Peter Argetsinger
https://vedderandscottfuneralhome.co.../obituary.html
I had the opportunity to ride in a car with Peter Argetsinger on one lone occasion.
It was the first time I ever met him, yet as opposed to many folks encounters with Peter, we didn't meet at a racetrack. The car we were riding in wasn't even running. Yet, it was a thrill, and something that absolutely captures the man.
It was July 5, 2008. The day previous, my Dad and I, along with the late-great Loyd Haslee, ventured east to pick up Eagle #8101 out of a damp shed in Connecticut. We then drove north to pick up Fred Egloff's priceless 1937 BMW 328 Roadster in Watkins Glen, New York. The BMW had been on display at the International Motor Racing Research Center in the Glen for a season and needed to be brought back to Fred's place in Chicago. No worries, it was on our way.
Upon arriving in Watkins Glen, we were told the car wasn't at the IMRRC, but instead at the Argetsinger homestead. Peter would be there to meet us.
We rolled up with our 40' gooseneck trailer and Peter walked down the driveway to greet us, the way only an Argetsinger could- warm, gracious, 'tell me about your adventures getting here' etc... I had known this brand of kindness from his brother Michael, but was taken back by Peter’s graciousness. He asked if we wanted sandwiches for lunch, to rest up at their home before we ventured back to Wisconsin…supreme kindness that is not common.
...and then he broke the news. Fred's car was up the hill in the garage, but it would not start. Also, Peter was not too sure about the brakes, but thought we could get it down the hill if we pushed it off in neutral and then used the gears as brakes if need-be.
The car was a priceless 1937 BMW 328 racer that was so sought after the damn Nazi's spent a good deal of time and effort trying to find it during the war. They never did, the then-caretakers hid it under a bunch of wooden deck chairs in the basement of a castle in the Netherlands. A castle the Nazis occupied during the war. Insert Nazi joke here.
So up by the garage Peter got behind the wheel and I gave the BMW a mighty push and quickly jumped in, while Dad and Loyd waited by the trailer with some wooden boards just in case we got into real trouble and had to stop in a hurry.
As we started rolling down the driveway, two things caught my attention. The first was how absolutely stunning the view was from the Argetsinger family homestead. I have witnessed some amazing places in the world, but Watkins Glen, New York is what the earth was intended to look like. Hilly, partly cloudy, and breezy. The kind of breeze the runs like waves through the nearby crops, yet doesn’t affect your hairdo.
The second thing that I noticed was the rather alarming speed we were headed down the driveway. Now don’t quote me on how fast we were actually going, but it felt like 45 mph. Every time Peter hit the brakes, a great squeal would come up from underneath the car, with little-to-no success in slowing the beast, though he seemed supremely in-control.
As the car came down to the road, the speed tapered off and Peter was able to slow the machine by going through the gearbox until we rolled up the ramp of the trailer and into place behind the Eagle.
I asked him what he would have done had he not been able to slow the car. He replied with a smile and said if he felt we were in danger, we would have had to jump out.
I should have poked at that answer, to see if he meant it, but I never did. Hearing the stories others had with him since makes me think he was joking, and I’m glad for that.
In recent times, Peter helped us identify and give encouragement with the restoration of his late brother Michael's Elden Mk10B. He was not only tremendously helpful, but thankful that we were going to such lengths to bring the Elden back to form.
A great man.
- Jacques
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