Thread: How I got addicted, in 100 words or less.

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I was influenced by quite a few people actually. Growing up my Dad and Mom were divorced, so when we visited Dad he always had cool Italian sports cars that you'd seldom heard of or ever saw. My uncles on the other hand were GM and Ford boys and worked on my grandma's farm, so they were always fabricating stuff for their work. My oldest brother was also a huge influence. He was quite a good mechanic, and got a 68 Firebird convertable for his first car, with a 400 ci engine that spun rubber at 70mph! He started taking auto shop classes in high school, which made me want to do the same. I started off a purist wanting to stock my first car, a 68 mustang. So I took auto chassis, electrics, and engines in high school and the bug started. But like quite a few of you, never seemed to have the cash to dive in and buy what I wanted vs. what I could afford. When I picked up my 48 F1 you guys inspired me to tackle a hot rod project and now I'm hooked. What I really need is retirement and no other tasks and hobbies so I could actually finish this project!
I should also not leave out my mom who loved muscle and sports cars like the rest of my family. Growing up we(3 boys) were toted around in a 69 Mustang coupe! She was really a great inspiration that always encouraged us to pursue what made us happy!

It was easy for me-a neighbor was a old hotrodder that I looked up to. My father was an idiot mechanically and I wanted to go fast and couldnt afford to buy stuff like the rich kids!

i have always loved cars , you know how it was when you were just a little guy and seen the cool rods at the drive in .
i remember being very young taking things apart just to find out how they work and sometimes i never did get them back together

there is nothing better then working in the garage on a nice rainy summer night .

Dave

Good topic.

I grew up wrenching in my family owned "bicycle shop" from age ten. It was located in a shopping center that had a Ryan Evans Rexall Drug store. They had a nice magazine rack and I read every one of the small 25 cent Rod & Custom magazines that came out and dreamed, while drinking a cherry Coke.

A guy named "Royal Mason", that lived down my street had a couple of 1947-48 Fords and it seemed like he had the flat head engines pulled out of one every weekend with his chain hoist. I got to watch and help.

My first car was a 1958 Chevy six cyl. that "I had to change over to a 283 cu. in. with a Duntov cam before I could legally drive it at 16, LOL. I still say it's not a hot rod without a V-8!

I went to Mel Larson's Phoenix Dragway (the one at the Luke auxiliary runway before it was moved to the current Speed World location) and watched "real dragsters". To me they were defined as must be PUSH STARTED. Half the fun was watching them fire up by pushing up and down the strip and turning around. The "single car" that pushed me over the top was the Speed Sport Fuel Roadster raced out of Tucson. Damm....I can still hear that car today now almost 50 years ago (and have heard it's recreation at The March Meet). The Johnny Loper built, Ole Hoss B/G Willys and Lil Hoss A/G Anglia got me into Gasser's.

I can't say that I even remember a racer that had "a covered" trailer. Heck Johnny Loper used to pull the Ole Hoss Willy's to the track with a tow bar behind a big old BuicK/Oldsmobile station wagon.