Mr. Wolf had a few cars and trucks stashed in a friend’s warehouse where I spotted this old bicycle. “Looks like something you’d see at Burning Man,” I observed. Turns out I was right. The warehouse was filled with a giant metal sculpture (disassembled) that had graced the playa at some recent Burning Man. The builder/artist is trying to find a home for the massive piece.
In just a day-and-a-half I saw millions of dollars worth of vintage automobiles. I’m guessing that if you can afford one of these, you can afford several. And cannot resist doing so. But where to you keep a car that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars? We visited one of those places and saw this beautiful collection.
Mr. Wolf has a few clients that pay him to drive their cars once a month to keep them tuned up and ready. Nice work, huh? I asked about security and Mr. Wolf pointed out the difficulty in fencing a car like these.
Mr. Wolf lives in the world of vintage vehicles so our first stop was a nondescript garage somewhere in the Bay Area. Inside were gorgeous old cars worth millions. Two of Mr. Wolf’s friends were working on this Alfa Romeo. Pretty sure they told me this car would be valued at $4 million plus.
Ojai, California is a small artist community in the foothills east of Santa Barbara. My Lyft driver took the scenic route and it was beautiful. I spent an hour with Robert Wolfe.
She’s been collecting scraps for a very long time and turns them into very small objects that hold distinct memories. More »
This beauty pulled up in front of the coffee shop this morning. Had a nice chat with the owner. He’s got a garage full of vintage vehicles he promised to show me.
When I got to the coffee shop Saturday mourning I found the street lined with hundreds of Mustangs. Shelbyfest is a big rally for Mustang owners and while these beauties don’t turn my crank like an old Land Rover, they are gorgeous hunks of metal. A policeman doing crowd control guessed there were 400-500 cars this year. I’ve included notes on some of the photos below.
It was one year ago today I decided to find and purchase a Land Rover. I knew absolutely nothing about them, just thought they looked cool and I wanted one. It has taken twice as long as I expected and cost — just guessing here — about 30% more.
I’ve made some new long-distance friends on this journey and watched hundreds of hours of YouTube videos of people restoring and repairing Land Rovers. Some spend years working on these old trucks.
The guys down at the coffee shop have stopped asking when the truck arrives and I try not to bring it up. But one day soon I’ll come thundering down the street and park out front and maybe take the boys for a ride in a real vintage Land Rover. That will be fun.
There are probably smarter ways to get your hands on one of these but none to which I had access. And I really haven’t been all that frustrated by the delays and unanticipated costs.
I’ve sold the MINI, sort of. I’ve turned it over to a friend who will sell it. It started having electrical problems that were only going to get worse and I don’t have the skills or the patience to deal with. Which means I’m without wheels until the Land Rover arrives so I’m renting.
As this project dragged on, I created a little map to keep things straight.
I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve said we’re nearing the end but I think we’re nearing the end. The new engine will be in San Francisco by the end of the week and — again, I’m just guessing here — maybe a week or two for Philippe to pull the current engine and drop the new one in. Still planning to fly out and meet the mysterious Mr. Wolf and break a bottle of bubbly on the Land Rover’s bumper. Or something. Watch this space.
I spotted this in the parking lot of the Ecco Lounge here in Jefferson City. Belongs to one of the guys that work there. I’m going to try to learn the story behind this and share it here. Do you love the cup holder?