SOUTHERN CA LANDUSE TOUR BY DEL

TOUR OF SOUTHERN CA BUSINESSES WITH LAND USE ON MY MIND

After Big Bear Forest Fest with Poison Spyder Customs and the Inland Empire 4Wheelrs, and a nice donation to BlueRibbon Coalition of $2000, I decided to spend some of my vacation time (not representing anyone in particular) and stay in southern CA and make some social/business calls on landuse supporters (and business friends of mine).


It's not often I get a chance to just tour factories and headquarters offices, so this was the perfect time.

Most businesses become busy vendors at events so it's hard to get in informal chat time.  This tour gave me that chance.

I started with Raceline Wheels, Greg Mulkey and crew. Wow, I had no idea what it took to make wheels, aluminum and steel.  And what an operation they have at Allied/Raceline.

And to polish the big wheels (alum) -- man, what a job!

Then I got some time in with the crew at Source Interlink, 70 publications, 41 of them automotive. Steve VonSeggern gave me the first class tour and wow, it was impressive to see this operation up close and personal.

I got to say hi to a lot of magazine writers who support our landuse efforts, as well as produce some mighty fine reading (and videos).

Next stop was 4Wheel Parts and Transamerica -- the Greg Adler empire!  Denis Snow from Off Road Adventures magazine gave me the first class tour and I got to also visit with Operations Chief and race car driver, Brent Goegebuer.

Yes, this is a toy store!  Whew....and the headquarters store to boot.  Transamerica is right next door.

SEMA was a great stop as well.  Colby Martin took me around the headquarters of this busy place where our hobbies/sports are being protected with their national team.

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) fights hard for hobbyist.  This trade association consists of a diverse group of manufacturers, distributors, retailers, publishing companies, auto restorers, street-rod builders, restylers, car clubs, race teams and more.

Then for some outside fun and a great tour, I hooked up with Tony Pellegrino of GenRight Off Road.  We even took the Growler Jeep out to some local property for a video shoot and some fast driving!


Tony showed me his brand new carbon fiber line for JK Jeeps.  Sweet.  This stuff looks nice and should really add a nice touch to JK's.

The tour was a resounding success for me, especially since I got to hook up with so many great folks who support our landuse efforts.