Barret-Jackson & Russo-Steele with Ken Rooke, Scottsdale 2015

    

     Ah! welcome back to blog-o-sphere by Kenny at Insignia.  Yep, more talk of cars, cars, cars!

Is it not wonderful to have someone to talk to that loves American Muscle Cars just as much as you

all do? I think so. Let's put this 6-speed in reverse and back-up just a bit, you see, Patrice, yep,

that Patrice. Bless her heart, she continually tries to keep me in-line and focused, not an easy task

by any measure. Okay, back on track we go and this means back to hangin' with Mike at the

Russo-Steele Classic Car Auction in sunny Scottsdale AZ.  I know, some of you car nuts are

freezin' yer ...'s off, can't help you man, should have come to sunny Scottsdale for a brief (get it) thaw.

     But you didn't, so I'm here to share some of the Barrett-Jackson and Russo-Steele auctions highlights.  Let me assure you guys and gals, they were aplenty, you know like those sugar coated things we used to buy

at the Saturday matinee back in the day in order to keep our family dentist in his Volvo wagons, Good 'n' Plenty.  Yes, you do remember, great! The B-J and the Ru-St auctions were just (2) of the marquee events on the busy Arizona auction week agenda as there were at least an additional (4) other auto auctions offering all sorts of cars of interest up for bids. 

     Scottsdale was truly a city in the desert turned into a huge, seamlessly never-ending display of nostalgia, in every vein of the automotive world imaginable, including American Muscle cars, sports cars, early classics from many continents, American and European alike and new cars from manufacturers around the globe. You just don't have enough time in the day or week, to possibly take it all in.  Can it be done?  Not if your a passionate car freak like I am. That said, I did not have an opportunity to visit the other (4) auctions that I knew of that were happening. Maybe next year, the whole "shebang", I promise you, every auction for at least a day. I do feel short changed, well, not really because what I did see was absolutely spectacular!

So, honorable mention of "specials" I saw are as follows;

1)  1954 Pontiac Bonneville Concept car, outrageous, you can see a lot of the first gen Corvettes in this

incredible design.

2)  1968 L 88 Yenko built Corvette roadster race car # 2, awesome brute power in wrapped in fiberglass.

3)  1968 L 88 AIR Racing Corvette built for James Garner, possibly by Dick Guldstrand, to get his appetite wet for road racing, I believe it worked.

4)  1971 Jimmy Johnson Stingray Resto-Mod powered by a GM Performance LS pkg. with 6 speed and retro-style 17" rallye wheels.

5)  1966 Chevy Chevelle Malibu Resto-Mod by the Ring Bros. as they are known, displayed at the Mother's Tent, very innovative, muscular but elegant.

6)  2015 Bugatti Aero Coupe

7)  Late 50's Mercedes Benz Gull Wing

8)  Very Early Rolls-Royce Speedster Run-a-bout

9)  Mid tear C-2 Corvette Rest-Mod with Retro fuel injection, very cool!

10) Late 60's E-Type Jaguar roadster, how fitting it was Green.

 So, you get the idea, there was enough eye candy to go around.  It really doesn't matter what your favorite flavor is in Scottsdale.   January, during Auction Week there is enough variety for all of us "car freaks" to enjoy, bid-on, buy, sell or just take a few pictures.  To savor the whole spectacle, to prove we were there, to pride ourselves, that "Yes, I too was part of the Big-Show". That's what it feels like to be in the Arizona desert for a very special gathering of car people. Car people whom take it just a tad bit more seriously than the neighbor next door (often observed un-loading 25 lb. bags of potting soil from the trunk of the

family Accord or Camry).  No, the car people in Scottsdale in January know about cubic inches, intake valve diameters, camshaft duration, lap-top tuning, coil-over suspension up-grades, dropped front spindles, double stitched hand sewn leather upholstery, billet accessories and 2 and 3 stage base coat clear coat

ultra pure finishes.  Why is this? Plain 'n' Simple again, my friends! We just LOVE our CARS, See y'all at the next one, thank you Barrett-Jackson, thank you Scottsdale and thank you, the beautiful desert for providing such a wonderful piece of canvas as a natural backdrop for all the Metal-Artist for which to display their awesome creativity.