Rain Or Shine: 2013 Mooneyes Xmas Party Draws The Tough Crowd

The last couple months of 2013 was a great time for Rod Authority. We had just wrapped up an awesome week at The SEMA Show in Las Vegas, published our Holiday Buyer’s Guide full of products compiled for our readers, and a week prior to the Mooneyes Xmas Party Show & Drag we had just finished coverage of the Bo Huff Rockabilly Extravaganza.

Two weekends in a row of kustoms, rods, lowriders, and gassers was definitely an awesome treat to kick off the holidays. On top of that the atmosphere provided by all the Rockabilly acts, the droves of vendors offering everything from apparel to shifter knobs, and of course the smell of Kielbasa sausages on the grill made for a killer two week run. It has certainly been a busy winter season since then.

This year’s Mooneyes Xmas Party was our cap on the 2013 show season and it was a great kickstart to the Christmas and New Year celebrations that followed. Read on and check out the awesome rides that showed out this year!

Rain Or Shine, I’m Showing Mine

The Mooneyes Xmas Party Show & Drag was held on Saturday December 7th. Friday’s overcast weather and heavy cloud cover throughout the night offered premonitions about the atmosphere of Saturday’s event. Low and behold, the sound of heavy rain pour was our 7 a.m. wake up call.

With a full pot of coffee, two thermostats of bold and black, camera cradled under jacket, and a quick stop in Carson, California for some Chorizo breakfast burritos Rod Authority was off to the Irwindale Speedway ready to see how attendees and exhibitors were feeling about the rain.

The storm had subsided by 11:00 a.m. and though the weather had managed to deter a max capacity event there was definitely an impressive turnout of hardy car clubs, individuals, musicians, and business owners who pressed on throughout the day.

As you can see from the photos, for some Californians, the rainy day show setting is a rarity and in ways, a treat. Holiday cheer was in the air and we’re sure that a lot of attendees felt pleasant and at peace spending a Saturday hanging out and relaxing rather than fighting droves of Christmas shoppers. We know we were!

The highlight of this brisk winter celebration was the fact that there were groups of clubs that came from all over Los Angeles County, the Inland Empire and as far south as San Diego County. For some individuals, that meant anywhere upwards of 70 miles in the pouring rain to get to the show.

Some rode in on bias ply tires, some without windshield wipers, and a lot without the convenience of heating. It was a risky move but there’s no mistaking or overlooking the dedication that these people have towards the culture. Hats off to these tough cats, their families, and friends for making the pilgrimage.

Travis Barker’s ’65 Caddy

Travis Barker is a household name among our generation. He is an iconic drummer who’s most notable role was in pop punk band Blink 182. He is also the founder of clothing company, Famous Stars and Straps and a devout Cadillac enthusiast.

The folks at Famous had setup a booth at this year’s Mooneyes Xmas Party to show off Travis Barker’s ’65 Coupe DeVille which was being raffled off as part of a holiday giveaway contest.

Just recently, Travis Barker, Famous Stars and Straps, and Tilly’s had announced the winner of the month long giveaway. The contest ran from November 4th until December 24th.

We’ll be doing a news spot with further information on the ’65 so stay tuned for a closer look at this badass Cadillac.

Cadillac Fever – A Steel Titan Makes An Appearance

Another highlight at this year’s Mooneyes Xmas Party was the presence of a 1959 Cadillac Fleetwood Series 6700. Originally known as the Series 75 Imperial Sedan, this version of the Fleetwood was the limousine model of the Fleetwood lineup.

When production resumed after World War 2, this series became the largest model offered by Cadillac. The ’59 is distinctive and everything about its design stands out and represents both American luxury and grandeur.

The ’59 spans an overall length of 20 feet and comfortably fits up to nine passengers. It sports the iconic set of tailfins introduced by Cadillac in 1948 and the one we caught at Mooneyes gracefully cut through the air as it was cruising the Irwindale Speedway lot. The quad headlights, wraparound egg crate grille up front, matching egg crate in the rear, and dual bullet taillights round out this steel titan. It was a definite treat and site to behold.

Jack And Debi Petitt’s ’57 Pontiac Star Chief

Another show standout was this ’57 Star Chief that we first caught site of at last year’s Ventura Nationals. This ’57 owned by Jack and Debi of the Mercifuls Car Club is definitely what we call a year ‘round beauty–she sits pretty as you’d expect in summertime and glows magnificently in the revealing light of winter.

This is an excerpt taken from Jack and Debi’s steel panel offering up a description of their sweet ride, “The boys over at Hot Rods & Hobbies sprayed the mix of Limefire Green and Seacrest Green DuPont ChromaBase paint on the body then Rock Morgan came in and pinstriped the lines in green with gold and violet accents. The Pontiac 347 was worked .030 over and topped with an Edelbrock 600 carb, sparked by a points ignition it powers a GM Hydramatic to stock rear with 3.08 gears.”

The description continues, “Exhaust comes from dual 18-inch cherry bombs or un-corked lake pipes. CH Topping in Long Beach applied the disc brakes and the car sits with a custom airbag setup fitting around Astro Supremes with white walls.”

This gorgeous ride has been featured in Ol’ Skool Rodz and won a Top 5 mild custom award at the 2012 West Coast Kustoms Cruisin Nationals in Santa Maria, California. This is definitely one ride we won’t be getting tired of running into.

SCTA’s 2014 El Mirage Schedule of Events

Aside from snapping a shot of this lovely winter pinup hanging next to this roadster in the SCTA display, a couple of the SCTA fellas gave us the lowdown on the 2014 El Mirage racing schedule. Check it out below.

Be sure to check out the Southern California Timing Association’s website for updates on El Mirage and Bonneville Speed Week.

May 17th-18th
June 22nd
July 13th
September 14th
October 19th
November 8th-9th

The El Mirage season starts and ends with a two day event. All events will be held at the El Mirage dry lake in Southern California. Racing is scheduled to start at 7:30 a.m for each event. Be sure to bookmark SCTA’s website for further details as they become available.

A Little Moisture Never Hurt Anyone

Unless your Gizmo or one of his mayhem prone pals from the 80s hit Gremlins, Rod Authority stands behind the idea of getting out, showing out, and making the most of weather conditions that are a rarity and therefore a treat!

Sure it’s cold, sure the tendency is to ball up and throw a raging fire on (or the Hallmark Channel with its convenient and just as effective 24 hour holiday run of a log fire) when the skies are grey, but nothing beats getting over that timidness towards a little chill and making your way to a winter car show. The air’s cleaner after the rain and we promise that the scent of kielbasa post storm will warm you up just as quick as a bundle of wood and kerosene!

So as winter is drawing to a close make it a point to get out to those shows and swap meets and enjoy the shift in scenery. We definitely did. You’ll be missing it once that Summer heat rolls in and your shoulder to shoulder, yet again, with other individuals not knowing whose sweat your wiping off your neck.