This blog, "Mayhem on Main Street" Rampage Altered Wheelbase Dart Hits the Highway was written by Steve Magnante. He took the photos too! Rather than trying to run down every driver on the information superhighway, the guys from Moparmax.com, MaxChevy.com and Dragracingonline.com pulled over to share a story with MyRideisMe.com. All three online magazines are great... That is if you like wheels up racing action! Take a look and tell'm MyRideisMe.com sent ya! Now for some altered wheelbase fun! Begin Mayhem on Main Street When is a car buildup finished? To some the answer to that question is never as continual upgrades are expected for as long as they own the car. But for me, I m the type that pretty much has a vision of what I want the car to be, how I want it to run and what I want it to look like. So when it is finished, I m the first to know. But in the case of the altered wheelbase 63 Dart I ve been chipping away at here for the last year or so, I m breaking my own rules. I've performed...

Pinups and Amazing Radial Engines An Aircraft museum doesn't have much to do with MyRideisMe.com or does it. But, pinup art on the noes of aluminum beasts that appear way too damn large to fly and a blown 4360 cu. in. radial motor are too cool to skip. Here's the pics, first the "Maid in the Shade" found somewhere around 42 degrees north by 9 degrees east. Followed by the lovely "Miss Murphy" And my favorite, the beautiful honey standing hitching a ride on "Sentimental Journey" I don't know much about planes, so I won't go into that detail, but I was curious about nose art. I found some info I'll pass on. The following info is from a blog called "Creation Robot". There are several links to more info. The subject matter in nose art varies but largely stayed within a few mainstay topics, namely the cartoon characters and female pin-up. The females occurred in various stages of dress, or undress, and were very popular. The style evolved and became more wild and provocative. As a result, the Army Air Force tried to restore a sense of decorum...

Every so often, mixed in with the news that makes you wonder where the human spirit is, you find news that's uplifting and genuine. That's the story of United States Marine Jared Foster and his 68 Camaro. This is the spirit we're trying to capture at My Ride is Me. During the Iraqi war, 24 year old Corporal Foster took a round in his back, effectively blowing him apart. After months in a coma and many surgeries, Corporal Foster returned to Arizona as a permanently disabled war veteran. Jared had a 68 Camaro he had left behind and a dream of restoring it even though his condition made it hard to get much work done. to keep things moving, he enlisted the help of John Bauler. John's company, Hugger Connection, specializes in first generation Camaro restoration, so he was in good hands. It didn't take long for John to realize that the Camaro was a BIG project. In learning about the car, John learned about a brave young man he affectionately calls, "The Kid" who had been wounded serving his country. Not long after, John told the First Generation...

…has sadly passed on today at the age of 63.Suffice to say, he was a true giant in the industry, and the first builder to truly inspire me to throw my hat in the ring, and do what I love. His approach and design sense changed forever the direction of the modern street rod and custom car, and will be viewed forever as the benchmark of his era. Cars like CadZZilla are world-famous, and his face was easily one of the most recognizable in the industry. (CadZZilla and the Hirohata Merc at the Oakland Museum of California… sorry for cruddy pic.) (…and speaking of CadZZilla, how ’bout a cool peek at a gathering of great talent during what just may have been the birth of that car? Can you name these guys? –that is a young Larry Erickson on the right… only hint I’ll give) Thanks to a guy who, no matter how hectic his schedule, took time to spend a few moments with me at a show, and review what I was working on at the time. Sadly, as large a page in hot rodding history as he...

I just got off the phone with Glenn Stephenson, founder and official torch holder for the CNTA or California, Nevada Timing Association. This drag racing club was founded in 1939 and met at the track for club races continuously until about 1970 when the popularity of professional drag racing made it tough for the hobbyists to compete. Glenn is a long time friend of my Pops. I wanted to let all the CNTA members know this reunion's happening cause as Glenn said, "Since the 1999 reunion, those guys are all dying, so this might be the last one!" The details are this: March 15th, 2008 at the Richmond Rod & Gun Club in Richmond, CA For any other info, you should contact Glenn Stephenson or his wife Karen at 510-237-4238. I took notes the best I could and I hope to get more info from the reunion from Pops and his buddy Harry, but to fill you in on a few details, the CNTA was a group of racers that had an organized schedule of where they'd run. They'd rotate tracks, Baylands in Fremont, Cotati, Vaca Valley, Half Moon...

Out of all the days... It rains here 0.8" on average in February in "sunny" Chandler, Arizona, but for some sick, demented and just play wrong reason, it had to rain on my vacation day at the NHRA Nationals. Why not rain on some damn golf event! 26 days of rain a year! That's all we get... It's a fact. 7% for the math challenged... 7 days out of 100. I guess I'm just lucky. I did have a good time though! Hang'n at a track is always fun. My buddy Dave (click for his garage) races a 1974 Vega in Super Street. Lucky me had a dry trailer to hang in and I got to bring the 12 pack and the Carl's Jr. Just in case you're wondering, a "Combo meal with a side of hamburger" isn't a joke. It means get an extra burger or Joe's (click for his garage) gonna be hungry. Somehow we survived with a 4-buck hot dog to ease the hunger pain. Dave wasn't so lucky, or was he? After his shake down run, he felt his powerglide slipping. (Was that the name...

Ford Falcon: Sedans, Wagons, Rancheros and Convertibles: I've wanted to write a few blogs for a while. One of them is about the cool Falcons at MyRideisMe.com already. I take a personal interest since I've got one of them even though it might be for sale before too long. You know what they say about having too many projects... I know, you can never, but in this case, I might punt so I can do some work on my Rambler Wagon. So, if you're a fellow Falcon Fanatic, (Craig's about to be clever) a Bird of Prey Beholder or Carnivorous Bird Custodian, dig these rides. First is the 62 mor-dor from garvinzoom. This car is rolling proof that a 4 door can be cool and that high-def Coolosity you doesn't have to break the bank. The original 170 inline six and two speed auto ride in the factory but lowered chassis with 13" skinny whites on blacksteel rims. The body has primer with the trim holes filled, reverse lights shaved and fuel cap moved inside trunk. The interiors a self described "Crappy but clean". The next Falcon is the...

Damn slacker! Oh well, better late then never. I did take quite a few shots at in the Suede Palace at the 2008 Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, CA. For those of you who missed it, the Suede Palace is a show within a show featuring vintage hot rods and customs that pushes back against the modern looking 20+ inch-wheeled billet monsters of the main hall. Some might say that's where all the "rat" rods are, but look closely, there's more to the Suede Palace than just flat paint. With help from his wife Celeste, Axle from the Shifters Car club puts the best of live music and vintage hot rod movies together with DJ's playing doo-wop, rockabilly, rhythm and blues and surf. The vendors inside sell the unique items Suede-folk are looking for. Also, 2008 marked the first year that Bombshell-n-Ink will host a vintage style pin-up contest sponsored by PinUpGirlClothing.com. Somehow I missed the pinup contest... don't miss Pinupgirlclothing.com... it might be better than the Victoria Secrets catalog! So here are a few of the shots I like... the rest are over in the events picture...

If you've never had the chance to visit a premier classic/hot rod show, then you might be wondering, what's it take to hit that level? It's trivial to say, "You need alot of money." While that's true, it's like they say, "Money can't buy love" and you can see and feel the sometimes years of effort it takes to put a top quality car together. A new friend from over at icwires.com would also like everyone to know that alot of the big builders farm out work too. Not everyone's an expert at everything! From the concept illustrations to the wiring to the paint and body, these cars must be done right. Alot of times, they define right and set the trends for the next super show cars. So take a look at the ultimate Under-over. These pics show the detail you could put into your rod or muscle car if you wanted to. Before the "You gotta drive it" crew chimes in, I agree. But if these cars sit on blinged-out rotating displays with their rotors chromed and headers polished and nary the tiniest oil stain on their...

Grand National Roadster Show Pictures So I'm hanging with my new buddy Brian from Problem Child Kustoms and we run into Chip (the louver guy) and his friend Craig in the Suede Palace of the Grand National Roadster Show. We'd all been taking in the cool as hell customs and old school hot rods. I heard Craig say, "This one was my favorite until we saw that modified. You've got that black modified, right?" He was talking about this bitch'n 31 Ford Coupe with Caddy power and my 27 Roadster back in AZ. (click to make it bigger) I hadn't seen the trick pearl, metallic white with purple panels modified yet. Where's that?! So I rushed over to the building right next door, the only building I hadn't seen yet. Amidst the nostalgia dragsters and some of the coolest rides I hadn't photographed yet was this killer little roadster. I was stunned. The detail and finish on this car rivaled anything in the America's Most Beautiful Roadster hall, plus it screamed old school hot rod and custom show car from the way back machine! Channeled, paneled and white-walled, this...

I hope you've made it over to the MyRideisMe.com picture gallery by now and checked out the growing events pages and even better the pinup model pages! I've been contacting pinup model photographers to see if they'll share their pics with MyRideisMe. I post their homepages and contact info in hopes that they'll get more traffic at their site in return for the pics. I got lucky finding an ad for the "Diva Doll" Pinup package in the pages of Car Kulture Deluxe. Justice Howard, a professional photographer, is offering a special "Photo Fantasy" that includes a CD of your professional photos complete with hair, makeup and styling service. Justice offers these photo shoots regularly, but you'd better sign up to make sure you get your spot. Contact her at her website: www.JusticeHoward.com. It's worth a look anyway cause there's some pics at her site that I dig, but they're, "a wee bit spicy." Thanks for the support Justice! Care to comment? While you're here, please JOIN MyRideisMe.com Check out all the Pinups here MyRideisMe.com Pinups Models & Hot...

2008 Grand National Roadster Show Winner Make sure to check out the 2009 Pictures of the Grand National Roadster Show! The votes are in for the 2008 America's Most Beautiful Roadster award from the "Grand-daddy of them all" the Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, California held last weekend, 1/26-27. Thanks to the show's promoter at Hotrodshows.com, I found the basic description for the AMBR: "The judges at this show are looking for excellence in: Display, Engineering, Paint, Engine, Interior, and Detail. All AMBR entries must be able to start under their own power and move forwards and backwards. All AMBR entries will be displayed in 20 X 20’s in Building 4. Winner is determined by a point system from the judging staff, and producer." Good luck guys! ALL of the cars looking to win the AMBR are nearly perfect. What am I saying? They are perfect! But let's break this down a little. Before we do, here's the winner: The 32 Roadster owned by Rudy Necoechea called, "Undisputed" As I've mentioned before, writing about another contending car, (previous blog, click here) the judges for these polished wonders have...