I has HOT ROD wheels, that is a cool thing. I feel the wind starting to blow, the winds of change. Someone can link that cheesy Scorpions tune now
I'm with Dar73... too "Boydish". Don't get me wrong, OF COURSE its well done & I wish I had the skills & $$$ to do as well.... just not my style. Anyone see that green pickup last year ( think it was George Poteet's) with the aluminum 4 banger & incredible detail?... styled after an old Miller racer... Now that one I loved
WAAAAY BETTER THAN LAST YEAR!!!! Every time I walked by last years winner I had to look the other way because it hurt my eyes to look at it. Congratulations to the boys at Squeeg's!
This quote, about older guys, expresses my opinion of traditional hotrodding exactly. I let someone enjoy their moment in the sun. Winning the AMBR is not a small thing.
Dude... Incredibly well put!!! You just put into words what i have tried to express millions of times - and we both know I can be a pretty wordy son of a bitch!
no doubt it is a beautiful piece of work just doesnt do it for me. one thing i noticed in the pictures was that nobody was looking at it
And a couple more thoughts. First, I've got to call Doug in the morning and give a congrats.... But a couple of pages back some one said "At least this year, it didn't suck!" How many years has it been since you could actually say that!?!? It has to go back to about '78 or '79 in my mind when Phil Cool won it with a red-orange deuce roadster he built at his home. Maybe '80 when John Buttera built the red car for John Corno, but that's the final cool one I can remember. It's kind of nice in my mind to see a car pull off all the marbles that looks like an actual hot rod. Been a long time!!!
That is one well done car, '33 34s are not my style, but you have to agree it would make you stop and look, first class all the way. Congratz to all who helped build the car.
Originally Posted by Jeem I already spoke with him, but here's a public attaboy for Doug and the gang at Squeeg's Kustoms. The Dad, Squeeg, hisself and various crews have been turning out incredible work since 1964. They've been in the valley since the 70's and have been involved with so many incredible cars, trucks, boats and planes (a few helis too), it would make your head swim. Always meticulous irregardless of the quantity. Congratulations Doug and Squeeg and everyone at the shop! This car was built by two families with a long mutual history. The reaction here, honestly, is way better than I thought it would be. The HAMB always amazes. Traditional hot rods? Some of the younger guys need to understand something.... The passion* that we all share for these old cars can be bonding as well as extremely divisive. Everyone has their opinions on what is right or wrong with any given car. Many younger guys are incredibly well versed on early hot rod history. Bitchin'! It's great to know new generations will perpetuate hot rod sickness for years to come. But traditions are still being forged. Older galoots that have been there and are still building or tinkering have progressed through the decades. I'm talking about folks staying true to the hot rod credo here, but they are not as obsessive about era correctness. More to the point, these older guys build cars that occupy their minds, keep their hands moving and feed their souls. That's why I get a little bent when I hear a young guy basically dismiss the efforts of others that built cars that were actually big deals "back in the day". I mean, tell me, what is more "REAL DEAL", someone who scours the swap meets and classifieds and networks for that just right part including the time it takes to lovingly restore said piece, or the guy who brainstorms, sketches and actually hand fabricates his own hot rod part? You guys want to say you can't appreciate both equally?! Anyway, HAMB'rs, that's my over inflated, gassy, post GNRS editorial for 2011. So from this MIDDLE aged hot rod freak to you all, keep building and enjoying and again.... CONGRATS Doug, you little Fugger!! *overused word of the new millenium BB
The winds of change blew through the halls of the Grand National Roadster Show this year. Long live "real" hotrods.
Was there ever a SHOW of any kind that wasn't won because of the Judges OPINION. That's what makes this sport so wonderful. Some of us grew up in the fifties and had to build our Rods from the scrap yard. Now days you can't even walk through a yard, much less scrounge for parts. Today you just go to a catalog or if you have the equipment and skill, build it yourself. I wouldn't have been seen dead in a RATROD back in the day. Now I think some of them are rather cool. Can't see what anyone sees in a Ricer with a 6" exhaust pipe. But I can remember my Dad (RIP), standing in the front yard shaking his fist and yelling. As I rounded the corner with a 34 coupe in tow. "Your not bring that damn thing here." Guess what I'm trying to say is that we all have our OPINIONS. Lets not overlook the love and attention that we each put into our projects. And lets compliment he other guys for his accomplishment even when we don't agree. After reading Bass's post on his 32 Roadster build, I didn't think anyone could beat him. But that's my OPINION.
Not my first choice but a great car none the less. A much better pick than the hunk of shit that won last year. Piss-assed or whatever the f*@k it was called. That goddamn car was so ugly. I like how subtle this one is. Definetely looks like a step in the right direction. Congrats to the builders, you deserve it. By the way, who the hell judges this damn show anyways? Sometimes I have wondered if it's Barry Meguiar and some nascar fans all hoped up on tater tots and car polish.
As someone new here, and after reading all these posts, I just had to google last years winner......Oh, now I get what you mean....
Part of my response to the car has to do with the way it appears in pictures. I can't get to the GNRS and I have yet to see it well-photographed. The photos that I've seen so far in the GNRS threads don't capture what you see in person.
Here's a pic of the roadster on the highway...and with headlights! hahaha I'm told they attach directly to the hood sides but were left off at the GNRS after showing and assuring the judges that they are a part of the deal. Small black plugs conceal the mounting points.
When the judging was using a Pebble Beach style of concours points system you were getting cars built to the points system, so they score high and I have to admit that I felt many of those winners were 'Circus Wagons' as someone else said. Lets go back to the Niekamp 29, it was driven and raced on the dry lakes and was finished to a standard that was remarkable for the time but it was still a street driven hot rod. What may be happening is that after all the talk about 'traditional' and back to basics that the judging has actually made something of a swing. Maybe we should hope that in the future part of the judging calls for the competing cars to have been driven 100 miles into the show. Or go to the World of Wheels if you want to see cars that have never had oil in the engine, 'pushers' on pedestals! That's the thing, we have to decide what we think is 'America's Most Beautiful Roadster', a traditional car executed perfectly or a show car, but however you decide you won't have everyone in agreement with you. I for one want to drive mine!
As said previously, that is a good looking car. A lot of winners in recent years have looked like caricatures of the model they are supposed to be. Kind of, just because you can, doesn't mean you should. My vote would have gone to the Bass-built '32. Now that car is so purty!
I wouldn't mind having it in my garage and as I see it "Good Choice". In the past it seems the ones with the most Bling get's the brass ring. Nice to see simplicity again and well done craftsmanship
Well put!!----If you really want to narrow down the "situation" in my opinion--- To be elgible to win this historic title, ALL entrants must be an all steel roadster--All FOMOCO parts, engine optional, must be DRIVEN thru entry gate, NO other cars OR motorcycles. At that point, you would have a true AMBR to view. Yes, I'm an OLD die hard 78 yr. old ROADSTER guy, been there, done that!!----Just my 2 cents worth--Topless forever!!
Nicely put Jimmie, hey didn't the word PASSION almost get us kicked out of the Sema banquet w/Chris Shelton ?haha and for the statement of this car not being driven maybe you should ask Doug about when he put this car in the ditch DRIVING IT !
So you wouldn't let a well done Chevrolet or other make of car win the trophy? I'm a Ford guy, but that doesn't seem right. What if it was a model originally made from aluminum?
The Jalopy Journal
