Welcome to another Hot Rod magazine Power Tour. Brand new year, brand new us. Okay, maybe we're the same old us. Truth be told, we're a year older. We'd be depressed if we weren't so excited about getting back in the saddle. And what a saddle it is, with many, many horses. Yesterday was the pre- pre-party, which is not quite the official kick off, but it's good enough for us. 
This year, as always, the Tour begins right where it left off. That means starting in Madison, Wisconsin, exactly where the 2014 Tour ended. Thanks to our resident knower-of-all-things, Forrest Tosie, we discovered that renowned architect, Frank Lloyd Wright was born nearby. Even more exciting is that Ringbrothers is also nearby in Spring Green, Wisconsin. The brothers of the Ring threw a little open house and we stopped by to check out one of our 2014 Mothers Choice award winners, the RECOIL Chevelle, among other visually tasty treats. Since I spent yesterday crammed into a germ tube at crusing altitude, Forrest was good enough to take some pics and write some words. And now, without further ado, I give you, the Full Tosie. Dear John (I hope it’s the first, and last time you’ve received a Dear John letter):
You missed a good time at RingBrothers yesterday. Too bad you couldn’t get an earlier flight. We drove out from Madison to beautiful Spring Green in the mega-luxury Avis Yukon XL. I gotta tell ya, you’re going to love riding in that luxo-barge. Heated seats? So passé – it has heated AND air-conditioned seats; along with more power ports than you can count. You’ll be golden for juice for the electronics.
Oh, BTW, it has its own ZIP code it’s so big.
Anyway, the drive out was great. Saw lots of cars along the way, along with the most puzzling sign ever about Frank Lloyd Wright. You know I live for useless information, but having a sign in the middle of nowhere that says Frank Lloyd Wright lived and worked six miles away from where the sign was, mystified me. Is it possible some miscreant teenaged badgers moved the sign in the middle of the night as a sophomoric prank? I guess we’ll never know.
Spring Green is a cool little town. Not too big, not too small. RingBrothers occupies a couple of buildings right in the middle of it, and it was crowded with cars and people. The local law enforcement made sure everyone had a place to park and didn’t “pull a Jim”, if you know what I mean.
Shane and I walked the grounds and surrounding streets and found some great cars we hadn’t seen on previous Tours. I’m hoping they’ll come along. Rat rods are still the rage, as you can see.
We found a naked full carbon fiber 2+2 Mustang shell, which they’re now producing for sale. Weight saving with lots of strength – that’s a winning combination.
Walking through their shop we saw some of their finest work, including RECOIL. The fabrication room was stuffed with projects in process, including a full carbon fiber Mustang, like I mentioned. It’s going to a client in Russia, we were told. Some lucky person is going to end up with a Ringercized first generation Mustang convertible. Looks like they’re still working out the plan.
Their Winnebago was parked out front, too. I remember what a great time you had in it last year. Maybe we can race the Yukon against it.
There wasn’t much cell service in Spring Green, so we bugged out after a few hours to get work done. I hope your flight was enjoyable and you’re ready to once again live the life of luxury on the road. I’ll be in the Mustang if you need me.
Yours truly,
Forrest Tosie
Well, that was easy. Now if I can only convince Forrest to do this once or twice (or even six or seven) more times I'll be able to get some epic nap time in the Yukon. Look out, 2015 Power Tour, we're coming for you! Stay tuned for more from the road. We're just getting started.
