Sunday Cruise FeverSunday Cruise Fever

We’re big fans of German Uber-Photographer Dirk Behlau, aka “The Pixeleye.”  His photography and car culture books were big inspirations behind our first book “Class of 2009,” and gave us a reason to try harder on “Class of 2010.”  In other words, he’s freakin’ awesome.

Behlau, along with partner Jesper Braum, are making the jump from still pictures to video with their feature-length film, “Flake & Flames.”  They’re travelling from California to Europe & everywhere in between, documenting the rebirth of oldskool car culture by talking to the artists behind the scenes.

For the long-time readers, yes, we’ve talked about this project before.  And yes, we’re going to shut up now and show you the video:

Want to know more?  Check out their official website and get all the gritty details!

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
No Comments »

Yesterday marked the annual car show in Carleton Place.  And while the show wasn’t heavily promoted by any means, it was still a great turnout.  Cars came from all over western Quebec and eastern Ontario to show off their polished (and not so polished) sheetmetal.  The orange ’32 in the background, above, drove in all the way from Timmins, Ontario just for the show.

The show started around 9 am, and more cars were still coming in at noon.  How many cars?  Check out the photos below to find out for yourself:

Filed under: Show Coverage by Jordan
No Comments »

Damned if I know what a “Carkinator” is, but that’s what they’re up to in Winchester, Ontario this weekend.  Keep reading to find out more:

Ontario:

Join Matt Carkner of the Ottawa Senators for the first annual Carkinator Car & Moto Rally in Winchester.  It all takes place at the Winchester Arena on Saturday the 25th, starting at 10 am.  And while we still don’t know what a Carkinator is, we do know that it supports the Winchester District Memorial Hospital.  For more info, call Keith at (613) 543.3338.

Monkey Joe knows cruise nights, and he’s ready to prove it with another great cruise night.  Cruise on down to Monkey Joe’s Bar & Grill at the Westgate Shopping Centre in Ottawa on Saturday from 4:30 to 8 pm.  This is part of the Ziebart Uniglass Plus Car Show Series, which means it’s a free show, and is open to all makes & models that don’t suck.  For more info, contact Larry Way at (613) 446.4717 or larysmway (at) sympatico.ca.

This is (not) Sparta!  No, it’s the Athens Car & Truck Show in Athens ON, this Saturday, June 25th.  To find out more, contact Peter at (613) 924.9339, or Ken at (613) 924.2469.

Carleton Place, ON, has your Sunday covered, with the Carleton Place Car Show on Sunday the 26th.  The show runs from 9 am to 3 pm at Riverside Park.  For more info, call Ken Ferguson at (613) 229.1625, or ken_ferguson (at) yahoo.com.

Alberta:

The LeBarons Car Club is celebrating its 50th Anniversary the right way-by partying and cruising all weekend.  It all kicks off on Friday, July 24th, with two local private garage tours, a meet & greet at the hotel, and lunch.  The party keeps on going on Saturday with a Show & Shine, Banquet, and a dance in the evening.  Finally, everything wraps up on Sunday with a farewell breakfast.  To find out more or to register,check out the LeBaron’s website.

British Columbia:

The Victoria chapter of the Vintage Car Club of Canada knows about long-term commitments;  they’re hosting the 51st annual Victoria Swap Meet.  It all happens from 7 am to 4 pm at the Saanich Fairgrounds.  For more info, hit up the Victoria VCCC’s website.

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
No Comments »

Earlier yesterday Jalopnik.com, one of the better auto websites, posted a link to leaked plans for the Alfa Romeo’s re-launch into the US.  The first step was to introduce the 4C, their flagship supercar which at this point was a concept car that was just hangin’ out at some new-car exhibition.  So if the 4C isn’t supposed to hit the streets until next year, why did we catch this at the Ottawa Ferrari Festival later on that same day?

Is it the venerable 4C?  It might be, but we don’t know–something to do with Alfa Romeo not being sold here in the last twenty odd years makes for experts far & wide.

UPDATE:  Some further research has revealed this to be the Alfa 8C, which has been on the market for some time now.  This is still awesome because (a) Alfas aren’t supposed to be available in Canada yet, and (b) the 8C will supposedly not be part of the lineup when Alfa hits our shores in 2012.

Need more pics to verify the car’s existence?  Leave a comment below and we’ll get it figured out soon!

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
No Comments »

Earlier tonight was the 6th annual Ferrari Festival, sponsored by the Ferrari Club of America, Ottawa Chapter.  It was a decent display of fine Italian iron, with examples ranging from the ’80s to today.  There was a 512 (better known as a “Testarossa”), a 348 (better known as “Magnum PI’s ride”), and even a Maserati Biturbo.  As a car show, however, it was a bit of a bust.  Not many cars had arrived by the time I left, and the cars that were there were behind a rope and guarded by a small battalion of teenagers armed with walkie-talkies who walked in front of the cars and made sure no one touched them as they cruised down the street.

Not that I condone touching other people’s cars, unless you have some kind of masochistic broken finger fetish.  But really, using teenagers as human shields to keep other teenagers away from your Ferrari?  Seriously, all this for a car you most likely bought off a showroom floor.  Maybe if you built the car yourself, but even then, c’mon….

All cranky emo whining aside, the cars that you were allowed to make eye contact with were pretty gorgeous, and deserving of their own show.  Want proof?  Check out below:

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
1 Comment »

To get you pumped up for this weekend’s Ferrari Festival in Ottawa, we’ve assembled this gallery of (really crappy) photos from the Ferrari Museum in Modena, Italy.  In case you’re wondering, yes, it was our fearless editor-in-chief, Jordan Morningstar, who took all these photos way back in 2001.  Of course, back then he wasn’t a well-published photographer; rather, he was a dumb kid backpacking across Europe with a cheap Olympus point & shoot film camera.  **Note:  He’s still not a well-published photographer.

Want to find out more?  Check out the FCA Ottawa website, or go directly to the Ottawa Ferrari Festival’s main site.

Filed under: Feature Story, Gallery by Jordan
No Comments »

We’re a big fan of the Manitoba Pontiac Association, and they’ve been big supporters of this site and our book series.  And so, when one of their members needs a hand selling their prized Trans Am, we’re more than happy to lend a hand:

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
No Comments »

Father’s day is a great day for accumulating neckties, getting paper mache ashtrays that your kids made at school (even if you don’t smoke) and going to car shows.  And while our taste in neckties and ashtrays is fairly questionable, we’ve got your back when it comes to picking out this weekend’s car show:

Ontario:

Ferraris!  Ferraris!  Ferraris!  6th annual FCA Ottawa Ferrari Festival!  It’s an all weekend affair in downtown Ottawa, with events ranging from Friday, June 17th to Sunday June 19th.  And unlike most car shows, this one seems to involve a lot of driving and demonstrating your Ferrari.  What, you don’t own an Italian Stallion?  Head on down to Preston Street from 6-11 pm on Friday the 17th and Saturday the 18th just to drool on the hand-formed body panels that cruise through your dreams.  Check the website for more info.

If you like your exotics a little more British, head over to the Aviation Museum for the annual Jaguar Day & Concours D’elegance.  Sponsored by the Ottawa Jaguar Club, the event runs from 9 to 3.  For more info, check out the Ottawa Jaguar Club’s website.

Kemptville is playing host to the Highway 43 Car Club’s “Father’s Day Car Show.”  The show takes place on Sunday, June 19th at Riverside Park, from 9 am to 3 pm.  To find out more, check out Highway 43 CC’s website.

Alberta:

Saturday, June 18th:  Just Kruisin’ show & Shine at Lakeland College’s Lloydminster Campus, Lloydminster AB.  Registration opens at 9 am, with the show running from 10 am to 4 pm.  There’s live bands, activities for the kids, and someone’s bringing a dyno.  Yes, a freakin’ dyno!  This is your chance to find out if the annoying kid next door really does have a 10,000 horsepower engine in his superdupercharged Honda Civic GT-R Evo LS9!  For more info, check out the club’s site at JustKruisin.com!

Sunday, June 19th:  GPAC “Take A Kid To A Car Show” in support of Kev’s Kids at the Grande Prairie Alliance Church, 15502 102nd Street, North Grande Prairie AB.  Registration opens at 8:30, and the show goes from 10 to 4, including a BBQ break at 12:30.  The whole thing is in support of a charity called Kev’s Kids, and you can support the worthy cause directly at the show.  You can also show support through the silent auction, which may or may not involve mimes.

PHOTOGRAPHERS WANTED AT THESE EVENTS: If you are going to/have gone to any of these shows and have pictures, they could be showing up on our site.  We’re always looking for good photos of cars, people, the occasional detail shot, and more.  If you know which end of a camera is up and don’t mind letting us show off your work, give us a shout in the comments section below and we’ll hook you up with your 15 seconds of internet fame!

Filed under: Everything Else by Jordan
No Comments »

I have it on good authority that this year’s “Just Kruisin’ Show & Shine” in Lloydminster, Alberta has just booked SoCal Speed Shop as a vendor.  Does this mean all kinds of famous hot rodders (like Jimmy Shine) will be in attendance?  Possibly.  We don’t know, but if you’re in the Lethbridge area on June 18th, there’s only one way to find out.  Head on down to the show at the Lakeland College Lloydminster Campus, and check out the everything-except-the-dyno-run-is-free show (read: it’s a free show, and they’re bringing a portable dyno).  For more details, check out the Just Kruizin Car Club website.

Filed under: News & Rants by Jordan
No Comments »

Finding the tiny village of Curran, Ontario, isn’t as tough as one would imagine–simply drive east on the #17 highway until all the signs turn French, and make a right.  However, driving to Curran isn’t a case of “where,” but more a question of “why.”  There’s a main street (which also happens to be County Road #2), four more smaller streets, an Optimist club, and a used car dealership that sells rare muscle cars.

What did you expect, a tractor dealer?

Canadian Classic Cars, the dealership in question, supplies vintage steel to Eastern Ontario (and the world) from their tiny home base in the French-speaking town of Curran.  The dealership is owned by Gerry, Marc & Paul Dube, three brothers whose love of old cars runs so deep they’ve made a living from it.

Although their bread & butter come from older, rare muscle cars (they had a 1-of-420 1970 Plymouth Road Runner convertible when we were there), but they have some rather interesting new vehicles as well.  A red Chevy SSR sported an original dealer sticker indicating it began life at Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet (Mr. Earnhardt’s day job was owning the world’s first Chevy Dealership-cum-tourist trap).  Meanwhile, a black Chevy Monte Carlo SS stickered up in homage to Dale Earnhardt’s #3 car sat in one corner (yes, it was a factory option).

Can’t afford the real thing?  The Dube Brothers still have your back.  Almost a quarter of their nondescript beige warehouse is dedicated to 1/18th scale die cast models of every car imaginable.  And if you’re looking for a deal, they’ve got the perfect combination:  a Hot Wheels-sized miniature of the Cheerios-sponsored Nascar racer, with the still-full box of Cheerios it came in.  There’s no telling if the breakfast cereal inside is still edible, but our editors have put up a whole, shiny dollar (and free ride to the hospital) for anyone that eats the whole box.

Filed under: Feature Story by Jordan
No Comments »