Yup, you read that right folks... The RodCast is coming! I don't know if there's really a lot to explain that isn't already in the name but, just in case, I'll give you a little background on what, why, and a little "who in the hell do I think I am?".
For starters, that last part is easy. I'm just a fan, and nothing more than that. Just like all of us, I stand in awe of what has come before us in our hobby and sport and feel like it is worth the time and effort to try and ( as the tag line states ) "Preserve and Promote" the tradition. I'm just a bit more of a glutton for punishment than most and my thick skull oftentimes can't talk me out of these ideas. So here I am, and I'm genuinely excited! Most of us have heard of the Podcast format by now, and some ( myself included ) are probably following one or two. I think it's a great use of technology and I really like the idea of people being able to produce their own online radio show on whatever topic they're way into. Being able to personalize what you want to take in or be around is just so... well, it's a lot like hot rodding isn't it?
The RodCast will be a weekly show of one on one interviews with folks from the traditional hot rod and car world. As any of you know who have read my blog posts, I am deeply interested in the early days of our little world and the people who helped create it. I think the look and feel of early hot rodding is as beautiful, both culturally and artistically, as anything we've created in the past 100 years. I do. And the fact that we live in a time when both, the pioneers who created it and our first youth movement actively paying homage to what these guys did originally, are crossing paths, is very exciting to me. The idea that, right now, knowledge can be shared between these two groups directly makes this a special time for all of us who live and breathe this stuff. As we all are, I am interested in hearing from and speaking with as many pioneers as possible. And we will. These guys never let you down and you always walk away inspired, smarter, more grounded, and maybe just a little humbled knowing just how much better these guys are than us. At least I do. But what always brings me back around to a feeling of optimism about the future of our hobby ( and the future in general ) is when I get to meet and talk with a guy half my age who just finished building a spot-on perfect traditional Ford based hot rod or similar. That's a story that I feel needs to be heard just as much as the great inspiring tales we get from our pioneers. And it's because they work together. If we only had the past it wouldn't be enough to sustain us and our interests. But the fact that we can go out and recreate and experience the very same things that guys did 50-60-70 years ago by learning those same skills and gathering the same knowledge is the difference between something being a static museum display, and something that is truly"alive".
From the 1st or 2nd generation pioneer to the 20 year old kid who somehow has a stranglehold on how to build a perfect AV8 roadster... and all folks in between. And I do mean all folks in between. Earlier here I purposely wrote "traditional hot rod and old car world". As much as I am a purest about my hot rods, I also have a genuine love for many other types of go fast or look-good vehicles that can make me just as crazy. Now before you check out of here in fear that I'm talking about pro-touring or rest-o-rod/ street rod stuff, know that I'm not. I just don't like cut offs. Cuts offs are, well... limiting. I stand by the belief that when something is really "right" it's just that. And although I'm still talking about a traditional or nostalgia focus here, I can see ( and have seen ) a wider range of cool than some followings in this world seem to want to accept. I can appreciate that, but I can also appreciate the 1960s, the cars that became available, and the amazing golden age of drag racing that came with that decade. For example; I've always been interested in guys who've done a lifelong or long term ownership, and if I run across someone who bought a '62 409 new, drag raced it, street raced it, and has loads of colorful stories about it, and STILL owns it...? well, I'm gonna want to talk to that guy.
And that really brings me full circle here. It's going to be about the people. It's going to be about the people and their stories. It's going to be about the people who have stories that I think we can all relate to and who come from our little "food group". One of my favorite things about our hobby and the traditional old car world is how comfortable it feels to me. I grew up in a house with a Dad who was a factory worker, who raced, restored, and serviced his own cars, who never had a repair man enter his home, ever... and figured out how to do things when he had to because, as he used to say, "If somebody else can do it?... " And if there is something I find truly inspiring about the state of our hobby today and the younger guys coming up who are building beautiful traditional cars, it's that it stands in the face of a horribly defeatist line that I hear said about our society often these days... "We don't build anything anymore" or "We don't know how to do anything anymore".
Well, I don't buy it. Not for a second. And I don't think anyone in this slice of the hobby does either. If a 20 year old kid can still build a safe, well engineered, and great looking car out of thin air just as 20 year old kids did all those many years ago, then things haven't changed as much as they want us to think. We just need to keep spreading the word so as to make sure "they" are never right. That way we really will preserve our little world for the generations that aren't even being thought about yet.
So if you're interested, I'm interested. I'm really looking forward to meeting with and talking to a whole range of character and then passing it on to you guys. Know that, in addition to straight up car folk, I'm planning on pulling in some of my more car minded musician friends that I think will have interesting takes on why this stuff is just so damn cool. I always find it fun to get the take on this stuff from my music friends, as they ( like me ) look at it as another art form. I also will be talking to guys young and old who are making their living in the hobby to find out what they do and how they do it. We'll have companion video shorts and clips on the website from many of the episodes and I'm excited to say that right now I'm producing some original music for the RodCast that will be available on the website and on iTunes. I guess you could say that I like to be busy!
So stay tuned around here as we begin to spool this thing up. I will be regularly updating the progress as we approach our launch date. Oh, and just a little teaser... I just finished doing an in depth interview with the great Bill "Tiny" Davis of "Hill and Davis" streamliner fame. We got some great stuff with Bill and will probably have to run it as a two part RodCast. Bill is alive and well and living in Speedway Indiana where he is ( get ready for this you guys ) currently recreating his international record setting Hill and Davis/City of Burbank/Bob Estes spcl. streamliner to return to Bonneville with the car in 2012 a mere 60 years to the day after setting his initial record! Yeah, you heard that right.
Again, welcome back! And as always... Stay 'tuned'
