About me and my passion for cars

I am a cradle Pontiac guy. My grandmother had a '74 Grand Prix that could torque you into the seat like nothing else. I was two years old and knew that it was a Pontiac. I started asking for subscriptions to car magazines at an early age and collecting brochures from dealers, but was always partial to Pontiacs. When I was 14, my family moved to Chicago where our next-door neighbor had a '77 Trans Am. He made the mistake of telling me he wanted to sell it for $1,500 and I told him not to sell it to anyone but me. I don't think he took me too seriously until I showed up with the cash I'd saved over the next couple of years (didn't even think about asking mom & dad to buy it for me!). Now, 24 years later, I still have the car which has undergone a frame-off restoration. I drive it about 4,000 miles per year anymore, but I dont' baby it - it gets driven rain or shine to every event I attend. If you ever see it on a trailer, call 911 - it's being stolen!

My first car

The very '77 Trans Am you see in my garage. I bought it when I was 16, restored it when I was in college, and have driven it over 90,000 miles in every kind of weather.

Car I wish I still had

Never figured out how to sell a car (at least one that runs...). That's why I have six cars and a two car garage.

My dream car

The car that made me a car guy was grandma's 1974 Pontiac Grand Prix. Big, solid, comfortable and enough torque to surprise everybody. I've tried to buy 4 of them over the past 18 years unsuccesfully - I will have one someday...

Car clubs I’m in

Indy Firebird Club, Trans Am Club of America (Dayton Chapter), POCI, POCI GP Chapter, American Station Wagon Owners Association

Favorites

• Type of racing: Drag Racing
• Driver: Matt Adams
• Driving song: Flying In A Blue Dream - Joe Satriani
• Car movie: Smokey & the Bandit
• Car book: Cannonball - Brock Yates
• Car magazine: High Performance Pontiac
• Car game: Grand Theft Auto

— Profile last updated: May 22, 2011