To RB Scott

First, I would like to say I respect that you signed your comment - there are a few who do not have the courage to do so, especially when their comments are, say, rather rude or nasty (yours was not - it was simply sarcastic and wrong).

With all due respect, your comment is so very wrong on so many levels it does not bear publishing, but I did, anyway, so folks can see how one-sided some people's thinking can be.

First, the "altercation", as you call it, was instigated not by me, but by a small group of malcontents who got "fired up" by Big Mike - it was witnessed. He fired them up, then walked off to let them do the dirty work and take the heat. I was minding my own business at my car when those clowns came at me, not vice versa. They acted like a bunch of schoolkids looking for trouble. I kept trying to walk away, like any mature person would, but they kept blocking me and getting in my face - and my wife's, as well. Twenty years ago, being hot tempered, I would have relocated some teeth. But unlike some, I grew up. Like you, I do not believe fisticuffs solves much. It would be far better if certain parties would simply - and with civility - sit and listen to one another, and see if an understanding could be reached. But folks who KNOWINGLY cheat are not likely to be willing to do that, because they already know that what they are doing is wrong. However, as always, I am willing to discuss these issues with anyone, anytime, as long as it is done with some modicum of maturity and civility. But I don't see that happening anytime soon. Someone coming at me shaking his fist and yelling and swearing, at a family affair, and making threats is not acting mature or civil, and does not warrant anything but disdain.

Not to mention, I have often referred (in this blog and at shows) to Oscar's Galaxie as a beautiful piece of iron (though certainly not Special Interest). He, in turn, called our vehicle "a piece of sh*t" several times at Shaw's Ridge. Anyone who cannot respect another's ride is not deserving of anyone's respect, and certainly not mine. And when such class-less people call my wife a wh*re as they did in public at the show, they are walking a very dangerous line that they would do well not to cross again. If that is how such people think, and talk, then they are not deserving of anything but disgust. And if they are friends of any reader, then perhaps you could act like their friend and advise them to be more civil and mature in the future, because such talk and actions only make them small, and make situations untenable.

Second, if someone gets offended at being called a cheat, then he can avoid that by not cheating. Simple.

Third, I watched as the judges did my class - they looked at three vehicles. There were a dozen in the class. Others report the same, so don't BS us with how well the judges did at Shaw's.

Fourth, with all due respect, your purple SSR is not, by definition, Special Interest. It does not have a recurring theme contructed around a specific and unusual topic, nor is it unique in that it is built for a specific and unusual purpose. Do not be fooled, as some are, that a vehicle only needs to be "unique", as that is not the case. Every vehicle is unique. Few qualify for SI because they are not unique as being built for a specific and unusual function. And to have a theme, a specific and unusual TOPIC must first be determined, and the vehicle built around that topic, with recurring aspects of the theme - our woody, for example, was built around the specific and unusual topic of the Beach Woody/Surf Woody of songs and movies of the 60's. To create the recurring aspect, many details were added, including etchings on the windows, "California Cruisin" third brake light, surfboard on the roof, surfboard dash plaque holder and many, many more items related to the surf woody theme - not to mention the custom woody kit. There is even a surfboard air freshener! A truck with a theme would be Robbie Russell's "Sgt Rock". I have yet to see any other vehicle with a more recurring theme - every tiny detail of his truck centers around the specific and unusual topic. But even though he could technically enter SI, he does not, because he follows the first rule of choosing a class - it must be the MOST APPROPRIATE class offered by the show. And the most appropriate class for Sgt Rock is normally 4x4 trucks, or custom trucks. But if those classes were not offered, I would have no qualms finding him in SI, and he would be welcome.

Fifth, not having an SI class means nothing to me. As stated in previous blogs that you obviously missed, we win more often in the 90's-Present class than we do in SI. We enter SI either at the behest of the organizers, or when it appears we might have an unfair advantage by going into the PRESENT class. We try to choose the class that has the toughest, not the weakest, competition, because those are the awards worth winning. For example, at Litchfield there were 5 vehicles in SI, and 15 in 90's-Present. So we chose 90's-Present, because a win there would be meaningful. Get it?

Sixth, we were not "out-classed". Just because someone does not win does not mean they were out-classed. You, of all people, should know that. In the previous two shows at Shaw's Ridge, using the same classing structure, we won three awards. So ditch the "out-classed" BS.

Lastly, thank you for your comment on the car show book. I agree that more organizers should at least have a copy to consult.

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