Power Tour

You know what the best part of Power Tour is? Well, besides the countless hot rods and daily Starbucks Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg breakfast sammies, that is. The best part of Power Tour is the escape. Escape from the mundane reality of your pointless life. A monotonous existence where you drag yourself out of bed each morning, look yourself in the mirror, and say, "you've got this, John." And for the record, that name is purely hypothetical. For instance, today we took a 200-mile open road trip, with some amazing stops, all on a Tuesday. Most people are going about their business and going to work on a Tuesday. Maybe their job involves putting down those orange cones on the highway or perhaps even building the digital presence for the leading maker of organic children's clothing. Either way, we thank you for your service. If it wasn't for your sacrifice, we wouldn't be able to do exactly what we did on Day 3 of the Tour. We woke bright and early. Some of us brighter and earlier than others. Just look at our friend, Keith "Big Money" Echols. Impeccably clad from tip to toe with matching shirt and shoes. I'd like to say I share Keith's fashion sense, but I consider it a success if I remember to wear shoes and a shirt at all. Shane was really excited to get Day 03 started. That is, until he wasn't. Perhaps he was shocked at my lack of pants (it's a work in progress, and if Donald Duck can pull it off, why can't I?), or he could have been dismayed by the light dusting of breakfast sandwich croissant crumbs on my shirt. Well, you know what, Shane, I don't need to play by your Whole30 compliant rules. I'm an artist, with a relentless creative hunger (mainly because those Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg breakfast sandwiches are not at all filling). I challenge you to find someone to do this as work is unrivaled. Judging by this pic Forrest snapped, I'm not entirely confident he got the message about my unrivaled quality of work. I'd go on, but the double smoked bacon grease on my keyboard makes it hard to continue. I gotta say, I simply adore Emily Reeves' ITB'd LS-powered 280Z. It is literally the Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg breakfast sandwich of cars with the cheesy goodness of a classic Japanese sports car chassis with the double smoked bacon punch of an LS swap. Yes, I made it about the sandwich because, it's always about the sandwich. After a second stop for another Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg breakfast sandwich (let's not point double smoked bacon greased fingers here), we were finally on the road to Atlanta. Much like yesterday's Day 2 visit to Goolsby Customs, our Day 3 treat was a quick stop at Johnson's Hot Rod Shop. Here's Alan Johnson taking some time to talk to Charley, Jim, and Shane and while I can't say for sure, I think I heard him mention something about not letting the photographer with the greasy hands too close to his builds. JHRS is one of our valued partners and we're proud to supply them the products they need to care for their builds. Alan and his JHRS crew have created a deep lineup of iconic builds and this is one of the wildest creations to come out of this little shop in Gadsden, Alabama. Based on a 1953 Studebaker, the Stupidbaker is a tube-chassis land speed record car built to smash records at Bonneville. I believe this one has gone as fast as 265 on the salt and the build quality is so polished that we awarded it with one of our Mothers Choice awards. This old Ford truck belongs to George Poteet and it's patiently awaiting some TLC from the talented JHRS team. Another WIP belongs to Alan and Angie Johnson themselves. It's supposed to have a shop truck theme, but I have a feeling it will be so much more in the end. Here's a brief glimpse at the level of detail that goes into every JHRS build. This is a 32 Ford drop axle in the process of being machined from a solid forged block. Nothing is as simple as a bolt-on part here. Soon after we left Johnson's, we left Alabama, crossing over into Georgia. This brings me to this peach of a guy. Forrest made a bold choice by pairing his Bauer blouse with the jaunty hat. And yet, no matter how dashing he looks, the poor guy still doesn't know what to do with his hands. This beautifully blacked out, Mothers-polished SRT8 belongs to our friends, Jason and Dana Flamer. It's so much better than our QX Sexy. I may need to jump ship and jump into the SRT8, if only to preserve what little street cred I have left. Hello, Atlanta Motor Speedway, we're about to be inside you. Always a welcome sight at the end of a long drive. Roadkill's Mike Finnegan brought out his Blasphemi Hemi-powered Chevy gasser. Even though Finnegan wasn't on track there were plenty of Roadkill moments. I can't say for certain what's amiss, but that rear axle looks even more broken than I do when my I talk to my therapist. Jim also took to the dragstrip, where he was challenged to beat himself (I'm going to resist the urge to add any further editorial commentary). Here's the rundown from Jim, "Paired up against myself in the final at Atlanta. Had Mike Sitar, President of MAGNUSON Superchargers drive the Callaway. I got him on the hole shot, but he passed the Terlingua mid-track." If my calculations are correct, then I have the distinct pleasure to consume three more Double Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg breakfast sandwiches. F100 with a personalized tag that reads, "IM A GM." LS the world, right? Had the same nickname in school, except my Spanish teacher spelled it, "Senor Weak." Huntsville, Alabama's Evan Haataja and his friend with the brilliantly colored laces (name withheld because I neglected to ask for it) are long hauling with this 71 240Z, not to mention doing all the autocrosses along the way. Can't wait to see you gents in Charlotte! Are you a purist, or do you like to keep things traditional? I want to wrap up our Day 3 coverage with this old Nash Ambassador NASCAR pace car that belongs to none other than Bill France. Will have this one with our Big Rig for the remainder of the Tour. Tomorrow we’ll go 295 miles to South Carolina’s Darlington Raceway. In the meantime, feel free to enjoy our gallery of pics from Day 03 here. John Naderi for Mothers® Polishes•Waxes•Cleaners facebook.com/mothersusa