There’s something about an old pickup truck. Such a simple plain old vehicle, just a tick above agricultural equipment. Even the guys in the 50 thousand dollar diesel one tons just stop and stare at an old hauler as it passes. An old pickup make us all kids again. My old F100 started life in 1953 as not much more than a work truck, a tool someone needed to get the job done.
I usually keep this truck at the farm and use it just like it was built to be used. Haulin’ stuff! A funny thing happened a few weeks ago, as I’d driven it in to work one day and ended up driving something else away. We rolled it into the museum to get it out of the way. A few days later we had a great car show, and you’d have thought there was a shining red Ferrari over in the corner of the museum, as people just flocked straight to that old truck to see it. There’s not much done to dress the old truck up, it’s just a good running ‘53 Ford.
The guys over at BedWoodandParts.com helped me out with the bed wood, when I did have to replace it. I mean what’s a truck without a bed to haul stuff? These old beds suffer from the wood going away first. Their kits are top notch and fit just like OEM. I could have had a tough time selecting from all the hardwoods and exotic woods available. I’m a classic guy so the Hickory bed kit was perfect for that old truck. Their kits fit so many applications and you can imagine a Cocobolo bed on a a flashy show truck at the car show, or if you’re like me, good ol’ American Hardwood on a good ol’ American truck!
Since 1993, the Vespa Club of America has sponsored an annual motorscooter rally to promote scootering and VCOA membership. Amerivespa 2008 was held in Chattanooga, TN on July 24 – 27. For more information about this year’s rally, check out the Amerivespa 2008 site.
On Friday, the tour visited Coker Tire headquarters. The rain was the monkey wrench for all the scooter enthusiasts, but many of them showed up with rain gear and good spirits. The club had a full agenda planned for their rally in the Scenic city and we’re glad they included us. Thanks guys for showing off the bikes and stopping by!
It’s been a few year since too much rainfall was an issue in the Southeast. Mostly hot and dry summers have baked us to sleep. The good ol’ afternoon thunderstorm is almost out of our minds, and then yesterday it rained. There are plenty of colorful ways to describe the amount of rain that was falling. Let’s just say it rained very hard for about half an hour. With the renovations here being buttoned up there were plenty of eyes looking to see how everything would weather the storm. We probably would have made it too, if an empty can and bottle hadn’t plugged one of the main downspouts on the old loading dock sending hundreds of gallons of rain water on a mission for another way out.
When Port-A-Cool said they’d send over two units for the shop, we all laughed. Cooling down the shop is like a dream come true and we could hardly believe it as the dog days of summer begin their relentless march on into the upper 90s. (more…)
Car shows are always a great way to meet new friends, see old ones, sell your product and rub elbows with customers. When I was kid, I remember my Dad constantly traveling to shows to meet the prospective customers, see their company’s and factories. When I say travel, I don’t just mean a couple hours across the state to set up a booth, I mean, he was a “Get-R-Dun” kind of traveler. He would go all over the globe to meet with people from Australia, Germany, England and Brazil and many more. I didn’t quite understand why he wasn’t home all the time when I was growing up, but now since I have been in the business here at Coker Tire for 2 years now, I get to see first hand what those important travels accomplish.
The 2008 Street Rodder Road Tour Kicked off from Coker Tire Headquarters in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Our renovations were almost complete and the tour cars along with with over a hundred other cars were on display. The tour stops include Barillaro Speed Emporium in Knoxville, TN, Car Museum and Detroit Speed-Mooresville, NC, The Victory Junction Gang Camp-Randleman, NC, Harley Davidson Assembly Plant-York, PA, Posies-Hummelstown, PA, Party at Southern Tier Harley- Binghamton, NY and The Syracuse Nationals-Syracuse, NY. Casey Coker talks about the tour, stops and the kickoff show at the Coker Tire Headquarters.
