The 2012 race went the full 24 hours and was a terrific event. It was our first attendance at a 24 hour event but I am sure we will return very soon if not next year. It was recorded breaking attendance with nearly 80,000 fans on the infield and almost all of them camping in tents, trailers and motor homes. It was a very friendly environment and the racing was terrific. Katrina works for SunTrust Bank so it was a little disappointing to see the SunTrust Corvette break just after 30 minutes on the track. It was fast but some strange mechanical gremlin took it out.

We were very excited to see the new Ford powered teams do so well and take the overall win. Porsches dominated the GT class.

If you ever have the opportunity to attend a race in Daytona do it! We have now been to the 500, the 400 and the 24 Hour and have never been disappointed.

Here are some photos of the action on the track. In Part 2 we will take you into the temporary museum where examples of winning cars from the first 50 years were on display.  For many this may have been the highlight of the weekend.

I learned a lot by my first attendance at a Mecum Auction. I have gone to other car auctions from the big and glamorous Barrett Jackson Scottsdale to the little small town private collection sales but this was my first Mecum. It will not be my last. Katrina and I neither bought or sold a car this weekend but we were very tempted to pull out the bidder card and take one home but resisted the temptation. This is reportedly the biggest Collector Car auction in the Country with over 2,000 cars.

There was a big variety of cars both in condition and style. We saw some we would be scared to drive because they did not appear safe and we saw some we would be scared to drive because they were so rare and valuable.

The crew at Mecum did and excellent job with organization and presentation. We were even able to park our motor home on site and camp for $15 per night! This really made the experience enjoyable and easy.

One recommendation; do not assume that just because a car is being sold at a highly respected auction that it is a great car and the seller is not misrepresenting the car, its rarity or its condition. As always DO YOUR HOMEWORK and KNOW WHAT YOU ARE BUYING!

Here are some photos that will show the variety of cars at the auction.

The Ford Aero cars are about to go big time. Hold on to your titles, pack your bags and buy a warm coat. On November 16, 17 and 18, 2012 the Blue Oval collectors are all going to gather in Chicago for the third Talladega Family Reunion! Like previous years the Reunion will be held within a larger show. In 2012 it will be the Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals. This is a terrific opportunity to display your 1969 Ford Aero cars at one of the most prestigious muscle car events of the year.

As a result of Jason Thompson taking his Red Banjo Matthews Ford Talladega Prototype car (Watch for this car at the 2012 Scottsdale Barrett Jackson auction) to the 2011 show Bob Ashton, the main promoter of the show, is creating room for a very special Ford Aero display in the 2012 Show. Jason states that he has been working with Bob for the last month and the show is considering having a group of winged MOPARs on one side of an isle and a group of Aero Ford family cars on the other.

This will be the 2012 Talladega Family Reunion event which includes all 1969 Ford Talladegas, Mercury Cyclone Spoiler and Spoiler II Dan Gurney, and Cale Yarbrough cars. (No clones!) This will be a huge show with lots of super rare cars.  Click Here and check out some pictures from the 2011 Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals and see what others have said about the show. Jason estimates that they had approximately 540 cars on display this year but had over 2500 applications wanting to attend!

If you own one of these cars his is a great opportunity for your car to be placed on the same pedestal as all of the other super cars (This year they had eighteen ZL1 Camaros and five 1971 Hemi Cuda convertibles!). You will also have the opportunity to meet with other Ford Aero car owners and even Register your car in the Talladega Spoiler Registry.

If you are interested please contact Jason Thompson as soon as possible.  Send your email AND mailing address to:

 Jason Thompson

thompsons122@charter.net

865-621-4012

Once Jason has a group of names to send in Bob will send each of us a special invitation/application and hotel information. Don’t delay!

Bristol Dragway

Mr Lopata will be leaving his position as president of THE FORGE INVITATIONAL MUSCLECAR SHOW and taking over the chores of co-ordinating the 2 day all FORD show.

While producing The Forge it was chosen by MSN as one of the top 8 shows in the Country to see. He has put together a display,along with the BOSS 429 registry,the first time in history every color of the 429 cars to roll down the assembly line in 1969 and 1970. With the help of Jason Thompson the largest display of Talladega and Cyclone cars in one place since they were built. He will be bringing that same experiance,along with already having an involvement with FORD RACING, in putting together what will not only be one of the premier events on the east coast but one of the best all FORD events anywhere.

There will also be a special BOSS display for all attendees from Tim’s FORGE SHOW and others at the 2012 event. We are going to see if we can provide MCA type judging for this category; also a 1964 – 2012 mustang display.

He will also continue to provide displays for the NHRA race and NASCAR / FOODCITY FANFEST event which fall on differant dates during the 2012 season. The event will also promote drag racing for the weekend and will have spacing for FORD and other parts vendors and even has swap meet spaces for the garage guy looking for that hard to find part.

All info to be added to the FFW website soon.

For vendor sponsor info contact:

Tim Lopata

copo427@charter.net

These photos show the car while it was still under construction. If you want to see more details check out Rad Rods by Troy web site.

This rear view with the spoiler is the way the real Talladega should have looked.

This picture gives you a unique look into the inner construction of this wild machine. Note the Boss 9 engine.

Here is another of the great vintage drag racing films provided by Tim Lopata of the Forge Muscle Car Show. This includes a feature on Danny Ongais when he was a drag racer before he went Indy Car Racing.

A big part of what we do here at Legendary Collector Cars is to bring you pictures and stories about car related events and places that you might not ever get to see on your own. This includes car shows, museums, private collections as well as restoration and custom speed shops. We recently completed just such a tour at the father son team of Michael (the father) and Jeremy (the son) Goodstein Rod & Custom Machine & Fabrication shop in rural TN.

I wasn’t sure what awaited me when Jeremy contacted me by email and invited me to visit their shop. I always am very careful with such invitations. I expect high quality and ethics in people I deal with and I don’t want to promote anyone who is out to make a fast buck on the wallet of a car guy. Too many shops are more than willing to clean out an unsuspecting client who may not have the time, equipment and/or talent to do his own work. Such shops will take your money, tear your car apart and never start the promised build you so dreamed of. After a few brief email exchanges and phone calls I felt safe in investing the time to tour the Goodstein’s facility and see what they had to offer.

I am glad I did. Not only is their shop one of the best equipped I have seen for a small team operation but 10,000 square feet gives them plenty of room to work. The name of the shop, Rod & Custom Machine & Fabrication really says it all. They can build a car from scratch to show winning trophy condition in short order. They are partial to the Chrysler cars and especially the Hemi engine. The father son team are long time drag racers and have even built their own aluminum 426 Hemi blocks and still build their own Hemi heads on site. They have two CNC machines and make most of their own custom one off brackets and other billet items for the cars they are constructing.

Two of the vehicles I inspected in their shop were recent graduates from other shops. The results of the prior work was far from acceptable to the owners and they immediately sent their dream rides off to graduate school with the Goodstein’s to make everything work and look just right!

We hope to make this only the first of multiple articles, we hope to show you some more of the cars in their shop during my visit and we plan to visit again. At that time we will give you more details on a couple of the finished cars to give you a more complete idea of what this father son team is capable of.

If you would like to know more about these two and talk to them about how they might be able to assist you just call Jeremy at 615-496-1789.

Remember, this is simply a review of this shop and reflects only our opinion; it in no way should be considered a warranty or guarantee of any work or abilities past, present or future.

Our friend Tim Lopata has a large collection of vintage racing moving from back in the day and agreed to share some of them with us. Here is one that all of you drag racers will find interesting. It is vintage 1970 lots of action from the Bristol Drag Strip.

This is a little long but if you like racing you will love this. If you are too young to know what it was like in the beginning this will help explain it all. If you were there you most likely don’t remember it! Sit back and enjoy the way it was! The closing says it all…..

“Drag Racing? Well, its anything but a drag!”

We thank Steve and Nancy and hope you enjoy this brief coverage. I have this event on the calendar for 2012 and hope nothing gets in the way between now and then.

Look close at the photos and see if you can find Dennis Gauge from the TV Show My Classic Car.

Displays were held on the infield on Friday, Saturday and Sunday but the big activity was the “on track” event on Saturday immediately following Cup qualifying. These are all Legendary cars and to see them and to drive one on this most famous track of all was a thrill that will not soon leave the gearhead!

I hope you enjoy this video as much as I enjoyed putting it together!

One of the highlights for us this year was having the opportunity to drive our 1969 Ford Talladega on the Legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I have been attending races at the Speedway off and on since the early 70s but never imagined that I would one day have the opportunity to drive my car on the famed oval! However, first things first.

The on track video is being prepared and will be posted shortly. Today’s video is all about the car show held in the infield the two days before the Brickyard 400. We tried to include every aero car at the event but they were coming and going all weekend so we may have missed a couple and if we did we apologize to those owners.

If you were one of the few who did attend I am sure you appreciated the quality of the cars present. If you were not in attendance then I hope you will enjoy this quick photo summary of the event.

We just returned from another fantastic Forge Muscle Car Classic in Sevierville, TN. The car count was low but the quality was high. This year as last the show incorporated the Talladega Family Reunion for all Ford Talladega and Spoiler cars. There were over 20 of these fabulously rare cars in attendance and had center stage for the entire event. Foremost among these was the Michael Troell owned Bunkie Knudsen car. This is one very special car, it was the personal car of 1969 Ford President, Bunkie Knudsen, and built at his personal request and to his specifications.

In a few days we will go into more detail on the show and this special car but for now here are a few teaser photos to wet your appetite.

Below you will find some of the cars they found interesting and wanted to share with our visitors. Hope you enjoy them.

What follows are some of our favorite shots from Sherri’s camera.

I want you to pay special attention to the images of the agile photographers STANDING ON THE REAR WING OF A DODGE DAYTONA! That car belongs to Brent and Sherri. I can not imagine doing such a thing but they risked all for some good photo! A big thank you goes out to these loyal car enthusiasts.

In the photos below also look for NASCAR legend Kyle Petty and his side kick for the night, Rutledge Wood. Also look for Leonard Wood, Wood Brothers Racing, who is doing some autographs including a helmet for Katrina and I.

What would you do if you and the family went out on a Friday night to the local Mug n’ Bun, A&W or Dairy Queen for a little summer fast food and found yourself surrounded by fabulous and rare Superspeedway Muscle Cars from the late 60s? That is just what happened to some folks in Indianapolis last weekend. We were there with a 100 of our fastest friends to show our cars in the infield and take a lap of the famed Indy Speedway during the Brickyard 400.

Part of the ritual of such events is a night at a local old school fast food drive-in. This Mug n’ Bun is only a few short blocks from the historical Indy Speedway and was the perfect spot for our informal gathering. Obviously, this site caused quite a traffic jam in the parking lot and surrounding streets.

To see anyone of these cars on the street is a rare sighting but to find them gathering in one location for a regular night out on the town will take your breath away. To top it off some NASCAR TV announcers even showed up at the same time to chow down and take in the sights.

So, what would YOU DO if you found this site at your local drive-in one Friday night? Leave us you comments below.

Also remember to like us on Facebook!

This is another of our Backtracking Posts about the way it was back in the day.

In 1971 the Ontario Motor Speedway opened in Ontario, CA. It was built as a clone of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In those days the Indy Track was only used for one race a year, the INDY 500. The possibility of ever racing stock cars on it was unthinkable. That made the Ontario Track potentially very special. Unfortunately, due to bad management and poor timing the track was soon abandoned and eventually became a large office and shopping center. Although I lived for over 20 years very near here the track had been  it was not until after it was closed, bull dozed and rebuilt into more typical Southern California asphalt, steel and concrete with lush landscaping added to add taste. As a city planning consultant I did some land development design work on the property with very mixed emotions. When it came time that I needed fill dirt for my new home’s backyard I actually purchased excess fill dirt from turn one!

I did live in the area long enough to attend races at the Riverside track and witness its demise to the same fate. What a shame! I was also there when the monstrosity of the Fontana Speedway was designed and built.

I recently discovered a terrific magazine article from 1971. It was published in the May issue of Motor Trend Magazine and was authored by Jim Brokaw. It is was of the most fun reads I have ever come across regarding a NASCAR race. I have provided a complete copy on our Resources Pages for you Team Members over at our sister site TalladegaSpoilerRegistry.com.

In a few days the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race will be running at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. For the first time I am aware of there will be over 100 of the Aero Cars (1969 Ford Talladega, Mercury Cyclone Spoiler II, Dodge Daytona and 1970 Plymouth Superbird) on display and taking laps on the track. None of these cars ever had the opportunity to race at Indy but some of them did something almost as good.

Back to the Motor Trend article! Remember, this is an article from 1971. Although this wasn’t Indy it was as close as any stock car had ever gotten to the famed track. No one was sure what to expect. 1971 was the first season after the Aero Wars ended with the Talladega and Daytona/Superbirds fighting it out on the Super speedways. No clear winner came from the 1969 season although David Pearson and the Ford Talladega won the Season Championship and Bobby Issac winning the 1970 Season in a Daytona.

All the manufactures had new cars by the time the 1971 season rolled around and the big winged cars were all but forgotten due to NASCAR mandated rule changes. So what did the Woods Brothers bring to the fight at the new Ontario Speedway? A 1969 Mercury Cyclone with AJ Foyt behind the wheel!

A total of 51 cars qualified for the 500 mile race and they all started three abreast just like the smaller open wheeled cars at the Indy 500. Foyt was not the only 1969 Merc in the race; there were many more. In fact there were four 1969 Mercury Cyclones in the top ten at the end of the race including AJ in the winning car!

When was the last time you saw a two year old body style win a top NASCAR race! Hell, when was the last time you saw a NASCAR race where you could recognize the car let alone the year it was manufactured?

The author, Jim Brokaw, does an excellent job of entertaining and summarizing the happenings of that day with blatant humor in this old Motor Trend article. Check it out!

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did putting it together.

The Roller Hoop has been a wonderful asset to our restoration efforts. The Roller Hoop was just an Idea in my head about six years ago and now it is such a part of my daily life of restoring cars, I couldn’t imagine doing a car without it!   I also train young guys to become skilled talented craftsmen and they take to the Roller Hoop like a three year old to a computer! There is no doubt in my mind that 5 to 10 years from now this product will be as common in a resto shop as a hydraulic floor jack, in my shop I have three jacks and five Roller Hoops up in action right now.

It is a very simple concept, two hoops that mount to the car body via custom built triangle jigs, that bolt to structural portions of the body shell ( shock mounts, suspension mounting holes, many places on a strip down body shell will provide great places to mount to. A car body was never designed to be hung from the ends especially a rusty car!  Since the Roller hoop mounts inboard of the body shell the stress load is basically non existence!  Mounting a body shell in the Hoops is a relatively easy process that is fully explained in our 36 page illustrated hand book that comes with the system. We also provide a hour long DVD that shows many tips, uses and ideas.

The Roller Hoop is a very versatile system that can be easily moved about the shop outside onto a trailer etc. with the rolling caster legs that quickly slip on & pin lock on to the Hoops; it rolls around like a large shopping cart!  With our patented design comes some unique attachment that allow you to quickly lift the system to remove or install the legs and lower it back on the Roller base units. The Hoops simply roll on them like a beach ball in a swimming pool!  When you’re ready to work on one spot of the body you simply step on of the four foot brakes to lock it into position.  There is so much more to learn about this exciting new product, be sure to visit the web site www.rollerhoop.com and take it for a spin!  You will find the price very competitive to other high line rotisseries. The price is $1395 for the basic system and $1995 for the full system which even comes with a very handy and nice looking storage rack! Ordering is as simple as a phone call, email, or even send us a check in the mail see the web site for contact info.

Thanks, Doug Kielian.

If you note in some of the photos Doug is working on some neat stuff in his shop. I am really partial to the 67-68-69-70 Mustangs and is shop is full of them.  I hope to bring you some more details on at least one of them in the next few weeks. It will blow your mind.

They sent along a few photos from the show you might enjoy.

I was a happy camper trying to decide which Yenko was best!

Private car collections are often the most fascinating and the most difficult to visit. Friend Andy Snetselaar arranged for me to visit him at his “best job” in the car world. He is the curator of the Albaugh Collection in Ankeny, Iowa. I can not tell you were but is a beautiful location but NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC other than one day a year. If you want to know more about this special day visit the Albaugh Classic web site.

I am a muscle car kind of guy but this was beautiful!

For more complete coverage of our visit go to our Museum Page dedicated to this wonderful Private Collection.

Here are just a few teaser photos of our visit.

I spun around and went back. It was well past closing time but there was no fence so I wondered in. It was raining but I was determined to soak in this memory. I wondered about and didn’t find anything I couldn’t live without but everything had a price on the windshield (if it had one) and the prices seemed like a place to begin rather than a “Blue Light Special”.

Here are a couple of examples, if you want to see more go to our Barn Find Page to see these and many more.

Here it is, the final product of the Thelma and Louise video staring Taylor Swift and Shania Twain. We had a fantastic time I set Monday when all of this footage was shot outside of Nashville in near 100 degree temperatures. This was a really great experience and we are so proud of the final product and that we could be a small part of it.

Everyone you see in the video was on set with the exception of the “Donald”.

I thought you might like to see the video that opened the CMT Awards with Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, Kid Rock, Ron White and Kenny Rogers. Katrina and I were thinking of selling the TBird after owning it for 10 years but think maybe we will keep it a little longer. Enjoy our cars 10 minutes of fame.

It is our 1965 Thunderbird that Taylor and Shania along with Kid Rock are using in the Thelma and Louise parody for the CMT Awards.

We were on location from 6:00 AM until nearly 8:00 PM. That was a long day in the hot Tennessee summer sun. However, the real work started after that by the production company turning all of that raw footage into the video you will see on TV 48 hours later!

To see a video on this 1965 Thelma and Louise Parody Thunderbird, Click Here.

It was a very fogy morning when the first videos were underway.

Kid Rock as a hitch hiker? Only in TN!

Most of the video of the driving was done with the car on the ground but the close ups were done on a trailer.

“Thelma and Louise” in our 1965 Thunderbird!

Our Bird hit the road with “Thelma and Louise”!

Camera crew at BP gas station.

Hot gas station guy fills their tank! Detail note; the gas door is on the driver’s side but this made a better photo!

Shania is a beautiful woman!

In front of the Church that became a music studio, waiting for Taylor to come running out the door!

Our two stars get a little protection from the sun! This was a dry run before the actual shots were made. Shania was to drive forward and pick up Taylor as she ran out to jump into the Thunderbird. During the “dress rehearsal” the assistants ran along side the car to keep the ladies in the shade of the umbrellas; it was quite a site.

First Kid Rock now Kenny Rogers standing along side the rode in TN signing a song. Love this place!

Kid Rock waits for his scene sitting on the back of the Thunderbird.