Windward side
Mopar

The Man Behind the Wheel
"I recall cars staging in front of Chunky's"

Posted: Saturday, August 27, 2005

Interview:
Cal Yoshimoto,
The Man Behind the Wheel
Continued from: Windward Side Mopar Special

By Dustin Burnout
Honolulu Streets Magazine

In this "special" interview, Cal Yoshimoto from Kailua revealed a very exciting and rewarding life at the peak of the muscle car era.

HSM – What exactly did you do for a living before retiring?

CY – I graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1963 and joined the Air Force. I spent 4 years and 8 months in the Air Force as a recovery team member performing phase inspections on multi engine aircraft as B-52's and KC-135 Air Refueling Tankers. I worked on the B-52's at Castle Air Force Base, CA. until April of 1965. I then shipped out to Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan doing the same kind of job, but on tankers. Back then the tankers we worked on were supporting the war effort in Vietnam. We would do the periodic maintenance and send them off to fight the war. These tankers passed gas to whoever needed it. Most of them were fighters like F-105's and F-4C's.

HSM – How long were you stationed in Okinawa?

CY – In January of 1968 my tour at Kadena ended. I was then transferred to Hickam Air Force Base and worked for a short while working on EC-135's.

HSM – When did you join the Air National Guard?

CY – In July of 1968 I was honorably discharged from the Air Force. Luckily, a friend got me into the Air National Guard. It was a new beginning for me. Back then, many of the full time mechanics at the guard quit and went to work for Pan American Airlines. With my aircraft experience I was hired right away. I was assigned as a crew chief on the F-102 Delta Dagger. It would be mine to manage along with all the specialist that came out to work on it. The bottom line was to keep it flying and ready at all times. In the mid `70's and `80's we went through major aircraft conversions. The 102's were replaced with F-4C Phantoms and eventually the F-4's were retired and replaced with the F-15 Eagles the Hawaii Air Guard has today. Promoted to dock chief in the early 80's, my crew, the specialist, and I were responsible to perform phase inspection, time changes and repair while the aircraft was docked. Between 1986 to 1991 I was assigned as a Flight Chief responsible for 12 crew chiefs and the aircraft they were assigned.

In 1992, I was promoted to Branch Chief and assigned to oversee the maintenance operation of the KC-135R's we were going to receive. With the new job came more people and responsibility. Two Flight Chiefs and a Dock Chief and their personnel totaled about 85 in all. For me, this assignment was like a homecoming having worked on tankers in my early Air Force days.

HSM – By the time you retired what position were you holding in Air National Guard?

CY – In 2000, I retired from my fulltime job as Branch Chief with the 154th Aircraft Generation Squadron and stayed on as a part-timer working with the commander as the Chief Enlisted Manager. My assignment was to assist management and personnel meet their requirements and the goals of the organization. It was great job. I enjoyed getting involved with people and helping out. In 2002, at the age of 57, I decided to retire. To me, my journey was very satisfying and rewarding. In my career, I've worked on various aircraft, met a lot of people, made lots of friends, perhaps a few enemies, and traveled to many different countries. I couldn't have ask for any better than that.

HSM – Did your love for Plymouths start in the Military or did you always have a love for them when you were growing up?

CY – Our family was more Chevy oriented. Primarily because of my dad. He was a Chevy man. I guess my love for Plymouths began in high school. I liked the `59 Plymouth Golden Commando with its 361 cu. inch engine, the `60's Sono Ramic with its two 4-barrel set up, and the Ram Chargers of the early sixties with the hemi's. These we cool cars and fast.

HSM – What muscle cars or hotrods have you owned in the past and by the way, what was your first car anyway?

CY – My first car and hotrod was a 1951 Ford given to me by my dad. It was given to him by his friend which he then gave to me. It was a 4-door sedan, baby blue and white. It had a 239 cu. inch flathead engine, dual points, standard column shift, bench seats with naugahyde upholstery. Eventually, like any teenager, I souped it up just a little. I replaced the 2-barrel Stromberg 97 and intake manifold with a dual Stromberg set up. I went from a column shifter to an Ansen 3-speed floor shifter and installed a dual exhaust system. My ride was mostly a cruiser, but if called out, I was always ready for a good race.

In 1968, my dad gave me a 1961 Plymouth Belvedere. It was a white 4-door with a 318 cu. inch engine and a torqueflite transmission – the push button type on the left corner of the dash. It wasn't too long before I added some stuff to the car. I installed an Iskendarian Cam, Weiand Dual Quad manifold with two AFB 600 cfm. carburetors, dual-exhaust, and a set of 3.9 gears in the back. This was my family car and everyday driver that I never did race at the track, but would occasionally burn some carbon out on the streets.

In 1976, I sold the `61 Plymouth and we bought a Plymouth Volare Station Wagon. Something a little more suitable for a growing family. But with me, performance was always a priority. I replaced the 2-barrel with a 600-cfm. 4-barrel AFB carburetor, installed a B&M shift kit and dual exhaust system. I guess you call all this stuff craziness or perhaps a better word would be a passion to make my cars perform better.

HSM – Did you ever hang out at any popular cruise spots like McCully Zippy’s, Diamond Head Road, or the old Kau Kau Korner while growing up?

CY – Our favorite cruise spot was Chunky's. Located on the corner of South King and Isenberg street right across from the Stadium or better known as the termite palace. Chunky's was a popular meeting place for teenagers, hot cars and racers. I recall cars staging in front of Chunky's and racing down to Kapiolani Blvd, turn around and race some more until someone called the cops. Another popular cruise stop was at Scotty's on Keeaumoku Street located next to Rainbow Rollerland.

It's sad that everything is gone now and all that's left is a bunch of fond memories. Progress and life will continue to move on. We just need to be happy that we were apart of all that.

There you have it! Cal is just one out of many who has made a profound difference in our world and hotrod community that we just don’t hear enough about. – Honolulu Streets Magazine.

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