Hopupland
HOPUPLAND 911HOPUPLAND
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THE COVER
The CE ‘cat reposes at a coffee stop, last day of a brass/nickel tour; only one way that Hop Up Guys demo Style.
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Do you have a HURT hat? - look in Speedshop!
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RIP RW
RIP MJM
RIP AS
RIP JB
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Economies thrive by productivity…if less-restricted, they prosper.
If you throw 300 Billion Dollars of TAX MONEY around how is that anything but WEALTH
REDISTRIBUTION???
It has to come from somewhere and that somewhere is TAXES.
We’re being campaigned.
Turn us loose..we’ll make it and pay taxes on the profit…there’s a program for ya. Oh, this goes for CALIFORNIA as well as the FEDS
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Is Chas Bono guilty of Male Fraud?
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Friday, September 30
Late in the day:
HERE’S ONE FOR YA
Dennis and Deb made a sperm-of-the-moment roadster trip up north this month and found this photo op. PERFECT.
They went with no itenerary, no route, no map..but they inevitably met up with every body who is any body north of the Mason-Dixon Line while they were making their turn around. The impromptu concept is kinda hot rodish, ain’t it?
First thing:
Hey. Coffee almost gone, have to go out in a couple of minutes and start a day of (deferred) garage mopping, tweaking. Cars look good, nice to see everything clean and sharp. Had a buzz yesterday about a ‘one I’ve never had’, called an expert (is this reality TV?) and he vetoed it poste haste. OK with me. Besides, I should be pouring dough in to the highboy, now, shouldn’t I? It’s “The Last Ford” ...that’s what I tell myself….unless a neat ‘37 Phaeton showed up looking for a chop. Remember Richard Graves’ barn-find early mild custom ‘37? That’s the one that sticks in my head.
Again, I would sure like to go to the Motorama. Maybe Sunday…the Merc’s nice and clean, ya know?
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Thursday, September 29
Talked to Stupie in Minn yesterday. He reads this stuff, likes the ‘musings’, so we’ll muse and report when we’re bemused. Thanks.
Customs are so important to the old car scene (I forecast long ago that they are the Great Lead Hope) and this weekend I won’t make it to the Long Beach Motorama and that’s regretable. It will be a great show and everybody who can..should. I had planned to hang with Branch and Valdez like I did last year (for a beer or so) but would have taken a car and made a day or a weekend of it. Good setting and LB and we can use this. Oh, well….
Waiting for a ride to go get the Sporty One (I need another sporty one so some day I’ll have to brag..”...go get one of the sporty ones”,right? Then tacos with Bert where I’ll hear about his 3 week oddysey to Russia, and quickly back to the villa to meet the car detailer.
Just read that the Colorado Grand had rain and fog every day this year…and BOY! Do they have good iron on that one.Almost a hundred hand-picked cars includng 3 250GTO F cars. I expect to see several participants this weekend so we’ll see if they complain or boast about the conditions!
OK, coffee’s gone..and so am I.
(I’ll see if Diana Branch will send some pictures of the Motorama.)
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Wednesday, September 28
Only stopping by to say ‘hello’. Juggling calendar stuff, realized Rattle Can Nationals is a couple weeks away (that’d be Thursday, October 20.)
Going to get the sports car back from Bob’s tomorrow, will be nice to have it around…eye candy ya know? Company this weekend so garage has to be tidy, iron buffed.
I have to find some time to work on a roadster (or two), need to take it to the barn for that effort, but I want it here to pose for the above company..same same for mid-Ocober, want it here for important guests from far, far away. I guess they won’t care if there’s a click in the trans..if it’s not running...?
We established a new product distributor in UK (Hop Up Products is expanding, right, Marc??) and that’ll be the beginning of the World-Wide introduction of Hop Up Style. the likes of which we’ve not seen.
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Tuesday, September 27
I had a few paragraphs here last night and freakin’ deleted them by accident. HA! Must not have been worthy.
Most of it was just waxing ineloquently about the great character we all have as car guys. (Right, Ed.) The thing that’s most recollectible, running around in my mind this morning, is the part where I said “...my time line list of ‘to-do’s’ on the Ramrod had us tearing the hemi apart in October, doing the (hopefully little) bits it needs done and reassembling it. But I haven’t got June done, and it’s nobody’s fault but mine.
I have to throw cabbage at the thing, work on it myself, or ask for charity. So, how ‘bout we all get together and work on my car as a kind of communal effort to enhance my quality of life; you could probably maybe perhaps write it off your taxes. Think of the carmaroderie.
If we don’t do something, Boys, I’ll be 85 years old and starting it for the first time.
(And shhhh! To the Chump who wondered how many of ‘em I need? If this one’s not done til I’m 85…I’ll still have another 15 years to do the next one.)
VENT DOORS OPEN BY THESE NEAT LEVERS; BITCHIN, NO?
Believe me, Fabian is not holding this thing up; the customer simply ‘feeds’ the project too slow!!!!!
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Sunday, September 25
Got in yesterday before noon, unloaded the Biggun, got it washed and parked. It acquitted itself well, got the attention of some savvy brass guys, made us proud. 350 miles of trails,roads, hiways and byways…all in the country and some really extremely nice scenery. We transport ourselves, pretend it’s the ‘day’, enjoying the miraculous achievements of the engineers and builders of cars less than 30 years after they were invented.
LOOK AT THE HOT ROD STANCE THIS BITCH HAS…
‘04 MERCEDES WAS PRE-HISTORICALLY ELEGANT
ANOTHER LATE MODEL ( NORM’S ‘28 CAD ROADSTER) SNUCK IN; LOOKED GOOD ON THE ROAD
Went on a dinner date with E, got lots of conversation done, touched on some possible goals, options for the future. All really good.
With the big car at rest, we’ll shift to the sports car (should be ready for the in-state tour at the end of next month, and get some tuning done on that 142.5” WB Classic.
Side bets include progress on the highboy, advance mock-up of Meteor, try to figure out how to get in to one of those ‘never-hads’. Whatever it is, it has to be red. I think I’ve only had one red car in my life (a 912 my Bro brought back from Germany for me) and I quickly had it painted a kind of orange…looked real good.
‘Hope your projects and dreams keep you fulfilled like mine do for me.
FOUR DOOR VERSION OF OUR CAR SOUNDED GOOD (CUTOUT OF COURSE!);
IT’S CALLED A ‘BULLDOG TOURING’
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Thursday September 22
This is the run I’ve been palaberin’ about. Head for home tomorrow but it’s beengreat as usual.
THERE’S A LINCOLN IN THAT CLOUD IN FRONT…
Dirt road part of the run yesterday and it was a plume of fine dust for the newbie who didn’t know the protocol….you can lay back out of the plume in front and the guy behind will not pass you…as a courtesy. Our rig looked white when we got in to the next town and all the rest were relatively unscathed.
THESE GUYS WERE NOT TOO CONCERNED ABOUT US THOUGH….
Our favorite car on the run was a ‘28 Packard, owned by Larry, and even tho’ the run is for 1920 and earlier cars (his Loco wasn’t ready)
he was able to bring the ‘late model’ to the pleasure of everybody else. Nice 143” WB car.
LATE MODEL SHOWED REAL GOOD, RAN BETTER
Like last year, we were pleased to see George Canavan (and Linda) on the run, Hop Up Patriots and hot rod/custom guys - as well as moto’s, sports cars and everything else.
The A coupe below is the one she insisted he buy, complete and done, rather than a similar project. What a woman!!
CANAVAN MODEL A RAN GREAT, IN HOP UP STYLE.
CAST ALUM BODIES ARE JUST THE BEGINNING WITH PIERCE-ARROW.
WE BELIEVE ....
Gotta say g’night. Plenty tired, long day tomrrow. Maybe more Saturday?
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Saturday, September 17
Re: 70’s, 80’s, 90’s cars for the ‘one from every decade’ collection, Steve submits:
70’s. BMW 3 liter coupe, Ferrari Daytona or Dino
80’s. Porsche 959, or. Speedster
90’s. Porsche 911 RS, or 996 Turbo
Good ones. How ‘bout a Bentley Continental for 2K and Bentley Continental for 50’s. Whoa!
Waiting for a cabinet man this morning, who will do a small job in the garage; have several things to load into the truck and trailer. I’ll pack me tomorrow.
Gotta get a car clean to drive to the Westside tonight for a birthday party.
Maybe today I’ll drive that other big car, start trouble-shooting the coils or whatever it is that has been making it cut out (bad cutout, not good cutout). Good excuse to be in it, and savor
the comfort and style (Hop Up Style?) that the things were intended for….
THIS MAKES ME REAL CLOSE TO BREAKING THE CHAIN…
That up there is a bobber built by The Garage Company in Inglewood, Ca. Somehow I got on to them thru Andy at Pangea Speed (SLC) and now I think I deserve a bobber. I mean, what self-respectin’ hot rod guy wouldn’t want one o’ these in the garage? Somebody stop me….....
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Friday, September 16
Hey, Kev, in case you’re here…he fell for the “I’m going to the restroom” gag, just as the check was coming. I came out and pretended to be ready to pay..he said, “No, that’s the charm of Mas Fina Cantina...it’s free..you don’t have to pay…!”
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Provisioning today.
In the car:
Fuel filter,clamps, nut runner, glasses to wear under the car
Water pump packing, grease, wrench
Polish creeper (plastic to lay on)
1 gal Water, 1 Gal. Gas, 2 Qts oil
Taiwanese tool kit
Foul weather costume
Ear Plugs (cutout, ya know??)
In the trailer:
Batt charger
Extention cord
Wood blocks (chocks)
Bottle jack
Moving blanket
Car cover
5 gal water
There’s always aTrouble Truck/Trailer on these runs so you don’t need everything..particularly if you have a cell phone and a AAA+ Card.
After Paul cleans the thing we’ll load it in the trailer, wash the truck and it’ll sit here until Monday morning for a pre-dawn launch.
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Other dance card items will keep us away from Wavecrest this weekend; seems like something always does. Ought to be ample coverage on line, though..
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One of those “One I’ve Never Had’ cars seems to have gotten away. “Why didn’t I move on it?” he asked himself, rhetorically.” AHA! Because I was going to sell something for seed money but got distracted and forgot.”
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I always wanted a car from each decade, thought that would be cool.
We don’t have much of this stuff but a generalization looks like:
Ot’s: ‘09 T Touring or other Horseless Carriage
Teens:Ghost, Locomobile
20’s: T or A hot rod, Lincoln L custom body, or Springfield Rolls
30’s: Classics, Woodie
40’s: Mild Custom Cad or?
50’s: 356 Porsche, Gullwing, Custom
60’s; Riv, of course, Muscle Car, Alfa
70’s: ????
80’s: ????
90’s: ????
2K: Modern Porsche or Audi or?
What would ya do in that 70’s, 80’s, 90’s area?
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Be safe out there in your old Iron, Boys but, whatever you do…try to look cool. (Not that easy for some of us).
Hop Up Honor. Stay Honor.
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Thursday, September 15
We’ll look around today for some photo ops; God knows we’ll be around cars sometime during the day.
In the interim, this: The cogs are turning around on the gear, just as planned. We’ll taste the country roads and scenery in a 130” wheelbase biggun all next week; will have gone up and back with kindred folk.
The sportscar is all ready for a similar thing in 6 weeks. The other ‘garage’ stars are aligned and suddenly we miss something. One particular itch hasn’t been scratched and..it’s like it was when we ‘always’ wanted one of them…same yearning..but oua la: we have it in the que; just haven’t had it in the rotation lately. Oh, drove it recently to get the tires round, put 2 batteries in it…but haven’t used it.
The nice thing about it, is the one I’m talkin’ about needs a little something fixed. I quite accept that..actually thrive on it…as my duty to it. Like I said, “Leave ‘em better than you found ‘em”. There will be a part for me to do, then take it to the shop and hire it finished, which to me is like commissioning art. To me it is.
So, I’ll be in one of them next week, and from time to time, I’ll surface from the Immersion that is that.... there’‘ll be inevitable Daytime Dreaming..about a bigger one (142.5”).
It’s what I do; it’s my calling. And my choice.
Can you believe some knavish lout once asked me, “How many do you need?.”
Ya reckon he’s a real car guy? Naw…...
See ya in a few hours. Hey, you look good in the morning, considering your age......
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Wednesday, September 14
Coffee. Scanning the net for stuff. Politics is a drag. Not much moves on-line except the HAMB, so pour over that several tmes a day…and still only open about 4 threads. Lots to do; busy weekend and provisioning for tour. Hmmm. Only Wednesday and I went on about the weekend. HA! Gotta make time to drop by a friend’s project where a new, beautiful red barn is being built; soon, there will be the best ‘barn finds’ in California there - if he brings them back to where he found them! He’ll be tired, probably need a cold brew. I think I’m his huckleberry…...
Personal note to SH in Long Lake: I hear you have a ‘32 Liencoln for sale….‘that true?
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Tuesday, September 13
It’s later; great day, little bit of business, and after, stopped and saw Beck, leaned on his cool banger A Tub and talked, looked over some of his other iron…
Early in the day, I had stopped to see how the ‘Lucas Report’ was coming along, they were not intimidated by the problem, were in the middle of solving some amateurish wiring efforts. I have great confidence when my stuff is in that shop.
An e mail from the shop just said “Electrical all fixed, car is rolling over to the dyno now”. Aye Caramba! I hope it’s good (but I told him it’ll never be as good as his sports car’s numbers; his sports car is a “F” word - the Italian one…...a 12. Just about exactly the same color as our English one.) Man, we’re going through the garage makin’ things right..what’s next? Hmmmmmmm.
Our 12 Cyl car needs freeze plugs….......‘better save up for that one.
Talked to Rustman on the phone; his chopped Deuce Fodo is being groomed for next summer’s wanderlust…he’ll be a force to reckon with, I reckon.
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Car stuff later as the day progresses:
Soooo…I’m not read-up on this but…Corporate jets?
I’d love to, thank you, but can’t. But that’s me.
While on the subject, though, I’ll bet they:
Employ pilots.
Cost alot, have profit built in. (Taxable)
Employ extremely high end machinsts in manufacuter
Employ upholsterers.
” glazers
” engine builders.
” maintenance, janitorial. And on and on.
PAY lots of TAXES on FUEL.
Cause private air terminals to be built (construction)* I have been a sub-contractor on several of these.
Employ personnel for those terminals.
Get execs around quickly in a world where time is money.
But it’s classy and those execs enjoy it. Dang. it must be wrong then.
Do you think taxing them in the name of jobs is anything but CLASS WARFARE????
Over tax them, and it will cost jobs somewhere. It’s basic. Some of those businesses and owners can barely afford the jet. Tax it even more? “We’re outa here”.
Along with a bunch of jobs.
Satisfied?
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Monday, September 12
Side jobs this week include servicing truck/trailer, preparing the blazing fast ‘23 Stutz itself for the trip (provision some tools, parts, fluids, et.al.), nag Fabian about those vents in the Ramrod cowling (only one done so far; seems they had to race at Elmo this weekend so…..). That may be enough.
Got a note from Rudy Perez which says, in part:
“...about a certain ‘55 XK 140 MC Royal…My rememberer remembered the past…In 1957 Joe Wilhelm chop’d this sucker,
and put a one-piece windshield on it, among other visible things…Was Paxton blown…Was a Pebble Beach road race winner
before being retired and customized, with what I believe was less than 5K miles on it…
Rudy grew among all the most interesting Bay Area motorsport happenings, and…I’ve asked him for 10 years to write a book. Photo archives to die for…....
WILHELM CUSTOM FROM THE DAY
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Sunday September 11
Remembering, of course.
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Asked Paul about his RPU project and he responded:
“I’ve furthered the ’28 RPU progress with completion of the reworked “A” dash/gas tank panel and shop made engine turned insert with a ’32 speedometer & collection of SW gauges (oil press gauge from Dad’s old engine drive welder, worn, character, yep!)”
BODACIUS PARTS, PAUL! THANKS.
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Now, about the cutout. I know, I know, “Cutout, Schmutout! That’s all he talks about”. But..see…I have simple pleasures; it’s done now, so I can go on to the next improvement for the Big Thing.. They machined the stainless top of the pedal to match the starter pedal..cool…and on the business end it’s a no-nonsense rod that goes down and opens the cutout; the pedal part has a detent spear on it that hooks nicely below the floor and..Boomchockalocka!
They remade the muffler while there (interesting 1922 technology) and ran a new tail pipe. I feel great, because as in all things auto…we have to leave them better than we found them. And this one is being improved steadily as time goes by. I love this rig, and I guarantee it’ll repay my affection in a week or so.
Oh, while he was driving it, Bob questioned the throttle action (was less than he thought it should be) and found it limited in adjustment and throw. He (this is no kidding) readjusted the links, I redid the return springs on it and the thing has better throttle response, higher speed, more power sooner and…and…ain’t this fun?
(And those pricks in Sac and Washington want to take this away from us?)
SO, HERE’S THE PEDAL; ‘HOPE IT’S NOT AN ANTI-CLIMAX…
Saturday, September 10
Going to make a run at assimilating after a tough week. Here goes:
Sports Car is loaded in the trailer; in a while we’ll take it to Bob, who will change out the part we identified as the (Bad Lucas!!) failed one and smoke over (pun intended) the rest of the wiring…you know…the new wiring loom that had been worked on by ham-handed louts? Yeah, that one.
For the flip-flop, we’ll load the Big One, which is there, and now has the cutout complete (I’ll get pics of the mechanism).
That one comes home for the final look-see before the long trip north later in the month for a really countrified run with 50 or so other early rigs. We’ll be blasting around (unmuffled, you say???!!!) far north California, hill and dale, some nice, scenic, long runs, one of which takes us in to Oregon for for one night. I think we tie up with Jim and Hugh in Reno on the way up and I can hear the dinner conversation already!! Oh, Boy. Talk about escape…......
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Monday, September 5
Found this in my ‘Documents’, must be from about 2004,I guess there’s another paragraph to add…maybe someday….
It’s been a long, hot drive, but I wouldn’t change anything; after two leisurely days and about 20 hours on the road, a familiar vista appears in the middle of that little speedboat windshield; yeah. It was a vista that I’d seen more than a dozen times before and every time it shows up…… excitement rushes through me; the kind of child’s Christmas anticipation of joy. Fulfillment is imminent. It’s undefined, but experience tells you that you will feel happiness and completion…..euphoria…..and it will be very soon.
So I downshift and leg it.
Yeah, you drive around one of those last bends and there – between those descending foothills you see…..salt. Hundreds of square miles of salt. And even though you can’t see it yet, there is a dark spot somewhere down there – an undefined unnatural blemish - that is a cluster of the only other human beings on this planet that got what you got. It’s the pits taking shape for Speedweek, and all those turds beat you there.
But watch me catch up.
I downshift…… and leg it.
It’ll be another 30 minutes or so and you have this desperate urge to drive straight out to the track, but you know good sense says, ‘Register first. You don’t want to screw up your reservations.’ So we go to the Hotel and, fidgeting in the little line at the desk you think, “Don’t they know that I have needs? I gotta get out there!”.
Well, it eventually happens and you throw your junk in the room and sprint back to the roadster, light it and haul ass the 6 miles to Valhalla.
Heaven.
The Bonneville Salt Flats that you read about as a kid and then – at about the age of 40 – you came to the party. “I never been there and I don’t know why I shouldn’t forsake convention and just go.” So I made my excuses and….went.
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I had thrown a sleeping bag and an ice chest in the back of my deuce tudor and left. Stopped in ‘Vegas the first day just for the heckofit, checked in to a suite in the Imperial Palace, grabbed some food, cleaned up and went to the Collection. ‘Spent virtually all of my time there between the giant 150 year old hotel backbar, where they guy on duty demonstrated a developed talent for just the right amount of Jack over the rocks…and a splash of water…just a gentle splash so as not to bruise the booze, and the greatest number of Duesenbergs I’d ever seen in one place. There was lots to study and appreciate. To internalize.
‘Savored the visual………and the whiskey.
Finally, when all senses were on overload, went to the big room, laid out and, as I was falling asleep, on the Cinemascope screen on the inside of my eyelids….I ….what else ….downshifted and legged it.
Next morning ‘went kinda the wrong way, not knowing the desert grace of Hiway 93 and all those now-familiar towns..Alamo…Pioche…Caliente et. al. (all of which I have vowed to stay-over in sometime…but I’m always in too much of a hurry to get there) so I drove right up 15 to Salt Lake City and checked in to a nice place to poise me and my Ford for the last 100 miles, that I’d undertake about 5:00 A.M. next morning. And I did.
The sun was coming up in my rear view mirror and, when the billboard said ‘Bonneville Speedway 6 Mi.’, I let out a holler. I turned up ‘Radar Love’…and I downshifted and legged it.
Pulled out near the bend in the road (yeah, they said it was like this) qued up with about 75 hot/street rods there who were waiting to have their picture taken (we went too and got one o’ those 6’ long pictures; even ran around to the other side so we got in it twice!).
And finally drove onto the salt (it was about 5 miles that year to the pits) and looked around. And drove around. Didn’t really know anybody and the cats in the various pits looked kinda long at that deuce. And longingly; it was a pretty sumbitch and it seemed too straight and lacquered to be out there….. but there we wuz……anyway…………and it was about sound and reflected light and heat and speed, and people with a purpose..and grim pleasure in dealing with that purpose…...and did I say..speed an’…history. A short history, going back in large fashion only 40 years or so, but it was the history of the thing that had me. I was becoming whatever it is I became, sprouting from the shell of a ‘car guy’or a ‘street rodder’ and this was the final act that, coupled with Don Montgomery’s books…had shown me the way. The way to my metaphorical here.
Three days later I left. Obligated. Done in. Hooked. Immersed.
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So we leave the hotel this time, a little tight in the chest with anticipation, pull out on 80, get behind a gas truck, pull left, down-shift and leg it. Offramp, don’t stop at the sign, don’t stop at the next one and dodge pot holes and go a little fast for the road; wish we could powerslide that right turn, but it wouldn’t look good. And 50-60 plus out the final stretch – what is that 3 miles or what? – and show them the pit pass and drop gingerly off the end of the ‘pier’ (always a chance of strikin’ oil in this little bitch) and seek flat spots of salt to drive on.
Here we are again, same deal, although it is quite a few years later, the main difference being that we know a whole bunch of folks out there now and it feels real natural to be there; and there’s – every year - some new acquaintance to be made, some fresh look at the soul of hot rodding, reflecting from that white, dust-free womb of the whole gig.
And we don’t really get in the groove until the second, third day. Then we’re in the zone ……and later in the week it gets damned hard to leave.
Looks like we might be entrants next year, after quite a few years of spectating and, although that’s not a bad thing, ya know? Nothing wrong with watching the other guys…..leggin’ it, but we really want to wear that shirt whose motto says, “NO STRANGER TO DANGER.”
Either way Amigos Mios, if it dries out by August…..we’ll be there with most of the 19 of you!
See ya there. Baby!
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Saturday, September 3
Back from the trip. WIll have more bits later, but family issues will consume the week (and the rest of my life!).
Never saw the T/A again but fantasy re: the ‘one I’ve never had’ kept my daydream mind occupied. I could live in that country or the boot-shaped one near it, no kidding.
Came home to a state that’s even more fucked-up than it was when we left.
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HOP UP HONOR; STAY HONOR
