Year One Experience
Written by Keith Fudge

Recently, Dennis Gage traveled south of the Mason-Dixon line to Atlanta, Georgia and the Road Atlanta Racetrack to attend the Year One Experience!  Billed as “The Ultimate Automotive Extravaganza,” this event truly held something for everyone including a car show, burn out contest, road racing, and even an area with games for children.  While he was there, Dennis ran into his old friend Keith Maney from Year One who told him that the purpose of this event was, “having fun with cars!”  Keith went on to tell Dennis that one of the great attributes of this show was the diversity of the cars on hand including several “resto-mods” for those who love classic looks and modern technology! 

As Keith and Dennis took a walk to see some of these great vehicles, they found Ken Feist and his 1971 Roadrunner.  Painted “millennium yellow,” this bad bird features a 440-6 barrel setup and even has nitrous in the trunk!  Ken said that he has owned this car for 22 years.  Next, Dennis ran into Jack Barnett and his customized 1956 Corvette. This Vette sports original body lines but is vacant of chrome and trim to accentuate the classic style.  Underneath the body is a C5 drive train featuring an LS1 with nitrous oxide under the hood.  Jack said that he has been fortunate and the car has won several awards in the Street Rod category.  A sweet 1966 two-toned Nova was the next car that caught Dennis’s eye.  Raymond May is the proud owner of this slick Chevy!  Raymond said that a Nova was the first new car that he ever purchased, and after attending this event last year, he decided to build one!  Painted black and orange and powered by a Chevy ZZ4 making about 430 horsepower, this Nova is a real head-turner!  Next, Dennis discovered Bill Howell’s 1965 Pontiac GTO.  Bill described this beauty as, “a brand new car with a 65 GTO body!”  Built in the pro-touring style, the accent here is on performance.  With an LS1 and blower under the hood, this bad boy is built to be driven.  Finally, Dennis found a really cool 1955 Ford F-100 pickup.  Owned by John Maffucci, this truck is meant to be a parts truck, but as John said, “one thing just led to another!”  With a 2003 Cobra running gear, this truck makes 510 horsepower at the rear wheels and features a really cool “see-through” bed!

Dennis and the crew had a great time at Road Atlanta for the Year One Experience.  This year’s event will be held May 18-20.  If you would like more information, you can give a visit to www.yearone.com.  That’s it from Atlanta, Georgia.  So until our next visit, “Honor the timeless classics.  Happy Motoring!”