Chandler Car Show Shines Downtown

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Overcast skies and the threat of actually having to wear a jacket didn’t deter a great crowd from downtown Chandler, Arizona on February 27, 2010. For all the pictures I took click here.

I figured I’d lead with this Willys gasser. I waited for a few minutes to snap this shot with just a few legs in still walking by. It was pretty big crowd! Even stacked with great cars, I picked this one as my favorite just for it’s sheer gasser badness. Those who disagree are simply wrong!

While you’re looking at this picture, notice the air scoops on the front of the hood. These scoops fed the cross rammed big block Chevy. Cool setup.

Besides the Willys that stopped me in my tracks, I found this car. A 1954 Darrin confirmed by trusty Google! I shot one of these up at Barrett Jackson 2 years ago. A perfectly restored piece that went for big bucks and was worth it.  The sliding pocket doors on these are so different, you’ll know these when you see’m. Now I’ve seen 2 of the 435 ever built.

An unusual car, no doubt, but look under the hood. At first I thought he’d put in a run-of-the-mill fuel injected small block. Maybe that’s all he SHOULD put in there given the body’s fiberglass and dig that stylish but tiny opening for cooling air. I wanted to ask the owner if it runs hot, but he was busy answering, “What’s that?” Then I saw what’s really stuffed in there:

Squint and you can see “Ram Jet” and 502. Get some.

Adding a little pedigree to the show, this is “Double Trouble” fresh from purchase at the Barrett Jackson auction. Also included on this definition of a hot rod’s pedigree is a trip to the Grand National Roadster show as an “America’s Most Beautiful Roadster contender. I dubbed this one America’s Most Bitch’n Roadster. It is.

It was designed and sketched by my friend Jimmy Smith from right here in Arizona. Here’s the sketch.

Making a, uhh… subtle transition from Double Trouble, dig this hot rod. I always hesitate to call it a rat rod, but maybe alot of people would. Hey guys, it may just be unfinished! With the detailed rear suspension still visible and the trick side draft carbed straight six Chevy it ran, I’m just gonna say bad, crowd pleasing hot rod let you decide what you want to call it.

Finally, this is my man Branden’s ride. (He’s a member at MyRideisMe.com so look at his garage here.)

I don’t think Branden minds if we call it a “rat rod”. With the spikes on the headlights, the rusty water pump and general lack of shine, I think it fits. But if you look really closely, there’s alot of well thought out planning shown. The pickup bed features a couple artillery cases for storage and this thing’s Branden’s daily driver so it’s solid.

Branden’s wife’s been fighting cancer since I’ve known him but he told me today she’s now cancer free. Right on!! When you see him shake his hand or give him a hug for goodness sakes!  His family’s been through alot and survived it.  I’m sure they’re all stronger now.

From the positive reaction other cancer patients have had to his car, Branden suggested a run out the the hospital to try and cheer up the patients. Who’s up for a ride to help out some folks who could use a smile?  More info to come soon on a cruise to the Cancer Treatment Center of America in Goodyear.

Ending on a positive note then, check out all my pictures from downtown Chandler. We’ll see you around town!

-pikesan

Church of Hot Rod – Sunday Cruise

UPDATE: 10/10/09 – I’ve been getting a few calls and emails about restarting Church of Hot Rod. If interested, leave a comment here or reply in the forum.
Whatever you do on Sunday, it’s always a great to meet friends and go for a drive. We’re pushing it here in Chandler, Arizona cause it’s still damn hot, even at 8 AM in the morning.
This was a special Sunday cause our better halves joined the normal Sunday coffee run and we made it a breakfast cruise over to the Good Egg near Chandler Heights and Alma School. We had some special occasions to celebrate too.

Bonnie, my hot rod, was celebrating the repair of a CRACKED FRAME, found, luckily while the car was parked in my garage. Doug from Squeeg’s Kustom, helped me fix the crack on Saturday and make today’s breakfast 5 roadsters strong. More on that later. (of course I took pictures!) I celebrated the cruise-in by putting a new red rag on the oil breather. (nothin but the Sunday’s best!) My lovely wife Miyuki also joined in and let me comb her hair at 50 ripping down the road. (I was the only topless roadster)

Then, Sammy was celebrating the purchase of his roadster. Its an all steel 29 roadster that’s sits just right and has many very well done finishing touches, like the polished quick change rear axle out back. Sammy and his wife Cassie cruised in from Mesa to join us.

Be sure that women cruise too. Melissa, Doug’s wife and co-founder of the brand, Hot Brods custom hot rod apparel for women, cruised her own flawless black deuce roadster.

Finally, Tony and his wife Andrea made the trip in their killer orange deuce show here with Sammy’s new ride.

Good friends, good breakfast and a perfect excuse to stretch the road legs. I loaded the best of the pics I took into a MyRideisMe.com gallery. Check out the pics from the Church of Hot Rod here.

UPDATE: 9-13-08: Want to join in? Sunday morning at 7 AM over at the Starbucks in downtown Chandler. The address is: 1 San Marcos Place” just off Arizona Ave, south of Chandler Blvd. Or, just look for the Hot rods!

Friday Night Cruise-in – Chandler, AZ

It takes a while for a cruise in to catch on, but that doesn’t mean while it’s growing you won’t see some super nice cars. Plus, when it’s new, you won’t hear the old… “Hey, I’m saving that spot…” or “This is for XYZ cars only…” Whatever.

So here’s a few of the cars I’ve spotted at the Friday night cruise-in at Arizona Ave. and Ocotillo. It gets started at about 6PM or so and runs until about 9:00. I think it’s sponsored by the Checker Auto nearby, so they supply a DJ and once a month there’s a bouncer for the kids.

I’d have a few more pics if I could ever get there earlier! Me (aka shaky) and poor lighting don’t get along well at all.

What I should be sharing with all these pics is who owns the cars and where there from… or something interesting like how the car is completely homebuilt with only a screwdriver and duct tape.

Too bad I can’t read my able assistants hand writing is so hard to readl!

I hope to see you down there. Make sure when you see your ride here, join up with the other AZ hot rodders already members here at MyRideisMe.com. It’s all free and we’ve got enough parking for everyone!

Find all the info you need about AZ Car shows here: CruisinArizona.com

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