RonsGS

I'm sure most of you younger guys never heard of Skips Fiesta Drive In.
Located at First Avenue and North Ave in Melrose Park, every night was a cruise night, It was CHicago's answer to American Graffiti.
I was wondering if there are any fellow forum readers who frequented Skips way back when.

66 Plymouth, 440ci/365hp, Hurst Shifter, Ramcharger hood, Crager SS mags, Mickey Thompson Cheater slicks and of course jacked up to the limit.

Quick Silver Z

Yep, me and my 70 Duster 340 (Edelbrock/Holly/Mallory/Hooker)...

Quick Silver Z

BTW, at 17 years young that was my first factory ordered car. TorqueFlite auto, bucket seats, center console and 3:91 posi cost $2,800 "out the door". The car was black with black stripes cause the assembly line only did it one way!

http://musclecars.howstuffworks.com/...duster-340.htm

RonsGS

Boy that picture of Skips doesn't do it justice,that probably was just before demo. I spent many a night there starting in 67 and up until the LEO's starting writing tickets for everything, loud pipes,bumper too high,obstructed windows, you name it. It was a sad ending for a great place.

johnnyvettes

my cousin Bevy was car hop there in the mid 6os . I went there a few time but I was a little young did not have my licence until after they closed . i TAKE THAT BACK i DID HAVE MY LISENCE before they closed I was driving a beater so I didn't go there much . I remember a few time they closed north ave down for drag racing . who remembers Dukes on south Harlem cruised there many a summer night in the mid 80s with my 84 Grand National ..................

Bimmervet

1962 Corvette Fawn Gold, 4 speed, Crager Mags. 327- 340 HP,

CE1

Blue/black trim 69 Chevelle 350 4speed keystone mags

zo6lou

Man, those were the days,,

Candy Red 69 Camaro SS396-375 HP, 11.40s 130 MPH, was my first NEW car, $3,200.

Lots of memories from that place.

mashinter

Yep. Drove my '59 to Skip's. I remember a black '57 Chevy that drove through with a very distinctive whine from under the hood...

SUNNYD 95

I came from Chicago's south side (a very long drive) and hung out there many summer nites, those days were fun.
I drove my 64 chevy impala,black, 327-300hp with a 4speed trans.
GREAT TIME

MVR 155

My father used to hang out there in the early 60's (still talks about that place), he had a black 1962 Impala 409, 4 speed....... used to street race and they would set up races there.

CE1

Races were great, what with the trailers parked in Polk Brothers lot.....good times!

Mopar Jimmy

Heard TON of stories about Skips but am too young to remember those good old days but LOVE the Nostalgic era of the classic 60 and very early 70 muscle cars, especially that Nostalgic drag racing era, and this why I bring my 1969 440 ci Plymouth Road Runner to 85% of the many cruise nights I attend each summer.

Would have LOVED to live in that era and I bet you guys who remember these hey days remember the one chick who had a super fast car, and she had a bumper sticker on it that said "If you can beat me you can eat me."

I have heard that story countless times from the cruise night guys I hang out with at the local cruise nights and I heard she did not lose many races!

I bet several of you remember her and who can recalls what type of car she drove?

Quick Silver Z

I remember that story too, I believe it was a pre Snopes urban legend however. Like "Peabody's tomb", The "Wildman" of Beck Lake and don't go down Cuba road or you'll get shot!

Not sure you young guys could have hung with it, legend has it if you needed to make a phone call you had to drive to the nearest "filling" station put a nickel or dime in a long black machine and spin a dial with numbers on it! Even though there only 5 numbers (and 2 letters) you pretty much had to commit those phone numbers to memory in your actual head.

The good news was if you hit the coin return button at just the right time you could get it back and call for free. Now a dime might not sound like much but it got you 1/3rd way to a pack of Lucky's or a gallon of Sunoco 260...

RonsGS

My 66 plymouth had a 440 in it but it wasn't a Magnum. Now that iI think about it , it was really a big boat anchor. Don't get me wrong the car was fast for it's day and I had plenty of stop light drags form Skips all the way to Harlem and back again. My biggest competition was my friends 64 Dodge with a stage 2 426 wedge. We would burn up North Ave. all night. I couldn't compete with any of the big block Chevelles or 327/365 Novas. Lost every race to them.

As for the chick with the bumper sticker, I think that was an urban legend. We used to go to all the drive ins at least once a week, from up North (I think it was Marcs Big Boy ) around Waukegan and Dempster to Buss's at 95th and Cicero., I never saw her or a car with that bumper sticker. She probably would have won anyway.

Anyway if you Chicago Crew guys are looking for some new meat, I'm always up for a road trip.

Mopar Jimmy

What model 66 Plymouth did you have?

I have heard about that Chick with the bumper sticker from a couple of reliable sources.

ZOOOM

I grew up in River Forest on Keystone Ave. It was about three blocks from Skips. I used to sit on the rail on the bridge over the desPlanes river at Thatcher and watch the fun. They used to pull out of skips and time the light at Thatcher to be green when they got there.
I actually saw the run of a rail job down North Ave from Skips to River Forest. They moved the trailer to about Forest Ave and North and after the run they loaded the rail on the trailer and left .
I had to ask myself many times if I had really seen what I thought I saw.Skips had car hops on skates. They had a double burger and a tripple too. They had the thousand island "secret sauce" before Mickey D's came up with it.
GREAT memories!

ZOOOM

Mopar Jimmy

I also grew up in River Forest on Clinton Street 200 feet from North Ave just west of Halrem Ave. right by the old Mercury Theater (and Sears), and know exactly where you are talking about and that is pretty wild what you saw.

I bet you know/knew the Verhalen Family (they were really good friends of me and my brother.

My Dad still lives in River Forest who I visited today and my office is also in River Forest, so I know this area and the old area of Skips very, very, well, and just wish I was around to have witnessed some of this craziness (but I was just a REAL young kid back in the 60s).

ZL-1

It was a long slow run for me but I cruised Skips a bunch of times in the Summer of 1966. I remember that by the time I'd get there my 427/425 66 coupe was plenty HOT inside. It was worth it though to see all the hottest cars around. Cops got pretty bad as time went on but the only ticket I got was for no front plate. I remember hearing about rail jobs running down North Avenue too.

Mopar Jimmy