, according to Ford publications and news clips. This article discusses one of these "pre-T cars,mat the Detroit Automobile Show. We have drawings of the cars, but no photos are definitely identifies (although there are a few pics that appear to show Model NRS chassis cars with touring and town car bodies, they are not definitely labeled and dated, that I am aware of):


And on a personal note, it's basketball season again. Last year, our youngest broke into the starting lineup on her high school team. This year, she will likely be the full time point guard. She has also been selected to travel with a 17 and younger USA Student athlete Team (press pic below), playing games in Germany, Austria and Switzerland for ten days next summer. Let the winter begin.....

Congratulations to your daughter Rob.

Elianna, That's wonderful! Congratulations.

Keith

And of course you have to chaperone!

Congratulations to your daughter, and you. You truly are a blessed man with a wonderful family.

As for the speedsters information. I often comment on speedster threads that "model T Ford speedsters have been built in every calendar year from 1908 until now". I usually continue with a comment about the experimental chassis fitted with simple cut-down bodies for testing purposes being the first ones.
I have already bookmarked this thread for future reference.
Thanks Rob!!!
Drive carefully, and do enjoy, W2

Congratulations to the Heyen family.....there is great joy in watching our children succeed, it is sure fun when they entertain us! My advice.....don't miss any of this if you can. Our family was in a similar position a decade ago and enjoyed every moment. I for one will follow the team as I love amateur sports. Good luck to Elianna!

Good on her!!!!!!

Congratulations and keep us posted on the teams progress. Good luck to all and best wishes for another winning season!

Home field advantage...Cornhuskers robbed one from the Spartans.

Thanks guys. Dave, yes, I think I should go along as a "chaperone." However my daughter probably wouldn't agree. I meant to mention, she is a sophomore (10th grade) so we hope to have several years of watching her play.

Jon, you're not going to get much sympathy from me. After years of experiencing Nebraska Football ups and downs, I realize teams make their own breaks. The Oklahoma Sooners taught us Nebraskans that over the years. If a team like Michigan State is undefeated and deserving of a playoff spot, they shouldn't probably be in a position where one call with seconds left against a 3-6 team determines if they win or lose the game.

Believe me, I know what it means to put in the blood, sweat and tears to play the game. I'm buried somewhere deep in this grainy photo: