More on Alex…

Ryan already paid a proper tribute to the pioneer of So Cal Speed Shop, the great Alex Xydias yesterday. Yet, sitting down to write something for today, nothing else seemed nearly important enough to me than just paying more respect to the man who shaped much of post-war hot rodding as we know it. I was lucky enough to be invited to Alex’s birthday in March for the past few years, as he turned 99, 100, and then 101 years old, with all of us in the room knowing this amazing man wouldn’t be around forever. He was the same guy I met over twenty years earlier (along with Wally Parks) at a Petersen Museum event, as I asked them to sign my copy of ‘The Birth of Hot Rodding’. Alex was always happy to meet people of any age that appreciated the history, the ingenuity, and American grit that made hot rods what they were. I found an interview with Xydias from over 10 years ago, where he recalls how the So Cal Speed Shop came together in 1946 and then thrived in the late 40s and early 50s as the birth of Hot Rod magazine opened opportunities for him across the country. It’s worth the watch, and he was always worth the listen:

God Speed, Alex…