One of the best things about the Napierville Dragway (where Eurokracy 2013 was held) is that the dragstrip was viewable from nearly any location in the facility. This meant that if you were looking at a car in the show field and heard something angry revving up you could turn around and catch the tail end of the pass no problem.
This is something I’ve yet to experience at any local GTA venues and really helped everything feel like one event as opposed to a show and shine event with a drag event that just happened to be going on at the same time.
The  number of quick cars running the strip made me really wish I brought more capture cards so I could document more of the 1/4 mile action, always next year I suppose.
Today’s coverage includes a small sample of the cars doing quarter mile runs along with a round out of show coverage.
Two female enthusiasts lining up for a run, can’t remember who took it I think it was the MK2Nice MK5 on LM’s doing a passThere were a few bikes running the strip alsoThis C30 was such a nice looking car, really wish the rear of these wasn’t such an acquired tasteRestyleit CLS 55Vag Motorsports Porsche about to get the upper hand on an BenzWhile I was waiting for the s10 below to pull up to the tree Lyndsey shot this photo of it in the lengthy drag lineupI was not disappointed waiting for it and I believe it ran slightly under 10This Elco was a beast on the strip. I believe it ran in the 9.7 range…Clean 8th gen CivicThe grill on this Jetta reminds me of the Euro grill for e30s, I think it’s the subtle eyebrowI’m honestly shocked at how low JF drives this car while keeping it so cleanBlair and myself parked in the grass, there’s actually another 3 beside me as wellKlutch Repbulik wheels look great on this Integra“Low-Level” RX-8 on VIP Modular wheels and Stance CoiloversAnother car on VIP Modulars was this widebody GTIRounding out the  VIP modular cars was this beautiful HyundaiParked behind the Hyundai was this civic that –chomped quarters aside– was pretty cleanMint MiataNo wheel no careStationary look at the Soarer that was kicking up smoke in the burnout coverageMustaches were a bit of a reoccurring theme at EurokracyTalked to the owner of this cars boyfriend for awhile about BMX, nice guyThe trip from Cambridge to Montreal and back cost Blain a pair of tires but he doesn’t seem bothered in the least
Mid week long time reader Clint Jolly Green sent me a photo of a Pontiac Fiero that had been converted into a two seater trike. Shocked and intrigued I foolishly set forth looking for more info on what I assumed to be a one off creation.
I was wrong, it was far from the only one in existence and many a ‘resourceful’ gear head have in fact transformed a Fiero from a four wheeled vehicle into one with only three.
Some of these arguably ill conceived creations look like they could see a lot of road hours without fail, while others appear to be held together by the sheer will power of the builder.
That’s a for sale sign on this beauty, sadly can’t read the asking priceIs it weird this is the only time I have seen a Fiero tow anything?Points for using Fiero wheels all around I supposeDaytons and continental package make this the most “be-dazzeled” of the bunch.. oh and all that diamond platingJudging by the driveway this one belongs to a Fiero enthusiastAlmost seems a shame to have something so big be only a single seaterThen again I can’t imagine it’s easy to get passengersThis 2 seater is the one that started this whole mess of a WTF Friday
One can only assume that creating these is relatively simple (on the scale of a trike to car conversions) but I am a little shocked to see that these are (or were) so popular.
Someone even built a Raptor style one and abandoned the rear engine configuration entirely.
This is easily the best built one of today’s bunchThat’s evidently an SBC mounted to an auto trans
Poor Fiero’s can’t really catch a break, everyone wants to turn them into something else instead of the quirky mid engine ‘sports’ car they were designed to be.
Site Updates
More Eurokracy coverage coming up as soon as I get through it as well as a post on this years Meguair’s Car Crazy Canada’s Best winner.
Flashback Friday
It occured to me at Eurokracy that I have not seen the car below in some time. Anyone know what happened to it, used to see it quite often.
While at Eurokracy I kept telling myself I needed to shoot more photos in order to somewhat accurately portray the scale of the show. When I got home the first thing  I asked myself was “why did I take so many photos!?” Funny how that works.
Mountain of editing aside the entire Eurokracy 2013 experience was great and I encourage everyone with even the smallest interest in European cars (or low cars in general) to check out one of these events sometime in the future.
The organization is on point, the cars are awesome, and a noteworthy stand out attribute was the fact that the owners of the venue seemed 100% on board with everything that was going on which is never a bad thing.
If you still need further convincing take a look at these photos below.
Trikes a plentyBMX related sighting #1 (awesome bikes the dudes at bmx musem would go nuts over)BMX related sighting #2, Lyndsey was actually the one who spotted the Macniel StickerAwesome B6, really like the colourCouple e30s lined up for the neckbreaker competition which as you can tell by the crowd was next to impossible to shootFastest drag car at Eurokracy 2013 was this Jetta……it ran 10.11@143 mphAnother shot of Jujhar’s Mk4 which looks great on the OZ FuturasThis was parked next to my car and is just as clean in person as it looks in this photoHookah seshHorse heads.OEM+ to a tee…..more of the same
Lyndsey was having a lot of fun with her new lensBeautiful wheel finish on this Golf
Wide body 930 on Ruf 5 spokes if I am not mistaken…
Scraped Crusaders
I heard that the Scraped Crusaders took home the ‘Spirit of Eurokracy’ award which makes total sense. They go every year, organized a cruise this year, and are a good group of people all around.
Avalon’s rabbit which almost made it there and back without smashing a pan.. almostThe brothers BerenzThere was a time I hated raised caps on Type A’s and now I’m perfectly fine with them.. weirdGill’s Lesbo WagGoing to end off with Steve’s E30… always a crowd favourite
Coverage is probably going to go into the weekend so stay tuned for more once I get to some more editing.
After hearing nothing but good things about Eurokracy for two straight years I decided 2013 was the year to make the voyage from Toronto to Montreal to check things out first hand.
Being a terrible navigator I opted to join the Scraped Crusaders for their cruise down and as the convoy got larger stop after stop I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed in the show the following day.
With a turnout large enough to create a serious impact on highway traffic Eurokracy 2013 certainly lived up to the “Canada’s Finest European Automotive Event” moniker, it’s easily one of the best and well organized events I’ve been to in recent memory.
Near the entrance was Wobbie’s well known e30He actually cracked a rim on the way to the show but managed to get it repaired and continue onNot too far from Wobbie’s e30 was this incredible GTIThis Montreal Car Fever promo vehicle rolled up moments after I shot the GTI aboveBeautiful C6 Avant……with a pretty cool roof boxShayan’s been having a hell of a time with this car recently so I was glad to see he made it to Montreal and back with no issuesScott’s bagged e46 m3Spotless e36 on MiestersBanana split#starthegliSuper clean Mk5 RabbitGreat looking Mk4 GolfJujhar did Chop Shop proud taking home a well deserved finest Mk4 awardJesse’s Passat with it’s new Rubber Wrap interesting look, reminded me of a guide coatSniped a shot of the trunk setup on this Jetta while waiting in the food lineOne of several very quick cars running the 1/4 mileAll buisnessLove this car so simple yet awesomeLooks like Mike’s car has changed a bit since the last time it was postedThese wheels look like Blonixx snowflakes but to be honest I’m not quite sure…That lift!Nice use of colours on this CorradoCouldn’t ask for a better shot opportunity than this.
There is going to be a lot of Eurokracy coverage the site and fanpage this week and I can’t think of a better way to start things off than with a Theme Tuesday dedicated to the crowd pleasing burnout contest.
This is actually the first burnout contest I’ve ever photographed (Lyndsey on the assist) and I couldn’t have asked for a better one to cut my teeth with.
There was absolutely no holding back from any of the competitors each of which went to the point of  damn near rubber laden air asphyxiation or mechanical failure.
The owner of this e30 was the first guy up and didn’t disappointThe second car had this pretty old Hoffman on the roof, can’t place the model… Â EP?This MK4 Golf started out well……then it blew upThe owner of this Civic had a hard time getting it to stay stillEventually he sorted it outNow you see her……now you don’tAnother vanishing act, these girls were troopersA little Scandinavian fogNice Mk2 GTI filling with smokeChap on the roof there is just hanging out drinking a PBRNo doubt the best non euro burnout of the dayScraped Crusaders holding things down for OntarioChampion honors went to Alex Teolis and Max Boileu with the burnout slutEquipped with masks they burned that slut to the groundJesse bein a Baws
For anyone pictured in these photos above yes I do have high res. If you are interested leave a comment below and I will shoot you an email.
Going to finish up the 2013 CSCS Beach Burnout coverage before moving on to what will be an onslaught of coverage from Eurokracy 2013.
Today’s coverage is made up of the photos I took while not on the track or hiding in the shade from the heat.
Pits
The proximity of the pits to the show and shine at Grand Bend makes it really easy to cross over from one to the other.
No missing Mike McGinnis car on the track or the pits now thanks to this bright new paint jobBeast.Tony Ho’s Civic taking in a little sun“Go around those wrecks you can drive through it!” I love Days Of ThunderStationary look at Anthony’s new carCivic waiting to head out on courseDylan’s car was a little temperamental at this round but still not bad for what I believe was it’s first competitive outingCars waiting to do their timed lapsJames Houghton’s Type RJames Kutschke brought out this FC RX-7 which I’ve never seen him with beforePeak inside the turbo charged spinning Dorito engine bayOf course we are all used to seeing him to in thisI don’t think I’ve actually ever taken a photo of his cockpitLater in the day I witnessed the Ratso Italiano almost get both front wheels in the air while running a quick quarterLooks like the car has a permanent passengerRiley’s Hard body between rounds
Show & Shine
It’s always nice to see cars you don’t often see out at Grand Bend mixed in with the usual suspects.
If this Crown Vic had thicker tires it would really complete the lookGary actually ran his truck down the quarter mile and laid a spanking on a Firebird, I believe he ran 14s with no fourth gearClean bay on this EK8th Gen on CCWSSleepy eyed FDI distinctly remember shooting this car at the 2012 beach burnout, the brushed lips are hard to forgetReally wish this 300zx was in a more photogenic locationBagged 370z on Stance wheels…Teknotik’s pair of JDM inspired buildsQuite liked this buildFew things I would change if it were mine but not much…
See you all at the next round which is July 28th at Mosport! For info on the series and standings check out cscs.ca
While looking into a photo of another crazy dragster from the 60’s I stumbled across this ‘compressed air’ dragster built by Honeywell (at the time named Garret and then shortly after AlliedSignal) that was powered by three 35 pound turbine engines that put out 750 pounds of torque a piece and topped out at 70,000 RPM.
The front suspension is from a Willy’sThe rear is from a Ford and the drums are Buick units
According to the ever growing list of historians on the H.A.M.B this dragster was initially designed to run entirely on compressed air but after that proved to be a little inefficient — it turns out you need a lot of compressed air to send a car down the strip at a good clip– things were tweaked so it ran on a mixture of air, alcohol and water.
All said and done the car went down the strip in staggering 8.75 seconds at 160 miles per hour and was stopped by nothing more than rear mounted drum brakes.
People interested to the point of investing in the project could do so via the mailer below:
No word on why exactly it was abondoned or what happened to it but it looks like all kinds of crazy which by now is par for the course in the 60s and 70s.
How’s that saying go? When men were men?
This appears to be a later rendition of the car lighting em up
Site Updates
Heading out to the Scraped Crusaders meeting spot for the Cruise to Eurokracy in about five minutes so anyone heading to the show this year see you there!
Going to take a quick break from the CSCS Beach Burnout coverage and light up the main stage for June Jitter Bug, a local Volkswagen show that takes place every year at Fireman’s Park in Niagara Falls.
Like Vanfest June Jitterbug is one of those shows I’ve wanted attend for a few years but can’t swing due to other events or personal commitments.
I have however run guest coverage from it before and this years comes from Mark Armstrong a long time reader and local enthusiast.
Nice awards at June Jitterbug, something you could hang up in your garageBit of a bug infestation…Of course these are bugs most people don’t mindAccording to Mark this was a father son build. Came out amazing both ought to be proudI like how this car looks spotless at first glance but then you begin to notice small hints of  age here and there that add to the appealI’ve still never had a PBR… worthy of the hype?It’s a Thing thing you wouldn’t understandLove the faded door artThis Type II bus fits right in with all the faded bugsLove the plate on this dune bugLittle bit of his and hers goin’ on hereBeatuiful ’56 Porsche SpeedsterThe awesome orange Ghia that I saw at Stretch & Poke’s Fitted eventIf I were a camping man  (I’m not) I wouldn’t mind one of theseGoogle leads me to believe this may be one of very few convertible converted  Scirocco’sWith the change in ownership I was wondering if this car would vanish but the new owner seems to enjoy bringing it out again and again which is greatClassicSomehow I never noticed the similarity between Tarmacs and Type A’s beforeDan’s car looks great with it’s new Hot Rod Flatz paint jobThis was a top 25 car at this years Jitterbug, it also happens to belong to the man who took all these photosI’ve always liked the treatment on this hood, pretty unique and I’ve never seen it copiedMK4 rocking super bright Vette wheelsAnother clever plateThis is pretty awesome simple, yet awesomeTT on X5 wheels, not bad at all
That’s all for this year hopefully I can make it next!
Last year’s “Beach Burnout” hosted by the Canadian Sport Compact Series was my first voyage out to Grand Bend and I learned that the six hours (round trip) of driving required to make it all work in one day is less than enjoyable so thinking ahead we made a weekend of it this year.
On Saturday we drove up to Lyndsey’s sisters in Exeter, went to Lucan for a tractor pull, and then woke up at a decent hour Sunday to make our way to the Grand Bend Motorplex.
Given that Sunday was incredibly hot I’m thankful we spent as little time in the 3 as possible because up until Monday  the air conditioning was still inoperable. With the weather being awesome and a beach just down the road the turnout looked to be about double it was last year which made everything busy.
The strip, the show and shine, Â and the track where today’s coverage begins.
Drifting
The CSCS team has been making a number of revisions to the drifting portion of the event to make it much more enjoyable and competitive for everyone involved. The introduced new judges, a new announcers, and a more refined judging system.
All of this definitely helped because the finals were some of the most evenly matched tandems I’ve ever seen at a CSCS event.
Jover was out agaiin ripping his f20 ae86. I’ve yet to get a great shot of this car which is something I hope to do before the season is outThis was the first time I had seen the Automatrix (boosted?) Miata at a CSCS event, he didn’t make the finals but I did manage to get this nice shotOne of the new additions to CSCS drifting are defined clipping points. Here are two drivers getting as close as possibleDylan got his LS powered Nissa out for this round… can’t wait to see how it does once he’s got it all dialed inFull out at full lockS14 on entry to the first cornerSame corner, similar car, different angleI should really know who this is by now…Being so bright Brad’s car is one of the easiest too shoot……the same can be said for Anthony’s Centerline Motorsports carBoth ended up making it into the top 4A miss shift in his chase run meant Anthony had to go all out in his lead lap against Marin. In the end Marin came out on top and moved onThis put Brad and Anthony head to head for 3/4 with Brad taking the 3 spotAs expected Riley was out sending it in his KA Hardbody and made it to the final two tandemAfter a close battle Marin triumphed and took home the dayBrad Celebrating his third place finish
Time Attack
The time attack drivers once again proved to be some of the best in the region as records were broken once again around the Time Attack course. People were looping the tight technical Grand Bend course in well under a minute.
Don’t often get to see a Corvette out ripping in a field made up almost entirely of ImportsMy two favorite CSCS time attack cars during practiceThis s14 took home street RWD at Cayuga and was looking just as fast in Grand BendE46 M3 taking full advantage of those tiresThe Stage 4 Celica is another car I love to watch rip around the track, don’t see many of them and this one is quickI beleive this Type R was running in the Street FWD classJames Houghton was running in unlimed FWD and looking to best the record he set last year of 55.059In unlimited AWD Mike McGinnis sent his newly painted florescent green Subaru around the track in stellar timesReal pleasure to watch this car run
Look out for some show and shine and paddock coverage later this week!
It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of lowriders and the lowriding culture and one of the people who documented that best is Jae Bueno.
Based in LA Jae had access to the best of the best when it came to lowriding (and everything else automotive) and his work was showcased online via Fatlace, and his own site, and a couple times he even appeared over on The Chronicles. His work has also been part of  numerous art exhibits as well.
One of the coolest parts about Jae’s work is that he and his wife worked together for most of his projects and as someone who brings their wife to most events it was pretty cool to see a husband and wife team making a living doing what they love.
Earlier today I found out today that Jae lost his battle with cancer so I’ve decided to pay a little respect to him and his work  with this weeks Theme Tuesday.
His work speaks for itself so I will let it do just that.
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