Lebanon Valley Speedway 7.3.2010

When I was a kid, sometimes when we visited my Mom's home town and begged a lot, we were allowed to go to the races with my uncles and cousins. My sister and I loved it, but my parents didn't - probably because of the dirt. Lebanon Valley is a dirt track north of Albany near the Berkshires. Over the holiday weekend, I went up to visit family, and everyone was going to the races. When we were sitting around Saturday afternoon, my uncle mentioned something about not being able to take one of my cousin's sons into the pit because he wasn't old enough. I asked if I could take his place; my uncle said yes, but you have to stay in the pit all night. Not a problem.

I took over 350 shots; I managed to edit them down to these 25 general shots. I have a few more that will end up in another post.

My cousin waving the checkered flag at the end of the main event:

End of the night.

More to come.

Rumble in the Country - 6.12.2010

Terryville, CT

I'm finally getting around to posting some shots of the rest of the cars. As I previously wrote, torrential downpours arrived in Terryville just as we did. Fortunately, a lot of people stuck it out and the sun come out... as the last band finished. In between rain drops, I took pictures. In no particular order:

Man, dog, car. What else do you need?

Car guy...

The owner's wife made him open the door so I could get a shot of the rat:

...car guys...
This owner called me over to show me the hand-painted firewall on his Ford:


More car guys!

A couple shots of Rockabilly Express - as they played, the sun finally came out.



I will put the rest of the shots up on Flickr very soon, and will link it here in my blog. If you were at the rumble and these are photos of you or your car, and would like a copy, just comment or send me a personal message - I'm more than happy to email a copy or direct you to the set on flickr when they are up.

Jeanne's Rat Rod

Luci and I got a late start leaving NYC, but thanks to Hertz and a complementary upgrade, we were finally en route to Terryville, Connecticut in a bright red Camaro. As we got close to our destination for the Rumble in the Country, it began to rain... hard. A few classic cars passed us by. Then harder... and no less than eight classics and rat rods passed. We wailed "NOOOO!"

Fortunately, a good portion of people - and their cars - stuck it out to enjoy the bands. I took pictures of cars when it wasn't raining, and quickly bundled my cameras away and ran for cover when it started back up again. All day, there was one rat rod in particular in the middle of the field with flames painted on the side, covered with a tarp.

As Rockabilly Express performed, the sun slowly started to glow through the clouds. When the band was done, there was no threat of rain, and the flaming rat rod was parked right by the pavilion, tarp removed. I went over and started taking photos. When I stopped, a woman asked me, "Now that you've taken photos, would you like a photo of you IN my car?" So I got in, and she took a couple of photos. Then she said, "Now let me tell you about my car. It's a 1929 Ford on a '32 frame - barely attached right now! The engine is a Chevy."

"That is a real wolf whistle, found in a junk shop."

"The rear view mirror is the original mirror, with the original clock. Those are my daughter's baby shoes - she's in her 20's now."

"And look... the dice add up to seven no matter what angle."

(Yours truly in the car):

Thanks, Jeanne, for sharing your car.

This is why I always have my camera with me 1.0...

I went to Verplanck, NY for a Memorial Day barbeque. In the evening, my friends and I went for a walk to the nearby Hudson River. As we crossed to the river, I noticed a parking area slightly up the hill. Then I noticed a really pretty, shiny car slightly up the hill. My friends walked straight towards the river, and I veered left, walking slightly up the hill with my camera to take a few shots. As it happens with classic car owners, I snapped photos, and the the proud owner suddenly appeared to chat.

"That's a really great way to meet people! I always meet people when they ask me to take a picture with my car!"

"So it's yours? What year?"
"1969! My Dad bought it new, then I bought it from him in the 80's. It's pretty rare, only one of a few hundred convertibles..."
"It's not the original paint, right?"
"No, I had it repainted. Triple Black."

"It's gorgeous!"

"Thanks!"