About

Right out of high school, Ryan got into auto body and collision work, and it wasn’t long before he was building street rods. A 1933 Ford pickup was his first project. He was a member of the Road Lions Car Club, created in 1963, which was associated with the Fonthill Lions Club.

They built drag racers which competed over the quarter-mile distance at tracks like Cayuga Raceway. Ryan was one of the club drivers of a souped-up 1955 Chevy coupe called Quick as a Wink, and also did the paint and body work on the cars.