Bravo Dave. Well said. Our local car clubs are invited by the local
high school to judge the STUDENTS cars. The goal is cleanliness,
not how much money etc spent. Some kids bring their parents cars
and send the week prior to the showing cleaning it up, AND many of
them are girls and very interested. One girl had a 59 Merc 4 door
sedan she was working on, doing as much as she can herself. A few
of the ford guys and a couple of us Mopar guys spent half hour talking
with her, offering advice etc. Don't ignore them or knock them, they
are the future of hte hobby and our country.
Off my soap box,, Gerry, Sierra Vista, Az. 60 300F, 66 Chargers etc.
On Sun, 30 Aug 1998 21:56:56 -0400 Dave Stragand
<dave.stragand@xxxxxxxxxxx> writes:
>The restoring/customizing question is as old as the collector hobby.
>The
>only "right answer" to the question is:
>
>"It has to be the way you want it".
>
>For many folks, the that means: "Just as the factory intended". That
>answer is fine. It's just as good an answer as "pro street, 440,
>chopped,
>channeled, blown, nitroused asphalt eater".
>
>We all have our own specific tastes, opinions, and varied ideas on how
>our
>favorite forward looks should be. The important thing to realize, is
>that
>no matter whether someone has a concours-quality Chrysler 300x, or a
>1956
>Dodge Lancer with a modern interior and 383 drivetrain, it still takes
>one
>hell of a lot of blood, sweat, and tears (as well as cash) to get our
>cars
>to fit that image we all have in our minds about how are cars should
>be.
>
>Case in point: Today, I was at a MoPar show in Butler, PA, where I
>met Ed
>Petrus (his '57 DeSoto won first place, by the way. Good job, Ed!!!).
>Next to me was a 90-something Eagle Talon. I personally don't find
>such a
>car appealing. However, after talking to the young guy who owned it,
>I
>really did get a different view. He has experimented with 10
>different
>suspension set-ups to get it tuned in just right. He hand built a
>roll
>cage out of pipe, and used an ingenious little pin set-up to allow the
>crossbars to be removed when he has rear seat passengers (It took him
>4
>tries to get it all working right). He even has tried 3 different
>induction set-ups to get it all breathing right.
>
>I was the only one who talked to him all day. No one else took him
>seriously. And why not?
>
>Well, you may not think anything of that car either. It's not a
>"real"
>MoPar, now is it? It's not a "real" performance car, now is it? He's
>not
>a "real" MoPar guy, right?
>
>Now think of how you feel when you're at a show and people walk right
>past
>your car and look at a '57 Chevy, or a '59 Cadillac... Or think of
>how you
>feel when someone thinks you're crazy for even being in the old car
>hobby
>at all...
>
>We're all in the hobby together. We all put our respective efforts
>into
>our respective cars and get our respective results. And that's the
>key --
>respect! Even if you don't agree with what someone does to their
>ride,
>respect the effort they put forth. Respect the time, money, energy,
>and
>love, that people spend on their cars. No matter what YOU think, that
>person is just trying to achieve THEIR dreams.
>
>Support them when you can -- lend a hand, loan them a tool, help them
>find
>a part, offer your advice (when asked), and just plain help people
>acheive
>their dream car, no matter what it is. That's the important thing.
>Just
>help.
>
>Next time, at a car show, talk to a kid with a car you don't like.
>You
>never know, you might learn a few things. Also remember they're the
>future
>of the hobby, and the ones who will be voting on all the crusher bills
>they
>keep trying to sneak through Congress. If we lose them now, we may
>lose
>the whole thing later. It's something to think about.
>
>-Dave
>
>PS - Ron: I DO think they should all be painted red! =)
>
_____________________________________________________________________
You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail.
Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com
Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]
|
|
Back to the Home of the Forward Look Network