New Orleans hot rodding scene?

i'm down with meetin on frenchman. Actually need to stray from the usual uptown haunts once in a while. Anyone else?

 

I know "suede55bowtie" is probably game.

 

Sure do remember them. I raced a '65 Chevrolet at the Biloxi and Laplace tracks. If you haven't seen this, check it out:http://www.biloxidragway.com/index2.html

Bob

 

Any of you N.O. old timers remember this car or a guy named Sonny Ranson?

 

If that's who I think it is, he lived down the street from my old house before the storm. He was buildin a tube chassis for a blown big block glass vette. Died shortly after under "strange" circumstances. Definitely glad to know him.

 

I'm usually there at least once or twice a month, and I can't ever remember seeing a hotrod driving down the street let alone parked, most likely because it wouldnt be there 10 minutes. I know I wouldnt leave mine parked there without an armed guard with an Uzi and several Pit bulls tied to it. And yea, the roads are so rough they would probably break my roadster in half. It's a shame too, because we enjoy the french quarter and garden district.

 

Not to be a dick but, most locals stay as far away from the quarter as possible. Its nothing but a big strip mall for drunks. If you come to new orleans for mardi gras beads and "hurricanes" at pat o's, you're probly not gonna see any hot rods.

 

There's nothing going on this weekend on Frenchman specifically, but just all meeting up somewhere sounds like fun - how's Hi Ho sound? plenty of parking on st claude

For everyone that lives somewhere else and has nothing but negative things to say about New Orleans, thanks but no thanks. You don't live here. We do. This is a message board about a scene in NOLA. We're putting one together. Sorry you had a bad experience here. Don't come back. I've lived here for 6 years and never run into trouble I didn't cause myself.

Yes, our roads are funky and there's a crime problem. But i'd rather live here than in the boring flatlands of the middle of nowhere with nothing to do, nowhere to go and nothing to see and get hit by tornadoes 5 times a year. So thanks for the input, but no thanks.

To everyone else - how's Saturday night?

 

I would be interested in any thing yall set up. Unfortunately my car is far from driveable but would like to meet some local like minded people. Please keep me posted and I will spread this around to a few locals who have not chimed in.

 

I was just in New Orleans this past weekend. I, basically, love it there. I've never had any problems, before or after Katrina. As far as the government went after the storm, in my opinion, it was the failure of the local government, city and state. There's been billions poured into that place since and I don't see much change except for a couple of bridges. The people there pissed and moaned to high heaven and just across the bay in MS they had their entire places blown away and you never heard shit from them. Just recently in SD and Iowa and along the Red River flooded and wiped entire towns and farm areas but you never heard a peep out of them.

But getting back to my visit. The streets are terrible, but always have been. Out of all the billions they got they haven't spent a dime on the streets. My only problem is I went on a holiday weekend. Never again will I do that. There's just too many people there and no parking. I love to go to Pat O'Briens and Cafe Du Monde. Never got to do either one this trip. I would go there just to eat at Deanie's in Bucktown. Just fabulous! I don't do the "Cooking show" restaurants. Breakfast at St. Charles Tavern on St. Charles is an experience.

Car scene? I never saw the first thing that even looked like a hot rod, custom, or anything out of the ordinary. I'm sure there's something somewhere but I didn't see it. But I'll go back, in fact I can't wait to go back and will soon, just to get a boiled red potato at Deanie's...

 

count me down for as another one for frenchman. I'm alway down for talkin' about cars.

 

Living in Louisiana I believe I can chime in on some of the comments made about the Katrina/New Orleans mess. Everyone here in Louisiana knows that NO's problems were just amplified/exposed from Katrina. It has basically become a shithole with a cool old city in the middle. Don't blame the Feds on the Katrina debacle, the state and local gov'mts were the most to blame on the mess (Thank goodness we have fixed the state gov. with a proactive Governor). The whole thing was mismanaged, but what's done is done - and the city is slowly coming around. Hopefully, it will not slip back into the way it was before Katrina.

 

I love how all these people that don't live here have such strong opinions of whats wrong with this city. I've been to Chicago once for a few days a while ago, but that doesn't make me a expert on whats going on there, even if I have seen it on the news a few times. So I'm willing to listen to people that live there.
This city has a lot of great things about it, and that brings people from all over the world. As a tattooer I talk to people almost daily that love it here. But that doesn't make good T.V. Granted some of the things that make this city unique can be a pain in the ass sometimes and there are some serious problems, no ones arguing with that. But you gotta take the bad with the good. At the end of the day I live in a city unlike any other. Can you say that?

 

Hay Gary,
I am thinking of doing another get together at the shop.
I need to find a time to do it. Maybe some time in June.
Mike

 

A year or two before Katrina's Big Blow Job hit N.O., the v-twin guys had one of their big gatherings there.

Way I heard it, several (and I mean a bunch bunch) of the motorcycles got stolen, trailers broken into, and such.

This was with major video and security guards at the hotels (who were rumored to be in on the thefts).

Cops would not do anything, owners got the taxi drivers to find some of their trailers and scooters.

Some had to pay ransom to get theirs back.

Ask the world famous paint guy, Dave P., think he got hit also.

Just what folks told me, K

 

Sounds Great Mike keep me posted and let me know if I can help in any way.

 

I lived in N.O. for about 5 years. Left right before the storm for other reasons and just never made it back (except to get married last year).

There is no scene, it is more like you have a group of friends and they have cars and you all kinda stick together. There is a surprising amount of cars, but they are not "collectible" to anybody it is just old junk. You will find them in the neighborhoods you are not supposed to be in but that is the risk you take. When I lived down there they finally passed the bill for manidtory car insurance. A Gearhead buddy of mine was an auto insurance investigator and he had to go around to some of these houses where people never had car insurance and were suddenly buying 4-5 policies. Funniest story is he got called out to a house in the bywater for a claim. The woman had 5 pre 1966 cadillacs on blocks (actually sitting on cinderblocks - one '62, one '58, one '60, and two '65, two of them were convertibles). Anyway a jeep cherokee had been t-boned by another car and in coasting from the initial impact ran into her driveway and knocked two of the cars off their blocks. She wanted the insurance company to reset the cars back on their blocks and repair whatever dents and rust. It was pretty laughable but he said he would never have known they were there had he not been called to the house.

Anyway, my buddy J.T. (formerly of confederate motorcycles) still lives in N.O. and is probably the only Hot Rodder actually in the French Quarter. He tends bar at Flanigan's pub in the quarter:

http://flanagans-pub.com/

if any of you go there look him up and he'll tell you about racing at bonneville. I wouldn't call his car a traditional hot rod or even a hot rod but hey - he's been to the salt with it and I have not so who am I to judge:

http://www.bienvillestudios.com/stinkinlinkin.html


Knieper & Son Auto & Truck Parts in slidell was the best junkyard I have been to in a long time. Open since the 20's they still have a lot of 20's thru 40's utility trucks tucked way in the back if you are willing to brave the water/weeds. Not really hot rod material since we are talking about large trucks (1 ton and up). Lot of oddball cars there too like a 442 vert and a real 70 roadrunner someone swapped a six banger into, plus a lot of ealry 60's dodges and buicks. stuff in their yard looks better than most of the projects I have worked on here in New York.

 

I had the pleasure of visiting New Orleans last spring, although I spent more time outside of the city than in it. I didn't see anything as far as hot rods in New Orleans itself, but I stayed in Bogalusa for a few days and saw a handfull of 40's-50's cars driving around Bogalusa, Franklinton, Covington, and Slidell. I took a day and drove around the back roads and found plenty of old tin sitting dormant in yards and old fields.

I really have nothing bad to say about the city itself- yeah, the roads are horrible, and there's a crime problem- but I've grown up around DC and Baltimore, and I didn't see it as any worse than the crap I've dealt with up here. I loved the city itself, my only regret is that I wish I could've made it down there before Katrina hit. But I do plan on returning in the future- possibly before the end of the year. Geeto67- thanks for the info, I'll have to check out Flanigan's pub and maybe that junkyard as well when I go back.

 

Not that this has much to do with the topic, but when I was building bikes, everyone in the shop I worked at was pretty excited cause we were going to be headed to New Orleans for their first bike week. Then then the storm hit bad, then it got worse, then canceling the first NO bike week was the least of their worries. Heard that NO finally had its first offical bike week though this year. Anyone know how that went over?

 

Went just fine if you like a commercial, pre-packaged, corporate sponsored, contrived costume show held in the Morial Convention Center. Just my take on it ---.

Bob

 

Hi, I live in Slidell and know Mike Knieper. Very interesting yard and was the source of a lot of my hot rod parts before Hurricane Katrina. Unfortunately, Katrina put 10 feet of salt water on top of all of it. Haven't been out there since.

Bob

 

What about that guy out on Gause. Had a small garage and sold old cars on consignment...business was called "T's" I think. I guess all that area was under water too.

 

T is still around and still doing the consignment sales thing in the same location. I stopped by there the other day to look at a '30 Model A coupe. Saw him hauling in a '49 Studebaker pickup,too. No flooding in that area. Generally, land that was North of Hwy 190 (Gause Blvd.) was OK. It was the East and South sides of Slidell that took all the water. I had 5 feet in my shop, 2 feet in the house.

Bob

 

Well, back to the meet & greet, this is the last time i'll be on here as we're leaving early Thursday morning, but how about D B A on Frenchmen street Saturday evening - like 8 ish?
We're eating at Adolfo's near by then will head over afterwards.
I'll be wearing some sort of Hot Rod shirt. See ya, Axle

 

Mike, Count me in for a get together at your shop, just let me know the date. The last get together was a lot of fun, got to meet new people.

 

Ditto that! Great Time! Mike has some very innovative metal working machinery. I may have to bring the hood panels off my roadster and let him put that louvre press to work!

 

HI Bob,
Great! I am still working on the date.
You will have to bring those panels over and get them louvered.
It was great seeing everyone last time. Maybe we can get some more guys to hang out too.
Mike

 

SHIT! I'm sure he said "on your feet! How do I know? My dumbass got it too.............. But I told him to fuck off.
I love NO, I gain about 4 lbs every time I go, guess I better get bigger pants, gonna' be back the 3rd thru the 5th............ Gotta' have dem' mudbugs, dontcha' know?!!?
But it would be way cool to have some HAMB friendly action while in town.

 

Shit, Dude! And you are still livin' next to a meth lab?
Maybe another neighborhood might work out a little better for ya"...........

 

Mike, count me in too (I hope). I met you last year during Cruising the Coast when you were with Joe Hartson and his Model A pick-up...I have the vintage race prepared 49 MG TC.