When I was in law school (yes I'm a rare car-guy lawyer), in studying torts (negligence and such) one student stood up and said that driving a car older than 10 years old was negligence. At the time, I was driving a 14 year old car. I didn't even bother responding.
And today he can be seen on the back of a phone book with his picture next to an ambulance and a hard hat with a brick on it...
Yeah, stick & ball 'sports people' are hillarious. I played baseball....in little league. I played basketball....in high school. And that's where I left that part of my life. From time to time I may catch a game on if it is cold as shit outside and I don't have much else to do but I won't lose sleep if I miss it. I got a couple of neighbors that probably never played a single sport in school....wait I take that back....one dude was a male cheerleader in college (didn't know that existed that long ago but anyway). They both look like they may have a heart attack if they had a foot race to the mailbox. Anyway they get together to watch 'the big game' (football, baseball, basketball, world cup...it doesn't matter...it's the big fucking game that seems to be the meaning of their life that day) they used to invite me but I think they got the idea that I just don't give a rat's ass. It may have something to do with one time when one of them was going on about some game that was on and how I should have seen it. I just said, "Well I wasn't playing in it so I guess I didn't have a dog in that fight." LOL Conversely I have another really cool neighbor who actually did play college football who also likes working on cars. We help each other out working on stuff sometimes.....mostly dealing with daily driver malfuncions. (And we snicker at the other two guys who have no mechanical abilities at all. )
Exactly. The majority of folks that make our laws are non-car people. That is why we need to be vigilant to laws and regulations written that threaten hot-rodding. Supporting SEMA is a good idea to counter ignorance. http://www.semasan.com/main/main.aspx?ID=/content/SEMASANcom/HomePage
I was going to say the exact same thing! I had an eye appointment booked at my eye doctors (what is their professional title?) last winter, right before Christmas. It was set for 8:00am, right when they opened, because I had to be at work for 8:30am. I showed up at 7:50, waited outside in the cold till she decided to unlock the door, even though she was in side and saw me waiting. I walked up to the front desk and waited while she was putting up Christmas decorations and decorating the small tree. After 5 minutes, I asked her if I could check in, (now 8:05am). She told me to take a seat and wait, she'd be done in a few minutes. At 8:15, she finally checked me in and said "oh, you're late..." To make a long story short, I called my eye doctor the next day to inform him that while he is a great doctor, if I can expect that service in the future, I'll be finding someone else. She no longer works there. I'd be saying something to my insurance agent... maybe along the lines of "If If your employees can't respect the products they are insuring, I think I'll be finding a different agency." Maybe you'll get a discount!
That miight have been me when I was 12 or so Wingnutz. I've loved anything with wings or wheels since I was a very young child. Most people don't know how to check their own oil anymore.. Y'know, I don't have the skills some a lot of the guys on this board do. I have a 61 Studebaker Hawk, and I was proud of myself for fixing the heater control valve, parking brake and swapping to an Edelbrock carb..all pretty easy for most of the guys that post here...but it's like my wife said, that's more than MOST people can manage..I love my wife!! I fly RC models, and I build old-school models that were designed in the 30's and 40's..built up from sticks and sheet, wire landing gear soldered together, etc. People look at something on my bench and just marvel that it took 30-40 hours to build. They don't understand, just like grilling or cooking a meal vs. going out all the time. I'm 50 years old, wrenched F16s in the Air Force, and I'm just getting comfortable wrenching on cars..but I'm getting there. Don't let the "normal folks" get you down. Growing up an airplane modeller in a town full of rednecks gave me a thick skin, I suppose most of the people on this board have one too..except for the "junky old car" remark from the insurance secretary..THAT was unacceptable!
RIGHT ON.... Friggen idiots see anything from the last century and consider it junk and immediately want "LAWS" preventing anything they consider junk to be "OUTLAWED"!!
up until last week i never owned anything less than 10 years old... hell it took me til my 4th vehicle to get one with under 100k lol the only reason i bought such a new car this time is because my parents insist i spend a buttload of my settlement on a "new, reliable" car thats easy to get my chair in. to even it out im in the process of buying a 69 F350 from my sisters father in law...
I don't care what the guy on the street knows or notices, or doesn't. It's when the "parts" guy behind the counter at Autozone, NAPA, Big A, Oriellys, etc. don't have a clue that I get pissed off.
Gottcha I'm a little bummed I was the first to post on that thread and it got deleted. Someone must have been offended and I was being polite too.
I find this remark very aggravating and offensive, she was way out of line and should keep her opinions to herself. She needs cut down to size.
I met a gal who knew the difference between a generator and an alternator. She didnt know how they didit but she knew they charged the system. I married her.
How many HAMBers drive orphen cars. People ask me what kind of car it is, I tell them its a Terraplane, they say what kind of plane is that. I tell them it was made by Hudson, the looks on their faces are great.
I find it strange when you drive your cool rod or custom in traffic & it seems most people who pull up beside at a stop lite won't give a second look. Are they afraid or just don't notice?
The guy is a bit bizarre. No questions nothing, even a monk would wonder what the shiney thing in the corner was. I sort of think people who are not even curious are odd. I feel they are missing something in not being even curious.
I think they already are. I'm a machinist by trade, but can also weld, paint, rebuild most anything automotive, as well as do wiring, plumbing, drywall work, flooring and basic carpentry. Knowing how to do things yourself with your own two hands gives you the confidence to learn new skills. Understanding mechanical and structural systems makes us less dependent on $90/hr shops. In this rough economy, those who are the most self sufficient survive the best in my experiences.
I have other interests than old cars.... I enjoy baseball, I don't play anymore other than catch with my son but enjoy watching live and on TV, biking, hiking, outdoors, travelling, reading, etc. I'm sure most people on this board have other hobbies than just old cars. I have friends that are not interested in cars, and they have hobbies I'm not interested in. We are still friends.
Wingnutz---your last line about the uninformed wanting laws against what they consider "junk" scares the shit out of me---lately, the folks in the minority seem to be getting their way.
Why should they? They are probably sat in a hermetically sealed box with the radio on wondering what's for supper tonight. Your "cool Rod or Kustom" probably wouldn't rate a first look with Joe normal. An appreciation of old automobiles is not mandatory. I find it stranger that you notice people not noticing. Paul
be thankful your in the US.......over here in Europe they are trying to bring in an end to home servicing where parts, right down to spark plugs will only be available to "authorised service dealers!!"....it gets voted on for Motorbikes in October!!......yeah Non car people came up with the idea!!
Shadey character standing at the entrance to a dark alley says, "Hey kid wanna buy some black market parts? I got oil, plugs ,wires, all kinda stuff. This here is tha real deal, straight outta Mexico! You got tha cash I got tha parts." Prohibition all over again.
Non car folks think we're a bucha fuckin fools. Green non car types hate us. Poor non car types hate us too because we have what we have. Live with it. I've been out and around in some pretty impressive cars from anyone's outlook. Just imagine tooling around in a Duesenberg Murphy Roadster. What an experience to see one on the road let alone drive it, right? HAH!. I too was amazed how many never gave it 1st look let alone a 2nd. So what. At least they weren't looking so hard they ran it off the road. That happens a bunch.
Oh, I definitely have other interests than cars. I love nearly anything related to aviation, WWII history, dogs, political history...I understand 100% what you are saying. But, remember most people look at us as if we just landed from Mars or something. They are as passionate about their interests as we are about ours. And we both look at the others' interests as peculiar. So goes the world.
I guess I shouldn't be, but I'm amazed that people don't notice that you are driving something different and are at least scared of getting close to it (I have 2 12"L x 5/8"L thick chrome "TUSKS/pushbars" sticking out of the back of my car)... I get the same amount of assholes tailgating me in my Ford as I do in my late model truck.
The most common question I get from non-car people is "are you going to sell it". As if, the only reason to build a nice rod is just to sell it.
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