Do you have any stories about jhaas?

One of his kids has found us here at GRM.  Was asking if anyone knew him personally and had any stories they'd like to share.

ihaas said:

In reply to John Welsh :

thank you so much! it's nice to have someone with a similar story. my dad did have one brother which we are still very close to as well as his mother. sadly, his father did pass away a year after him. i don't really have any other questions at the time other than if any of yall knew him personally and have any stories? it's perfectly fine if not, i would just love to get to know what he was like more!

This John Haas, builder of the Forty-Niner.

The story of the car, and his GRM Obituary. 

In reply to ihaas :

your Dad was the kind of guy who asked "why not?" instead of "why?" when someone would suggest things. I met him at the GRM Challenge maybe in 2005(?), and was struck by his creativity with the cars he built. There was an Opel GT with a Ford 2.3 Turbo, a Porsche 914 with a Ford Taurus SHO engine and transaxle, and of course the car whose name would get you cancelled if you said it aloud in 2024, the 49 Chevy on the 94 Caprice cop car chassis he affectionately named "the Tard Barge" after driving it from Knoxville TN to Gainesville FL with his homeboys.

Jon had a degree in Architecture from UT Knoxville (iirc), though he told me he never worked as an architect.

My thumbs are getting tired. I'm gonna switch from phone to laptop in a minute. I have much to post. Might have to ration it out over a couple days.

note: i'm working from memory of a conversation that happened over beers about 15 years ago, so it's possible i've got some details mangled a bit.

Following up on the degree in Architecture:  Jon told me that when they were freshmen, he and one of his friends each approached their respective parents and asked to borrow $10k ($20k total), to put a down payment on purchasing a house near campus. They came up with a business plan, and both families agreed. Jon and his friend rented out rooms to other students, and renovated the house one room at a time while in school. When they graduated, they sold the house and repaid their parents, and each of them came away with a small pile of cash. Enough cash, Jon said, that he knew he would rather be a landlord than an architect, and he used the pile of cash to put down payments on additional rental properties.

We miss John, and he fully embodied our $2000 Challenge–both the creativity and community. You know he was going to bring something cool and, should it not worked as planned, you knew he’d have people jumping in to help. 

I saw the link to Sarah’s piece on his Chevy build, and I pulled a few more photos from the server as these might not have all been shared. 

These first were taken at Gainesville Raceway during the 2007 running of the $2000 Challenge. It was wet that day, so instead of drag racing we kinda just hung out and looked at cars. 

Didn’t the windshield get broken, thus requiring a track-side repair? 

While shooting some photos on the way from the track to the hotel, it broke. (But just for a few.)

From the autocross portion of the $2000 Challenge. 

And photos from the awards banquet:

John Haas brought an Opel to our $2000 Challenge in 2006, so here are a few photos from that year’s event. 

Working on the car in the paddock.

Concours judging:

And a photo of him from the after-party with Bill Cuttitta, the upcoming event’s grand marshal. 

In reply to David S. Wallens :

LOL, that was the last time the evil alliance trophy was awarded. Jon refused to return it the following year. He put it on display behind the bar at his Fort Sanders Yacht Club.

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

Forgot about that award going on a one-way trip. Have a minute to tell the rest of the class about that award? :) 

David S. Wallens said:

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

Forgot about that award going on a one-way trip. Have a minute to tell the rest of the class about that award? :) 

That's a story for tomorrow

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

Can’t wait and thank you. 

And thanks for serving as one of the keepers of the $2000 Challenge flame. 

I really miss Jon and his impact on the entire GRM community. I didn't know him well enough to contribute, but want to be part of hearing the stories from people who knew him better than me (like AngryCorvair)

In reply to ihaas :

I wrote in the other thread, linked in this first post that your Dad is a legend around here.  Here is how he affected me...  

The Challenge began in 1999 and I remember reading about it since then.  I was in awe of what the amazing competitors were bringing to the event.  I was sitting at home thinking "some day...I'll do that."  Forward to 2012, it was the first year that I attended the event.  I came as a helper for another persons entry that year and the following year.  For 2014 I fielded a car of my own and took 11th overall; the next year 10th overall.  I then continued to attend every year until 2019.  

So, back to how he affected me... It was 2007 that the Forty-Niner was entered.  To me, it was a game changer.  Your dad wasn't just making an impact on the event, he was making a national (maybe international) impact on people like me sitting at home in Ohio.  

Just to be clear, the Forty-Niner was the exterior body of a 1949 Chevy but underneith it was a 1994 Chevy Caprice Cop Car.  One like this:

I think a picture like this does a good job of telling the story.  

That story is that up until your dad, The Challenge was largely an event of sports cars.  In that photo you see the typical yellow Honda CRX, white Roadster, and silver Datsun 510.  Your dad turned the event on its ear and brought what appeared to be a 1949 Chevy.  The magic being that there was an actually much more modern car underneath it.  Your dad brought STYLE to the event.  What he did is what we call body swapping and I think it was the first time a body swap was entered into the event.  Since that year, body swapping has been a staple of the event...but your dad was the fore-runner.  
Part of his STYLE was also to prove that not bringing the fastest car doesn't mean you didn't bring the coolest car.  

Some googling takes me to this link of someone else's 256 photos taken at the 2007 Challenge. 
https://www.flickr.com/groups/grm2007challenge/pool/
It was an amazing year.  It was the year of the Sucker Vette winning the overall.  But, it was also the year of the Zamboni and The Forty-Niner.  Not to discredit the remaining competitors but generally, they're all the same...but the Forty-Niner.   

In reply to David S. Wallens :

oh my gosh thank you so much for all of these stories and photos! i don't think you could understand how much this all means to me! in these photos i recognize some people that mean a lot to me, my dad in the dark blue, his brother (my uncle bryn) in the grey adidas shirt, and their best friend, shane in the light blue shirt talking to them, who we call our uncle shane. this is already helping me so much in exploring my dad and all of the amazing things that he accomplished. you guys are truly so amazing. thank you so much!

In reply to ihaas :

How much do you know about your parents' ownership of the Pickle Mansion? That project, and the deal surrounding it, is another of the many things your Dad did that impressed me so much.

Right now, before I say anything else about how awesome your Dad was, I will say that he always talked about how much he loved and appreciated your Mom for sharing his vision, and for busting her ass to make the vision reality.

In reply to ihaas :

You'll notice it quite quickly due to your specific circumstances, but the GRM forums are truly a special place in the world of social media, internet, and passing fads. 

Your dad lives on in these pages, and his influence extends far beyond the borders of his home state. 

In reply to John Welsh :

Wow, 2007 was an EPIC year for the Challenge! In addition to the crazy Zamboni and Cheaparall Sucker Vette, and of course the Forty-Niner, I also spot the Nelsons and their original Fiat build (and a young Calvin??), the Wreck Racing E30 coupe that I first saw on campus for a recruitment event when I was freshman, also their painter's tape Miata, the SHO-powered 914, the Richard Petty Hong Norr Honda, the list goes on!