PonyGirl's blog

As I said before, it was a rip roaring good time at the Vintage Torque Fest and thanks to the merciful technical lords above, the gremlins plaguing KruzinUSA have been put to rest and I can bring you the remaining coverage from this far out fest!  I cannot stress enough what a blast this shin dig was and how happy I am that after reading up on the Torque Fest website, the show was a success.  I made mention that Vintage Torque Fest gate proceeds and art auction benefit the Helping Hannahs Heart Foundation.  This year they were able to give a family in need $5,000.  How about that for a good cause.  The art auction raised $20,000 with the proceeds going to the Hannah Wells Medical Trust.  Hopefully those funds will go a long way to help defray the medical expenses of Hannah's family and help them find the best care for their daughter. 

All outdoor shows have to deal with old Mother Nature and this year she did her best to put the kibosh on the Vintage Torque Fest  I think it's a testament to the popularity and "one of a kindness" of this relatively new show that people were showing up with 100% chance of rain in the forecast and temps hovering in 30's.  Over 600 rides showed up from near and far and the place was packed with spectators hoping to up their cool quotient.  Great show, great people and much more than "just" a car show.  I'll say it again, it was a feast for the senses and I'm a FAN.  

To my friend on Facebook who thought 6 hours was too far to drive - gas up next year buddy, this one is WORTH the drive.  The dates for 2014 will be forthcoming.  Now take some time and check out my view of the 2013 Vintage Torque Fest.

By the by my loyal friends, check out the Most Recent Gallery and cast an eyeball at over 300 shots from this spectacle.  And if you didn't catch it the first time around, check out my video form Torque Fest on our homepage.

Til the next time - Keep on Kruzin!

The epicenter of cool was in Dubuque, Iowa this past weekend.  Yes Kats and Kittens it's that Festival of Thrills you have heard so much about  the Vintage Torque Fest.  It rocked and rolled, bopped and stomped the Hawkeye state.  Billed as the coolest thing to hit Dubuque, friends this show didn't just hit, it smashed, backed over it, hit again and then left a nice patch of burned rubber on top of it all.  Rides for near and far rolled into town and it was a site to see.  Keeping the tradition alive was the name of the game and with well over 500 rides out everyone was there to play.     

There were rods and relics, honeys and horsepower.  You could pick up some tricked out togs, while noshing on a delicacy from the Chocolate Hog. (Don't ask - just make it next year and you'll understand)  There was a burnout pit - awesome and Motorcycle racing - awesome, no dirt track this year - not awesome but  what do you want it was Mother Nature's Call!   The bands rocked ALL day and night.  The "Texas Troubadour" Mr. Dale Watson blew my mind and my record collection has grown thanks to his amazing performance.  

It was a gathering of like minded folks who wanted to come out, have a good time and give to a great cause.  Vintage Torque Fest proceeds benefit the Helping Hannahs Heart Foundation, an organization that was set up to aid families caring for children with congenital heart defects.  A truly altruistic event and it just gives you a good feeling knowing you are helping people that work so hard for such a good cause.  I will say this only once, mark you calendars for 2014, this is a one of a kind must see event.  A festival is the perfect description, it was a feast for the senses.  Cars, cars, cars and oh so much more.  

The Gods of Technology are not smiling on me friends.  I have a website that is fighting back and I can't load all the fantabulous pics I shot of this spectacle.  For that I am sorely bummed and very sorry that I can't deliver them to you like now!  I'm going to visit the local witch doctor and hopefully he's got a potion that will kill de bugs that are wrecking my life.  Until then I will be uploading my pics when this devil site will let me! For now you will have to be satisfied with these moving pictures from the Fest.

Check out vintagetorquefest.com for more info on this great show.

Til the next time - Keep on Kruzin

I was wandering around YouTube when I came across these Jobergg production videos and quickly became fascinated by the "Ice Camaro".  I don't often do this but I was so intrigued by these videos I just had to share them with you in my blog.  These are from "The Swedish Motor Channel" and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.  It just goes to show you that you can be from the land of Saab and Volvo and still worship at the altar of American Muscle.

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Til the next time - Keep on Kruzin

The Typhoon we had in our Spotlight a while back was recently featured on the website Street Legal TV.  I thought I would revisit and share the article we put together on the Typhoon for the benefit our our new visitors who may have missed it the first time around.  This really is one bad truck and it has generated some heated debate.  We said it before but it is worth repeating, this truck is a purist's nightmare!  With that in mind our hats off for off the hook vision.  Oh and a big welcome to our new friends from Street Legal TV.  Here is the full Spotlight on the "Bad to the Bone Typhoon".

A number of you have commented to us about the unusual looking GMC Typhoon truck in the public gallery and have asked for more info on it, so we decided we'd do a Spotlight feature on it.

It started out as a stock, all wheel drive, turbocharged V-6 Typhoon bought new in 1993 by it's current owner, but after he grenaded the 'tweaked" V-6 for the third time, he decided he'd try something completely different with it.  To the chagrin of the purist Typhoon collector, he junked the entire drive train and dropped in a 438 cu. in. blown, nitrous small block V-8 that puts out close to 900 HP.

He sandwiched in a turbo hydro 3 speed tranny, hooked it to a burly GMC transfer case that now feeds those 900 horses to a beefed up differential in the front and in the rear to a Currie 9" Ford rear end. (Yes, it's still all wheel drive!)

While he was at it, he junked the entire stock suspension too.  Now, it's got  tubular A arms with coil overs in the front.

In the rear, the truck now has coil over ladder bars (with wheelie bars to keep the front end planted)

And to heap insult on injury to the classic purist mentality, the owner decided he could improve on the stock Typhoon's look by chopping the top 2 1/2 inches.

And oh yeah, he added a tilt front too!

The end result is one bad, hot rodded, Pro-Street Typhoon - take a gander.

You can check out the write up at Street Legal TV.  Can we pick 'em or what!

TIl the next time - Keep on Kruzin!

We see the finished product and nearly every cruise night and car show we go to, especially those featuring hot rods, customs and ahem... rat rods.  We hear the lingo thrown around endlessly and it's understood for those in the know that these projects are not for the faint of heart.  I am talking about chopping and sectioning, projects if done "right" produce those one off works of automotive art we all eyeball with a touch of envy.

I was so lucky that friend to KruzinUSA and hot rodder extraordinaire Don "Too Tall"  Wallin took these shots last summer at the Leadsled Spectacular and passed them along to me.   These pics document the progress of both a chopping and a sectioning project  that took place over the "Spectacular" weekend.  These shots give us a unique insiders view into the work and artistry that are go into making Kustoms custom.  They're going to do something similar this year, now I don't have to say that this is just one more reason to head to Salina this summer to check out the show.

The Section

The Chop

A big thank you to Too Tall for the awesome pics.  If you've got something cool to share send your pics my way!  By the way friends, I have my reservations for the 2013 Spectacular and it's only 100 or so days away.

Til the next time - Keep on Kruzin!