confident the right car is winning the right award.
I invited Troy Trepanier to sit in while he was out
here. He loved that it was experienced builders
judging, how points were accumulated and how
the results were discussed. He commented that
our system was the best he’d ever seen.
How do you get through so many cars in
such a short time?
We’re often accused of not taking enough
time to look at a car, or just brushing over it –
especially with paint. Here’s the reality: At events
like Summernats, there are many good paintjobs.
To whittle it down, we look at the lay of the paint,
check the primer’s been blocked properly, how
the paint has been applied, mottle, orange peel,
depth, etc. This eliminates more than half. Then
you look at the hard-to-get areas: under sills,
door jambs, under the hood, in and around the
boot. This eliminates most of the rest, leaving as
few as 10 cars with a realistic chance of fighting
it out for paint. By quickly eliminating those that
don’t have a realistic chance, you can spend the
time on the rest to make the correct decisions.
What’s the hardest area of a car to judge?
Undercarriage. We don’t have a hoist or a
rotisserie, so getting access is hard. Even with
the ramp, it’s still hard. You just have to get
in there with your torch and spend the time.
It’s also hard to keep emotion out of it. John
Taverna was an excellent judge and once told
me: “Everyone thinks their car should win andeveryone has a story.” He’s right; you feel for
the stories of why something wasn’t finished,
or how this happened. But, as a judge, you
can only judge what’s in front of you. Not what
might have been.
How do Australian builders compare with
the rest of the world?
I have visited many of the best shops around
the world: Rad Rides, Foose Designs,
Ringbrothers, Bill Dunn, The Roadster Shop,
Barris Kustoms and many more. I call all of them
close friends and I’ve seen a lot of their work. All
the good fabrication and custom shops here in
Australia, like ProFlo, Southern Rod & Custom,
CAD Customs, Pat’s Pro Restos, Custom
Bodyworks, Hills & Co, Real Steel and Knight’s
Garage, to name a few, are as good as any of
them. We’re definitely world-class.
Do our cars stack up?
Every visitor, including Troy, Chip, Jon Kosmoski,
Gene Winfield, Charley Hutton, Jimmy and
Pete, they all comment how good our cars
are. In the US there’s just more people, more
builders, more cars and more events. Every
Aussie car that’s gone to the US has done
well: Rex Webster [High Tech], Ron Smits [’37
Chev], Bruno Gianoncelli [Mercules], Mario
Colalillo [WILDCAD], Justin Hills [Atom],
Rob Zahabi [Kamaro and Kam Nova], Adam
LeBrese [393 Coupe], Rod Hadfield [Final
Objective], Dave and Katrina Martin [JUCETR]and Chris Bitmead [XBOSS] – all landmark
cars, all did spectacularly well. So, yes, Aussie
show cars stack up, and yes, they can compete
with the best in the world.
What cars have really shaken things up?
I continually hear about the next big thing, but the
majority are just another version or improvement
from the last few builds. Alley Cat was an early
stand-out; then came Howard Astill’s Rock
Solid. I remember seeing it at the Narrandera
Street Machine Nationals: smoothed engine
bay, undercarriage detailing – my first influence
to build a show car. Ron Barclay’s HQ ute was
re-engineered, cleverly detailed and refined to
a level that took everyone by surprise – it’s still
remembered to this day. Although a brand-new
car at the time, I believe Rob Beauchamp’s pro
street VL Commodore took the scene from
street cars to real show cars – it even drove
well, despite the knockers. Les Lawry’s Victoria
was the first car I ever saw with the amount of
detail and finish, especially on the undercarriage.
Shane Rowe changed the rules with that car.
Rod Hadfield’s ’55 Chev had more engineering,
more fabrication and more planning than
anything before it. Rod’s had many incredible
builds, but for me, the ’55 was the stand-out.
Another guy with unbelievable planning skills
and vision is Mick Fabar. ZERO’D was a
stunning, super-elite build, with a documented
zero-carbon footprint – never done anywhereJustin Hills’s 1960 Dodge Phoenix,
dubbed ATOM, is one Aussie car that
wowed the Yanks, winning World’s
Most Beautiful Custom at the 2013
Sacramento Autorama
YES, AUSSIE SHOW CARS STACK UP, AND YES, THEY CAN COMPETE
WITH THE BEST IN THE WORLD