Customs GNRS 2011 The Customs Then & Now Show... my story.

Fantastic job Rik. I really wanted to see first hand all the hard work you put into this show but I just couldn't get out there. Anyways, I'm super happy that you made it and that everybody enjoyed the building and everybody's work.

 

Incredible stuff Rik!!!! Thanx for this post!!!

Great to finally meet you!!!!!

Thanx for everything you do!!! We all appreciate it very much!!!

 

Thanks a lot for giving us behind the scenes coverage from GNRS!

 

Concerning Hirohata pin stripe: Ah great. Thanks, thought so.

BTW, a sincere thank you goes to those involved and especially to Rik himself. I'm not sure that this event would have taken place without his work and total enthusiasm for preserving the history about the custom car and to spread knowledge about customs.

I wasn't able to participate which makes me cry myself to sleep each night. I hadn't the money.. I truly regret this, not so much for not seeing the cars, it's a plus nonetheless, but it's so much about the people invovled in this that would have been boss to meet. All in one place.

I hope and prey that it will be an encore in some way.

 

Thanks for all the cool pics -

 

Rik, let me add my congratulations to you, Axle and Luke for all the effort expended in creating what was surely a once in a lifetime display of some of the most significant custom cars created. And it was nice to finally meet you and Luke. Your efforts will keep the "Kustom" flame alive for our younger folks to enjoy and be inspired by. Keith

 

Rik , thanks for the comprehensive coverage, I was stuck on our booth all weekend so could not do the show justice. I now have a good read for the week end .

Cheers

Steve

 

Great meeting you and great job to all for putting this room together---so amazing!



Marcy

 

Rik! What a great thread!

Thanks so much for all your hard work to get this show together. It was the most impressive and overwhelming collection of cars I have ever seen at a car show.

I was only able to be at the show on Friday, but spent nearly all day in Building 9.

I only hope that you have the time to post up all the photos from the Wally Welch photo album someday?

 

Gene, given all the passion that went into this event and judging by its success, I have no doubt that it will be repeated before very many years pass.

As good as the show was, there were a lot of cars the organizers wanted that were just not located or not available. Throughout the show, I thought that this year's show could not have been any better. But given the enthusiasm generated this year, I feel that the momentum is already on for the next one. Other landmark cars will come out of the woodwork and the owners of important cars that missed this one will not want to miss the enevitable next time.

 

Thank you..thank you...thank you...great show and coverage!

 

Also good to meet you, thanks for your dedication and hard work

 

Rik it was a pleasure seeing you again.Thanks for everything.

 

What a great job you guys did, for me it was a once in a life time oportunity to see the cars I had drooled over in the magazines. a lot of people don't realize how much work is involved in putting together a show like this, there are countless hours of research, finding out where the cars are and who curently owns them, and then , talking them into bringing them to the show. in our eyes , you are the upmost authority on custom cars and the information you have given us is of the greatest value. My friend Stephan spent over 4 hours in the building talking pictures. To me, these cars are pieces of art that even with today's technalogy , can not be duplicated. The work you and Axle did putting this show together, will serve as inspiration for us that love traditional cars. thanks again Miguel.

 

Rik great pictures and story line, on post #18 pic#7 standing next to Pat Ganahl is one of the best illustrators in the business Steve Stanford, his work and designs have inspired a lot of people in this hobby...............

 

Rik,

It was good to meet you, even though it was very brief at the Meet & Greet signing. My best momento of the 2011 GNRS is the program which I had all the big names autograph (including you). It's getting framed and going up on the garage wall. Thanks for your work making Building 9 such a sucess.

 

Wow, that just put things in prospective. when I first read that this part of the show was being done it was "oh cool' and now it is one of those once in a lifeti*e events that I didn't get to.

 

Good to see you Rik! If only for a second- Thanks for putting all these cars together, it was great to be in that room all weekend! Too bad my car couldn't make it, (I'll repaint it someday!) but I like to look at other people's cars anyway, I can see my car anytime- haha-
Seeing all the early stuff in the front, and the Snooky Janich car, it was great! Lots of cars I thought I'd never see-

 

Rik, you're awesome. Thanks for your dedication to this artform.

 

I spent a few hours in building #9....Many thanks Rik, Axle, Jeff and Luke....

 

Great coverage Rik, we all look forward to having you start another thread with pictures of every car that attended the display.

As Rik stated earlier we started this idea/project in late spring/early summer of 2010. This was after John Buck gave me the green light, then asked "who will you have assist you in this project" ? I said, "I've got a dream team planned but they don't know it yet" . In the days to come i contacted Jeff Neppl and Rik Hoving, asked them to come aboard and they gladly responded with enthusiasm. I think its fair to say that all three of us had our individual favorite customs but without a doubt, my personal objective was to find as many pre war and "war era" Customs as possible - because those are so extremely scarce. When the project got in to gear and in motion it did indeed (as Rik states) motivate certain car owners to finish cars and get them ready to debut at the display. I say this from first hand experience as the family Dick Fowler coupe was in pieces just months ago. when not promoting/organizing the 2 buildings at GNRS my brother Mark and i were in the garage setting up suspension, steering, or fabricating parts on the car. Then i found myself doing body work on many late nights (especially on the 1/4's) . 2-3 weeks before the show i would say at least 1/3 of the cars planing to participate were being restored - hopefully in time for this event!

To get a lot of the custom owners to commit to the worlds best custom display in history was a major feat on to itself. We found that sending several return phone calls and giving car owner updates was a regular process. Then others gave us the immediate thumbs up.
While this started to get in gear we got Luke Karosi to come onboard and sponsor the event, then soon after Denis O'Brien from O'Brien Truckers teamed up. I won't boar you guys with details but many many many MANY nights were spent with Luke, Jeff, John Buck, and myself at Famous Daves BBQ going over plans in order to make this happen. It was also not uncommon for the 3 of us to email each other 20 times a day/night with changes or fresh new idea's.

You always worry (especially this time of the year) if everyone is going to make it but by Thursday night everyone was in for the exception of the Pierson Brothers Coupe that Jimmy White transformed from a modern 90's street rod to a traditional 40's historic custom. By Friday early a.m. i received a text from Jimmy White that the team at Circle City Hot Rods finished the car in time to drop it off at its designated spot in the wee hours of Friday morning. We were done and had all 82 cars in the building!

Hope you vendors didn't get sick of it but i decided to make an early Jazz CD of songs from the 40's - early 60's - we had it played over the sound system inside building #9 - in hopes that it would get everyone in the mood. Also, It was Jeff Neppl's idea to not only have the drapes in Navy Blue Silk, but to have Riks artwork on the Banners in the same matching color. Jeff has had the Pan Pacific / Armory early 50's in mind since day one.

Again, without sounding like a broken record , this could not of happened without John Buck, Rik Hoving, and Jeff Neppl. Because of your persistence, enthusiasm, and historical research this will not only go down in history but be remembered as the best gathering of historically significant customs to be gathered under one roof!

The downer of the weekend - having a certain show promoter with arrogance as high as the sky attend , walk under rope whenever he felt, open doors of the Customs, stick fliers in them, remove all of my notepads and ink pens provided to the legends - and replace them with his own fliers and ink pens for the autograph signing party. Extremely unprofessional. Car owners that have expressed your concern on this issue. We guarantee this will never happen again.

Special thanks:
Celeste
Keith Weesner - for changing your vendor location
The Mallory Brothers
Jimmie Vaughan - thanks for the rides to the Hotel and back
Lee Pratt
Fred Phillips
Steve Coonan & Geoff Miles
Piero
Rob Fortier
Mark
Rik
Jeff
J.B.
The Petersen Museum
Roy Brizio
Kurt McCormick - Your cars were a major hit !
Barry Mazza
and everyone else that brought a car out.

 

Rik, great coverage. Nice to finally meet you in person. I only wish that I had found you when it wasn't so hectic. Next time...

 

Who is this to the right in this picture? He has on a Kansas City Timing Assoc. shirt. Is it one of the "Mallory twins"?

 

• Rik thank you for all your efforts in putting on this amazing event. Since i moved last year I missed this one and I highly regret it. Your post alleviates some of the pain but not all. I am most happy that you were able to immerse yourself in your passion and fulfill, I am sure, several of your life long dreams. I love to see people do what they are driven by to such a high level.I shot a couple of images of the Wally Welch Merc with my pinhole camera for my "Kulture/Culture" Project when my good friend Joe Eddy owned it.

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Thanks for putting this together........So who was this "show promoter", was it "Janet"?

 

Hats off to you guys. Well done!!!

 

I would like to thank Rik, Axle and John Buck for selecting my car, the Rich Pichette Sedan Delivery, to be included for this historical gathering. It was a great weekend all together.

Rik, I wish I would have tracked you down and introduced myself.

Thanks again.

 

That just says someone who has no respect and hasn't been doing this very long. Definitely NOT a car guy! You don't touch another guys car like you don't another guys girl- BOTH will get you knuckles in your grille!

But what a GREAT room. Thanks so much to all the people that made it happen!

 

Yes it is!

 

Are they local to Kansas City?