Not Your Average GuideCourtney Hansen, the foremost female automotive expert, host of Spike TV's Powerblock, and automotive columnist, has compiled everything you need to know in and around your car. The Garage Girl's Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Your Car (Cumberland House; $18.95), out in September 2006, will give new car enthusiasts and especially women an easy-to-read guide to arm readers with the tools they'll need to know about purchasing a car, car care, maintenance, customizing and much more.
"There are so many new consumers who are lost when it comes to purchasing or maintaining an automobile," says Hansen. "This one-of-a-kind book is a car manual, provides helpful tips and more, all in a readable, person-friendly format."
The Garage Girl's Guide includes tips and advice on various topics from protecting yourself when taking your car to a mechanic to buying a new or used vehicle, maintenance, things you should have in your vehicle, knowing your engine, tires, fluids, to customizing and personalizing your ride.
Courtney Hansen, former host of Overhaulin', can be seen every Saturday and Sunday as the host of Spike TV's Powerblock, and currently writes a bi-weekly nationally syndicated newspaper column called "Courtney Hansen: Full Throttle," where she discusses any and all automotive-related topics. In addition, Courtney also interviews celebrities and athletes for Celebrity Car Magazine and also provides monthly automotive tips for DIY publications. She was recently honored as the Los Angeles recipient of Ford's "Life in Drive" Award. This prestigious award recognizes women who combine talent with that little something extra that allows them to break free from convention to enjoy life with style and attitude.
The Garage Girl's Guide to Everything You Need to Know About Your Car is available for pre-sale online. For more information on Courtney Hansen or her book, visit www.courtneyhansen.com.
Head EastTransporting your truck overseas for a car show, tour, or historic rally can be a dream come true. Whether you're headed to England's Goodwood Festival of Speed, Italy's Mille Miglia, the Louis Vuitton Concours in Paris, or a new life abroad, Hagerty can help with transportation, cargo, customs, overseas shipping, and insurance needs for your collector vehicles.
Through Hagerty's Private Client Services division, collector truck owners around the globe can ship, show and drive their vehicles to the world's most prestigious automotive events. Hagerty is the first in the industry to provide a complete package of international services-everything associated with international insurance and transport. Programs include:
Overseas Touring Coverage, designed for those attending overseas collector car events. Hagerty can provide all the necessary liability coverage to fully protect yourself as well as allow you to legally drive on international roads.
Visiting Collectors Coverage to serve foreign collectors based outside the States who wish to bring a vehicle. Available for up to 60 days, this temporary coverage is applicable only to a vehicle associated with an organized or recognized event.
Cargo Insurance insures a vehicle when it is in transit. It's important that collectors do not overlook it. While onboard a ship, the liability of all shipping lines is limited to $500 per vehicle.
"We offer a number of comprehensive programs that address the specific international insurance needs of collectors, no matter where they are based," says Paul Schneider, vice president of Private Client Services. "We're the collector's one-stop shop, whether they want to ship a car from Europe to sell at auction in the U.S., transport their car overseas to attend a club or concours event, or move their collector truck to a new home."
Hagerty has teamed with freight forwarder Globus International to handle the vehicle logistics and shipping details, arrange transportation to the vehicle's place of departure, coordinate the vehicle packaging at the port of call or airport, and customs clearance and duty paperwork. After the transport is complete, they then meet the vehicle upon arrival and deliver it to the client or client's representative at its final destination. For additional information on Hagerty Private Client Services, call 888-460-6040 or visit www.hagerty.com.
Winner Winner Chicken DinnerJohn Boyce, a retired businessman from Omaha, Nebraska, knew what he was doing when he commissioned old friend Dale Boesch to build his first-ever street rod. Boyce was all too familiar with Boesch's talents as a skilled body and fabrication artist, as he spent many years hanging out at Boesch Auto Body in tiny Humphry, Nebraska. When Boyce and his wife Elaine were ready for their dream car, they turned to their old friend. The end result was a stunning black 1938 Chevy coupe that took home the coveted Goodguys/Eagle One Street Rod of the Year award July 8 in Columbus, Ohio.
Boesch called on all of his years of experience to turn out the radical coupe. Body mods and tricks include a wedge chop to the top (2 1/2 inch in front, 1 inch in the rear), a 2-inch pancaked roof, a wedge-sectioned body, and 4-inch stretched doors. The A pillar was laid back 2 1/2 inch, the C pillar leaned forward 1 inch, and the C pillar laid forward 1.5 inches. The coupe's cab was moved 3 inches to the rear, creating a look the most skilled European coach builder would salivate over. The Boesch-designed stainless grille, a masterpiece in itself, was brought to life by Grille Art of Idaho.
Underneath the master metalwork lies a full tube chassis with Corvette C5 suspension and Air Ride Technologies Shockwave bags. A hefty Magnuson supercharger rests atop a shiny LS1 that feeds a six-speed manual transaxle. Custom one-off wheels are courtesy of Intro.
Boesch designed the interior, which features "cigar" shade Italian leather and other tasty accents, including stainless steel seat inserts and a modified '57 Caddy steering wheel. The Recovery Room in Plattsmith, NB, stitched all the trim.
When Boyce was interviewed during the special Street Rod of the Year award ceremony and praise was being laid upon he and Boesch's finished product, he humbly joked, "Not bad for a washed-up old motorcycle racer." He was right. Not bad at all. When lined up against the competition, the '38 coupe shined like a diamond.
To capture the Street Rod of the Year crown, Boyce's coupe beat out a top-flight group of finalists, including Young Gun Jessie Greening's red '32 Ford highboy roadster, Jack Sheppard's swoopy silver '32 Speedstar coupe, Michael Bunch's tasteful Tennessee-based '32 Ford Dearborn Deuce convertible, and George Saab's radical '41 Willys roadster.
The Goodguys/Eagle One Street Rod of the Year is the oldest and most traditional award offered by Goodguys. Open to all '48 and earlier street rods, it was first presented in '91. The award is presented annually at the Goodguys Nationals in Columbus, Ohio.
The Great RaceThe National Guard Great Race 2006 finished in San Rafael, California, after a time endurance rally race crossing 14 states over the course of two weeks. At stake in this world-class competition, the 13-year-old navigator Sawyer Stone and his grandfather and driver Dave Reeder won the top cash prize of $100,000, converting Stone into the youngest Grand Champion in Great Race history. The pair finished with a top score of 2:05.40 in their 1916 Hudson.
During the race, Reeder and Stone drove through a herd of cattle standing in the road. Sawyer never lost his cool when they bumped into a calf weighing more than 250 pounds. "He kept his eye on the speedometer and told me to just keep going," said Stone's grandfather.
"All I can say is wow! The course was long, but we made it, and our hard work paid off," said Stone. "We had a great time together and we are looking forward to competing in the 2008 around-the-world competition"
The National Guard Great Race 2006 is a modern-day version of the around-the-world race that took place almost 100 years ago. The Great Race will celebrate the Centennial of the 22,000- mile Greatest Automobile Race of 1908 by going global in 2008. The Great Race World 35,000km, New York to Paris 2008 will feature teams driving alternative fuel-powered vehicles and classic cars in one race. All will be competing for a purse of $1.5 million while living the adventure of their lives. Like the pioneers in the 1908 race, these adventurers will be the first to navigate these new technologies, helping promote renewable energy usage worldwide.
Worldwide, fans along the Great Race World 35,000km route will be treated to a sight unlike any in motorsports as drivers and navigators driving the latest "green" technology and piloting classic cars will compete on the roads of the world over 82 days. Much like the Greatest Automobile Race proved the combustion engine a practical solution for motor travel, the Great Race World 35,000km will test and prove automotive propulsion technologies that will transport the world's citizens in the 21st century.
The Great Race World 35,000km will start in New York on February 12, 2008. Private teams, manufacturers, and educational institutions are all welcome to apply to compete. The deadline to submit applications to enter is December 31, 2006. Information regarding entry fees and eligibility can be found at www.greatrace.com.