Wednesday morning I got up at half past six in order to drink morning coffee with Sean, and tell him about yesterdays trip. He was bummed out on my behalf, and he agreed with me, that I might better call ahead to the next places I was to see. So after a shower, I got online to try to find Vern Tardel's phone number, but it wasn't on his website for a good reason, quote "After banging our heads too many times to get out from under a car to answer the phone, we’re strictly email and fax", unquote. And I can only imagine the bumps a head can get, when your business are busy and you are trying to build kuul hot rods! So I took the chance and left San Francisco without knowing if it would be another drive for nothing.
It wasn't, let me assure you of that! I have never imagined, a place like that could have so much kuul stuff gathered in one place! The only thing missing, was a switch from flat head V8s to 4-bangers, and I would be in my perfect hot rod heaven!
When I started getting closer, I expected a lot of signs and arrows pointing "This way to Vern Tardel's traditional Hot Rod shop!", but it actually just looked like an old farm house, as I drove up the driveway - the only thing letting me know, I might be at the right place was the hopped up mail box with a Ford carb and two V8 aluminum heads on top. A small sign at the house saying "Shop -->" lead me around, and suddenly I was in absolutely one of the kuulest places in this world! As I got out of the rental, a couple of vintage dragsters was the first thing, I noticed, and as I found myself standing in the yard of the hot rod shop, I realized what it was, that surrounded me; each car had at least some lowering, a flat head V8 and that equiped with aluminum heads. All the parts, we only dare to dream about back home, was suddenly plenty of all around! I mean, every early Ford part imaginable was laying in the yard in boxes placed on the ground, old signs of all kinds, a couple of vintage bicycles, V8 powered machines such a home build tractor, was all around me!
I went inside, and one of the first cars I looked closer at, was a bright red '28/'29 roadster with an overhead valve 4 cylindered Model A engine with two Stromberg 81's. I know, normally Vern only does flat head V8's, so for me to turn up on one of the few days, he was having this little banger rod in for a make over, was incredibly lucky! The story about the car was, that Vern build around 18-20 years ago, it had been sold a few times, recently to the son of the customer, who had Vern build it, and it had now come back for it's first service! If you build hot rods, that lasts for 18 years, you are a good craftsman!
Most of them had gone out to lunch, so Kevin, a former graphical designer who's in charge of the 'web business', greated me, told me a little about the place, and told me to look around, and Vern would come back later.
I spend a couple of hours just walking around in parts lot, as I didn't wanted to interrupt the business of Vern and his men building kuul hot rods, just looking in total disbelieve at the amount of parts laying in boxes on the ground before me. I then went inside, hung out in the shop for some hours, I bought some stuff, having Vern sign a set of his books, talking about hot rods here and back home, the difficulties in building traditional hot rods in Denmark, all sorts of car talk actually. Fun fact: Vern build a lot of the cars, that are in the background in the movie "Worlds fastest Indian", when it takes place at the land speed trials at the salt lake. Around half past six two guys, Mike and Jack (I believe - have meet so many, so I tend to forget and mix names, sorry!) showed up, starting to work on Vern's spuercharged flat head V8 land speed racecar, which they do every wednesday night - like our Pirates' Kustomz nights back home!
One of the many things, I had noticed walking around in the piles of parts, was a rack full of the brake backing plates, I wanted to use as my graduating project as a mechanical engineer, but couldn't find back home. So I asked Vern, what he would want for a complete set of all the brake parts needed, and it came to around $700! I desperately started counting my money, but if I took that deal, I wouldn't have any money for a lot of the things, I wanted to see and do for the rest of the trip. So I had to leave them, but we agreed, that I could have them shipped out of there, when I got back home. And around 8 o'clock, I said goodbye and thanks for a great day to the guys left in the shop, and I drove back to San Francisco, still in disbelieve of that place.
As I drove down the freeway, I started wondering, if there were soime way I could get the money, and maybe take the brakes home with me, as I was near them now anyway. So when I got back to Sean and Alison's house, I called my trusty financial aid, Tina, and we made a deal about me lending the money for the complete set of braking parts. So Thursday I had to go back to Vern's to pick up the parts. And with that settled, I went to sleep after a long and very good day!
