2008 Goodguys Scottsdale - Photo Upload

The first of many, MANY photos from the 2008 Goodguys Southwest Nationals held in Scottsdale, Arizona just went up. (You can find all the events we’ve shot here: Hot Rod and Custom car Pictures)

…it’s just like being there, but without all of that pesky good weather, fine folks and healthy walking around stuff. Come to think of it, all of that sounds pretty good, huh? That’s the whole point of MyRideIsMe.com: Interacting with other members, making new friends, and just enjoying cars! If you missed this one, we invite you to check out our shots, as well as our member’s photos, too… and if you snapped some that we missed, feel free to join in and post them as well! Have some thoughts or a story from the weekend that you’d like to share? Send it our way, and we’ll make you famous!”

This blog will be updated as I load new pictures, so check back here over the next couple of weeks.
Updated: 11/19/2008

Goodguys Rod and Custom shows have a mix of cars. While I was there, I thought there were mostly hot rods, but looking over my photos, I shot alot of muscle cars, and G-touring type cars too. I’m calling all those cars, Street Machines. I held a brief but meaningful internal debate about that and finally decided that if there’s some opposition to that naming convention, then you’re welcome to make your own website! Ha ha!! What would you call’m?

The 2nd Gallery of hot rod photos is up! Click on the link or wander over to the Car show picture gallery Here’s that link and one of my favorite pictures: Goodguys Scottsdale Pictures - Hot Rods

Here’s a link to the 1st gallery and one of my favorite pictures. Goodguys Scottsdale Pictures - Street Machines (Click on the pic to make it larger)

Next to come:

Hot rod Photo Gallery

Custom Car Photo Gallery

Pro’s Details Photos (shots of some of the super trick ideas from big time builders)

MyRideisMe.com Favorite Photos

What else should I do?

OH! Then there’ll be a bunch of photos from Swanee. I’m sure he’ll make my shot’s look crappy, like usual… Look for his logo on the prints and get in touch with him through his MyRideisMe.com Garage here: Custom car pics

While you’re here, stop saying, “Hey, that’s a good idea for a website!” and join already!

2008 Goodguys Scottsdale - Just a teaser…

If you’re a Cali hot rodder or maybe even a Texan heavy into nose up A/FX drag cars, then you probably missed the 2008 Goodguys Southwest Nationals in Scottsdale, AZ. Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered! The dedicated staff of MyRideisMe.com (Paul Swansen, Erick Anderson and myself) took over 1000 pictures. This is just a taste of the photos and stories coming out soon at MyRideisMe.com. Please check back for updates!

While you’re here, take a second to join. I’ll shoot over a notice when the new stories and photos are ready.

(click on any of these pics to see them full size. It’s Vivazoom!)

Interested? Which story should I do first? So tell a friend and check back. We’ll try to put these stories up asap. Thanks!

Party with the Arizona Sinners

I only heard it was a “Rat Rod” car show in Phoenix. My roadster’s a rat rod, whatever that means anymore, so I figured I’d fit in. Later I found out the party was hosted by my online friend Cadillac Cowboy (Bob) and his buddies from the Arizona Sinners. Bob’s got a few pics of his nasty Blown 427 Model T in his garage here at MyRideisMe.com.

The Arizona Sinners I’ve met have been easy going and die hard car guys. They build what the drive and they drive’m hard. One sinner at the party, Jerry, introduced me to the HAMB message board way back in 2002. If you want to find Jerry, look for his Hawaiian/Vintage style shirt at just about any swap meet in AZ. He’ll be there carrying a handful of vintage tools and an old gauge or two. He’s one of those guys that’s always there early then stays late to get the deals. I also think he’d drive his old Chevy truck (old cause he likes it that way!) across Arizona uphill both ways to help a friend.

It was cool to meet Bob face to face and check out his new shop. At 11th Ave and Grand, he’s right in the heart of Phoenix’s Art Walk. Building vintage style cars or motorcycles might not be art to everyone, but it is to Bob and his shop’s got room to grow and big plans. We’ll stop back buy when he’s had time to (clean up from the party!) get things organized. The Rockabilly style bands were jamming in what will soon be a custom showcase for finished cars and bikes, pinstriping and pinup art. Stop by yourself and have a look!

Until then, enjoy a few pictures taken by my man Paul Swansen. I think he enjoys sharing alot of pictures at MyRideisMe.com (he’s made several car show picture galleries) cause it makes my photos look like crap. That’s cool with me as long as he keeps sharing! To get a high res copy of any shot shown below, get in touch with Paul from his car show garage that’s stuffed with his original photos.

If this is your car, feel free to Join us here… and leave a comment!. Of course sarcastic or intentionally humorous and light hearted comments are strictly prohibited. (so don’t even try it)

Email this to a buddy with the “Share This” link below.

Run to the Pines -25th Anniversary Pictures

Run to the Pines - 2008

By our friend Devin Squire
(Devin’s all Ford Garage)

The weekend of Sept. 26th, 27th, & 28th, was the 25th anniversary of the “Run to the Pines” car show in Pinetop, AZ. My wife & I have been going to this show for at least 15 of those years. It’s a great weekend getaway in the cool pines of Pinetop – Lakeside, AZ.
The show is limited to 550 cars, of pre 1973 vintage, and it always gets sold out. If you don’t get your registrations in early, you might not get in, and there is always a waiting list in case of any cancellations. This year, the show sold out in only four weeks! Hotels, Motels, & Cabins in the area are the same story…get your reservations in early. Before we caught on, we had to get rooms in Showlow, which is about 15 to 20 miles away.
This show is part of the Pinetop-Lakeside’s “Fall Festival”, which brings in a lot of people, as well. Some folks love all the “arts & crafts”stuff, and it gives the ladies something else to do, if they get bored with the car show, (like a couple of friends we know).

There are two people who are the main characters that started this great little show, and that’s Bob & Linda Gates. Since the beginning, these two have put their heart and soul into this show. Of course they can’t do it alone. They have a lot of help from other club members and volunteers. Funds from this show are donated to various local nonprofit organizations & charities. The “Run to the Pines” show, has cars that come from all over Arizona, as well as some from New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah. The show is held on the grass, out on the driving range at the local golf course, the “Pinetop Lakes Golf & Country Club”.

Things get rolling on Friday afternoon, where a cavalcade of the cars “Parade” from Showlow, through Pinetop-Lakeside, to the Hon-Dah Resort & Casino for a pre show barbeque. The main show is Saturday, and then Sunday is when they auction off prizes, give away some prizes and the trophies are given out.

We had a great time this year, even though we did get some rain on Saturday. The field was full with lots of cool cars, trucks & even a couple of old tractors. There were some folks that brought out some old vintage engines that were chugging along all weekend. They even had one churning out some homemade ice cream, but I didn’t get to sample any…….bummer.

If you’ve never been to this show, it’s one you should definitely check out. It’s usually around the last weekend in September, so make your plans now.

They can always use donations of products or services that are auctioned off during the show. (Remember, funds go to local charities)

For any questions or info, you can contact Bob at rgates@frontiernet.net.,
or the Pinetop-Lakeside Chamber of Commerce at -
www.pinetoplakesidechamber.com.
Here are some photos from this year’s show, to give you an idea of what you missed.

OCCA Labor Day Cruise

Story by Devin Squire
(Devin’s all Ford Garage)

Well, I just got back from the “Orange County Crusin’ Assoc.’s “Great Labor Day Cruise” in Costa Mesa, California. The weather was great, 80 degrees at the warmest & the 60’s at night. We go there a couple of days early to enjoy some vacation time in southern California. We will spend a day just cruising Pacific Coast Highway, from Huntington Beach down to Laguna Beach, stopping at some of the Surf shops, or stopping at one of the many eateries to get some fish tacos….(Wahoo’s shrimp tacos…mmmmm). Once in a while, I’ll actually take one of my surfboards out in the water & try to surf…key word here is “try”.

OK, now back to the car show.

The car show itself is on Saturday & Sunday, & Monday being the day they hand out awards & trophys. Some of us actually start lining our cars up in the parking lot at the fairgrounds on Friday, so we can be the early birds in to get a good parking spot.

The Embassy Suites in Santa Ana, is the host hotel, & you can see a lot of cool cars just hangin’ around their parking lot. My wife & I spent most of Friday just hangin out there & watching Hotrods come & go to get they’re registrations.

Here’s a short video showing some of the cars coming & going
at the hotel, and a few at the car show.

One of the fun things about this show, is you can cruise the fairgrounds. They have it so you can cruise around & show off your ride & check out the other stuff you might not see. Of course, there’s some big motor rods, you can hear before you see them.

Here’s some of Devin’s Pics from the Orange County Crusin’ Assoc.’s “Great Labor Day Cruise” show

Labor Day on the Coast - 2008 Primer Nationals

Written by: Erock805 (Erick’s Garage) -Primer National Show Pictures also by Erock

Not sure if there’s a better way of spending a Labor Day weekend then in Ventura, California at the Primer Nationals. Why is that you say? Well first of all, Ventura breathes blue collar. Nestled between the grime, glitz and plastic of LA and the pure money and luxury of the uber-rich Santa Barbara lies a little beach town ripe with local color. Ventura has resisted the flow of dough from its northern and southern brethren. Urban sprawl has yet to conquer its pockets of agriculture, manufacturing, and overall laid back attitude. It remains the sleepy beach town, where both free time and surfing are worked into one’s daily schedule. Sure you can find a restrauntuer who supplies the finest wine and a $30 dollar steak or fufu lorange, but I will stick to a great burger, an amazing shake and unrefurbished bowling alley. Old Town Ventura is still a real old down town that has yet to be bombarded with food and clothing chains. Stroll around to a few of the antique shops and you will find everything from an Oscar Meyer Wiener peddle car to a real live working Commodore 64. Not to mention the wife will have a ball spending your money at some of the many clothing boutiques.

While Ventura is kool…the real reason to roll down on one of our few hollowed weekends is the Primer Nationals. The wife and I have been traveling to this event consecutively for three years now and I must say we have yet to be disappointed. The event itself has been around since 2003. The car show spans over both Saturday and Sunday so you can cruise home or heal up on Monday if you want to. Be warned….this event is different than your local weekend cruise and shine. It is far different than the high dollar celebrity Goodguy’s events. The Primer Nationals caters to cars and trucks pre 1965. Further, it maintains its blue jean, status by laying forth the following rules:

• 1965 & Earlier AMERICAN CARS / TRUCKS Only
• No Billet ANYTHING
• No digital dashes
• This is an old school hot rod show NO STREET RODS, FOREIGN CARS OR ART CARS allowed.
• All cars must be driven in.
• All Cars and Bikes that pre-register MUST send a photo with each entry regardless of past attendance.
• No trailored cars allowed. There is no room for RV or Trailer Parking at the Fairgrounds, please make other arrangements before coming.
MOTORCYCLE QUALIFICATIONS
• 1969 and Earlier AMERICAN and BRITISH motorcycles only. ABSOLUTELY NO EVO HEADS will be admitted
While the rules look strict…the show is laid back in typical Ventura flair. Your wheels don’t have to be perfect. Bring what you’ve got as long as it’s cool and fits in. Although I didn’t count, I heard there were as many as 1,200 cars. Every year it seems to get bigger. As you can see there is everything from home built customs to period perfect coupes. Saturday has the largest turnout of cars, but Sunday has its merits.

Bring some dough to the Primer Nationals. Unique gifts and art that you can’t pick up in your local strip mall is plentiful from an assortment of wild vendors. This year I picked up a tiki mug, two vintage shirts, and signed and numbered prints from Weesner and Max Grundy (you can also look at Max’s car art garage). Live bands playing the best of surf rock, punk and rockabilly help the beer go down and jump start the creative juices. Something about the light, ocean air, sun, cars and environment gets you jonezin to get back in the garage and build your dreams.

Even as the show winds down on Saturday, you know the fun doesn’t stop there. The wife and I felt the best way to finish our blue collar day was to grab a quick burger and shake at the Habit then head on over past the show grounds to the Seaside Park dirt track (http://www.venturaraceway.com/) and catch the roundy-rounds. On Saturday night of the Primer Nationals, Ventura Raceway hosts modifieds, midgets and dwarfs on a little dirt track on Seaside Beach. Bring your jacket; the nights cool down even though the racing gets heated.

If you only desire true luxury, frilly sheets, and polished billet wheels, this may not be the event for you…yet, if love all that is old and traditional with a side of funk, and you feel that Miller High Life is truly the champagne of beers, you owe it to yourself to take in the sun, sea mist and amazing cars on Labor Day weekend in Ventura.

If these are the kind of cars you’re into, then head over to the MyRideisMe.com car picture gallery. Erock took some great pictures and was kind enough to donate those to MyRideisMe.com. Check it out! Primer National Show Pictures

2008 Route 66 Car show, Flagstaff, Arizona

Written by AZAmber (Amber’s Nash Metropolitan “MetroSxl“)

There’s nothing better than saying goodbye to the Phoenix heat and heading up to the pines to look at some cool rides. The 2008 Route 66 Car show was held Sept 5-7 in downtown Flagstaff, and I have to say, this historic town was a great backdrop to showcase some 375+ cars. Amongst the crowd were many of the cars you would expect to see, like the old Bel-Aires and T-Birds, but a few unusual rides made quite an impression as they lined the streets in front of antique shops and mom and pop delis. There was also a smattering of “tricked out” newer PT Cruisers and the members from a Corvette Club on hand to look at. In a grassy patch in the center of the town square, a few food and souvenirs vendor stands were set up and a DJ from a local radio station played oldies while some fresh squeezed lemonade topped off the day. According to the program, the weekend was full of activities for car enthusiasts. All in all, it was a great way to beat the heat and a nice way to enjoy some exceptional automobiles.

Here’s the pics Amber took from the show.

Lead East 2008 - Customs, Music, & Non-Stop Partying

Lead East in Parsippany, NJ is definitely not like any other car show that I have ever visited. Actually the guys and girls over at Appleton Productions Inc., the company that produces the show, like to say “Lead East is NOT a car show, it is a party, a 50’s party!” And you had better be well rested before you attend this party or you won’t survive. Because, the party is pretty much non-stop from Thursday to Sunday night every Labor Day weekend. The event, billed as the “World’s biggest 50’s party”, emphasized the music of the 50’s with Doo Wop groups such as Kenny Vance & the Plantones, Freddy “Boom Boom” Cannon, Little Isidore, and many more playing in the Hilton Ballroom. Rockabilly groups such as The Greyhounds and The Razorbacks also cranked it up to annoy the neighbors. Keeping everyone informed was the job of DJ Jerry “The Wolfman” Burst as he played the tunes and made announcements broadcasting through a low power FM broadcast and being piped to the very large speakers set ontop of the hotels. This was great because Lead East actually encourages everyone to cruise the different lots rather than just park and sit in a chair!

Throughout the day, on Saturday and Sunday, there were seminars such as “How to write a Hit 50’s Song” and “Basic 50’s Dancing Lessons.” The wife and I took time-out to cool down and chat with Alan Mayes (Managing Editor of Ol’ Skool Rodz and Car Kulture DeLuxe Magazines) and Bill Dilman as they put on their seminar “How to get your car in a magazine.” This year’s guest celebrity at Lead East was none other than famed customizer Gene Winfield. I definitely made the effort to go shake his hand, chat, and buy some cool stuff from him at his signing table. I also ran into him a few times early in the morning looking over some of the cool customs on the lots. And that is what cars this show caters to; customs. More than 50% of the cars here were customs. The rest were street rods, gassers, muscle cars, a few restored cars, the occasional art car, and true rat rods. I was in heaven over the number of big Caddies here; over a dozen ‘59 through ‘63 in various configurations. “I just loves me some big Caddy fins!” After talking to a few of the regulars that attend every year, I had the feeling that the high gas prices and bad economic times made an impact on the number of cars that turned out. Even though the regulars said there weren’t as many cars this year as there were in previous years, there were still well over a thousand vehicles in attendance.

And for those that made it there but might not make it home, the guys from Meadowlands Street Rod Association had a repair shop set up in the parking lot to help out. Luckily the only issue we had with our ‘48 Ford Sedan jalopy was a brake light switch that was misbehaving. Repositioning the switch bracket fixed our problem. Well, okay there were other problems but it is a jalopy; wipers don’t really clean the winshield (thank you Rain-X), no defrost for fogged windows (again, thank you Rain-X), rough Jersey roads played heck with our bottoms without much of a rear spring, no AC and 90 degree heat, glass packs and a 5 hour commute each way. I did discover that the jalopy does get 16.5 miles per gallon which is good to know since the fuel gauge isn’t callibrated correctly.

The party and cruising continued throughout the nights although Friday turned sour due to the rain. The Golden Gup brought the party to the parking lot with his Seaburg powered ‘58 Olds; the legendary “Jukemobile“. Tents and Tiki Huts were set up everywhere as the party raged on. Budweiser had several stations throughout the main lots if you were thirsty. If you were too pooped to party you could catch a movie at the Drive-in setup behind the Hilton. They played cartoons and movies such as “The Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and “Two Lane Blacktop“. Oh, and you think you have seen big 50/50 drawings before? How about over $10,000 dollars going to the winner of the Make-a-Wish drawing.

This was hands down the best car show I have ever attended. I highly recommend springing for the Plan “A” party pass so you can enjoy all the show has to offer even though it’s a bit pricey since you need to reserve 4 nights at one of the hotels. Sign up early since the hotels sell out about six months prior to the show. Even if you can only do one day it is still worth the trip.

Check out some of the pictures of this year’s show in the Picture Gallery.

(Visit my Garage: bubbastoybox)

The other side of the LA Roadster Show

The LA Roadster Show is one of the MUST shows of the year, at least for me. The Pomona Fairplex gets another sweet show too, the Grand National Roadster Show. (let’s not forget 2 NHRA events!) It’s no wonder, about a ka-jillion hot rodders and custom car builders are in the greater LA area.

The LA Roadster Show is put on by, you guessed it, the LA Roadster Car Club. Founded in 1957, this is the 44th annual show.

I posted some pics of the LA Roadster Show, but only of the show itself. Here’s those pics (Click HERE). Sorry, they’re not my best effort. Camera broke, I’m not so talented behind it anways, ’nuff said! I also got some from the So-Cal show (Click HERE).

So before next year’s show, I better show you what I found outside the show; in the swap and in the show lot, I call it. That’s where I found this hot little sedan. This is my favorite picture from the show. (if the owner wants it, you can have it free, just email me.)

One thing that’s true at all the LA Roadster shows is the legends walking around. This year, I had camera ready to shoot two Gods of the Hot Rod and Custom world. 2008 Builder of the Year Gene Winfield and “The King of Kustomizers” George Barris. Both of these guys have cool books out about they’ve done in their lives, but like most car people you meet, they were super nice and willing to chat for a while, no matter how busy they were. I’m trying to work a deal with Jared Barris, George’s grandson, to blog about the build of his first hot rod here at MyRideisMe.com. I don’t suppose anyone’s interested in that?

In the main show, only roadster (duh!) and finished, shiny-painted cars are allowed. Outside the show is a cooler-than-a-Toys-R-us swap of hot rod and go-fast goodies. Bring cash. This show is known to have the hard to find and you got it! Expensive parts. Most people agreed though, the swap was busy, but not much buying going on. Hard to say, but we did see alot of people walking around with empty Radio Flyer wagons and empty hands. I got a new steering wheel for my car and a COOL print for the office. Hey, It was father’s day! The print was from James Owens at Car Noir. This is the print.

Here’s the stuff I found. This old school funny car was too cool. I want one. I sensed this one has a nice history too. Anyone know about it? If you’ve never found this site, I dig it. Trouble is, you’ll be there for a while! 70’s Funny Cars

Then I made a few friends from down in Tucson. Rick Sipes owns this NASTY Austin gasser in the works. He had a bunch of tall injectors for sale too. Injection or blown, you know that story. Then there’s Payola, a super modified built in 1959. I lost the owner’s card! I want to do a feature story on this car.

After cruising the swap meet (for the 3rd time!) I had to hit the car corral, if you want to call it that. I guess almost every car’s for sale, but most of these weren’t. Same as last year, I wowed at more cars outside the show then in. Don’t get me wrong, the LA Roadster’s show is the cream of the crop, but I guess I like a wider variety and rods that might be a little rough around the edges. How about you?

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Triple H Weekend in York

Hazy, Hot, and Humid was the only way to describe the weather at the 2008 NSRA Street Rod Nationals East in York, PA. What few shady spots were available were taken shortly after the gates opened to the York Expo Center and Fairgrounds. Luckily the buildings, where most of the vendors were located, were air conditioned which provided some relief. We wimped out and parked our MyRideisMe.com“>’48 Ford rather than cruise around the fairgrounds since the only AC is provided by a cowl vent and the windows down. There seems to be quite a change going on at the NSRA shows. While there are still a large collection of high dollar builds more and more jalopies (like my car), beaters, and dare I say rat rods are showing up. I think people are getting back to just enjoying driving these old cars rather than the stress of worrying about dirt and scratches.

It doesn’t appear that the price of gasoline has reduced the number of people attending these large shows. Close to 4000 vehicles gathered around the fairgrounds. Dozens of vendors and manufacturers crowded the main hall. This is always a good time to pick up the latest catalogs for your parts suppliers since they are free! Other than the typical June heat, this is always a great show.

Photos of these Hot Rods and other event photos can be found in the Pictures gallery.

Written by Bubba Harmon (bubbastoybox)

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