Throttle Kings – Hospitality and Hot Rods
Hot Rod Friends at their Best
What do Hot Rods, cool Kustoms, the LA Roadster show and Octopus have in common? The Throttle Kings of Southern California.
In 2007 when MyRideisMe.com was barely idling, I hit the LA Roadster show hard with cards and t-shirts to spread the word. That was when I first met Victor Busatamante. Victor listened about my dream of “Myspace for car guys” and offered a beer to celebrate that I was done jabbering. By that time, I had the pitch down, but even I was tired of hearing it. One beer led to another, then Victor and his buddies were making carne asada and fed me well. You don’t meet guys that generous every day. I was grateful for the hospitality so I loaded up the boys with MyRideisMe.com t-shirts.
Fast forward 1 year to 2008. As Saturday at the Roadster Show was winding down, I set out to find Victor and his guys again. Not so hard, just look for the guys having the most fun! A little ways out, I found them. This year was no different then last. Everyone was having a great time, sipping beers and eating what? Oysters and fried octopus? I tried one of those little suckers too. Chewy.
I got the idea to grab a picture of each Throttle King member with their car. For these guys, their rides do tell a story about their personalities. My Ride is Me. With every member nicer then the next, they each told me how they help each other out with their rides and if they’re not working, they traveling together to one of the MANY shows and cruises in the greater Los Angeles area.
It didn’t take long to notice I needed almost every letter in the alphabet to get their names! Bustamante and Kopis Georgakopoulos (Greek if you’re wondering), give you the idea. That’s Kopis’s 51 Pontiac Chieftain.
Besides the cocktails and friendship, I also shot some pictures of Don Simm’s wife Doreen. That was my first chance to try pinup photography.
Doreen is a natural, now if I was a talented photographer… you can read that blog… Click HERE.
I hope to see everyone next year, or maybe at the Primer Nationals in Ventura.
Until then, here’s the Throttle Kings and their cars.
Thanks for everything!
See you next year.
- Victor Bustamante’s 30 Ford Coupe (Visit his garage)
- Kopis Georgakopoulos’ 51 Pontiac Chieftain (Visit his garage)
- Don Simms’ 29 Ford Roadster (Visit his garage)
- Jim Ramirez’s 36 Ford Pickup
- Paul Medina’s 47 Ford Business Coupe
- Pete Rodriguez’s 50 Ford 2 door sedan
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Very cool entry, Pike…. it sums it all up… It’s about the cars just as much as it is the people…. and when the line blurs, well, how cool is THAT??!
Nice rides, and from what you wrote, great group of guys!
Again, well said, man.
Yes! I must agree that the Throttle Kings get the trophy for hospitality! The nicest group of people you will meet.
C&S
Yes,I like that life style if i only had family there i wuold move out there and would surely buy an old car and the same i always loved old cars with that style,keep up the good work and please try to make some videos of the cars and sounds of there engines,please ….Good luck.