As this is the first post of the year; Happy New Year to all our readers and followers and we hope you all had a great Christmas. Thanks to those of you who dropped us gifts into the office all of which was very much appreciated. We thought we would that we would start the first post off with a bang, it doesn’t get much better than this:

Adam had kept it quiet that there was going to be a very special guest coming to the UK over Christmas to visit him for a stop over before they went back to the USA. That special guest is his friend Cleo Shelby. Cleo landed in the UK before Christmas and Adam was there to pick her up and take her back to his home while Cleo finalised arrangements for what she needed to do while over here in the UK. As Adam is a private person he fully respects Cleo’s privacy and the need to get away from it all now and again. With that in mind the visit was kept quiet to stop any unwanted attention which would allow Cleo to just get on and do her thing. Cleo would stay at Adam’s home before she returned to the USA where she was treated just like one of the family. It was a time to relax and not have to worry about anything except just being yourself, a pub visit, meals out and of course the catch ups late into the night.

Adam had asked Cleo to sign the odd thing or two for him. Cleo kindly agreed and wrapped up warm in a borrowed coat and was then taken out into the British cold weather. Cleo was shown around Adam’s vast parts stores and car just as big a car collection. Cleo was impressed by the number of cars Adam had and realised why Adam has so many guard dogs to protect his premises. Cleo was even treated to the full access guided tour even to the out-of-the-way areas where the rarities are stored. Adam had uncovered his much-loved Shelbys in anticipation for the evening signing session should Cleo agree of course. Cleo sat in each one of the cars to sign them for him. There was no expense sparred on the new Sharpie pens which were bought just for the this occasion in a selection of colours, black or silver. The only down side was trying to sort out a good balance of lighting for Cleo to see what she was doing and also for the camera work during the signings as it was starting to get dark very quickly. Sometimes the lighting and camera work getting in each others way! As with all signatures proof is always part of the provenance so Cleo was happy to oblige there too for us, just in case some people didn’t believe the authenticity of the signatures. Adam has more photo’s but they are for his private collection and not to be plastered all over the internet.

Adams Orange KR was up first.

Adam’s anniversary Hertz.

A friend and good customer of Adam’s had his anniversary Hertz at the yard for a little work which also received the coveted Shelby signature.

Next up was Adam’s pride and joy, his genuine un-restored 1966 Hertz. Adam explained to Cleo how he come to get the rare beast before she signed it in silver for him.

After the guided tour of the workshops and the yard it was back up to the offices for some warmth and conversations. In the offices there was a little more signing to be done on three DeAgostini 1:8th scale ’67 Shelby GT500 models. They were for Adam’s grandson’s Jack (a part finished model), Gary’s and Mart’s completed models waiting for that special signature.

Jack’s model being signed:

Gary’s model being signed:

Mart’s model and book being signed:

Those who are eagle-eyed will see that the cars are different as the aerial was removed on Mart’s car for transport other wise it didn’t fit in the storage box. There was also a Limited Edition book called “The Art of the Mustang” which Mart sneaked into the mix to be signed by Cleo on the author’s signature page too.

Cleo was now in much need of a hot cup of tea, so it was back to the house and get ready for the night out and something to eat. Cleo had given Lynn and Adam their gifts, Adam’s was a Limited Edition still boxed 1966 Hertz model in mint condition that was originally given to Carroll Shelby himself.

Thank You Very Much Cleo.

We can only say a huge thank you to Cleo for taking time out (especially in the freezing cold), to sign the full-sized cars and models for us. You can bet your car keys that these cars, the model’s and the book will not be parted with just for the money. Cleo’s signatures just make special items very special and unique indeed, none of which you will be seeing on eBay!