CONNECTING R.O.D.S. NEWSLETTER
MEMBER CLUB
Fall 2011 NSRA - GOODGUYS - SSRA
The Connecting
R.O.D.S. Newsletter, is sponsored by the Ramblin' Oldies of Denham Springs, Inc.
to promote street rodding, and the construction and preservation of pre 1949
street rods. Articles do not reflect the
opinions of the R.O.D.S. members or its officers. Classified ads are free of charge: R.O.D.S.,
- NEWS –
How can I not start out the newsletter without thanking Norm Grabowski for attending our 2011 R.O.D.S.
Run?! It was great to have him back
again, and we appreciate all he had to go through. It was snowing in Lead Hill AR when he left in
his 1937 “Boogie” truck pulling the ’29 Nash “Fish Truck.” In fact the roads were so icy he had to get a
neighbor with a 4x4 to pull him up the first couple of hills!
We were ready for him too – virtually the whole club was wearing black felt
bowler hats. Just like the one he wore
back in the day while driving around in the “Kookie Car.” Most of us got him to autograph our hats and
that was cool. Thanks Norm!
Next we need to welcome several new members to the RODS club:
Gil
Parker and his wife
Pat recently joined with a cool ‘39
Chevy coupe he bought from big Robert.
But you wouldn’t recognize it with new 2-tone paint & other upgrades.
Robert & Mollya Haley are cruising around
in Leo’s old ’41 Coupe and are also proud to be RODS members. Then there is Ken and Sandie Thibodeaux
who just joined in September and have a slick red ’31
Ford Model A coupe. That brings us up to
37 active members with a couple more on deck!
I was looking back through the records at all the guys who used to be in the club but lost interest
in organized street rodding; would you believe I counted well over 50? That’s a lot of local rodders…
I get Jack Brown’s MSRA newsletter
each month and I have to say those
Bruce DID get his fenderless
’32 Ford pickup on the road and man is that thing sweet! Flat black primer with red wheels and wide
whitewalls… and he is an honorary member of the “V6” club with his 4.3 injected
Chevy. Impressive.
Kenny Allen is about ready to
blow his ’33 roadster apart for paint, powdercoat and chrome (as they say on
TV) but already has another project in the garage – a 1939 Rolls Royce! He got the big 4-door monster from Jimmy Meyers, who owned it for 30
years. Speaking of, Jimmy recently had
back surgery but I hear he is back in the shop already. John
Proctor over in
“ROD RUNNING”
Most of the RODS club have been out and about
every weekend attending car shows. My
brother Benny and I drove our hot rods to the MSRA Run in Jackson MS last March and had a blast playing the games
and visiting with old friends. Won a few
door prizes in a fun auction then cruised home with no problems. We teamed up again for the Rod-Tiques Sunny Beaches Rod Run in
Next year we are leaving for
We had a good contingent of club members go to the
I cruised over to the Coon Ass
Redneck Nationals and was impressed with the magnitude of Randy’s car
show. There were lots of vendors, food
and over 100 cars despite there being 2 other shows in
Close to 20 R.O.D.S. members attended the NSRA Nationals in
In addition club members and their street rods have shown up at a bunch
of shows including
-34th Annual RODS Run –
You know the drill by now - the R.O.D.S. Run is a mix of new rods, familiar
faces and a bunch of cool guys that don’t come out very often! There is plenty to see, plenty to eat and
plenty of great 50’s tunes thanks to Homer
“DJ” Thornton. Last time the weather
threw a wrench into our attendance numbers but we still had a good
representation of street rods from low buck to ‘where did they get all the
bucks!’
We expect to see an even larger crowd at our 2012 run, at the same Holiday
Inn South on
The Holiday Inn South is well suited for a car show in the front parking
lot – the cars really get a lot of attention from all the traffic on the
busiest street in town! Things will
start off Friday around
Automotive related vendors are also invited to the rod run. We don’t really charge a fee, and if you want
more information or want to reserve a choice spot call Ron Bringol at 225 654-6338.
Since Norm Grabowski went
over so well we have invited him back, for a third birthday cake! Norm is a real hot rod legend, but we have a
good selection of “backup” celebrity guests in the wings. How about Bill Dixon, Jimmy Meyers, or the ‘
*Note: paint & brushes will be supplied by
- SAFETY MATTERS -
How often do you “wrench” on your streetrod? Unlike muscle cars and late models, pre-1949
vehicles which have been updated (i.e. souped up) are at best a bunch of
mis-matched parts. And who knows what
stresses those parts are under. So at
least once or twice a year you should crawl under it and put a “wrench” on
every nut and bolt to make sure they are tight!
Make sure you get your street rod
inspected by an NSRA Safety Team member!
That is a good start however they only do a VISUAL inspection – they
don’t grab sway bars and drag links and shake them to see if they are loose. And remember guys, urethane 4-bar bushings
only last for a couple of years before they need to be replaced.
I read in Cruisin Style Magazine about a picture sent in of a burnout
contest at a local charity car show.
There were people standing around the car watching a recipe for
disaster! Maybe it’s my old age, but
this sort of stuff really scares me. Same thing for guys who reach in and start their car through the
window, then work the throttle by hand while sitting in a group of spectators.
Reminds me of the story I heard back in the day about a guy who was
revving up his newly finished t-bucket in his carport. Had the back wheels chocked so he figured he
was safe. Not! The car accidentally slipped into gear, pulled
a huge wheel stand and drove the radiator up through the ceiling drywall. Seems like when it came down it landed on the
trunk of his wife’s new car… I forget that part of it.
I know for a fact Butch Bonney did something like that with his ’34
-SO, LET’S CRUISE!-
Sept
21-24 = 14th Annual Petit Jean Swap Meet,
Sept
23-24 = Bayou Classic Chevy’s Fall Roundup Car Show
Quality Inn,
Sept
23-25 = Memphis Street Rods 12th Annual Delta River Cruisin, Sam’s Town Motel & Casino, Tunica
MS pre-79 901 541-2013
Sept
30-Oct 1st = Return to the 50’s Car Show,
Oct
1-9th = Cruisin the Coast Along the entire
Nov
7-12 =
February 3-5 = 34th
Annual R.O.D.S. Run, Holiday Inn South in
Every Saturday Morning: Dirty
Doug’s Hotrods & Hashbrowns @ Rick’s Burgers,
Second Saturday night: Golden Oldies Cruise Night, the big mall in
Third Saturday night:
Classic Chevy Club Cruise Nights:
Every First
SUNDAY, Sonic Drive In,
Sherwood Forest Blvd. @ Old Hammond Hwy
in Baton Rouge, 4:00-7:00
Every Third
SUNDAY - at the Sonic on Coursey Blvd.
-.060 OVER-
Club member Doug Miller’s
teenage grandson Gabe Hilliard has
had a rough few years battling cancer.
We collected money to help out the family and recently held a raffle,
presenting Gabe with a check for $4,000 at the last Super Cruise Night. And I’m happy to report that he is doing
better & back in high school!
The next R.O.D.S. club meeting will be Tuesday Oct 4th at Lee Laurent’s shop in Prairieville. Visitors are welcome; we usually gather about
Till
next time!
Bobby
R.O.D.S.
P.O.
BOX 61
DENHAM
SPRINGS, LA. 70727