It was 1970 when a young Joe Holt Sr. rode past a Phillips 66 gas station on his Stingray bike and spotted a beat-up ’55 Chevy pickup. He wanted it and saved his money in high school, but by then, the truck was gone.
After graduating, he received a surprise on his 18th birthday—his father handed him the greasy keys to that same truck. Over the years, Holt Sr. repaired and rebuilt the truck, naming it “Big Red” after the pack of chewing gum in the glove box.
During his 20 years coaching at Clearwater High and another 20 teaching there, he steadily tinkered with it. Though Holt Sr. passed last summer, “Big Red” lives on through his sons, Jon (left) and Joe (right) Holt, remaining a beloved piece of their family’s story. With its blazing-hot 502 Chevy engine, Tremec 5-speed transmission and Ferrari red paint from Color Concepts in Clearwater, it continues to turn heads.
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