Andy Brizio

While still in high school, Andy was driving a 1949 Chevy convertible. Not bad for a kid who busted his hump making ends meet with a string of part time jobs. After a three year stint in the Coast Guard, Andy got his hands on a Model B five window coupe. Soon Andy was a regular at Half Moon Bay drag strip and landed the job of flagman. His friendship with owner/operator Jim McLennan landed him a part time job at Jim’s Champion Speed Shop. Toward the end of the 1950s, drag racing was becoming increasingly costly and Andy found himself out of the game. Turning to a host of small enterprises such as Tee-shirt making, selling hot rod decals, and being a distributor for Dragmaster, Andy somehow kept afloat. In 1964 Andy came up with the Instant Tee that, while giving him much fame, did little for his fortune. Through the 1970s Andy partnered up with Cub Barnett in the co-ownership of Champion Speed Shop, but, it was the annual picnic that was getting all the attention and putting Andy in the headlines. His dedication to hot rodding, his ability to show us how to have fun, and his insistence on driving everywhere in his hot rod has made Andy a true Hot Rod Pioneer.