Today we’ll be showing some love to Quebec via Beaucefest coverage provided by Gabriel Lescomb of French Canadian VDO.
With camping, limbo, and live DJ this event had a bit of something for everyone and from the looks of it the event was a great time. The two-day indoor/outdoor event was also a fundraiser for the Bruno Giroux Foundation.
Big thanks to Gabe for the coverage. Be sure to check him out at French Canadian VDO.
I swear I wrote about this truck before, but I can’t seem to find the original post, so until I do we’ll just go ahead and proceed like I never have.
What you’re looking at below is a twin turbo big block, mid engine s10.
Built because “his dad suggested it”, and because it is apparently easier to work on when compared to leaning over fenders this truck has been bouncing around the internet for two years.
Looking at it you’d imagine a truck like this to be strictly a track vehicle but it’s actually plated and the owner does drive it from track to track and to the odd cruise night.
Given the long wheel base I imagine navigating the streets with this isn’t the easiest thing in the world but I reckon it’s worth it for the reactions.
Of course, a drag truck post without a dyno video is no fun, so here’s a video of its first dyno run where it hit 1156HP.
Additionally here’s a short interview with the owner as well with a ten second pass at the end.
More info can be found on The Stretchy Trucks facebook page as well as 1320video.
As some of you may know one passion I have that runs neck and neck with the one I do for cars is BMX. While I don’t ride quite as often or as hard as I used to, I still get out about once a week and follow the scene pretty closely.
Being fairly involved in both scenes I’ve noticed a lot of cross over, some of which I documented in ‘Rider Owned‘ part one and today I’ll continue the BMX/Car enthusiast round-up.
I omitted myself from part one because I’m not a big self hype guy, but I managed to pull together an edit about a year ago that I’m still pretty proud of so I’ll put my modesty aside.
I met Darcy through Mike, my partner in crime in the video above and he shreds. Since he lives in Calgary we only get to ride together once or twice a year but every time we do it’s good times.
Darcy is also quite capable behind the wheel of a drift car and as a Rally navigator/driver.
While he doesn’t ride professionally anymore (he does still ride on occasion) John Ludwick of The Governer’s Club was a pro for a period of time. He even came out to Toronto a few times for Metro Jam so there’s a good chance we’ve actually met and ridden together, small world.
He also has an awesome Corvair, among other things.
Not sure how I forgot Webby in part one, perhaps I couldn’t find any good drifting flicks because there’s no shortage of good riding footage of him.
From what I can tell he competes in an amatuer series in the UK and seems to be doing aright at it.
Larry Edgar is yet another rider/drifter who predictably kills it at both.
Drift photos were a little hard to find so instagram rips will have to do.
As ekka mentioned in the comments of the last post Luke Fink was a huge omission from part 1. Dude shreds a BMX and absolutely slays behind the wheel.
A recent post on Speedhunters has more on Luke’s latest drifting exploits and his instagram is full of drift coverage as well.
I tried my hardest not to repeat people from last time but I am going to make an exception for Heath Pinter because his current truck (featured in Truck Trend) is extremely relevant to my interests I’ve decided to conclude part two with it.
His trails are awesome too:
I’ve probably forgot a few more riders so let me know in the comments and I’ll update this one as I go.
Nothing says summer more than the combination of good weather, good food, good friends and nice cars and for the fifth year in a row the Majestics & Luxurious Lowrider clubs of Toronto have toasted to summer with their come one, come all BBQ at Humber Valley park.
This year their annual cookout fell on the same day as a conflicting family BBQ of my own, and after unsuccessfully lobbying to move the family shindig to the same venue I gave Chris Johnston a heads up about the event, and twisted his arm to take some photos for the site.
Since Chris had already been to the show last year it didn’t really take much convincing to get him to return once more.
Chris wasn’t the only one who was back for a second year either, Gill from the Scraped Crusaders& also returned having had such a great time the year previous.
I mean how could you not have a good time? The food –beef fajitas this year– and music –always classic west coast rap– already put this event on a level above many in the area but when it comes down to it the cars are what make it truly unique.
In the grand scheme of things here in Ontario Lowriders are somewhat of a rarity. There are a fair number throughout Ontario sure, but it’s still pretty rare to see more than a handful in one place at any given time.
That’s what has made this BBQ a ‘must cover’ event here at Stance Is Everything.
The attention to detail within this scene is bar none, some of the highest in the Province, and truly deserving of showcasing.
Lowrider enthusiasts are the type to sweat the smallest of details and modify the most minute of components.
Firewalls, roofs, fender skirts and trim are chromed, painted, flaked, gold leafed, pinstriped, and muraled, body panels are razor straight, motors could easily be put to use in drag cars, and stereos are loud.
Yet despite the fact that thousands are invested in all of these vehicles not a trophy or an award is in sight.
These guys do it purely for the love.
Maybe that’s why people like Chris, Gil, and myself like these events so much. For people who have countless hours invested in their cars they are some of the most laid back and nonchalant about it.
Without hesitation several of them will put their chromed and painted to the nines cars up on back bumper repeatedly for little more than bragging rights.
Lets not forget that for several of these cars there’s no trailer to ride home on either. They drove in and are expected to drive back out.
Unlike a lot of other events in the area this one is not only admission free, but drama free as well.
This means that anyone, no matter what they drive, or what their age or background might be is free to come by and enjoy the good times.
Of course I could continue to go on about the event but the more I talk about it the more I realize what I missed.
Cruise by next year, you won’t regret it!
I really, really, really, try do avoid single picture WTF Friday posts but I honestly can’t find any other photos of this e30 clipped Nissan. It’s almost like other than this photo the car didn’t at all exist.
Since I can’t find any more information questions like why it was done and why an early model e30 was used simply go unanswered. Very unsatisfying.
Can anyone help a brother out?
The first Fleetwood Country Cruise In I attended was in 2011 and then it was easily one of the largest and best classic car shows I had ever been to. I’ve wanted to return ever since but there was usually some sort of scheduling conflict preventing me from doing so.
This year I happened to be near London the weekend it was held which gave me a chance to check the show out on its last day. Unfortunately the not quite so favorable forecast drove a few show goers home early.
However the day was by no means a waste as there were still a lot of cars worth taking a long look at.
Right near the entrance The Jalopy Jam Up had a small display of traditionally styled cars that gave people a taste of what to expect from their show August 14th and 15th.
Part of the display was the Mercury Maurder below that I simply can’t resist taking multiple photos of at any event I see it.
Bagged and sitting on Astro Surpremes this car perfectly represents the height of the kustom era, while still looking simply stunning today.
It has a timeless look which is something I am really looking to achieve with Project Why Wait.
The entrance of the Plunkette Estate is also where they had the celebrity guests. George Barris, Linda Vaughn (Miss Hurst), and the legendary Gene Winfield were just a few of the big names that made the trek for this show.
Near the stars were cars that they worked on or drove, including the Jade Idol II which is a car built-in tribute to the Jade Idol, the first car Gene ever sectioned.
Of course there was also the George Barris designed Monkee mobile GTO as well.
The show also hosted a Dukes of Hazzard reunion, and further within the grounds you could find starts of the show as well as a handful of General Lees.
Many were replicas but the one showing a bit of damage below was an actual show driven car.
The rest of the expansive estate was filled with a wide variety of different vehicles, from A Dodge Rampage (one of the only ones I have ever seen) to a Jr Dragster and everything in between.
A stand out car, that I’m not ashamed to admit I couldn’t identify without looking at the information on the windshield, was this ’39 LaSelle made by Stylish Getaway cars.
Unlike anything I had seen before the “Ice Queen” was part boat tail speedster, part hot rod, and a significant part one off custom.
Recently the car drove to Salina Kansas where it took home the 777 Custom Crown award at the 34th annual Kustom Keps of America Leadsled spectacular.
I had previously never heard of Stylish Getaway Cars before, but I’ll be sure to keep an extra eye out for their builds. If they all look like this it shouldn’t be too hard.
The car I’m choosing to end this post off with however is a surviving 1957 stock eliminator record holding drag car.
Built when light parts didn’t exactly come easy this car has some of the most extreme weight saving measures I’ve ever seen.
I can’t imagine just how long it took to do all of that work with a hole saw, but the owner tells me the weight savings were quite significant.
If my memory isn’t leading me astray I believe it was to the tune of 1000 pounds saved in comparison to factory trim.
The new owner plans to drive the car in the nostalgic drag races this year so it will be interesting to see if it still does the numbers it did back in it’s Glory Days and lives up to the ’11th commandment’ on the dash.
Last week on instagram goodnewamos suggested that I do a Ford Probe Theme Tuesday.
Being a sucker for a good challenge I dove head first into a land of swing up doors and body kits until I came back with a collection of Ford Probes that didn’t scream 1998.
Probin’ ain’t easy.
The car above is actually the second Probe he built, with the one below being the first
A few years ago on the way back from a local classic car cruise Lyndsey brought up the would be project I’ve been talking about since the day we met. Something that I would buy, wrench on for a few years, and most importantly keep for many years once it’s done.
Of course specifics like what that vehicle would be or when I would start it were up in the air. I was content with ‘one day’ and ‘something’. She said why wait, why not now?
With plans to start a family and a larger second home (with a two car garage) inevitable I suggested that now might not be the best time for a project.
She challenged saying that it also wasn’t the worst time.
Her only words of warning were that I not put us in the poor house, and that I don’t think of the project as solely mine. Yes I would be doing the work but it would be hers, and ultimately our sons as well.
Meeting her more than fair terms was no problem, so we began to seriously think about what vehicle we would soon own. E30s and Blazers were quickly canned, because repeating the past wasn’t something she was interested in.
Anything newer than 1970 was cut as well because if we were going to ‘invest’ a sizable amount of money into a vehicle it had to be one that would at least maintain some of its value.
Both being Chevy fans we started there, and car wise we both love Chevelle’s but they were out of our immediate price range. I’m not sure if it were her or I, but one of us suggested why not a truck? They are generally a bit cheaper, generally a bit more practical, and generally pretty awesome all around.
We ran the idea past good friend Blair Taylor of Taylor’d Customs and he was more than on board to help everything come together.
Over dinner a rough game plan was sketched out and the hunt was on.
This was all roughly two and a half years ago and from then to now we came close in our search several times. Then life threw us a few curve balls, most notably my old car losing about a foot of cargo space.
Staying in the 3 family allowed me to keep the truck fund whole, which meant that I was able to start the search anew this year.
Eager to get a base before something else happened, I looked at a number of trucks, and I must thank Blair and Jeff Wybrow for being good sports about my asking questions about several trucks that were prettied up piles or rust and bondo.
While I sifted through Southern Ontario rot boxes Blair sourced a really clean base out in Saskatchewan.
Money quickly changed hands and I can now officially present the first long-term Stance Is Everything build; Project Why Wait?.
At the beginning of our search we were dead set on ’55 – ’57 Chevrolet but as time went on Lyndsey decided she liked the earlier style better so we refined the search to 48 – 54.
A GMC was actually never part of the plan but sometimes you just have to roll with it and in the grand scheme of things a 5 window GMC is a bit more unique.
From purchase to delivery at Taylor’d Customs was about three weeks, and when it arrived I was glad I passed up on the numerous other trucks I considered and scored an unmolested all original.
Though it doesn’t have a bed this truck is very complete and very clean.
During the search Blair stressed that while I wanted to keep something in patina today, I may not in the tomorrow so I should buy something that could reasonably be painted some day in the future.
Being incredibly solid –other than the need for a passenger side cab corner and patches in a few other, very small, areas– this truck is a great candidate for one day wearing glossy paint should I go in that direction.
Currently the plan is to leave the patina, match a bed to it, and put it on the ground, but future plans and further specifics about this truck will be ironed out in subsequent posts.
For now I’m just happy to have finally landed the ‘something’ I always wanted and I’m over joyed that ‘someday’ has become now.
It goes without saying that I am extremely excited to start wrenching on this truck, and I really look forward to a long future cruising around in it with my wife and son.
This will be the first full build I have ever done and I plan to post it all up here. Hopefully some of you can contribute with advice, tips, parts and encouragement a long the way.
I’m going to need it.
The summer of 2015 seems to be flying by with the second round of the Canadian Sport Compact Series coming up tomorrow at Toronto Motorsports Park Cayuga.
Usually CSCS event coverage is up a lot sooner than the day before the next event, but with May through June being a particularly busy time here in Toronto it’s been a bit of a shuffle getting all the coverage up.
Drake Nolte is back again contributing to the CSCS coverage for the 2015 season and for round one he took in the entire CSCS weekend experience by staying the night at the venue.
As soon as the sun rose and engines began to fire he and the CSCS time attack field eagerly awaited their chance to hit the track for some of the first 2015 racing action.
The Driver Development Track at this venue is a favorite of many so the time attack roster was pretty full with many drivers looking to start the 2015 season out on the right foot.
The drift course run at this venue is a particularly challenging one being held on a banked corner and it gave the slightly smaller than usual drift field a run for their money.
Once the tire smoke settled it was Nelson Montiero who wound up on top of the podium and sitting first place in the standings leading into tomorrow’s round two event.
The show and shine field this year was treated to a few out-of-town residents who stuck around from the Fitted Event the day before to see what all the CSCS hype was about.
In addition to the crews from Ottawa and Quebec there was a large showing of Southern Ontario locals in attendance who were debuting their 2015 looks.
The weather is looking great for tomorrow’s event so hopefully I’ll see you all out at Toronto Motorsports Park Cayuga bright and early tomorrow!
Doing my rounds this week looking for something to post today I found myself on The Amazo Effect (which I have not visited in a while) and stumbled across this peculiar looking hot rod of sorts.
I couldn’t tell what it was at first glance, and the reason for that is because the starting point for this car is a Ford Anglia 105e, one of several cool UK only Fords that never made their way over here.
This car of course looks nothing like it did when it left the factory care of a chop and channeling job.
Other unique exterior features include the trick location for the turn signals, Cadillac lights, and an exhaust that exits right behind the rear wheel.
The interior is a hearty dose of customization as well and the olive drab color from the exterior flows inside complimented by splashes of gold/brass and raw metal seats.
The twine wrapped wheel is a nice cherry on top, as it were.
The chassis looks to be custom crafted from at least the firewall forward, and in front of that firewall is a BMW M42 engine. Why a BMW motor? I guess the answer here is why not.
More photos of this outstanding car can be found over at The Amazo Effect
