Very cool father / son(s) build!

Well, James is a Senior now and has had to write multiple essays on various things as he is applying to many Colleges ....

This was the ask...

Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

James' essay

In 1968, Chevrolet produced 40,977 RS Camaros, and one of those ended up in my possession. Growing up, the Camaro was ever present, but I never thought much of it until my dad asked me if I wanted to help him restore it. At 14 years old, I had no mechanical experience; I had never even held a wrench before. However, I had seen my dad restoring cars throughout my life, and I knew he would be there to help me when I needed it. I had no idea where to start, but my dad took the lead. Within hours we had the entire front end of the car apart. After about a month, we had most of the car disassembled, and it was time to repair and refinish everything. I was constantly sanding, cleaning, and repainting parts throughout this process. The first time I painted, I didn’t clean it properly, resulting in the paint starting to flake. The second time I painted it, I used too much paint, causing it to drip. After much trial and error, I became fluent in cleaning and repainting any part that needed it. This process of trial and error continued for years, but it was the end goal that kept me going.

Finally, the day came when we were going to start the car for the first time in 37 years. Now 16, I was beyond excited to start up the engine. When the time came, I cranked the motor, and all I heard was the whine of the starter. The engine would turn over, but after multiple attempts, it still wouldn’t start. Feeling demoralized, we rolled it back into the garage and tried to figure out what was wrong. After troubleshooting, we discovered that the fuel lines were flipped, and no fuel was getting into the engine. With the problem fixed, we rolled it out of the garage to start it up again. “3, 2, 1,” but this time, the whine of the starter was not there. The starter was broken; the car wouldn’t start. Back to the drawing board, we rolled the car back into the garage and had to start over. This time we discovered that the starter had gone out, and we had to replace it. With all these repairs done, we finally got the engine started. When the engine fired up, my pride, happiness, and gratitude were overwhelming because we had finally accomplished what we had set out to achieve.

Despite the setbacks, I learned to enjoy the process and never give up. I can persist in facing challenges and achieve anything I want. Seeing the improvements on a day-to-day basis kept me motivated when I started to feel overwhelmed. One of my favorite parts is taking it to car shows with my dad and talking to other car enthusiasts about our project. This two-year project with my dad is a significant milestone in my life. Reflecting on late nights with my dad was when I truly got to know the man he is, and I understood that he was a model for me for the kind of person I want to be. I realized I wanted to foster the same type of relationships with other people in my life that I love and care about. This process taught me that the journey is truly just as important as the destination.
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Serious proud Dad moment here. I'm going to reflect back on this one until the day I'm gone..... We try so hard as parents to raise our kids and hope they get it... This kid gets it 100%, and truth be told.. He has made it easy for us. So blessed and proud. ( And yes.. I was cutting onions when I read this...)
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Great story Brent. Thanks for sharing. I too have memorable moments like this with my daughter. We’re moving to Nashville, TN next year so she can pursue her dream of being a Christian singer/songwriter.

I can't think of a much prouder father moment than a story like that! The car looks awesome!

It doesn't get any better than that!

Holy crap this brought tears to my eye's.

I always say at the end of the night when something you see or you read touches your heart you need to call it an night and go to bed. Well this will be the last thing I do tonight as I am not sure I will find something more special then this post.

Great Job Dad and kudo's to both you and your wife for raising such a fine young man.

Thanks!! Very much appreciated. Wish your daughter and your family all the luck in the world pursuing her dream!



Thank you!!

Thanks Todd!!

Thanks for the kind words Marty!! We are truly blessed. Still can't believe we weren't able to hook up at SEMA. Was looking forward to seeing you and meeting him. I told him about your Porsche and he was like.... 😳🤣

Well, it's been about 2.5 years since my son and I completed the Camaro. We have put about 9400 miles on it and been an absolute blast. We decided it was time to do a little update to it. What better way than to put some new wheels on it. We decided to hit up Boze. They have a new series of wheels out called their Flo-Lite. We wanted to keep the classic look, so we opted for a traditional 5 spoke design. Their B3's fit the bill perfectly. We went with 18x8 with a 4.75" bs with a 235/40 up front and 18x9.5 with a 5.5" bs with a 275/40 in the rear. They fit like a glove. The finish on these wheels are perfection. As much as we drive this car we didn't want to spend a million bucks for wheels. These wheels seemed like the perfect choice for us. And to top it off, they have them in stock and we're shipped the same day. Boze was great to deal with. Their friendly advice and knowledge was exceptional. Can't thank them enough! Attachment 81613Attachment 81614Attachment 81615Attachment 81616Attachment 81617

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Great choice, Brent. The wheels look fantastic

Turned out great! Wheels look good!

So much talent in one family…not really fair!

:P


Seriously Brent, that’s a cool new look to a memorable Father-Son project. :thumbsup:

9400 miles.

You sir are my idol. Kudos to you and your son as you truly built an incredible car.


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