Find her here:

The Hydramatics

Dave Bourbon - Vocals, Rhythm Guitar          Brandon Tokanaga - Lead Guitar

Jason Marsh - Drums          Mark Garza - Upright Bass

The Hydramatics are a Roots Rockabilly band hailing from central California. They keep to the roots of Rock n Roll & Rockabilly with a very traditional sound but could also rev it up for the younger crowds. The Hydramatics are exactly the kind of band you’d want to see at your local Drive-In Burger joint or Kustom Car Show.

The quartet caters to the Hot Rod & Kustom car culture crowd since some of the members are from HEADHUNTERS Kustom car club.

The Hydramatics have played numerous shows; from small back yard BBQ’s to big time Venues. They have had the privilege to play at National recognized car shows such as the Rat Fink Reunion, the Anti-Blessing, Primer Nationals, even the old Cruisin’ Nationals show in Paso Robles and at the new one in Santa Maria. The Hydramatics have shared the stage with some big names including James Intveld, Wanda Jackson, Blazing Haley, The Blasters, Royal Crown Revue and many more.

At a Hydramatics show you’ll hear a variety of songs including many of originals but they always like to keep it traditional covering artists such as Elvis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Johnny Burnette Trio, Charlie Feathers, Carl Perkins and the list goes on.

You can download their music for free from their website.: thehydramatics.net

Find them on facebook: facebook.com/pages/The-Hydramatics

The Hydramatics Branded

Stylish Kustoms

Also check out Mark’s other site stylishkustoms.blogspot.com He has a great collection of old and new photos of Traditional Kustoms and Hot Rods.

Mark Garza: I collect photos, old and new, of Traditional Kustoms and Hot Rods. I have been involved with Hot Rodding since I was just a young kid. It was first through my Uncle’s stories of his old times and also his little page magazines that I now collect. At age 12 I found my first car, it was a 55 Plymouth which I still have today. At age 16 I got into the Lowrds car club of Fresno, CA. That’s when my love for Kustoms really began. Today along with my Dad and Brother we build Kustoms mostly for hobby but also for sale. My Dad, Arnold Garza is an awesome metal man and has done some great Kustoms over the years. We are all members of Headhunters Kustom Kars. This blog specializes in Kustoms & some Hot Rods for viewing but also is an avenue for buying, selling and trading of old, rare and unique Kustoms & Hot Rod cars & parts. Email me and attach your photos or email a request for an address if you want to send any old photos.

This week our feature pin-up is the California Cutie, Carly DeVille.  She has an enthusiastic approach, enjoys her line of work and looking to expand into some new genres.  With her sexy gaze, charming smile, the right curves and fun-loving personality we are excited to add her to our 53D Featured Pin-Ups.

Hi there! My name is Carly Deville, I am a full time nursing student finishing up my bachelors degree and a part time pinup model. I have been doing pinup modeling for almost 2 years now and have been lucky enough to work with some amazing artists and make some great friends! I am partial to Cadillacs, rat rods, and Sailor Jerry!! I’m all about having fun!!! My current projects include organizing the pinup contest for the 4th Annual Lake Havasu Rockabilly Reunion going on February 17th-19th. Its really fun to be on the other side of the contests and to bring pinups a contest that is organized and made for and by pinups!!

Find her on facebook: facebook.com/carly.deville  &  facebook.com/pages/Carly-Deville

Mitzi & Co. Photography

Spellbound Images

Spellbound Images

Chris Gomez Photography

Set Apart Photography

Set Apart Photography

Spellbound Images

Spellbound Images

Chris Gomez Photography

Spellbound Images

Spellbound Images

This week we have Matt Williams 1961 GMC truck as our feature ride. One of my favorite years, the truck has a great stance and looks like a fun driver.

Story on the truck: Left on a Friday night in August on a road trip from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin to Garden City, Kansas  that a Garmin said would take 14 hours one way which was actually 21 hours one way. The guy I bought the truck from was nice enough to bolt the cab to the frame and threw some bolts in the rear end so that it was a rolling chassis.  We set the windshield on the seat though at some point it slid to the floor and road the rest of the way home there (without breaking or cracking). The rest of the truck came home in bushel baskets and boxes. Got home on Sunday afternoon, by Monday afternoon had the body assembled and the truck in a rolling form and within a month had it motor, tranny, and brake lines plumbed and had her on the road. I am the third owner and do have a copy of the original title of the truck.  It was just a 1961 GMC 100 305 V6 4speed now it is a 350 Chevy with a 700r4 auto with 5 inch suspension drop and front suspension upgraded to 85 Chevy front brakes and engine cradle.

10th Annual Ventura Nationals Hotrod and Motorcycle Show

LABOR DAY WEEKEND

SEPTEMBER 1st & 2nd, 2012

WHERE: Ventura County Fairgrounds, 10 West Harbor Blvd., Ventura, CA 93001 (Go to venturacountyfair.org for directions)

WHEN: September 1st and 2nd, 2012

GATES: Car/Motorcycle participants 7AM. General Admission 9AM

ADMISSION: $15 Active military with valid ID $10 Children 12 and under with paid adult are FREE with two can foods donated to Food Share

CAR REGISTRATION: pre-registered vehicles price is $35 for both days – at the Gate $45 for both days

Silent Auction to benefit Alzheimer Research

Judging takes place on Saturday, Trophy presentation is on Sunday. Must be present to receive award. The show goes on Rain or Shine

More Info:  primernationals.com

Bio:  Hi! I grew up in Edmonton, Ab Canada.  I have a serious love for anything retro, and started doing pinup a few years ago.  I have had some publications now and absolutely love it.  I started an alternative T-shirt company called Nervosa Clothing which is part charity. I hope to change the face of mental illness by glamorizing it and saying, “hey, it’s not so bad being weird”.

Find her:  nervosaclothing.com

Facebook: facebook.com/litsy.leopard – facebook.com/nclothingco

Here are a few photos from the Mesquite 2012 Car Show.

More info: www.mesquitecarshows.com

The long life of the legendary Carroll Shelby is a story of miracles both large and small. The man whose name is synonymous “performance cars” rose from humble roots to create the furious Shelby Mustang, Shelby Cobra, the Ford Shelby and many iterations of racing autos that are today treasured classics in automotive history.

Modest Beginnings

Born in Leesburg, Texas in 1923, Carroll Shelby had little but his imagination to lift him from the flat, reality of his birthplace. But, in the shelter of this east Texas town that’s seldom topped a population of 200-some residents, young Carroll began showing high spirits and abundant energy that only grew when his family moved to the big city of Dallas. There, he dutifully went to school and developed an eye for automobiles. According to one Shelby biographer, the first hint at the young man’s passion came with a speeding ticket for barreling down a Texas road at 85 mph the first time his father let him take the family car for a spin. Still, there was no portend of what was to come several years – and career choices – later. The Mustang Cobra, the GT 500 Shelby and hot cars that would take the world by storm were not yet a dream as Shelby graduated from high school.

His love of mechanics led Shelby to enlist in the Army Air Corps where he eagerly embraced the ultimate thrill-ride in flight school. It was during WWII that Shelby’s spirit began to soar. He not only repaired aircraft engines but also took on the risky assignment of testing planes that had been grounded and, hopefully, repaired. While catapulting through the skies over Texas, Shelby showed his daring by dropping love notes stuffed inside boots from his plane onto the farmland owned by his fiancée’s family.

After serving his country, Carroll Shelby tried to settle down to family life. First came a small fleet of dump trucks he ran in Dallas and then he gave the oil business a try. After those ventures didn’t have the right stuff for the man who would make a cobra an icon for speed, Shelby took an aptitude test. Rather than indicating that Shelby’s mechanical genius could drive his success, the test suggested that maybe chicken farming was the ticket. With a young family to support, Shelby put his all into raising chickens.

A Driving Passion

After making a little money the first year, he struggled to survive the second season as chickens dropped dead. Perhaps as a distraction from the everyday grind or finally suspecting something better was waiting to be hatched, Carroll Shelby started modifying sports cars in his spare time. Of course, the sports cars needed driving and Shelby was quick to take the wheel, winning so many races that his reputation soon spread. Handling the long hours of farming and racing was challenging – so much so that Shelby started showing up at the race track and drove wearing bib overalls.

By 1952, Shelby was knee deep in the Southwest racing circuit, driving against legendary winners like the Jaguar XK 120 and winning. At the same time, America was beginning its love affair with racing, opening a door that Carroll Shelby soared through when he became a professional driver in 1954. At the Carrera Pan Americana Mexico, with one arm in a cast and the other taped to the steering wheel, Shelby rocketed to victory.

As Shelby’s fame spread he found himself far afield from his east Texas home, tearing up the race tracks of Europe and becoming the daring darling of international racing. In the mid-1950s he was twice named “Driver of the Year” by Sports Illustrated. In 1958 and again in 1959 Shelby and his partner won the grueling 24-hour Le Mans. In 1961 he took the flag at the U.S. Auto Club driving championship.

Designing a New Shelby

It was after this race that Carroll Shelby chose to veer off the racing circuit and develop his business acumen. Heart disease had been a bane within his family and even the intrepid Carroll Shelby couldn’t outpace his genetics. The race track was no place for a man with heart that wanted to fail. His first venture was the Shelby School of High Performance Driving. His focus then turned to what would become Shelby’s legacy to the automotive world – designing high performance cars that took enthusiasts and race tracks by storm.

His first design venture married a British 260 Roadster chassis from AC Cars with a Ford V-8. According to Carroll Shelby the name for the new model came to him in a dream and he jotted it down on a bed side “idea pad.” Upon awakening the next morning, he liked what he saw and the Shelby Cobra went from dream to reality in just eight hours of mechanics and engineering. That night Shelby and a friend took the Cobra on a test drive, looking for a Corvette to challenge. None was found that night in 1962 but within a month Shelby was working with Ford and had the first Cobra Roadster ready to blast off from zero to 60 mph in a record 3.9 seconds.

More Cobra models followed, including impressive wins on race tracks that left Corvettes in the dust. In 1965, Shelby moved on to build a better Mustang. The Shelby Mustang GT350 was designed to beat the Corvette in production road racing. Shelby worked with other auto makers such as Oldsmobile and Dodge, creating the stunning design of the Dodge Viper. As the years and design triumphs rolled on, so too did Shelby’s heart ailment. By the early 1990s, he was on a list for an urgent heart transplant.

Shelby’s Heartfelt Change

At Cedars Sinai in Los Angeles, Shelby again embraced change in his life. Observing that many children were in dire need of heart transplants he promised to dedicate himself to their cause, should his own procedure be successful. Fortunately for those ailing youngsters and the racing world, Shelby’s new heart proved strong and the Carroll Shelby Children’s Foundation was born. That same year, 1991, Shelby was inducted into the International MotorSports Hall of Fame.

Carroll Shelby remains active and productive. His Foundation has helped thousands of children and continues to grow. At the same time, new Shelby gems grace the automotive world. In 2008 the Shelby GT500KR made its debut. This limited edition release keeps the Shelby legacy alive and pushing the envelope of design and performance.

More info: carrollshelbymerchandise.com    carrollshelbyfoundation.org

This week we have Stefen Winchester as our feature photographer/artist. Stefen has some great automotive, bike and pinup photos, all taken with great attention to detail and classic style. Take a look at some of his fine work below.

Bio: I have been fascinated with vintage cars and bike since I was a kid and for reasons I didn’t understand, I looked at things differently than most, noticing intricate details often missed by other that were looking at the very same things I was. When I was 10, I saved up enough money to by my very first camera, A Fred Flinstone Camera which took 110 film. It wasn’t until 2009 ( some 35 years later ) that I was asked to do a photoshoot for a woman that wanted pictures of herself with her vintage restored 68 Camaro. I had never photographed a car before ( or anything with wheels for that matter) so I was a bit nervous at first ( The client was expecting a seasoned auto photographer and I actually never corrected her) All of that disappeared within seconds of the first shot, when I quickly realized I could nail a magazine quality image in less than 30 seconds without even trying..everything fell into place and I knew instantly the best angle and exact moment the natural light would make for a perfect shot. Word got around quickly within 24 hours and next thing I knew, I had 38 more cars to shoot, making my one day roadtrip into a 10 day vacation..PAID! I shoot with Carl Zeiss and old School Minolta lenses, which have unparallelled color and sharpness, requiring no post edit work, save for the occasional edit I may do to add some custom Graphics or art piece for print, preferring to keep it as original as possible, as it was back in the day when these amazing cars rolled off the assembly line and into the lives of those with a life long passion for custom cars and HotRods.

Check out his pin-up photography page PussyKat Pin-Ups

Check out his regular photography page 21 East Photography

Also check out his personal facebook page which has some great photos as well.