So, as I mentioned on my FaceBook, I got around to watching "Love the Beast" documentary about Eric Bana and his personal relationship to his 1974 Ford Falcon XB coupe which he has rebuilt three times throughout his life and now a fourth after his crash in the Targa Tasmania. He initially bought this when he was fifteen and rebuilt it in his parents' garage using very basic tools. He sits and interviews Jeremy Clarkson of "Top Gear" fame, Jay Leno known for his Late Night show and Big Dog Garage, and Dr. Phil McGraw and dissects their minds on why men have such strong attraction to cars.
You don't have to know me all that well to realize that I am a huge gearhead. I obsess over automobiles usually of the vintage kind but my tastes dabble into the newer generations occasionally. Watching the documentary, it was as if Eric Bana, Jeremy Clarkson, Jay Leno, and Dr. Phil were able to put into words my strong attraction to these machines and how much a major influence they are in my life. My eyes were absolutely glued to the TV screen, mentally taking notes of what each person said that rang a bell within myself. I chuckled at moments where his friends made fun of his relationship with the Falcon XB as I experience those moments myself but I shared the heart-ache and the gut-wrenching feeling Eric had when he crashed his Falcon XB sliding off a bank during the Targa Tasmania race. I felt so heartbroken for him because while to other people, his car is just that, a car. To him, it is a means of escape from reality, from the world, and a huge part of his upbringing. He talks about how he became fascinated with the Falcon XB watching the Bathurst race in 1977 when two Ford Falcon XB coupes became the first ever in the history of the Bathurst to record a 1-2 win. A 1-2 win means that both cars, as partners, crossed the finish line for first and second place. The same has occurred in many other races but the most famous would have to be the 1966 Le Mans race where the sleek and sultry Ford GT40 clinched a 1-2-3 win. He then added that his love for the Falcon XB was cemented when he saw "Mad Max" featuring Mel Gibson ripping across a post-apolycaptic Australia in a Falcon XB coupe with a supercharger that could be switched on with the flip of a toggle switch from the inside. (In reality, the supercharger was never functional. The producers wanted the concept of a selective supercharger so a plain carburetor was installed on the engine inside the empty blower case.)
For me, it was my father, who I miss very much day after day, who got me into this hobby which has since then became a lifestyle. He had owned over 80 cars throughout his life, including big block Chevy powered '55 Chevys, Camaros, Chevelles, Novas and Impalas of various years, lifted Chevy trucks, a '69 Charger, and many many more, usually of the General Motors brand. Once I asked him if he have kept a car from any of the cars he's owned his whole life, what it would be. He immediately responded with "That white with a blue-stripe 1971 Pontiac Trans Am with the 455 H.O. and a 4-speed. That car was so much fun." In fact, it was so much fun, he once got a speeding ticket for doing well over 130 miles a hour in a 60 miles a hour zone while headed home from college in Clarendon. Of course, that was during the '70's when tickets were just tickets, well before the law-enforcers started taking it personally with the points system and stiffer criminal charges. Even then, I sort of have a goal of beating my father's highest ticket one day, just for the sake of it. "I was filled with piss and vinegar," my dad remarked at that story.
Automobiles in my life have been my escape from reality. My hot rod project in the garage has taught me a lot about learning from my mistakes, self-discipline, and has made me value hard work for what it is. It keeps me honest and sane. It keeps me out of trouble, so to speak, in a world that is hell-bent on pulling today's youth from good moral values. I'll take transmission fluid in my hair any day over sitting and suffering through an episode of fist-pumping Jersey Shores, skinning my knuckles on motor heads over trying to hook up with different girls, and metal dust in my nostrils over worrying about which fraternity to join. Automobiles are a form of art to me. It makes me a better person, mentally, spiritually and physically. There is such a wide range of diversity when it comes to style, class, taste, performance, or even just making a statement. In the documentary, Dr. Phil remarks that Eric Bana would not be who he is if it was not for his love for racing and that racing provides a thrill for Eric that would not be found elsewhere. It makes him a better father to his children and a better husband to his wife. He is able to take from racing a zest for life that he instills in his fathering and his love life. If he was to stop racing, the he would lose that zest and his children would not have the father they have today and his wife would not have the lover that she does now. Mrs. Bana has also talked about how she enjoys seeing Eric do what he loves. She also states that she doesn't feel she's in a position to tell Eric what he can do and what he cannot do because that's just who Eric is.
To me, there's so much more to cars than just transporting people from point A to point B. Back in the day, it was how you met girls, it was how you made friends, it was the cornerstone of your social life before cell phones became as mainstream as it currently is. Cruise nights were held on the weekends and drag racing was done for the fun of it, or to show off how much more power you gained by swapping out your stock cam for a 3/4 race cam, or new heads. Speed runs at Bonneville or El Mirage were much more affordable to the average gearhead in the pursuit of going faster than everybody else. In a sense, it was either, you compete with others or you compete with yourself. There is nothing like that feeling of seeing the fruits of your labor after years and years of building a car, or seeing that your idea that you worked on for the past few months actually improved the performance of your car. It was out of that that Stu Hilborn started a company selling products to the most famous drag racers. It was out of that that Vic Edelbrock started a massive company that still sells products to the hot rodders today. These guys were able to make a business out of doing what they loved. You hear "do what you love" a lot when it comes to career choices, but let's be honest with ourselves. How many people do you know that actually do that? Usually, your career choices are determined by past choices in life.
That's why I'm grateful my dad got me into hot rodding while I was still young. Nowadays, the government is trying to implement stricter regulations on cars and are pretty much doing what they can to kill off hot rodding. I do have to admit, even if they were to ban older cars, I would still drive one on the street. Old cars have soul. They have character. They cannot and will never be replaced with the plastic crap that our automakers are trying to pass off as cars. I find the 1969 Mustang fastback so much more attractive than the new Mustangs. How about those four-door Chargers? They didn't have those back then. The Impala today is a embarrassment to the Impala of yesteryear. Independent Rear Suspension in a new Camaro nowadays? Today's automakers just don't get it. Not anymore.
I guess you could label me a romantic when it comes to cars.
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