Open Pipes
The Ignition Statement
This day has been a long time coming and thankfully we are finally here! Long before I ever knew anything about an “Internet” or “world wide web” I scratched out a concept 25 years ago on lined note book paper for my own traditional hot rod magazine. Nothing at the time existed focusing on the cars and history specific to that genre so that concept would bounce around while I got my early adult life started. At the same time the small traditional car scene I was drawn to would grow from a fledgling few in the billet laden mid-Eighties to a more recognizable number every year. Slowly more primer, bias ply tires and early power plants were popping up at events and in the small pictures of magazine event coverage. It wasn’t clear yet if this retro revival would be a short-lived side note or something much larger. Either way I didn’t care, it was what we liked regardless of mainstream trends.
Time moved forward and friends like the Choppers Car Club went from a cool bunch of young guys doing their own very unique thing in Burbank, California to a world wide phenomenon that would see traditional early style hot rods and kustoms increasing in popularity and numbers at every turn. At about the same time an appreciation for preserving the early rods and kustoms became a very welcome occurrence. Before that it was not uncommon to see a car with an early history updated to fit an owner’s vision, many times losing the original flavor of the car completely. As it was recognized that the cars were becoming more and more valuable for their history the most famous ones received expert restorations from names like SO-CAL Speed Shop, Don Orosco and Roy Brizio. The finished products were appreciated for the excellent detail and historical significance and were soon sharing the spotlight with legendary classics at high profile events like Pebble Beach. A long way to travel in just a few years from used up old hot rods to A-list important pieces of American history.
As the interest in traditional cars spread the magazine world grew to document more and more of their stories. First back on the scene was the much missed Rod & Custom magazine, followed by high-end productions focused on the history of hot rodding like The Rodders Journal and Hop Up. After the dawn of a new millennium it was obvious the traditional rodding was not going to be just a side note and events like Paso Robles and eventually an event inspired by it, the Lone Star Round Up in Austin, Texas would make it all too clear that what we feel so passionate about will always be a part of what’s happening in hot rodding. I would have my own part in the printed magazine world starting at Petersen Publishing, moving on to the editor position of the Goodguys’ Gazette and finally grabbing the seat as the Senior Editor of my beloved Rod & Custom. The path split for me when I opened up my own SO-CAL Speed Shop franchise in Los Angeles, California to help serve all the friends I made in the magazine business along with my long-time buddies, but the deep desire to chronicle both the history and current happenings in hot rodding never left me.
Today we are at the crossroads of what is old meets what is new- traditional rods and kustoms presented on the internet. We all desire the latest and greatest information on old cars, and for that we look to our computers and the internet to bring us the desired content a thousand times faster than we ever believed possible a just few years ago. So that brings us to where we sit in front of our keyboards today. Our plan for Traditional Speed & Kustom is to produce the broadest, fastest and most complete form of hot rod and kustom car information and entertainment (“infotainment”) you can find at the touch of your keyboard. Not only will you be reading and enjoying the latest stories from around the world each month, but look forward to updates throughout the magazine each month of even more new content- can’t do that with a printed magazine! Also we have incorporated a full user forum (http://traditionalspeedandkustom.com/thegarage/index.php) to allow you to discuss any and all topics related to traditional hot rods and kustoms with immediate feedback available from like-minded enthusiasts from around the WORLD!
There are plenty of printed magazines and different websites available for you to choose from, but for one reason or another many of them get too specific in what they include and even “allow” as content to be fully comfortable for a well-rounded car nut. It has never seemed right to me to draw specific lines about style when discussing certain issues about hot rods and kustoms- they are by definition all unique by owner design. Sure there are plenty of cars that don’t turn each of our individual cranks, but who elected any of us to be the “style police” and tell other car guys their beloved rides are “not friendly” or “off topic” on public websites. Sometimes the “infraction” can be as unimportant as a guy with a super cool car running radial tires or modern valve covers, but to diminish the hard work and passion someone has put into their ride just does not feel right. For those reasons alone we plan to paint Traditional Speed & Kustom with a much broader brush that will not make a select person feel bad if they do not 100-percent fit the “traditional” criteria; more importantly they enjoy and use their cars out on the open road as it should be. Also there will be no age or economic lines drawn in the sand as well. One of the distressing elements of the faceless communication on the internet seems to be a comparing of wallet size. This is something in all my years of “real world” hot rodding I have never experienced when gathering with other car people. When you are attending an event or just hanging out in the garage with a bunch of guy’s economics rarely separate any true hot rodders. To most the standard jeans and T-shirt will let you know you’re just another hot rodder and if you want to swap hot rod stories- even better! But on the internet there seems to be a strange inclination to separate groups by age and economic status. The term “gold chainer” is often used as put down to the guys who have a little extra money to put into their cars, and often this assumption of frivolous wealth is totally mistaken. I know guys who build their cars with a nearly zero budget doing every bit of work themselves, but because they put a little extra effort into nicer welds and shiny paint and chrome they can be mislabeled as a “gold chainer”. Well, that term and any similar negative connotations will not exist at Traditional Speed & Kustom. The main reason being that the same people who get slapped with this label are the very same people who carved the way for some of the younger to emulate, only difference being they are copying their efforts from these guys younger days when money was tighter and parts were less advanced. Don’t get us wrong, we still like it simple and traditional, but no need to crack on a guy because he’s progressed to the point that he’s been doing this for 50-plus years and likes a few more amenities and creature comforts in his ride.
That all said, let it be known the Traditional Speed & Kustom is a place for ALL hot rodders and kustom fans from not only the United States to get together and hang out in the virtual garage, but from around the entire planet to share the history and future of the shared passion for all forms of wheeled beauty.
Thanks to all for helping get this far, let’s look forward to many great shared stories and experiences in the future.
Jim Aust