NorCal Hot Rods and Custom Car Show Pictures- N/K The sun was far from coming up when I was standing on the corner of 10th St in Antioch waiting on Villainz car club member Scott Coppack to pick me up. The night before I told Scott I would love to help the guys set up around the House of Style booth which feature phenom pinstripers-slash-painters Kyle Martin and John Christensen. Come to find out Scott had already pulled in to the show and was setting up. If it wasn't for Villainz John Lemoine with his sweet burnt orange 49 and his keen eye for black sticker-mobbed camera cases I probably would have been out in front till they let the public in. Well... probably not, but you get the picture.   (All of Nick's pictures from Billetproof here in the MyRideisMe.com Hot Rods and Customs gallery)     Upon entering the show, we grab our swag bag, pay the reggie fee and head to our designated area, which I might say was quite perfect! Under shade trees, right across from pinstriping mad men Rich Luna and Mr.Wims booth and...

History of Billetproof - The Original Fifteen years ago Kirk Jones and Jay Ward had a idea. The idea was to create a car show with unique, hand-crafted trophies and to express the growing old school hot rod movement. They held their first new car show at the Albany Bowl in Albany, CA. In attendance was 26 traditional cars and about 100 friends. The music was provided by The Stillman in the bowling alley's tiny, packed lounge. The year was 1997 and the show was simply named Billetproof. In 1998 on a rainy day at the Albany Bowl attendance jumped to 63 rods and the venue was busting at the seams. Billetproof was ready for a bigger venue. The next year in 1999 Billetproof thought they had found a new and bigger home. The MLK Jr. Waterfront Park in Oakland, CA. Right on the water, with grassy areas to relax in and fully equipped with built in BBQ's to cook on, the park seemed twice as big as they needed... Wrong! On this beautiful sunny day in Oakland, 129 choice hot rods and customs filled the parking lots to...

1931 Model A Ford Defines Traditional Hot Rods Randy Brenneis knows hot rods. What makes me so sure? Randy grew up in Anaheim, CA during hot rodding’s glory days of the 1950’s and 60’s. At age 14 he was pit crewing for a friend’s dad at Santa Ana Raceway, the world’s first commercial drag strip, at a time when flags not staging lights sent racers thundering down the quarter mile. How many of us can say that? And although he's seen many period trends come and go, his true passion has always remained right where it started – traditional hot rods. With several hot rod builds under his belt and years of experience, Randy isn’t one to shy away from a build or challenge, but at this point in his life he prefers the time spent in his cars more than the time spent under them. So in 2006, when he decided to add another to his list, he wanted something he could make his own that wouldn't require a full blown resurrection. A quick search turned up a complete 1931 five window coupe in Thousand Oaks, CA that...

NorCal Hot Rods and Custom Car Show Pictures When you hear the circus is in town your first thought is of the big top, right? Well I asked my two daughters what was the first thing that came to mind when I said, "The circus is coming to town." My youngest who's four said, "Chuck Chuck the Clown" and my oldest who's eleven said, "A big parade of people". This is the funny cause I'm sitting in my backyard writing this story as it's happening... So I ask my girls what's the first thing that comes to mind when I say, The Circus of the Wicked is coming to town? Lets listen in for their response: My youngest says, "The chicken on SNL." OK. My oldest,"Sounds like a cool name for a car show." No, I'm not pulling your leg, that's what she said. There you have it, as I lead into this feature on the Circus of the Wicked car & bike show at Holeshot Choppers in Sacramento,CA. The host car club or should I say "ringleaders" for this event were, none other than, Relentless CC. Upon my...

1930 Ford Model A HotRod SoCal - Long revered as the mecca for hot rods and custom cars, and for good reason... Builders from LA and the San Fernando Valley launched what is now known as traditional style builds and continue to set the standard.  But, just a few hours north up the 5, San Jose's Jeff Cimoli and the Rompacoglioni C.C. are turning out traditional customs and hot rods rivaling anything cruising the PCH. Originally a self-proclaimed Cadillac guy and with a well recognized and respected '60 Caddy to back up this claim, a visit to the Cow Palace in San Francisco back in 2007 would steer him away from his first love. On display was a traditional styled ’30 Ford Coupe by Nor Cal builder Scotty Chops. Jeff immediately knew what he'd build next.  Fortunately, Jeff soon heard about a barn fresh coupe in the near-by farm town on Morgan Hill. The rumor turned out to be true and Jeff soon scored a ’30 five window Ford body and frame to kick off the project. His time building Cadillacs earned him a good local rep and several contacts in the area. In no time, the coupe found its...

The Fastest Car in the World - 300mph Sports Car   Does this long red something-or-other get your heart racing? It should!!   The long, slick nose see here cuts through the air with ease at a record shattering 305.596 mph. With the graceful design and three-large top speed, this 1971 Triumph GT-6 easily earns honors as Bonneville Speed Week 2011 Baddest Race Cars #5.   Feel slighted that, "This isn't the fastest car in the world!?" Well, what is then?   Consider, for a second, this sleek, not-so-little Triumph flat out WHOOPED the Enzo Ferrari running in the same class. The Enzo, owned by RSL Racing Richard Losee, had the record from last year at a, seemingly soft (gulp), 237.871 mph. This year the Enzo crew, with their hired helicopter not far behind, topped out at less than two-bills...   Ripping the record previously held by an Enzo Ferrari, easily one of the fastest cars in the world, by about 65 mph... that's hot enough, but truth is, the Triumph was ON FIRE on the record backup run! More on that in a bit, let's learn about this...

WyoTech-Long Beach Helps Turn a Dream into a Reality for a Wounded Warrior Long Beach, Calif. (August 24, 2011) – On Sunday, August 14, WyoTech and the Semper Fi Fund unveiled a brand new Chevrolet Camaro for Marine Staff Sergeant (SSgt) Guillermo “TJ” Tejada during the 4th Annual Wounded Warrior car show at WyoTech in Long Beach, Calif.  It was a fitting tribute for SSgt Tejada who had lost both legs above the knee when his patrol encountered an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan in November of 2010. The Semper Fi Fund and the Nice Guys Victory Fund provided the funds to purchase the car, which was then customized by WyoTech students to make SSgt Tejada’s dream of driving a Camaro come true. SSgt Tejada has been serving his country for 12 years. Since joining the Marines right out of high school, he’s been deployed twice to Okinawa, Japan, once to Iraq during the invasion and once to Afghanistan. On November 11, while conducting foot patrol in Sangin, Afghanistan, he was struck with the IED that immediately took off both of his legs. Due to heavy enemy fire, they...