Mr vito82:
Count me in as an original from the Class of '84. My screen name dates back to the original BB when Jerry Stein and I both logged in as "Jerry." I'm Jerry From LA as opposed to Jerry Stein (jstein77) from Fl. Turns out we both changed our screen names simultaneously without asking each other, probably because it was the polite thing to do.
That's the way it was back then. This BB and the magazine it represents get their flavor from the tone set by the Suddards from the very first issue. Joe Gearin was right about our ages. I was 28 years old and pushing hard to make it in my business. There was no extra money around so owning a FIAT 124 Spider meant I wrenched it too. Had a parts car on blocks in the back yard and everything. My landlord was so pleased.
Now come the Suddards with the insane idea of writing a magazine about doing more with what you have and, oh by the way, going up against juggernauts like Petersen Publishing and the Ziff-Davis Group with multiple titles and huge marketing machines. The Suddards bucked huge odds like me so the aura around the endeavor was just as enticing to me as the magazine itself.
Do you know how hard it is to sell a magazine concept about people with no money and the crappy cars they love? Try selling ad space around that. Do you think all the little businesses catering to our crowd pay huge money for ad space? Why do you think the magazine got bigger? Because lots of little ads meant lots of pages. Safe-T-Quip is not a huge sponsor. Budweiser and Miller are huge sponsors. You won't hear it from Tim or Margie but these guys were pushed to the brink of bankruptcy a couple of times at least.
The Suddards are firmly entrenched in the middle class. I would bet they clear less than someone like Thomas L. Bryant at Road & Track and they own two magazines. You won't see Thomas L. Bryant sitting behind a booth selling subscriptions in the rain at a vintage race in Pittsburgh.
Offers like the long-term Bimmer loan are important to those of us here from the beginning because it means Motorsports Marketing is an established player whose opinions are important to a company's marketing strategy. It means our subset of the automotive hobby has some clout. We played a small part in the Suddard's success. This is our thing too. The kids at GRM get to drive that Bimmer because we all worked for it and we want them to enjoy it. Oh, and they get to mod it up a little too, no questions asked. Then we get to steal the ideas. If the penalty for that is writing about it in the magazine, so be it. Compromising is part of the deal to live the life you want.
What is a sports car? What is a hot rod? What is grassroots? People argue back and forth about the definitions all the time. Which is why you'll get a pass from most people on that part of your post. But taking a cheap shot at someone for being ballsy enough to start a magazine that had no shot, industrious enough to see it through 25 years and smart enough to make deals ensuring its long-term survival?
That's way past douche-y. that's....that's...what is the word I'm looking for here?
OK, I have to drive my wife to work so I can have her car while I work on my latest POS. I'll take this up later.
for the Neuburgring track ?
