SYA, Blogs for Brett

All things seem to happen for a reason. When Flying Over Cuba premiered June 3, 2005 at the College of Lake County here in Grayslake, IL we were scrambling to get the Mustang fitted with the "Mobile Movie Theater" in time for the event. That was a date we missed because a vendor sent the wrong parts.

The movie itself was seen by 200 or so folks that night, drove the impact of the crash home to all sitting in the room. Meeting Andy Short and many of Brett's friends later that evening galvanized my commitment to carry this message forward, no matter how many delays seem to keep the car off the road.

Two days from now, Flying Over Cuba will make its first film festival debut in Sedona, Arizona. I met during Jim Colletti, Treasurer- Board of Directors of the Sedona International Film Festival, during my trip to the the January Scottsdale auction events. During the course of conversation, Jim expressed interest in the film. Upon my return to Chicago I overnighted him a copy of the movie to him.

To my pleasant surprise, Jim called back enthusiastic about the social value the film represented. Long story short, Flying Over Cuba is being shown to students at Sedona Highschool on the 22nd and will be shown at the Sedona International Film Festival on the opening day, Februrary 23rd, 2006. We had hoped to have the paintwork on the car completed in time for this event, having missed the premier. Again, a vendor mis-shipped a part, so we won't be there to see Flying Over Cuba shown at it's first international film festival.

No matter the reason, I am proud of Jonathan, for being inspired to make the movie and having the determination to follow through with it. I am grateful to Jim Colletti for considering the film in the first place, not to mention pulling strings to getting the film included and flying Micheal Karlin in to talk on Braked for Brett afterwards. That kind of dedication is what it takes to make this a nice place to grow.

The car WILL be ready, and in it's own time (read early spring or bust!).

Pulling together sponsors, volunteers, and heck, even people you pay to build a charity project car no picnic. It IS satisfying work at the end of the day, but the day is a LONG one like the days I used to spend working on a farm cleaning out pig trailers. Hopefully when the car is complete, there will be less fecal matter and a lot more fun to show for it. Unlike shoveling pig crud out of trailers, I am doing this because I love it.

Some people call our car hobby an obsession. We even joke about "having the disease". Whether you have one classic car under a junk pile in your garage or possess the finest examples of vintage iron known to man, it all boils down the same thing. Automobiles speak directly to your heart.

It happened for me much the same way it does to other boys. I listened, intrigued, by my dad's stories of hot-rodding '55 Chevy's in the back yard using the limb from the oak tree as an engine hoist. I watched the grin grow on my father's face as he took the occasional turn as faster than normal in the old family station wagon. The grin was bigger than the feat; it was the size of the memories from his younger years. He'd turn to me, still smiling "This old wagon has a big block in it, you know."

The Spring of '82, I remember him bringing home his first brand new car. It was no station wagon. Her fender lines like sumptuous hips, the rhythmic engine burble resonated through the seat as dad pushed her harder around a sweeping curve, the deep blue gloss of her skin, known only to oceans and my fathers Mercury Capri RS. She stirred me in ways like these long before I even pondered what women were about.

Eight years later, on my 16th birthday, I bought the same car for $400 out of a classified ad. That day, I became an initiated man.

A love for automobiles isn't necessarily a disease (no matter what my wife may say). Our hearts and minds hard wired to react in a fevered pitch to something so beautiful, that so invites us to be dangerous.

"...God set the dangerous stage for this high-stakes drama and called the whole wild enterprise good." ~John Eldredge, Wild at Heart, Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul

The love of automobiles is a God given passion. Being able to make a living by working with our fellow auto enthusiasts as blessing, and a mission. It is a simple matter of giving credit where credit is due, showing Him our gratitude.

How we are invited to appreciate automotive beauty, or harness their power, depends on who our fathers were before us…

So, what does all of that have to do with Brakes for Brett?

We chose to promote and raise funds for Brakes for Brett because we see it as an opportunity to provide an exemplary expression of this passion, while respecting the legacy and teaching the lessons of Brett's story.

Owning a fast car isn't an obsessive pursuit for something we have to have. This is a passion, a gift we have to give.

The automobile is the most universal agent in American Culture where boys can learn who they are, where their talents lie, and get the opportunity to test their independence, learning they have what it takes as a man.

Showing our sons' the power and beauty of the car, is more than showing them an object of desire or providing recreational outlet. It is revealing to them a chrome and steel reflection of the Creator's power and beauty. It is empowering them to discover the gifts God gave them and how to use them in the world. It is illustrating to them how fragile life can be, before the world brings it to their doorstep.

Sounds noble, but why should YOU participate?

We all do things for our own reasons, our own motivations. I have learned that when I give thanks and use my heart's desire to make a positive impact on someone else, then my daily life becomes a natural act of worship. It is a quickening, the rush of being truly alive. Perhaps you will feel it too.

Sincerely,

Patrick Krook President/CEO, Show Your Auto llc

After the $2005 GRM Challenge was complete and my wife got her car back...we still needed a car to direct kids who are into racing to take it to the track, and OFF the street. So, we scared up this SUBLIME 1989 Mustang LX with a '94 GT drivetrain in it...Thus was born the Brakes for Brett Car...

This car was (supposed to be) a real find. Rust free, updated drivetrain, the seller said. "All it needs is a battery, an alignment, and some minor dings in the passenger door."

If you overlooked the four lug wheels with 3rd degree curb rash being held only 2 lugs each, non-working door locks, drvers window that won't go up, a siezed belt tensioner, clapped out shocks and struts, 3" of side to side spindle travel on the front end, bad front wheel bearings, a bad front spindle, finger tight strap bolt on the rearend, spent brakes, no e-brake, a starter solenoid that sticks, trashed AC, a clutch that was going, a body that looked like it survived a hail storm, etc. He was right, it did need a battery.

It was born black with white vinyl "LeMans" stripes that they tried to remove by hacking at them with a razor knife. The Government is right, box cutters should be banned.

A customer tried to help the basket case by squirting Sublime Green...

...lighter colors don't show body imperfections the way darker ones do. It is apparent that this pony still needs a healthier coat, no matter the color. Any paint companies or resto shops feel like sponsoring a car for a good cause?

I picked Sublime Green because...

...I always loved to look at Mopars. I picked the Mustang because I love to drive Fords. Mother Mopar and Uncle Henry both put in a "timeout" for this creation. It doesn't matter, the generation coming up behind us don't know any better. Besides, the kids love it and the adult "old school" guys hate it. Now, I know I'm doing something right. Afterall, this one is made for the kids!

Everything you DON'T see in this photo was bought at a special sponsor rate from...

...http://50resto.com They came to the rescue so many times, I'd have to create a webpage just for them to list it all. Thanks guys!

Discount Tire Co Inc. donated these 17 x 9 Cobra R rims and tires. Yep those fat...

275's out back are screaming, "Dude, can we have a little room here? How about rolling those fender lips?" The fronts are whinning for spacers to avoid rubbing on the control arms. A 5 lug conversion would be a nice remedy for better rim choices. KNOCK, KNOCK! (Bear Brakes, are you listening?)

What you don't see in this photo is the stuff under the car...Kenny Brown emptied his catalog into the...

...chassis of this puppy! Track-it panhard bar, full extreme matrix brace sub system, K member brace, rear strut tower brace, front strut tower brace, caster plus, sport springs, and Bilistien self adjust soprt struts complete the package! More photos will follow when we get it back up on a rack!

Hey, if you are going to LEAD by example, you better make sure they're BEHIND you on the track!

Nice pipes, babe.

MAC True Fit 2.5" HTC cat-back exhaust with 3" chrome tips make een this stock mill sound Bulldog mean. An aluminzed 2.5" X pipe I snagged off of eBay gets the job done from the headers to the the MAC-Daddy muffers...

The engine bay needs some help still...

...I ripped off all the Boy Racer decals that kept the build up of grime off of most of the engine bay. You can see the newness of the Kenny Brown tower brace and the Caster Plus contrast the junkyard freshness of the rest of engine compartment. Soon we will chuck the non-operative A/C system to save weight and beautify simultaneously until the budget will allow for a new refrigerator/freezer to be installed.

That orange thing isn't a snake...

...that is the power suppy line for the sweeet sound system Excel Audio of Wauconda, IL designed and installed as part of their sponsorship.

Caster plus and tower brace, makes the car stiff and shoot straight were you point it...

...no wonder guys like racing

This car is like a MULLET...

All business up front and a PARTY in the back!

The box hides the rear strut tower brace and shows off the wicked cool 15" Subwoofer!

It even has a docking station for my laptop...

...with a power inverter to pug it in and video and audio out to play the 7 minute trailer to "Flying over Cuda" and short form documentary created by Jonathan Skogmo, Brett Karlin's cousin.

Rear firing speakers will carry the story of Brett's death and the message...

...that a passion for cars is not bad but it is dangerous and needs to be done on the track, not the street. Andy Short, Brett's best friend and the driver of the car that night on Cuba road, courageously bares witness and responsibility for the consequences of the decisions made that night in August 2004. He has shared that to more than 18,000 highschool kids from that day to this, speaking in front of large crowds of young people just like your children. It is up to us to carry that message forward.

The automobile is the most dangerous weapon...

...we give to our young men and women as a right of passage to becoming an adult. They need and deserve the proper training that goes WAY beyond driver's ed class. Let's take 'em to the track and teach show them their limits before they find out like Brett Karlin and Andy Short did.

A few days 'till the race, $3,000 in pledges to make good on. No crew, no car, no race?!

It was looking that way. Then, my wife says, "Why don't you just take my car?"

You want me to drive your car, 2000 miles over night, autocross it, drag race it and drive it back 2000 miles in time for you do drive it to work on Monday?

Yes. (she says)

You are ok with that? (I say)

Yes I am. (she says)

I HAVE THE COOLEST WIFE ON PLANET EARTH!

I love you Hunny. (I say and hang up the phone before she realizes what she has just agreed to.)

In the pits, had to empty the car in prep for competition...

...everything had to come out, even the cheesburger wrappers and the baby seat. Why the baby seat? It's a Britax, Autobahn rated even!

Actual question:"Dude, is that an SHO?"

Uh, no Bevis. It's a Ferrari.

Like the "magnetic" flame job? A gag Christmas gift...

...from father-in-law comes in handy. Don't they just scream, "This beige bruiser means BUSINESS!"?

I hope the stickers come off...

My wife has to drive it to work on Monday!

The judges watch as history is made...-

Those Goodyear Regatta's got GRIP!

Accelerate on the straight!

Braking at the gate, the run is over, only 4 more to go!

55th, is NOT last place! 62nd is...

There she is, forever immortalized between the pages of Grass Roots Motorsports Magazine~!

Stats:
Autocross: 36.325 sec.
1/4 Mi.:
17.532 sec.
Concours:
13.6875pts*

*it would have helped to have cleaned the car up from the road trip down, vacuumed the grass clippings fro the trunk, and maybe scrape the tree sap from the hood. But hey, we had to give our competition a fighting chance...

To promote the charity Brakes for Brett and have some fun, we located this 1984 Mustang GT350 to enter the Grass Roots Motor Sports $2005 Challenge. Why raise money for Brakes for Brett ? Because a father who lost his son and a best friend who was at the wheel are turning a tragedy into an opportunity. An opportunity to save lives, to promote the safe enjoyment of this wacky passion for cars, and to set an example for the young street racer crowd. Once you go track, you never go back!

This was our first attempt at a Brakes for Brett car, we wanted to prep it for the Grassroots Motorsports 2005 Challenge, and well...

...it needed a little more work than we had first anticipated...

This was all supposed to be a simple assembly project with all the right pieces present and accounted for...can't you see them all?

The good news is, that we have two of 2.3L turbo engines....

The bad news is, this is the one that is supposed to have gone into the car....

The guy helping me with the mechanicals ended up in and out of physical therapy for a bad knee and underwent knee surgery the week we were supposed to race.

I had been scrambling to gather sponsors for the car and pledges for Brakes for Brett. The idea was simple, take on pledges just like one would for a walkathon. Well, we gathered about $3000 in pledges, but had no car, right up to the day before the race...What to do? That is for a different entry!