Chip Foose To Attend Atlantic Nationals

You know his name. You've seen his show. Now it's time to meet the man, himself.

Chip Foose, owner of Foose Design, star of Overhaulin', and hot rod builder-extraodinaire, will be year's special guest at the Atlantic Nationals Automotive Extravaganza!

Chip has produced iconic roadsters such as the Boydster while working for Boyd Cottington, is a multiple winner of the Ridler award and America's Most Beautiful Roadster. He was the first recipient of the good Guys Trendsetter award and was inducted into the Hot Rod Hall of Fame in 1997 as its youngest member ever.

The Atlantic Nationals is Canada's largest car show with over 1,600 vehicles from all over North America in attendance. Show dates for this year are July 10-13, 2008 in Moncton, NB. In addition to having Chip Foose in attendance, the show will be giving away two major grand prizes this year: a 1932 Ramrod-bodied Graffiti Coupe and a Golden Leaf Automotive bodied 1969 Camaro convertible. Yours truly, CanadianRods also provides a pedal car for the grand prize draws every year.

This is one show that you don't want to miss! You can click on the post heading to visit the Atlantic Nationals website.

A Community Mourns

Last Friday evening, a passenger van carrying a high school basketball team collided with a transport truck, killing 7 students, a teacher, and injuring 4 others on board. Today, the town of Bathurst, located in northeastern New Brunswick, will hold funerals for the students who lost their lives. A separate funeral will be held tomorrow for the teacher.

Our hearts and our condolences go out to those affected by this tragedy.

In writing this commentary, I want to make it clear that fault for this collision should not be placed on either of the drivers involved, because it should not. It is almost beyond comprehension the devastation caused by this event and the effect that it will have on those who were in control of the vehicles. The driver of the van was a member of the small community and the team’s coach. He lost his wife and 7 members of his team on that day. The driver of the transport was not physically injured in the crash but the emotional scars of this collision will remain with both drivers for the rest of their lives.

Recent news stories are focusing on the stability of the passenger van involved when emergency maneuvers are undertaken and the fact that it was equipped with all-season tires.

On that first point: when any multi-passenger vehicle is fully loaded (whether it’s an SUV, minivan, full-sized or extended van, or other such vehicle), it will be less stable and more prone to fishtailing or roll-over than when empty. (Reread that statement because it bears repeating) The reason for this is because the majority of the added load is above the vehicle’s center of gravity. The taller and/or narrower the vehicle, the more susceptible it will be to these factors. The risk can be reduced by lightening the load, adding mechanical stabilizers (sway bars), electronic stability controls, or by lowering, widening, or lengthening the vehicle.

On the second point: in a climate that is adversely affected by cold temperatures and/or snow and ice, all-season tires are not a safe option. Study after study has proven that all-season tires have an increased stopping distance in colder weather or on snow- or ice-covered roads. Four snow tires cost about the same as your insurance deductible (less if you consider that they last for two or three seasons) and, as one friend of mine put it, would you rather stop before you have a collision or are you happy to just slow down?

I am not a particular fan of increased regulations designed to ‘protect us from ourselves’ (see my post on safer vehicles creating more danger), but I do feel that winter tires should be mandatory (at the very least) on commercial multi-passenger vehicles, excluding buses and other transports for which winter tires do not exist. I also welcome Transport Canada’s investigation into this crash and hope that lessons learned as a result of this tragedy are not lost.

I ask you now for a moment of silence in honour of those lost.

SEMA Action Network in Canada

The SEMA Action Network (SAN) announced that it has broadened its legislative advocacy activities to include the Parliament of Canada and the provincial governments. Canadian automotive hobbyists, car clubs and related businesses can now join this influential grassroots lobbying effort by registering online at www.semasan.com. (Clicking the title of this post will take you to the SEMA website).

“Cooperative efforts of the automotive hobbyists and the aftermarket industry who participate in the SEMA Action Network have resulted in numerous legislative successes across the United States,” said SEMA Vice President of Government Affairs Steve McDonald. “The SAN’s pursuit of proactive, pro-hobby legislation has led to the overhaul of existing statutes and created brand new programs to safeguard and expand the specialty equipment aftermarket. Determined efforts by the SAN have also resulted in the defeat of several poorly formulated measures. Canadian enthusiast groups face identical challenges. We are confident that by working with our Canadian-based members and hobbyist groups, we can add the industry’s voice to the debate and help legislators identify reasonable and responsible solutions to the array of issues affecting the automotive hobby.”

The SAN is a nationwide partnership between vehicle clubs, enthusiasts and members of the specialty auto parts industry who want to protect their hobby. SAN was designed to help stamp out unfair legislative threats to the automotive hobby and pass favorable laws. In the United States, the SAN regularly rallies the support of 3,500-plus car clubs, thousands of individual contacts, and 100-plus consumer automotive publications, with an estimated reach of 36 million enthusiasts nationwide; sends out action alerts to generate an abundance of responses to state and/or federal legislative actions and regulatory proposals; and issues timely updates of legislative and regulatory developments.

“There are no costs, fees or hassles to participate in the SAN,” said SEMA Action Network Director Jason Tolleson. “The concept is simple: SEMA provides detailed, regularly updated information on legislative and regulatory issues that impact the hobby. The more hands that touch this information, the more eyes that read this information and the more people that stand up and do something, the more effectively we protect our hobby. When action is required, we will urge SAN members to contact legislators and regulators to express support or opposition to a particular bill or proposal that directly affects the automotive hobby.”

The SEMA Action Network has also partnered with the NAAACCC in Canada to provide a unified voice for the collector car hobby in Canada.

Portions of this post are from a media release from SEMA dated September 26, 2007.

NAAACCC

In a previous post, I mention the NAAACCC (aka: N-triple 'A',-triple 'C' or National). Below you will find some further information on the organization and what it does. If you are a member of a Canadian car club that does not belong to National, take a look at their website to see what they've done for the collector car hobby and what the benefits of membership are. The cost to join National is currently only $3 per paid membership of your club.

Just as a sidenote, while the full name of National does say 'Antique Automobile Clubs', they represent a broad spectrum of hobbyists and Special Interest Vehicles. Their numbers include Corvette clubs, Mustang clubs, Rod clubs, and antique auto clubs.

The National Association of Antique Automobile Clubs of Canada Corporation (NAAACCC) had its beginnings in the early ’60s when a group of car enthusiasts contacted car clubs across Canada to join them in lobbying the federal government to remove the duty and taxes charged on older autos and parts imported from the United States.

Forty years later, the NAAACCC not only monitors and speaks out against legislation affecting the auto hobby at the provincial and federal levels, but it also steps in to assist individuals who may be unfairly targeted by such legislation. Made up of car clubs whose interests range from pre-war to musclecars and beyond, the NAAACCC’s mission is to encourage a cooperative working relationship with government to prevent restrictive legislation and to promote and encourage the preservation of the automobile and its historic lore.

In addition to legislative lobbying, the NAAACCC provides guidance to its member clubs on items such as show judging, restoration tips, and other hobby-related information. They not only maintain close ties with their member clubs within Canada, but with other like-minded organizations from around the world as well. The current provincial directors of NAAACCC run the gamut from hobby-related business owners and founding members of provincial antique auto clubs to collectors of anything and everything automotive.

To find out more about the NAAACCC and its work, check out their website (www.NAAACCC.ca) by clicking on the title of this post.

SEMA Action Network Director, Jason Tolleson, recently traveled to Toronto to participate in NAAACCC’s Annual General Meeting. With the recent expansion of the SEMA Action Netork into Canada, a working relationship between the two organizations will be of great benefit to the enthusiast community in Canada.

New Year, New Challenges

2008 is going to be a year of challenges for our hobby.

Ethanol is coming to a gas pump near you if it's not there already. Provinces are announcing legislation on emissions testing. The Federal Government will be putting more money (and more weight) into programs designed to retire older vehicles. As provinces try to target street racers, they will continue to introduce legislation that is detrimental to our hobby without guidance from the collector car hobby. This has already become an issue in Ontario where the Provincial Government has made attempts at an outright ban on performance enhancing aftermarket parts.

What can you do? Become informed and become involved.

Becoming informed is as easy as keeping track of the news. Whether it's online (CanadianDriver.com has an excellent daily newsfeed on Canadian auto-related news), in print, or on TV, pay particular attention to news items that look to 'fix' a potential automotive problem.

Becoming involved is just as easy. Join a club that has a strong provincial or federal voice and join the SEMA Action Network. The link to SEMA is at the bottom of the page and I will be writing more on this organization at a later point in time. Joining a club with a strong voice will take a little more effort on your part. How do you know the strength of their voice? Ask if they belong to NAAACCC (National Association of Antique Automobile Clubs of Canada, Corp. or commonly known simply as 'National'). National is a Canadian organization that is made up of car clubs from across Canada. They have representation in every province and their mission is to work with legislators to protect the hobby from restrictive legislation. Again, I will be writing more on this organization at a later time, but for now, check out the link at the bottom of the page.

The reason that I suggest these two organizations is that they both are involved with imparting knowledge about the collector car hobby to government officials in an effort to make them aware of the impact our hobby has on the local economy and the environment. Moncton, NB has played host to The Rolling Stones and the Pope, yet it is the annual Atlantic Nationals that is recognized as Moncton's #1 event. Environmentalists and auto industry analysts use derogatory terms like 'clunkers', 'beaters', and 'smokers' to demonize older vehicles and paint them as environmental hazards. While these mental images are making their way on to the news and into public perception, nothing could be further from the truth. Again, more on this later but I just wanted to let you know about the obstacles facing our hobby.

2008 will be a challenge for our hobby but by speaking out with a unified voice, we can face that challenge and overcome the obstacles. Be sure to make your voice heard.