Amen, I will support Rodders Journal until the end. It is without a doubt the best and worth waiting for!
I'm a subscriber, and will continue to renew, even if they only put out 1 issue a year. Like you say, it's the best magazine out there. I'll go check my subscription now.
Just subscribed. Had some old ones laying about. Mustve had my head under a rock cause I didn't know they were doing poorly. Anyway just started a 2 year subscription.
All the great magazines (Rodder’s Journal and Hop Up) are built one at a time. No factory ***embly line. We hot rodders should be able to understand that. We should approve of that.
An excellent editorial that sums up the trials and tribulations of the hot rod industry, be it magazines or hard parts.
I've been a fan of Steve since his days at American Rodder, so when he decided to do the Surfer's Journal of hot rods, how could I not be on board. In the many years of Rodder's Journal there's not a bad egg in the bunch. Every single issue can stand on its own. I've been rooting for Steve without letting the drama get to me. As I've seen with family and friends everything in this life can go to pot in the blink of an eye, so for people to wish bad on anyone is beyond me. As a subscriber of many years and then as a lifetime subscriber, all the best Steve, and thank you so very much for pouring your heart and soul into the Rodder's Journal!!
Great editorial @Ryan . Now if only someone would "stand up" for you...and convince HAMBers to become Alliance Members. An Alliance Membership is cheaper than TRJ subscripition...and unlike the "quarterly" TRJ, the HAMB is new and exciting EVERY DAY.
Here is the thing, I understand why the drama exists. I understand why people who do not grasp the historical weight of the magazine might get upset and start banging pots and pans in the street. That part makes sense. What does not make sense, what really lights the fuse, is how some of those people seemed to be rooting for the magazine to fail just so they could be right. Right first, history be damned, even if it meant losing their own money in the process. That kind of thinking makes my blood boil. Because from where I sit, after a lifetime spent studying this stuff like a deranged archivist, this is bigger than money. Far bigger. If we are being cold and rational, The Rodder’s Journal is my compe***ion in plenty of ways. We chase some of the same stories. We fight for the same eyeballs. From a pure business standpoint, I should be rooting for fewer outlets, fewer voices, less compe***ion cluttering the field. But hot rodding is not a business. Nobody gets rich doing this, not in the way that matters. If you are here for money, you already took a wrong turn somewhere back in the desert. The real goal is survival, keeping this thing alive long enough for the next generation to understand what it was and why it mattered. And if we are being honest, we are already screwing that up pretty badly. We need every ally we can get, fellas. Every last one. And TRJ is probably the most important one that we have.
I'll tell you this much - This isn't Ryan.... he isn't in it for the money. that I know, But for the fun of it, some of this may apply. HAHAHA...
Man o man I’ve never understood anyone who wishes failure on someone. A long time ago a friend who had a tow truck business and I were talking about one of his compe***ors going out of business. I said your compe***or going out is good for your business. He blasted me, told me “Never wish ill on your compe***ion, you’ll be next” Dan
Being in business is tough nowadays and you need allies now more than ever, I don't know Steve personally but I do know he is a fighter and he may have been knocked down like a prize fighter but he has the tenacity to get back up and come back swinging. Best magazine out there and if it comes out once a year I'm OK with that! HRP
Spot on....step up to the plate. They also offer "Ship To A Different Address".....no better gift for a hotrodder.
One of these days print magazines will no longer be around and that, at least to me, will be a sad day. I look forward to the mailman delivering the lastest issue of whatever. I too have stacks of old magazines which, on occasion, I enjoy thumbing through and reliving whatever is chronicled between the covers.
Just the emailed about my sub. Doesn't really matter because I will just reup if I have to. Share Your P***ion, it just might be Contagious!!
So well said, Ryan. Some of us have been preaching support for a long time. Keep pushing forward Steve.
I so agree with everything you wrote today Ryan and to top it off, the next issue of the Rodder's Journal was at the post office today when I picked up the mail!
Amen to that! I couldn't be happier to see @TRJ still in the game, still relevant, still working to put the p***ion on paper.
Guys take years to build a car. Might spend a month or 4 to get something 'just right' but lose their mind if a quality built from the ground up magazine is late or delayed for the same personal reasons their own project moves slow.
Well said, Ryan - few if any could come back after what happened to RJ when covid hit. Only those with the p***ion of the hobby can as you so aptly put it. Steve is a friend of mine as well, helped him during his time here in Virginia and can only wish him the best. You only really know a person when you walk a mile in their shoes - you have and remain in his corner. That speaks volumes as to who and what Steve is about ….….
I put the following under another thread but think it bears repeating here..... With the general demise of print media I'm just happy that there is someone this dedicated to put out the product that they do. I might be getting soft in my old age because I'm happy when and if it shows up because the quality is second to none. I've got literally thousands of magazines and books for both the hot rod and motorcycle worlds and I don't think anything has ever compared to TRJ.
The Jalopy Journal
