Model T and the Tunnel

A young man named Gus Suedecum had came from Tennessee in a Model T Ford and had parked in a friends yard over in Pima. Gus was 3 or 4 years older than me so he was old enough to go into the service when World War II broke out.

Jerry Hancock and I had been trying to buy an old car so we took Gus's Model T out to try it one Sunday. We drove it down to Red Knoll, a group of red clay hills sticking up in some farm land west of the Cork store between Pima and Fort Thomas.

We found three Fort Thomas girls there in a pickup. We knew the girls from high school events and dances vaguely. They were Rayge Hammond, Pauline Cornet and Maxine Herbert. Rayge was a very large girl. Pauline was kinda cute so I wanted to impress her.

They were parked where a tunnel came out of the clay wall, we understood a farmer had cut the tunnel to move runoff to a field east of the knolls. It was about 3-4 feet high and 4-5 feet wide. We decided we would go threw the tunnel even though we had no light. I led the way with the girls behind me and Jerry bringing up the rear. I am very claustrophobic but didn't consciously realize yet. As I led into the pitch black tunnel, I became very uncomfortable and we were in about 30 or 40 feet. I was very nervous when a rattlesnake started rattling right in front of me.

I will never know how I got past Rayge but I was the first one out of that tunnel, basically too small for passing in. I have always remembered this as being one of my most frightening experiences. Now at 85 years old I still recall this wierd experience every time I am in a claustrophobic situation such as being unable to breath at night because of sinus congestion.

We gathered our cool and left Red Knolls, the girls went to Fort Thomas and we crossed the river at Cork and went to Eden. We thought the car was running hot so we pulled into Heber Kemptons yard and raised the hood and the moor was red from heat, this really scared us but we put water in it and we drove it on up to Bryce. The motor had turned back to black and still ran right. We decided not to buy the Model T, anyway.