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MAGAZINE

April '99

WHAT'S HAPPENING

We noted recently that the Early (GOOD?) Times real rod run was scheduled, then we bashed the losers that had done 'em a FAVOR and stole the old two-day event from them.

Oh yeah, Boys. Did 'em a FAVOR.

Ya see, before the Temecula thing got real big (and some guys started seeing themselves as another NSRA) it had been a rod run. There were real hot rod types with real Hop Up Style rides who didn't go to all the yuppie gigs, but could be counted on to show up and run with the ET's. It was something to look forward to, it was low key - maybe no "Best Of"'s - people ran their cars, acted up, went somewhere, spun a donut and went back.

There would be a little dicin' on the two-lane, at very least some showin' off, high-rev passes, a CHIRP now and again.....you know.......hot rod actin' up with the best of 'em.

So it got back to that on the last Sunday of February. About 200 cars kinda violated our premise that small is good, but when the fleet is spread out over 15-18 miles of Pacific Coast Highway you can only see a dozen or so of them at a time anyway!

The feature that struck us was that it was, like it USTA WUZ, like a rolling Rodcourse d'Elegance. The iron has to be moving to appreciate it. We've said before that it is Rolling Sculpture whose static display doesn't handle it: Roll 'em. Roll woodies. Roll great big 29 foot-long Oldsmobile Sedans. Roll blown big block sedans with pro-street weenies. Roll a slammed Caddie, a scrunched Riviera, a '48 Fordor with steelies that is the lowest functional hot rod on earth. Roll about 4 dozen restorods with nice stance, and roll a little bit of every kind of car, wagon, pickup or motorcycle that we've learned to SCREW UP in about 35 years of screwin' them up.

"Kids in a candy store."

"YEAH, MAYBE NEXT YEAR WE'LL GET A TENT........"

At the end of the road there was a scenic marina, food, beer and stogies, tall tales and a return roadster blast 100 or so miles on a sunny, bitchin California Sunday. In February........ earthquakes, traffic, smog, riots, mud-slides, brush fires, state income tax, illegal immigration..........Rob Reiner.? These problems did not exist in OUR California on February 28.

The Early Times are back..................and they won the contest of COOL.

OAKLAND

YA GOTTA USE LOCKTITE OR GASKET GOO OR SOMETHING TO HOLD 'EM ON AN YA STILL GOTTA TIGHTEN 'EM EVERY HUNDRED MILES OR SO. THEN THEY 'SING' KINDA NEAT JUST BEFORE THEY BLOW OFF.

The talk is only just now dyin' down, and the consensus is that Hop Up hit it on the head.....it was GREAT. Pictures are still coming in from our many reporters and contributors (a vast Right-on Conspiracy ); but we want to share with you the Essence. The Real Deal. THE PILGRIMAGE.

Although it was our practice for several years to drive a hot rod to Oakland , we haven't done it for a few years. That's OUR fault. OUR loss. A solo chingo like Basketball took was whatsawhat. Some years someone would hitch a ride and WHUPS!. Seven and a half hours of rod and custom B.S. Definitely CUSTOM, too, because that's why we went to Oakland in those days. It was HARDLY the roadster show it became this year! And you could count on caved-in, frame-bashing, pearlescent happenings all over the place....or at least in several places. But we got a Load 0' Road, making the round trip and the show (and Slim's) in a long weekend. And stop at Jack's Ranch in Cholame, have an Ortega Burger, and meditate at the James Dean Memorial for a couple of minutes before standin' on the gas East, then South.

So we were HAPPY for David, Tom and Keven when the following pictures showed up on the net. And MISERABLE that they did THIS while we were trying to make sense of the beer nuts we got from a male stewardess on the airplane.

Live vicariously as we did. Their workday careers were a light year away when these cats stopped to chat; remember as we did that, next time we put on our Moon-discs, we'll use some Locktite to avoid having to ratchet 'em down every time we stop.................imagine how it felt to make that launch back onto the highway: 'On It' to safely rise to the speed of the attending traffic....but that wasn't why you guys were on it, was it, David? Keven? Don't jive an ol' Ancient One......They were on it because it felt good and sounded good. Probably kicked up some gravel in the process, too, eh, David?

SURE WISH I'D A HAD A BLACK ONE IN THAT LINE WITH 'EM

CAPTION CONTEST: BEST ONE GETS A HOP UP T SHIRT

Grab a gear.

DEUCE DAY

Southern California Deuce Day will be held on September 19 near Escondido. Go. This is a HOP UP endorsed swindle that is the kick-off of alternating Deuce Days. Southern California one year, Andy's Northern California Deuce Day on alternating years.

All makes and models can attend this one.....preferred display parking for everything......another separated preferred parking area for Deuces. And it is FORD deuces. No model A's with deuce shells (Awwwwwww!) No Chrysler's made in '32. No '32 Chevies. Ford deuces. Unfinished deuces are welcome, too. Details later.

CALIFORNIA ROADSIDE REMOTE SENSING (SMOG SNIFFER)

If they don't exempt our cars from this invasion, we're doomed. There is proposed legislation - SB 285 - that would work for us.You (we) have to do something. Send a fax,. e-mail, letter, or phone your California STATE Representatives. Also, send a duplicate to the author of the bill:

Senator Mountjoy
500 N. First Ave. Suite 3
Arcadia, Ca. 91006
(626) 446-3134 Fax: (626) 445-3591
email: senatormountjoy@sen.ca.gov

If this roadside deal is initiated in full scale, do you suppose they'll catch a disproportionate number of "undocumented" folks who don't give a shit about our license renewal, insurance, OR smog standards????? THAT would embarrass them! Then AL GORE could step in at the Federal level to decide what EXCEPTION to avail them. Maybe Rob Reiner will have some wisdom here, too. The scofflaws could be exempted if we naturalize them, and register them to vote. Wonder how they'd register?

Employing typical logic, Reiner could arrange for us to tax people who have Golden Retrievers in order to pay for the naturalization process.

DIEHARDS

There are CUSTOM specialists around who don't feel like their interests are served in the magazine offerings we get. Who'd a thought?

DIEHARDS is a newsletter put out by a man and woman who are not afraid to call 'bullshit' when it is necessary, and that edge seems to go over well with the readers, some of whom who are "Hop Up Guys", too. They are willing to criticize editors, take names, and kick figurative butt. The message is :"Do your thing in a pure way, don't sell out, and do it for yourself." Our sentiments, exactly. We generalize when we point out character flaws in the mag world, and that may be a sell-out of sorts, because we , too, (can you imagine this?) have some decided opinions on that page, too.

DIEHARDS doesn't sugar-coat them.

SAMPLE DIEHARDS ISSUE WITH OL' TIMEY SLEDS

AND YOU THOUGHT HOP UP WAS NARROWLY FOCUSED!!

In the most courageous feature, they will show each month's "Mauled Merc" which will be some garish, over-customized piece (doesn't really have to be a Merc - just Mauled!) that does disservice to the Art Form.......we say, "You GO, Dude!".

Events are reported and a calendar is provided for up-coming stuff. All in all, a 'Must- read.' We're subscribin'. Tell 'em you're a Hop Up Guy when you sign up.