Jake's dream machine kept alive
Dreams do live on after a person’s death. Earlier this summer, race car driver Jeff Stealy climbed into the seat of a 1985 Mustang and revved the engine. The fully tricked-out car roared to life. Jeff and Carol Littrell of LeClaire, Iowa, and their daughter, Lauren, smiled from the sidelines as they watched the car head down the track.
The vehicle belonged to their son Jacob “Jake” Littrell, who died March 5, 2005, after a four-year battle with cancer. Jake got hooked on racing when he was 6 and watched his first race at Cordova Dragway Park.
“I wanted to try and build this above anything that Jake could ever fathom of his dream car,” Stealy said. “I told Jeff (Littrell) I wanted to do something to give Jake something to fight for. I was hoping as we progressed with the car, his health would get better.”
Jake’s courage and determination inspire Stealy, 40, to keep going even after being diagnosed with Stage IV adeno lung cancer earlier this year. He is the father of two young children.
“One of the biggest things I learned from Jake was to never give up. He fought to the end. The doctor told me 15 percent (with my kind of cancer) make it five years. I told the doctor I’d be in that 15 percent,” he said.
The cancer isn’t keeping Stealy away from the racetrack. He is taking Tarceva, a drug designed to block tumor growth, and the latest tests show his tumors are shrinking, he said. People with cancer should definitely research the latest advances and take an active role in their treatments, he said.
“I’ve always loved challenges, and all my guys here at the shop have stuck by me, worked the extra hours and put up with my moods,” he said.
Work on the Mustang got under way after Jake and Carol Littrell asked Stealy to install a new engine in the car in the fall of 2004. Stealy agreed, and the two families developed close ties.
Jake continued treatments for his cancer as the work began. He stopped by the Stealy Performance Machine shop in East Moline as often as his health allowed and watched the evolution from a bare shell to racing machine. The vibrant Sonic blue paint was his choice.
Stealy realized he wanted the car to have more than just a new engine, and he installed a new transmission and suspension system. The volunteer crew tried to thrash the car into race readiness while Jacob was still alive, he said.
He showed Jacob the parts he planned to install during their last visit March 5, 2005. “I’ll be sitting next to you in the car,” the young man promised. He died later that day.
“This is a full-blown race car. I knew the car would be finished. I just didn’t know when. I just want it to be right,” Stealy said.
Completing the car involved more than 250 hours of work and $30,000 in donations from the racing community, Stealy said. He tested the car at Cordova before taking it to Joliet (Ill.) Route 66 Raceway for the NMRA Route 66 races at the end of July. Jacob’s family watched as Stealy put the car through its paces.
“Jake would think it was great. It was pretty exciting for our whole family,” says Jeff Littrell. “A lot of hard work from Jeff and the other people went into it. I knew it would happen, but it took a lot of hours and tender loving care.”
Jeff Littrell added: “Jacob is certainly smiling, and although we are very sad when we see his dream without him, we are going to smile too, Beautiful job.”
The car will race in the World Series of Drag Racing at Cordova Aug 25-27. It can reach up to 140 mph in the quarter mile and has a 630 horsepower engine. With nitrous oxide, that climbs to more than 800 hp, Stealy said
Eventually the car will be raffled off. Stealy and his racing crew are selling 500 tickets at $100 apiece at races, and the money will go to the family to help them with remaining expenses.
“It’s been an amazing resurrection of this car, and I feel proud of Jeff for stepping in. He and Jacob hit it off from the get-go,” says Jerry Stealy, Jeff Stealy’s dad and a race car driver.
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