|
Leslie Albert Dawes and LaDawri
Coachcraft |
 |
He's probably 16 here,
making plans for his car. |
 |
Started building the
Conquest soon after he was married to Joan on April 22, 1954. |
I have lived in
Vancouver since 1954 and am also interested in cars and racing.
Having looked at your picture of Les Dawes with his car at the
Pacific National Exhibition, I noticed something in one picture that
the average person probably missed. The picture is the one which
shows Les in a suit outside at the PNE sitting on the top of the
drivers side door. The interesting item is just over his right
shoulder and it show's the drivers side profile of the only D-Jaguar
to ever come to Western Canada serial # XKD 558 which was sold by
Oxford Motors of Vancouver. The car was purchased by a Mr. Jim
Rattenbury and was raced locally at the old Abbotsford Airport
sports car races and also at the Westwood race track as well as
across in Washington State. The car was later purchased in the mid
sixties by Starr Calvert of Seattle and had a 427 Ford engine
installed and was involved in one of the most spectacular accidents
at the Westwood track. The car has now been fully restored and has
been returned to it's original status. It's amazing what one can see
when they look close enough at a picture. Thanks, Don Blair.
|
 |
|
 |
British Columbia PNE
display Sept 29th, 1956. |
  |
Les handed out these photos during the
British Columbia PNE Sept 29th, 1956 |
  |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Neptune, The Dawes family's first residence in California. |
 |
1540 Canal Street
was the first facility from which La Dawri Coachcraft
operated.
The later address no longer exists and there is a warehouse there today.
The area has many fiberglass manufacturing facilities, mostly boats. |
| |
|
 |
 |
 |
1960 June
SPORTSCAR GRAPHIC, inside cover full page ad showing CONQUEST.
12 page article containing pictures and details about La Dawri
|
 |
Joan Dawes in the car
with her niece Lorina. |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Christmas at Rossmoor. |
 |
|
 |
Lakewood
The Castilian pictured is the only car the family kept from LaDawri. |
|
The Vendetta Crash |
|
     |
 |
|
| |
|
| |
| |
|
Carl R. Tate. Victorville, CA |
| My name is Carl Tate, age 67. I had a very close
working relationship with Les from 1959 to the mid l960's. in the
Long Beach Shop. I have not talked with him since his serious
accident when the prototype for a new coup (VWpowered) that we had
worked on was destroyed in a bad rear-end accident. Does any
one know if Les is still alive? I would love to talk with him or
his wife. Thanks, (760) 241-8000 x.
8761 or email at
ctate@dvmc.com.
(Les passed away in 2002) Joan is
helping with this web site. |
I
met Les Dawes in late 1958 or early 1959 at his shop in Long Beach. There were always so many people working and/or
just hanging around the shop. Les was very good about that.
He enjoyed what he did, and was always happy to answer questions.
His back lot was full of everything from early Lotus XI's, to
Bonneville style Gas Tank bodies. He had a real knack for
being able to take one body, and making it larger or smaller to fit
various wheel bases. I had an early Victress body, that looked like
an Ferrari Bernelata
(sp?). When Les bought their moulds, he wanted to buy my car
to use as a rolling ad for his business. Finally when I was
ready to get engaged in 1961, I agreed to sell to him so I could get
money for my wife's engagement ring. He gave me cash, and one
of his cars with MG running gear for my coupe (40Ford chassis with
knee action shocks, 358 Chrysler Hemi w/4 Stromberg 97's, a Jaguar
Trans, 355 Pontiac rear, and triple lace Borroni wheels off a
Maseratti. It would do 155 on the Riverside raceway)
Looking back, I was probably nuts to drive that fast, even during a
race. Once a fellow wanted to trade me a Gull wing MBZ for my
car plus $2,500. (I could not raise the $2,500) It was featured in
Road and Track back in about 1961 or 62 - Les arranged for
thearticle. I had the pleasure of working with him on his
"ultimate" car, which was to use VW components bolted to a Lotus
type wishbone frame with a 2-seat coupe ( looked a little like the
Lotus Elite - but better). We did a lot of lay-ups on
that car. About this time, Les also got involved
in building Caskets for the funeral industry, and a lockable lid for
pickup trucks cargo area. (this man was a true workahololic)
Later he finished the car, and had taken it up to Canada to
try and secure financing to build a turnkey or
roller type car. It was on his way back to his
home in Los Alamitos (near Long Beach, CA) that a Big Rig truck lost
its brakesand ran over the prototype, destroying it, and put Les in
the hospital with a broken back. I kind of
lost track of him after that, but heard that he
was never the same. Lots of pain, and partially disabled.
Had not thought much about my first early adventures into kit cars
with Les, until I saw a beautiful example of a La
Dawri at last years Knott's Berry Farm show, which
is put on my car club, the Association of Handcrafted
Automobiles. (This year it is April 12 and 13). I have
met Harold Pace on several occasions - he used to
be in the AHA. He is an excellent historian and a very nice
man. By for now. Carl Tate, Victorville, CA
(760)241-8000 ext. 8761 |
| |
| My name is Gary Weldele, I grew up in Long Beach and graduated
from Poly High in ‘59. An avid fan of Lions Drag strip I built a La
Dawri bodied, Henry J chassis’d, Olds powered street machine which
was licensed for the street in 1961. My car is the one shown in
“Byron’s gasser madness” as the La Dawri.
I sold the car to Sheldon Konblett who owned Service Center in
Compton Ca. Sheldon converted it to a full-on race car, putting a
blown small block Chevy in the car, painted it yellow and called it
"Chicken Little." (It was one of the first “funny cars”, funny
because there was no class for them) It was raced for a couple of
years taking second at the 1964 Winter Nationals.
When I sold the car, I went on to build a new tube chassis’d, big
block Chevy for Les Dawes newest body; a fastback coupe with gull
wing doors. This car was to run NHRA’s AA modified sport class.
My chassis was built for the Formula Libre prototype.
Unfortunately about the time I was to take possession of the body
I discovered his shop locked and apparently Les’s creditors took the
prototype! It is a long sad story from there but suffice it to say
that ended my drag racing career.
After Dawe’s shop was shut down, I got a body from Fiberfab in
Sunnyvale Ca. Before the car was strip ready the NHRA dropped the
Modified Sport class and I had a white elephant! I sat on it for a
few years and finally sold it to some kid to race in, of all things,
the sand drags! I shudder to think of what happened to my beautiful
machine!
I really don’t have too many stories and never heard about or
from Dawes after his shop was locked and the prototype for the new
car taken. Since I built a chassis to accommodate his new body I had
many trips to his shop to take dimensions and remember that it was a
fastback coupe with gull wing doors. Les had a man working for him
that I had grown to know while building my first La Dawri, Red
Honeywell an older fellow who built his own La Dawri which I believe
is the white one shown on the old catalog. This car was based on the
very first Toyota I had ever heard of.
A funny story: In an effort to fill the somewhat rough body
condition Red used a ‘new at that time’ paint, Latex! Which he
figured would be thick enough to fill the lows quite handily.
Unfortunately being rubbery the paint would not sand and the whole
car had to be stripped! At one time Red built a hood scoop for my
Drag racer and was really a talented guy.
One more story of those days which could never occur today in
California. At one point in the construction of my first La Dawri I
had to register it with the DMV. During this process I had to have a
frame number stamped on the car and the DMV referred me to a
certified individual who actually came to my house and stamped the
number on the frame. This was an older gentleman and he was quite
impressed with my efforts. After he stamped the frame he asked me
when I intended to register the car and I replied that as soon as I
had the emergency brake, rear view mirror, headlights and horn
installed I would be ready. Then he asked me with what might be
considered a “verbal wink” if I intended to complete those tasks and
when I assured him I would he informed me he could register my car
on the spot! WHATTA GUY! Consequently the DMV never saw my car! From
then on it was legally registered as a 1961 Conquest!
I still live in Long beach California.
Sincerely,
Gary Weldele
gary@weldele.com |
| |
| |
| So long . . . . . .
June 2004
Hotrodding lost another
couple of 'good ol' boys' last month, they paid their dues and served the sport
well through most of their lives. For the Assn. members, I'd like to share some
of my memories of each of them.
REG BROOKSHAW: Our first meeting was at Burnaby South High School about
1948, Reg came up from Deer Lake, a tough area in those days and stood out from
the rest as he was 6' at 15. His dress code was different, one of the first guys
I remember who wore nothing but 'cowboy boots', black 'Chino's' with a 28" knee
and a 14" ankle, also referred to as 'strides' (a denim material we would have
custom tailored in 'Chinatown' for about $10), while most of us were in 'cream,
baby cord bell-bottoms' and saddle shoes! Reg introduced us to Joe Mahovlich who
was building a '32 Ford roadster, Les Dawes who designed and later built the 'La Dawri' custom
sportscar (20 years ahead of its time) and Leo Sullivan who bought my '32 Ford
sedan, noon-time winning Kingsway dragger. In cooler weather, we all wore 'Army
& Navy Dept. Stores' used bomber jackets ($2 ea), not Reg, he had black leather
with chrome buttons and buckles and a matching leather skimmer.
. . . / Bunny
Harold Wellenbrink
President
604-574-5457
Henry Tjart
Treasurer
604-574-1607
Terry Rey
(604) 298-1565 hm
(604) 291-2453 wk
trea@trevdeeley.com |
| |
|
|
|
