After accomplishing a major record in Hot Rod Magazine's Drag Week 2007, ProRides (www.goprorides.com) is about to embark on a new level of performance never seen before. Not only did ProRides head to Drag Week with the intention of beating the old record (think mid-low 8 second 1/4 mile times!), but to finish the event, driving 1,000 miles while pulling a trailer. While the bets were being placed that the clean black Camaro wouldn't even finish the week, the car shook the hot rod and race world by posting a first pass E.T. of 7.64. Truly the pass heard 'round the world! Granted, the ProRides team was as surprised as anyone, and the venture served to underscore the positive results that come from combining great companies and partnerships with a thorough process. So many have asked "what is next?" After talking to Rob Kinnan of Hot Rod Magazine at this years Drag Week, the ProRides crew had the idea of building a 6-second ET capable car to drive the grueling 1,000 mile Drag Week course. Imagine.... a 6 second ET vehicle driving 200-300 miles per day while pulling a...

Drawing of a Car That Looks Like a Photo I've been pleasantly surprised by the European hot rodders that have made their way to MyRideisMe.com. This story is about a new member, Alan Brightmore from Manchester, United Kingdom. His member name is Slammed56 cause he's added an in the weeds 56 Volkswagon Panel Bus. Not long after joining, I found out Alan's quite an artist, or is he a photographer? Look closely at the image to the left. Is that a picture? No. It's an amazingly realistic looking pencil drawing! What follows was written by Alan about his work. Please say hello in Alan's Garage and add him to your crew. Ok, brief history first of all and you could say I got into the artwork 'seriously' kinda by accident. Having always had a natural talent for drawing from an early age (left school at age 16 with a grade A in art/photography) I just drew for fun really and never even entertained the idea that I could actually sell some of my work. Well, years went by and the artwork eventually became secondplace to 'real' jobs and spare...

You saw it here first. My man Brian Stupski from Problem Child Kustoms took an already slick illustration of a slammed down 1953 Ford and went 3D! Three Dimensions! Click on the image to make it full size, then pull out your red and blue 3D glasses and have a look. Too cool and perfect timing for October spooky-ness. I keep waiting for Frankenstein (no, not my ex-wife) or the Wolfman to jump out from behind a tree. Brian told me he's working on another 3D image to go with this one. It's one thing to spin out the slick and highly detailed hot rod designs, but breaking the mold like this is truly something to watch for. Keep tabs on PCK Studio and his innovative style at...

Friends sometimes make it easy on ya. Here's one of those times. Dig this hot rod art from Brian Stupski, my buddy from G-town (Gilbert, Arizona, but it's really not that hip). I've said before that making new friends in the hot rod and custom world is one of the coolest parts of making and running MyRideisMe.com. Brian from Problem Child Kustoms Studio is tops on the cool list of new friends. Never mind that Brian's crapped out more knowledge about cars, especially historically significant hot rods and customs, then I have to this day, but on top of that, the man's got skills! Skill in design. You don't simply get a "pretty picture" you get a design, the whole DESIGN! Want to know the part number of the Air Ride setup you'll need? He's got it. Want to know the offset of those new 18's and 19's you'll be running? He knows. That's the detail you get when hooking up with a professional designer. So check out the December 2008 issue of Rod and Custom, page 8-9. That's Brian's Shine-Runner 500. That came out of his head and...

Please enjoy your brief, but meaningful and entertaining, look "over the shoulder" of painter Tom Fritz as he makes what I think is my favorite piece of Hot Rod Art to date (and he's got alot to like!). Over My Shoulder... Making Hot Rod Art Written By Tom Fritz (Car and Motorcycle fine art) One of the side benefits of working at my art is that I’ve been blessed with the development of an extended family of very close friends, a rich variety of both men and women who support me in my self-inflicted torture. And as sit here in front of yet another blank canvas trying to figure out the combination of what I am and what the world needs, I’m reminded of all the conversations in which I’ve been asked, how hard is it to make my art, or how long it takes me to make it — in which they try to get a handle on how I put a painting together. "...lets face it – starving can become a nuisance. ." These questions invariably come up at shows and in order to portray the illusion...

The artists and illustrators I've featured on MyRideisMe.com all are super talented and I could easily recommend them. In talking and getting to know them, I'm seeing a trend in the people that make art, especially car art, their living. In talking with Scott Fisk from Studio 669 and CAR-TOONER.com, I've found some of the same important features I see in Brian Stupski from Problemchildkustoms.com and from Jimmy Smith from Jimmyshotroddesign.com and it's my suggestion you look for these 2 qualities in your next artist: A true passion for all things cars. A unique style they're proud to use. I think you'll hear these qualities loud and clear after reading my talk with Scott Fisk. Scott gave me his regular bio for starters. Like many other car artist, he's been drawing his whole life finding inspiration from rod magazines and one of his instructors while getting his Fine Art degree in Signage and Graphic design in Boston. Struggling through college, Scott recalls drawing for drinks on cocktails napkins. He says, "I was good for about 3 drawings, then the quality started to go down hill, but the people loved...

A person seeing my photography for the first time usually pauses for a moment, gazing, trying to understand just what it is they are looking at. I start to smile, knowing what is coming next. I say, “No…It’s a photograph”. The reply is almost always, “Really, I thought this had been airbrushed or something.” The beauty of a well-designed automobile, truck, or, motorcycle inspires me to photograph them. I have a true appreciation for all the time and effort needed to bring a vehicle to a prime conditioned state. I see photography as a means of permanently recording that beauty. When I first began searching the internet for a more artistic type of photography, I came across a series of photographs from Trey Ratcliff at the website: www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms. Trey produces amazing photographs with HDR, a computer generated enhancement tool. To fully understand all the nuances of HDR, check out the website, www.HDR.com. The HDR technique I use blends several photos together bringing to life the color and texture that is seen, but not recorded by a single photograph. Every reflection, color, and shadow is enhanced to a degree that...

Custom 1965 Chevy Suburban     MyRideisMe.com is happy to have 680 members now, including this bad 1965 Chevy Suburban owned by Cameron and Debbie Day from Austin, TX. This is another well done "shop truck" for their hot rod parts business House O Speed. They have created a GREAT garage already even though they just joined. Their garage is a great example of how you can show detailed pics of the interior, engine and exterior of your ride in an organized way. You don't need to insert pics in an email to show a buddy what you're up to on your ride, just send them over to your MyRideisMe.com garage and you're all set!   Cam says, this is Ratiki. It began life as an Arizona based 1965 Chevy Suburban built by my friends and I from the ground up over the span of five years. The concept was Cam's, that existed as ideas, a few magazine pics and some sketches. Cam then turned to my buddy Brian Stupski from Problem Child Kustoms to render the truck. Brian kindly referred the Day's over cause he knows I've got...

I met Keven Carter doing what I do best... surfing the web for the best Hot Rod and bike sites out there. Keven's been sharing his work at Photobucket where old ladies looking for pics of grandkid and quilting pics browse. I talked him into letting MyRideisMe.com have a few. It's a cool mix of black and whites and color shots of mostly period correct style hot rods and kustoms with a few pinups mixed in just for fun. Keven shared this brief bio... Ever since I was a young boy I wanted to grow up and own a car with fins. Since the automotive world looks to never go back down that road, I was compelled to look to the past. I have always been fascinated with old cars and vintage design elements, from packaging to advertising. I'm a graduate of The Center for Creative Studies (now College of Creative Studies, CCS) in Detroit, Michigan where I received my bachelors of fine art with a focus in Animation. My creative endeavors aren't limited to animation, but rather they span from Video installations, Sound Design, Film Production, Music, Photography,...

So I'm cruising the Grand National Roadster Show with ProblemChildKustom's Brian Stupski. He freak'n knows just about everyone, so it doesn't surprise me when he knows Dwayne. Dwayne's got a booth at the Grand-daddy show and in the main hall no less. He's selling these prints like hotcakes: (click to enlarge, it's worth it!) I'm pretty sure these are all $10 and available at Dwayne's Website: FutureElements.net Store These drawings are enough for a wicked blog, but that's not what I'm writing about. As I was thumbing through some of Dwayne's work, I see one of my favorite Hot Wheels, simply named 49 Merc. I'm impressed. We all played (or still play) with Hot Wheels, so now I've met the dude who designed one of my favorites. So I started asking a bunch of questions... 1) How did you first get involved with Hot Wheels (Mattel) That's a very interesting story. I was taking a class for 3D using Alias Autostudio while working at Troy Lee Designs and I was learning how to build things in 3D. I got to know a few guys in class and they were...

When you're a new website, the only advertising you can afford is FREE advertising. So, I am combing Myspace for other gearheads who might be interested in sharing their passions here at MyRideisMe.com. After navigating past all the, "Click here for my REAL profile..." and all the other scam BS, I found some worthwhile profiles, especially this one from Fred Boatman. From 1962 to 1976 Fred published his car art in several Petersen Publishing magazines, especially one I remember called CARtoons. After a few emails, Fred and I talked on the phone and I learned more about the man and his book: Cartoons on Wheels. Fred's book explains why he wrote the book for his four grown kids: I would like them to know just what I was doing in my basement studio those evenings I wasn't helping them with their homework, or playing hockey with them in the driveway. I wasn't just down there nursing a Wild Turkey and Ginger,... well maybe just a few. I've enjoyed reading the book Fred sent to me. It's like a time capsule of hot rodding and American history. The characters such...

I was hoping Janne Kutja, our friend from Finland would add more of his Chip Foose-likework to his garage here at MyRideisMe.com. His garage is looking good. Here's more about Janne, in his own words: I'm Janne Kutja born in 1980 in southern Finland. I grew up there in small village, and got interested in cars was little kid. I used to draw my own car models back then, I didn't look at any pictures. I guess that's the reason I got interested in hot rods and customs. Hot rod magazines then fed my hunger and customs were the most interesting, especially when I saw Cadzzilla on the cover of the Finnish Street & Race Magazine (RIP), that was and still is really a huge hit. I did build model cars but I couldn't find time, so focused more on artwork. I've drawn cars quite actively 12 years or so. I build cars too, but haven't had time or money to do it much lately. My favorite's sheetmetal work when it comes to building cars, and I even have chopped half dozen cars, some of them with my brother....