History Kids...

The answer for me is quite simple but you have to be over 60 to understand. Back in the 50s when it came back to school time you were dragged out to the store and you got a new pair of jeans. You were still growing so the legs were always too long and you were supposed to grow into them. Most of them didn't last long enough. You also go a couple of new T shirts and if you were lucky a pair of U.S. Keds. If you look closely you'll see the turnup is very narrow. Thats a fashion statement of the late 50s. Look at early 50s photos and the turnup is much larger. If you look at the fashion of the mid 60s the turnup had disappeared. For me its a fabulous photo of a wonderful period of time. Too bad it didn't last.

 

I'm from So Cal and never rolled my Levi's like that. I rolled them under if needed.
Those Guys don't resemble Greasers to me either.I think a lot of this stuff depends where you grew up. Actually they look like they're about old enough to join the svc.
Those were good times whether you rolled up your jeans or not. I was there in
So Cal all my life (so far) and had Customs and Hot Rods of all kinds as long as
they were Fords or Mercs.
All the Kids need is a little time in the Marines to get right

 

I have to admit to not reading this whole thread. The sentiments seem pretty much the same in what I have read.

I just turned 45. I've been into this "stuff" for well over half my life, yet I only finished my first hot rod about 2 years ago. I wish I could have had it when I still had grease in my hair, or should I say, hair to put grease in. When I finished my car it all made sense. I knew why as a young fella all the cool cars were driven by old guys. I had become one of them and now I knew that only the old guys can actually afford them (in Australia rodding is expensive).

If I could I would still have grease in my hair, chasing girls and listening to rockabilly music. The hair is long gone, I have a family and I still like the rockabilly but don't have time to get out to bands much anymore. I guess that leaves cars. I could get all negative about the young guys not being committed to cars because they are out doing all that other "scene" stuff but in reality, they have it right. They are doing what I was doing 20+ years ago and would probably still like to (at least a little).

The cuffed Levis...that's easy. I get ribbed by workmates and others outside my circle of friends for wearing cuffed jeans. Truth is I am 5'9" and jeans seem to be made for guys 6'3". If I could wear them without cuffs, I would. It's a bi-product of my genes that I'll have to settle for looking cool well into old age.

The really strong message I got from "our hero" is that it is the young kids that are doing it. It's the older guys that are hanging on, pretending to still get it.

Pete

 

Great post Ryan. I have been thinking alot lately about how it all started for me and my friends and who is still around building and driving their cars. Funny thing is i had a nieghbor kid ask me how old I was recently and I said 36 why do you ask? He said I have more toys than all of the old people he knows. I told him that I will work on cars,ride motorcycles and skateboards until my body wont let me anymore and that he could do the same if he wanted. He was very suprised to find out how old I am and came by later and said, I should hurry up and do it alot because Im almost 40 and thats really old....... he is 9. Man Im with you, I dont ever wanna grow up. No matter how old my body is.

 

Love this bit: I just appreciate that there are young guys around that share the same lack of sensibility that I did as a kid. It makes me think that this world of ours is gonna be just fine when I’m gone.

 

the point to it ALL is 2 things.

#1. women.. always has and always will be.

#2. when you get to that line (and we all do) when enough is enough and you punch the
gas and it smokes em and you fire off down the road like a rocket and it's just you and the car with not a damn care in the world.

 

As far as i know,


1) pure hotrodding


2) cool


3) stupid


don't have an age limit !!!

 

I was thinking... from left to right:

1. Hot Rodder.

2. Hot Rodder.

3. Hot Rodder.

4. Hot Rodder.


Anything we try to put labels on is just a state of mind...

Sam

 

hahahahahahahahahahaha...........just spit my beer out all over the monitor!!!!! That's the funniest shit i've read in a while!!!

 

No.3 would never ride a bike. Triumph or otherwise. Hairstyle, jacket, white socks and loafers are all wrong. But he does have a smirk like he did Debbie.

 

I think kid #3 grew up to be Paul Tracy.

The skinny cuffs on the jeans are exactly the way they were worn in West LA during the '50s.

 

Great story and photo.

Wouldn't it be cool if these guys were still around and to be able to hear their story/stories.

Like a "Where are they now?" but more awesome.

 

"The older I get, the better I was."

 

Crass commercial plug for an old friend, Gary

http://www.amazon.com/Older-Get-Better-Was/dp/B004ZI7IIA

 

At 35 I'm in between the youth and the older guys, and can perfectly relate to both.

My life motto has always been "grow old, don't grow up". I get a lot of cr*p from my wife about that, she doesn't get the whole car thing and probably never will, no matter how hard I try to explain.

I still remember quite clearly having zero cash but wanting to make my car nice and cool. I also remember taking a lot of time to hang out in the shop of old mechanics I knew, and take in as much as I could. Most of them are gone now, and I still feel I needed some more time with them, even though I now feel competent enough do all my greasy work.

But even if things are getting really nasty as relates to cars these days, boys will always be boys. I drive my kids to school in one of my old cars most days, and I love watching all the kids' stares and comments. And I take the time to answer their questions.

In a recent past, I found myself muttering about how kids these days have stupid tastes and do silly stuff, but then it hit me... I was going down the same path as those before me, and it scared the hell out of me. I would very much do the same stuff if I was their age. So I took note to never turn into a grumpy old fart. Rebellious behaviour is a norm of youth, it just evolved with every fashion, but deep down it's all the same.

I hope I'll never get tired of having a sh*tload of stuff in the garage and thinking about future projects I can use it on, either... you're never done.

Cheers, Eddie

 

I don't know how much longer we will be building cars in Sealy High School Auto Tech(50 percent of the auto tech labs have been closed in Texas just in the last few years) But right now the students are building one 63 Ranchero with a 302 C4 and disc brakes, one 79 ElCamino with an 87 Tuned Port and 700R4, one 46 Chevy pick up based street rod with a 327 and 3 dueces(Holly 94's) and a 4 speed with custom student build frame, rear axle and suspension and one 76 Triumph with a inline 6 transplanted in it.
Kids can do just as much as the kids of years gone by...but nobody is expecting them to do it....and showing them how. I believe that my students could conquer the world if I told them that is what we were going to do...and of course showed them how.
These kids are doing good stuff everyday. They do all the work. I kinda show them how and put the tools in their hands...they figure it out just like I did. They are all proud gearheads.

 

AUTO SHOP, WOODWORKING (who else remembers having to cut their own "paddles"?)
HOME ECONONOMIC"S for the future Mom's of America?
Those kids in the pic were gifted to grow up in such an era, even if they didnt know it at the time.
There is one or more of them out there who is still around, or someone who knows who they are. and this is just the forum to find them, too.
Let's keep this thread alive!

 

Most agreed. There needs to be more of those in my area.

 

I have only seen so much as 2 young men driving hot red muscle cars in my town. I could never chase them, since my poor caddi is having electrical issues and just sitt'n there in the lot. And also burned a hole in the back of this other kid, (came with no car) at Taco Bell. Wow, Black fitted v-neck t-shirt, black fitted jeans, and boots. He looked to me like he just might own a Hot Rod.

 

Some pretty interesting opinions written in here so far...

As many previous generations have done, snickering at how "kids" dress is pretty standardized stuff. Earlier generations wore some pretty funny outfits when they were young, as well ("flappers", "hippies", "zoot-suiters", etc.). The difference now is the "kids" dress-up based on some convoluted image of "how it was", and attempting to re-create a perceived image, instead of creating their own. I remember dressing up as cowboys and Indians to play, and of playing "Army" based on our perceptions of how Hollywood portrayed those characters.
It's no different now. "Kids" dress up as "hotrodders", believing they are accurately emulating how it really was, based upon carefully scripted and portrayed Hollywood images and magazines.

"Meanwhile, these old farts bask in their perceived fountain of youth. They take pride in the fact that they are still out in the garage… still hot rodding… still “getting it.” After all these years, they still have it.
Or do they?"
Ryan, we just might "get it" far more than you realize... The simple joy of being on the road behind the windshield of an old car is the same for us today as it was fifty years ago. The rest of the nonsense is just that. Nonsense. The gap between generations has always existed. It is what it is...

 

Great story ! Its too bad we have to put a number on our age because I think with most people the number just makes you feel older. Does that make sense ? I heard a quote on the radio a while back that I thought was pretty good. " If you didn't know how old you were , how old would you be ?"

 

That quote was from Satchel Paige, who pitched 3 scoreless innings against the Boston RedSox when he was 59-YEARS-OLD !!!!!!! Another quote from Satchel Paige was "Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter."

Ol' Satchel could teach a lot of us on here a thing or two...

 

Funny you hould mention Alex Xydias. A few years ago at the SCTA Awards Banquet he was the guest speaker. He started by saying "The SCTA asked me to speak about the good old days. But as I look around I see Bob over there and Tom and Jimmy. Hell these are the good old days!!" To hear him speak was more than worth the price of admission. It seems LSR allows a bit more for age.

I got my driving license in '61 and have been racing ever since. I notice now that it gets a little bit harder each year but it gets done. Age takes its toll no matter what but age doesn't dim enthusiasm.

 

I fit into the category of young guy. I'm short, and can never find jeans that are the right length, so I have to roll mine up. I have tattoos, I have a short on the sides long on the top kinda haircut, but it isn't a pompadour. I was raised around hot rods, motorcycles and tattoos. I come by it honestly, my dad at 53 still wears a cuff on his jeans so they don't drag, that's just how he was brought up

 

Man Toby- I'm in tears laughing!

I grew up in these times- right here in So. Cal.
That car could have belonged to any of my friends.
The guys? Not so much, at least around here.
We didn't wear pomps or duck tails or any such nonsense, we saw them in the movies. We all wore flat tops or short hair cuts- like the kid on the right. My dad had a flat top to the day he died. We'd flat the tops & grow the sides longer & slick the sides back w/ Brylcream. I forget what they called it back then.
The jeans- you bought the waist size (they jumped 2 sizes if I remember right- 28, 30, 32, 34) & there wasn't an option for length. So- you cut them off & cuffed them up. We cuffed them because we didn't have to means to stop the fraying. Hanging w/ the guys- you cuffed them out. Going out- you cuffed them under. Mom was always yelling at us for stealing all the safety pins! Trust me- if jeans were available in all the sizes today back then- no one would have been cuffing.
1st guy has his cuffed under. 2nd & 4th are just rolled up. I don't ever remember that. 3rd has a 1" cuff which is the closest to what we did.
No one I knew wore button down shirts when hanging out w/ your friends. It was a white Tee w/ a pack of smokes rolled up in the sleeve. If it was cool out- the bomber jacket was worn. A letterman jacket would have gotten your ass kicked.
Shoes- always white socks but we never wore loafers. We wore those pointed boots or black oxfords or wing tips. Some wore Red Ball Jets but not too many car guys did. I did have a pair of white ones I had my mom dye black (with white sole & white laces) that were pretty cool.
Tattoos- only people I knew who had ink were those who were older & just out of the service.
There were no costumes. We all wore what we had & what was available at the time. The difference today is- kids are trying to capture a piece of the past which they never will. The worst part is the clown costumes today that they try & tell us older guys was traditional. It's not.
I haven't cuffed my pants w/ safety pins since the 50's & don't plan to dress the 50's era anytime soon. Been there-done that.
I'll smile & give the kid a thumbs up when they get it roght though. That young kid standing next to his rod made me smile. However- the whole "scenester" crap is like a circus act today & bears no resemblence to the way it was. I know, I was there.

 

I'm 24 and just stopped cuffing my jeans and wearing chuck taylors a few years ago. Once you have kids and work 60 hours a week, you don't have nice enough jeans to worry about the bottom fraying, and you want comfortable shoes after wearing steel toes all day. Lol

 

I turned 70 in June, I enjoy the old days and the new days, all of the younger folks have treated me well and sometimes I think some of the customs are a bit much but if they like em then I love em...

I think it is funny when I see and hear about the first things some folks want to do is make the ride handle better, heck , I always thought that my stock 55 chevy , 49 Ford and others handle well back then... and I guess for back then they did..lol

 

I actually thought that maybe it was Alex Xydias that you were originally quoting

I have had the priviledge of speaking with him a couple times ... and I can just imagine him saying the things you quoted.

Great read.

 

When I was a boy and mom bought my clothes I had to wear what she bought. Then as I got a little older I told her "Mom I want to dress like Dad, blue jeans, flannel shirts and white socks". You see Dad was my mentor. He taught me about cars and so much more. I will never have a tatto because he had one and he said any time he was stopped or had a run in with the law they asked if he had been in jail and was treated like a real criminal instead of just a young guy who was out having fun and it got a little out of hand.

By the way I'm 49 and respect both young and old alike just like Dad taught me. Respect is something that takes your whole life to earn but can be lost in a moment. I'm going to be myself and won't fault you for doing the same as long as you treat me as I treat you, respectfully.

The one thing I see here is we all like old cars. The views of what is cool is as diverse as the people on this site.