Dave Shuten's New BubbleTop AstroSLed

Fantastic.

 

Wow!

 

I love it's appearance also.. The car has a great Roth-esque look without being a copy. But no matter what the show promoter (promoters are natural liars) told him, the irrefutable fact is that cars run and drive. My conscience would bother me if I won an award at a "run only" show with a car that didn't. If they don't run and are considered finished, they're Garage Art. Yeah, I went to the Cleveland Autorama too in the early '60s as a kid. I've been told that many blown Olds's, Hemi's and Nailheads at that show just had an empty block under the glitz., but that was wrong then and now. I hope that Dave has her running and driving at Starbird's.

Jan

 

Hopefully Dave can take some consolation that no matter what, that camoro will always be just a camaro and in a few years will be totally forgotten and probably gutted and redone by some future owner while Dave's car will still be drooled and wowed over every where it goes! The whole thing is just too cool for words!!

 

Denise please help me understand, was he told that he would be in the running for awards even if it wasn't running & driving & he had three shows to get it running or.... was he invited to display now & would be eligible for awards after he met the criteria?

If they told him he had 3 shows to get it running then it would be eligible... aren't there still a few left? Perhaps his "recognition & thanks" are coming once it meets the criteria.

Life's too short to get bent over not getting a trophy. No matter what they told him, he should get over it & enjoy the car & people's reaction to it....

....Or not & be all pissy about it.

JH

 

i WAS going to keep quiet about the drama in this thread, and just sit back and enjoy the pics of that AMAZING car, (BTW, thanks again Denise for sharing em! ) BUT. . . now i gotta toss this in just so i can sleep at night.

the man has a legitimate ****in gripe! THEY ASKED HIM TO BE THERE!!!

what the ****???!!! would it have killed them to give the man a friggin trophy, small plaque? certificate of appreciation? ****, even an "honorable mention" of thanks at the awards cerimony???

i dont think he's out of line for being pissed off about what happened.

 

i personaly don't give a rip about trophys but it's a crock of **** that they LIED to him to get him to bring the car. i'd be pist too. i know what kind of temper Dave can have and i'd be real suprised if somebody in ISCA did'nt get a serious earfull over this deal. and rightly so.

back to the point though. the car turned out GREAT. i would never have the patience to do all that sanding. the day i was at his shop when he was nearly done sanding out the primer the garage was a giant dust ball. it's usualy quite clean. i'd never seen it so dirty. i'll bet he's finding piles of bondo and primer dust for YEARS after the last two builds .

i wanted to make it to the G.R. ****-O-Rama JUST to see it all done in person but i did'nt make it. everybody i know that went said it was by far the most original and coolest car in attendance.

car looks AWESOME Dave. hope you decide to bring it to Detroit.

 

**** the plaque, honerable mention or ANY B.S. "thanks for coming" award. they told him he'd be eligable for compe***ion before he got there and then changed their tune afterwards. (probably because some other compe***or that knew he'd never win against it complained). somebody either straight up lied just to get him there or did'nt have the backbone to stick to their original decision, in the face of complaints, and they renegged (sp?) on their verbal agreement with him. somebody should have been kicked in the sack for that ****.

the ***** of it is that it's prolly an afternoons worth of work to fill the fluids, set the timing and get it running but with the how nice the paint and chrome are i'd be nervous about gettin it dirty or messin up the paint or chrome by doing so before the show season is over... then again with 14 carbs and a blower it might be a little more work than that BUT STILL. it was built to run and will.

 

i wonder if its loud. lol

 

The car should have been shown first at Detroit.

 

thats what i thought but it aint' mine.

 

Yeah, there aren't any "Prog-Rock" groups in the Rock Hall of Fame either. Life is unfair!

 

That really is cool, some people just don't get it.

Hey, is that real Troll hair?

 

Who cares about trophies. It's a cool car (although I reckon the Beatnik Bandit is still a nicer design) and the owner shouldn't need some cheap-**** chromed plastic for confirmation.

The crowd around it all day should be recognition enough.

 

It's cause Prog Rock ****s...

This car doesn't, it is amazing, absolutely amazing...

 

I too was involved in the ISCA circus for awhile, but from an event management perspective rather than a compe***or. I never could justify building a show car. Knowing what it took to make it a winner and keeping it that way was way too much expense and not enough fun, but that was just me. ISCA was, and I suppose still is, a compe***ive series with real rules. It was born out of the "no-go" show car situation of the 60's and early 70's. The prizes aren't just trophies but cash, esp. if you run the circut and follow the rules. If someone from ISCA really wanted that car at the show, they should have paid it to be there, just like a real feature car that isn't in compe***ion. That car deserves it, and up front communication works. Another compe***ior could have easily protested the car if it didn't run, so ISCA couldn't really have it compete in it's current condition. Lots of feature cars don't drive, they're there to attract customers. If the person that made the request isn't an ISCA official, then he was just dreaming. For the guys that run the show circut, these events are as serious as an NHRA national, with 6 or 7 figures invested in their cars. I can't justify it, and I'd bet most people here can't either, but when we go into a show arena, we are going into another world, and it's run by ISCA rules. That car will be famous soon and should have been paid to appear. I hope that one jerk at one show doesn't keep the car from being seen by the crowds that would love to see it.

 

Met Dave this past weekend at Starbirds, real nice guy and has a great photo album on the build of this car. The amazing thing about it was that he built it from start to finish in 11 months while, as he said" working a full time job, going to school 2 night a week and has a two year old!

 

That car is absolutely killer. I love it and fully agree with many of the posts here that it should kick *** on just about any Camaro out there.

I used to judge alot of ISCA shows and ran the ISCA circut back in the 80's. Built a car to compete for the Riddler in 85 and was the first runner up (there was no such thing as the "Great 8" back then). Every car gets an operational spotcheck thru-out the season. A new car gets it at it's debut, period, no exception. The day I rolled my car out of the trailer at Detriot, it had to be spotchecked. It had set in the trailer for two days in sub zero temperatures. ISCA gave me all day to let the car thaw out before attempting to start it.

Sounds to me like 'show management', not ISCA invited Dave to Grand Rapids. Show management and the ISCA are two different organizations. Show management recruits the cars to the building, fronts all the money to put the show on and then the ISCA officials arrive to cl***ify and judge each car in competion to a regulated standard. It sounds like show management and ISCA did explain that he would have three chances to get the car running at that show. That's what the rule book says, not a chance to get it running at three different shows.
As pointed out in earlier posts, there are cars and car owners who run the circut for money and points (just like Nascar). All cars in competion in these shows, per the rule book, get a spotcheck and must start, go forwards, backwards, turn left, right and stop under their own power. If the car will not do that, it must be disqualifed from competion. It is very sad that Dave's car was disqualified for what seems to be a lack of fluids.

It would have been nice if show management who invited Dave could have extended a little extra courtesy and appreciation for the effort he took to bring his car to their event.

I no longer show in competion with the ISCA, thank God I found the HAMB. But I do respect the ISCA, and the car owners who run the circut, and the politics that go with this type of showmanship.

Thanks,
MDM

 

You are exactly correct. I will not name names, doesn't matter at this point. Someone from "show management" invited him and Dave ***umed he had the authority to make these decisions. The "Show Management" person knew the car did not run thus the other statements from said person reg you'll have time to get it running etc.

Dave did mention when he was "ranting" on the phone that he would have gladly taken being a paid exhibitor instead of them leading him to believe he was competing.

Great guy, got screwed, lessoned learned, won't happen again I'm sure.

Just reviewing the photos again makes me smile.........it's an AWESOME piece of work and I'm so looking forward to watching him do a nasty burnout.

 

I've only met Dave once, but he's a great guy....and he built a BEAUTIFUL car. Everything he does is golden. I know he wanted to compete, but Brootal said it best, the best recognition came in the form of a crowd around the car ALL DAY LONG. That alone say's enough. He know's he built a phenominal car, everyone who has seen it in person or in pictures know he built a phenominal car, screw their trophies.

 

As a major Roth fan, I salute Dave for his creation. It looks like something 'Ed' might have created, had he been around a bit longer. ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. That thing has got the have the smoothest *** shot I've ever seen. Exception being the other night at the ***tie.....well, nevermind that. It is a beautiful ride.
Thanks Dave.

 

I'm slack jawed and laying flat. That is one *****ing space rod and lookit Fritz's paint, holy moly. I wish could see it in person.

 

thanks for sharing the pics. Its a *****en ride.

 

Trophies **** but to asked to attend and not being acknowledged ****s worst. Dave created a masterpiece using the methods Roth the Master used so many years ago. I hope to be able to thank Dave in person for creating the ASTROSLED for all us us to enjoy.

Thanks Denice for sharing the pictures.

 

thanks for the explanation of how things work in the show car world guys. i had no idea realy. interesting but not something i think i'd want to bother with. too much B.S. not to mention the expense.

 

I love it ...

and that's the best trophy there is.

The car is amazing.

 

I could care less if I get any trophies with my cars. I am building my bubbletop for one reason only....to do big smoky burnouts....well that and just to say that I did it. I know they aren't the most practical things in the world, but I just want to build something outrageous before I die.

Politics are stupid. That is why I think I want to bring mine to the ba*****t of Cobo. Getting a pick from someone like Fay Butler or Bill Hines means more to me than a bunch of judges picking my **** apart. Sorry Rudy, I still love you....Ha Ha Ha

I told Dave to bring it to the ba*****t and have fun with us in Detroit instead. Hey, travel money is a guaranteed win isn't it? Ha Ha Ha

I believe he lost out in Witchita to the new ***us creation.

 

Man O Man is that thing a work of art.
I not only see a lot of Big Daddy in the craftmenship but a taste of Barris (Ala Kart) and a touch Watson (scallops).

 

Hmmmm, gotta say I am a bit miffed by your post Denise. You know I love ya, but let's get the facts straight;

First and Foremost;
1. Dave's car WON HIS CL***. His cl*** was "Radical Show Rod"
2. Dave's car WAS NOT beat by "a Camaro" or any other car for "Handbuilt", because there was in fact NO WINNER in this cl*** due to the fact that there was no car eligible for this award in the show.
3. The green Camaro won "Outstanding Radical Custom", which is basically a 2nd while the Turquoise 57 Chevy won "Best Radical Custom", meaning that it beat the green Camaro.
4. Dave's car was ineligible for the "Grand Award". As explained to Dave, to be eligible, the car MUST prove operability. When asked by ISCA Director Bob Millard to perform a spot check, Dave explained that he preferred to not fire the car as it was sold. Dave later asked me if this was a requirement and I explained that was indeed a rule to be eligible for the Grand Award. It was Dave's choice to not fire the car and step down from being eligible for the Grand Award.
5. Dave's car was indeed considered for several special awards including outstanding and best awards for engineering, paint, interior etc. Although he was not the winner.
6. Dave's car did not win best paint as the Judges felt that although the paint was indeed beautiful, it was not the best in show.
7. Dave's car was considered for Best Interior. It did not win as the car was closed all weekend and in all fairness, could not be fully judged.
8. Car was not eligible for engineering and engine awards due to the fact that the car was not set up to run.

Dave was indeed invited to participate in the show. He chose to compete and I am confident that he is familiar with ISCA rules pertaining to the vehicles operability. His car was an awesome addition to the show enjoyed by many and a definite "Star". It was not a "feature car" as Dave chose to enter compe***ion and an entrant must be one or the other, not both.

I personally acknowledged Dave at the awards presenation, not only for his car but also for his efforts and for being a large part of the success of the Pinstriper Charity Auction.

There is no disputing Dave's talent as a builder or of the beauty of the Astrosled. I was honored to have it there and I am sure Mark "Bullitt" Black, our local Chairman (who invited him) was also. There were no promises made, other then to meet some of Daves requests pertaining to placement on the floor and being sure he was not placed on the floor near the Tuners or other thumpin system cars etc. and there was no BS politics involved. I personally made sure Dave's Astrosled was in the front row in a full walkaround display.

Yes, I am part of Championship Auto Shows, Inc. and proud of it. I work very hard, am very honest, do not make promises I don't keep and I plan on being in this business for the long haul.

Thanks

Bob Ashton
Championship Auto Shows, Inc.
Chevy Vettefest
Show Manager (and specifically, Mgr. of the GR Autorama)

 

*****in' car! But I think with a few changes it'd be alot cooler. It sits waaay too high, the "bubble" should more of an oval, and blue. I dig it tho. and add some pinner motorcycle ww's. Less 4x4, more 4xfloor! -stick