I am not a car guy. I have always appreciated the beauty of well-designed automobiles but, because my brain is not what one would call "mechanical," I have always felt completely ignorant when it comes to the finer points of the modern combustion engine, makes/models, and the great debate of stock vs. custom. I just felt safer keeping my big trap shut and my interests elsewhere. Don't get me wrong; I have been to more than my fair share of car shows but I never graduated from the "That looks so cool" school of auto appreciation. Making friends with the fine folks at Chopit Kustom Hot Rods, I am not only learning a little something about cars, I am developing a more genuine interest in car culture.
On June 1, Chopit Kustom threw an open house/car show and we were privileged to get a full tour of the shop by the Chopit kids (and our pals), Nick and Fabian. I am at a loss for any kind of proper camera right now so I caught just a few snaps of the day.
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| Nick & Mary |
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| Fabian oversees Mary as she tests out the beautifully-grilled Chopit roadster. If you see Mary, don't mention it to her that her legs were too long to fit on the driver's side...she's pretty sensitive about it and doesn't want anyone to know. For some reason she thought that if she fit, the car would be hers... |
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| Do, however, remind her to follow instructions and read signs. She practically created a crime scene's worth of finger prints on this one. |
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| Jet Age hood ornament |
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| A small fraction of the model car collection |
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| Why is that new cars don't have after market propellors readily available? It's a crying shame! |
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| Dig that crazy headliner!!! This will sound totally inappropriate but doesn't it seem like one would eventually have to spend a good amount of time combing dingleberries out of that shag??? |
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| I appreciate the sentiment; if I found a car that I truly loved, I would never want to sell it. |
And then there was the star of the show Chopit Kustom's very own Beatnik Bubbletop. Built by Gary "Chopit" Fioto, the Beatnik Bubbletop captures the essence of every aspect of mid-century car culture - the high-end concept cars, the low brow "kustomization" of ingenious builders, the freedom of untamed hot rods. Belonging now to Barry Weiss of Storage Wars fame, this feat of mechanical and design genius makes the rounds at all the biggest car shows.
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| I don't know how they dream all of this stuff up; I wish my dreams were this cool! |
I guess that we fawned over it enough that we were invited for (read: practically strong armed ourselves into) a ride in the Beatnik Bubbletop. The perfect opportunity for a ride arose in the Legend of Kustoms Cruise Night at Bog's Big Boy Broiler in Downey, CA.
What does one wear when riding inside a bubble? It took me a fair amount of time to convince Mary that her idea of dressing like Glinda the Good Witch would be entirely inappropriate. We decided to wear something relatively cool (temperature wise) because it seemed to me that riding in a bubbletop car would be akin to being an ant under a magnifying glass.
Boy was I wrong! Except for my noggin being a little close to the bubble, riding in this car had all the comforts of a luxury automobile. Fully-functioning air conditioning keeps everything cool under a dome that is on record as the world's largest blown-glass bubble!
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| Nick & Mary in the Beatnik Bubbletop I wasn't even in the car yet, but just to see it going down the street made me feel, if only for a second, all of the optimism and wonder that mid-century concept car designers must have felt. |
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| And I wasn't alone. As you can imagine, the Beatnik Bubbletop is the subject of much admiration. It was hilarious to see all of the rubbernecking, scrambling for cameras/phones, and near accidents caused by this car's very presence. Turnabout only seemed fair play so I snapped a photo of someone snapping our photo. |
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| Chopit & Mary All the freedom and visibility of a convertible without the annoyance of lost porkpies and windblown hair. |
A short video of our arrival at the Broiler.
Not my best camera work (which isn't saying much)
but if you have ears particularly sensitive to strong
language, you might want to mute the sound. HA!
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| Mr. Tiny tries to out bubble top the bubbletop...fail. |
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| The Beatnik Bubbletop after hours The interior adopts a violet glow. |
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| Got a light? |
I think I have been converted. Ever a late bloomer, I can now truly see the allure of automobiles (classic, kustom, and otherwise). I am so grateful to the whole Chopit gang for giving me the otherworldly opportunity of riding in the Beatnik Bubbletop; it is as close to riding in a spaceship as I'll ever get!
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| Plus it is the only time in my life when I can earnestly and thankfully say, "Been there, done that, got the t-shirt." Thanks a million!!! |
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| Mr. Tiny & Mary make like Elroy & Judy Jetson |
Cheers!
Mr. Tiny
p.s. Don't be too concerned if things are a little quiet on the wacky tacky front for the next couple of weeks. Mr. Tiny will be, to borrow a phrase from his sister, losing his "West Virginity." My sister, brother-in-law, and the cutest nephew in the world have left Southern California for all of the wonder of Appalachia. I have never been to that part of the country so I am excited to explore and broaden my wacky tacky horizons. I'm going HILLBILLY!!!! I might have some time for blogging while I am gone...but I'd rather be on an adventure!!! See you when I get back!
