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Post by Pony on Jun 20, 2008 16:40:30 GMT -5
The Mystery MachineBeing in my teens in the mid to late ‘70s, I saw the popularity of vans rise and fall by the ‘80s. During the ‘rise’ many of my friends were buying vans, even my mother’s boyfriend at that time. It was the coolest thing to pull up in a tricked van with shag carpet on the dashboard, Led Zeppelin blaring and chrome Craiger wheels shiny and wide. My mother’s boyfriend, Griff, was a brilliant mechanic and van decorator, and he had a long Dodge van themed out to be a ship with nautical airbrush paintings on the outside and dashboard, rope-wrapped steering wheel, wooden bar and comfortable bed in back. I had the pleasure to drive that rolling ship, at times, and I must say ‘the feeling of riding high above the traffic while navigating that modern day land-schooner as exhilarating for a 17-year-old dude. I bought a van in 1982 out of necessity because of the car accident that landed me in a chair with wheels, and by that time the glory days of vans had faded. And although my van was your most basic cargo Ford E150 van without any style, over the years it became my baby. It was a few years before I could drive it, having to obtain a loan for disabled driving equipment before I could proclaim a part of my freedom back. Almost 27 years later, after much attention to making my Mystery Machine more comfortable, my van is still, essentially, my freedom. That van of mine has been incredibly dependable, and while there’s no concentrated theme, it carries a certain motif, and often people stare at it, like they would stare at a horse. I call my van the Mystery Machine because it defies the odds, shatters stereotypes, remains strong against the erosion of time. My van is me, and I am my van!   
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Post by Ouch on Jun 20, 2008 18:00:23 GMT -5
Well, I have to say Tri was pretty spot on in describing that 'Mystery Machine' as a 'Kidnapper Van' lol! A look at my van, which I call Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on good days, Shitty Shitty Twang Twang on bad days, and some days only the title of 'P.O.F.S.' can only describe it. ...have unfortunately been working on it in recent days as it is my vehicle of last resort at this point...  |
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Post by Triassic on Jun 20, 2008 19:38:43 GMT -5
looks like tony photoshopped out the 6ft mural of the barbarian princess w/the chained wolf in a mountain landscape on the side of his van...and the airbrushed gothic letters spelling out; "ridin' free; livin' the legend.." geuss he didnt think that was 'cool'.
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Post by Ouch on Jun 21, 2008 0:31:16 GMT -5
That is indeed a beauty, fubb.
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Post by Pony on Jun 21, 2008 9:31:30 GMT -5
Fubb, nice car, man...needed some tinted windows to pimp it out, but still sweet car!!!
Windy, see you have a Ford, too. You find it reliable workhorse, like mine?
Tri, I've thought about the airbrushing (not your corny scene lol), but i kinda like the 'stalker' look. I keep a 10,000 volt stun gun around for the uncooperative female!! lol
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Post by Ouch on Jun 22, 2008 15:40:11 GMT -5
The 80s definitely spawned a greater quality of vehicle; unfortunately I cannot attribute that title to Chitty Chitty up there...hence the occasional name it earns as 'POFS'  |
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Post by Pony on Jul 18, 2008 14:55:07 GMT -5
Fubb, you are so right!!! Those muscle cars from the 60s were my favs....packing horsepower under the hoods along with unique body styles!!! The Chevelle, '69 Camaro Z28, AMX, '67 Corvette Coupe, GTO, Roadrunner and Mustang, ahhhhh. Did you have these cars Down Under?
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Post by Ouch on Jul 18, 2008 17:01:28 GMT -5
A friend of mine is reconditioning a pretty sweet AMX Javelin he picked up recently.
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Post by Claire on Jul 20, 2008 0:18:23 GMT -5
Love the shot of Tri hiding out in the corner of the bottom photo there.  |
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