AHRF Members of the Month

Our Member of the Month series will be a little different this time around, as we would like to take this opportunity to applaud all of our AHRF-supporting members that we’ve spotted using their hot rods “as intended” at the various nostalgia drag racing events…

We want to congratulate AHRF supporting member Chris Eichert on being chosen as this month’s AHRF Member of the Month!

Those of you who follow our AHRF Hot Rod of the Month contest may recognize Chris as the owner and steward of The Pyle Special…

Who was the very first person to sign up as a supporting member of the AHRF? Well… the answer is… France-based hot rodder Baptiste Racine!

When we think of our friend Ed Iskenderian (known to most, simply, as “Isky”), we think of his child-like enthusiasm, curiosity, and youthful attitude toward everything. We most certainly don’t think of Isky as being 102. In fact, if you just listened to him talk…

Willie Ohnstad’s story, the ’32 Ford he built as a teenager, and how he inspired others to be great examples of what we think hot rodding has always been and continues to be.

This month we want to congratulate American Hot Rod Foundation friend and contributor, Tony Baker, on being chosen as our AHRF member of the month. A lifelong resident of southern California, Tony went from being another car-crazy kid to developing an interest in the history…

It is with a heavy heart that we share the news of the passing of yet another friend and supporter of the American Hot Rod Foundation, Alex Finigan. Alex was well known throughout the hot rod, classic and sports car communities and along with his…

This month we say goodbye to our friend and AHRF contributor, Michael deLesseps, who passed away on February 8th of this year at the age of 84.

All of us here at The American Hot Rod Foundation are shocked and deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Jeff Beck. Since our launch in 2002, Jeff had always been one of our more enthusiastic supporters.

This month we want to take a moment and honor a couple of friends and supporters of the American Hot Rod Foundation. Their names are Rob Manson and Seth Hammond and they have both recently gone far beyond the call of duty when it comes…

Besides being a first-class hot rodder and hot rod builder, Ed checks our biggest box thanks to the fact that he’s a hot rod historian and preserver of hot rod history. Yes, our kinda guy! Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, Ed got into…

Born in Los Angeles, Bruce got the bug for cool machinery at an early age. Being a little kid in Southern California in the 1940s and ‘50s provided Bruce with a daily dose of some of the greatest traffic in the country, all viewed from…

Everyone here at The American Hot Rod Foundation is simply heartbroken to have lost our friend, Pat Ganahl, on Saturday, August 20, in a vintage drag racing accident at Riverdale Raceway in Washington state. Pat was a man after our own hearts, as he has…

Congratulations​ ​to​ ​our​ ​AHRF​ ​Member​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Month​ ​and​ ​real-deal​ ​lifelong​ ​car​ ​guy,​ ​Steve​ ​Beck!​ ​Born​ ​and​ ​raised​ ​in​ ​Santa​ ​Monica,​ ​California,​ ​Steve​ ​was​ ​a​ ​car-crazy​ ​kid​ ​from​ ​the​ ​drop​ ​of​ ​the​ ​flag.​

This​ ​month​ ​our​ ​choice​ ​for​ ​the​ ​spotlight​ ​was​ ​a​ ​no-brainer.​ ​After​ ​all,​ ​how​ ​often​ ​do​ ​you​ ​get​ ​to​ ​raise​ ​a​ ​toast​ ​and​ ​wish​ ​a​ ​Happy​ ​101​ ​to​ ​a​ ​fellow​ ​hot​ ​rodder?​ ​Yes,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​true.​ ​Our​ ​hero,​ ​friend​, and​ ​platinum-level​ ​hot​ ​rod​ ​pioneer,​ ​Ed​ ​“Isky”​ ​Iskenderian​ ​(​sometimes​ ​known​ ​as​ ​the​ ​“Camfather”​​),​ ​turned​ 101​ ​on​ ​the​​ 10th​ ​of​ ​July.​ 

When​ ​you’re​ ​involved​ ​in​ ​something​ ​as​ ​specific​ ​as​ ​the​ ​preservation​ ​of​ ​automotive​ ​history,​ ​you​ ​quickly​ ​find​​that​ ​you’re​ ​part​ ​of​ ​a​ ​relatively​ ​small​ ​community.​ ​A​ ​community​ ​of​ ​characters​ ​who​ ​share​ ​this​ ​same​ ​passion​ ​and​ ​have​ ​invested​ ​a​ ​large​ ​part​ ​of​ ​their​ ​time​ ​and​ ​attention​ ​to​ ​see​ ​that​ ​a​ ​colorful​ ​past​ ​is​ ​not​ ​forgotten.​Because​ ​of​ ​the​ ​work​ ​involved​ ​and​ ​the​ ​focus​ ​that​ ​is​ ​demanded​ ​by​ ​the​ ​task,​ ​you​ ​begin​ ​to​ ​recognize​ ​and​ ​be​​inspired​ ​by​ ​the​ ​even​ ​smaller​ ​group​ ​within​ ​this​ ​community​ ​who​ ​work​ ​at​ ​a​ ​particularly​ ​high​ ​level.​ ​The​ ​ones​ ​who​ ​set​ ​the​ ​bar​ ​for​ ​the​ ​rest​ ​of​ ​us​ ​and​ ​whose​ ​contributions​ ​will​ ​be​ ​valued​ ​and​ ​relied​ ​upon​ ​for​ ​generations​ ​to​ ​come.​ ​When​ ​thinking​ ​of​ ​this​ ​group,​ ​a​ ​few​ ​names​ ​come​ ​to​ ​mind:​ ​Miles​ ​Collier,​ ​Leslie​ ​Kendall,​ ​Beverly​ ​Rae​ ​Kimes,​ ​Donald​ ​Osborne,​ ​Ken​ ​Gross,​ ​Doug​ ​Nye​ ​, and​ ​Dean​ ​Batchelor…​ ​​ ​to​ ​name​ ​a​ ​few.​ ​But​ ​when​ ​thinking​ ​of​ ​the​ ​contributors​ ​who​ ​have​ ​taken​ ​the​ ​concept​ ​of​ ​preservation​ ​to​ ​the​ ​very​ ​automobiles​ ​that​ ​set​ ​the​ ​records​ ​and​ ​standards​ ​that​ ​are​ ​so​ ​often​ ​written​ ​about,​ ​the​ ​group​ ​becomes​ ​even​ ​smaller.​ ​People​ ​like​ ​the​ ​late​ ​Briggs​ ​Cunningham,​ ​George​ ​Waterman,​ ​Bill​ ​Harrah,​ ​Jay​ ​Leno,​ ​the​ ​great​ ​hot​ ​rod​ ​preservationists​ ​Bruce​ ​Meyer​ ​and​ ​Ross​ ​Myers,​ ​the​ ​late​ ​Lindley​ ​Bothwell​ ​, and​ ​the​ ​recently​ ​departed,​ ​Dr.​ ​Fred​ ​Simeone.​ ​

We are pleased to announce that this month’s AHRF Member of the Month is none other than Santa Barbara-area hot rod pioneer Lee Hammock. Born in 1930 and raised in Montecito, California, Hammock was a natural-born car guy. Lee’s father was not only a full-time…

Although​ ​it​ ​is​ ​true​ ​that​ ​we​ ​have​ ​already​ ​featured​ ​this​ ​supporting​ ​member​ ​of​ ​the​ ​AHRF​ ​as​ ​our​ ​Member​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Month​ ​once​ ​before,​ ​it​ ​would​ ​be​ ​impossible​ ​for​ ​us​ ​not​ ​to​ ​acknowledge​ ​our​ ​friend​ ​and​ ​hot​ ​rod​ ​pioneer,​ ​Alex​ ​Xydias,​ ​on​ ​his​ ​100th​ ​Birthday​ ​…​ ​​ ​and,​ ​after​ ​all,​ ​if​ ​we’re​ ​going​ ​to​ ​nominate​ ​someone​ ​twice​ ​for​ ​this,​ ​why​ ​not​ ​have​ ​Alex​ ​be the​ ​person​ ​to​ ​break​ ​that​ ​barrier!​ ​

Congratulations to Claude and Sara Kern of Bedford, Indiana, on being chosen as our AHRF Member(s) of the Month.

We are pleased and excited to be nominating AHRF supporting Member John Sticha as our Member of the Month for February, 2022!

We want to congratulate not one but TWO AHRF supporting members on being this month’s Member(s) of the Month: Bob & Sharon Muravez!

This month The American Hot Rod Foundation would like to dedicate our AHRF Member of the Month series to the recently departed John Wolf, who passed on September 15th of 2021.

Congratulations to Richmond, Virginia’s Joel Driskill on being our October Member of the Month. At age 42, Joel is not only a serious and very hands-on car guy, he is also one of our favorite younger historians who has been locating and preserving early American…

In more ways than one, we want to congratulate AHRF supporting member Jim Jard on being our Member of the Month.

We want to congratulate a very special AHRF Member this month with our Member of the Month award … Mr. Alex Xydias.

As our monthly Member of the Month picks go, this was an easy choice. Coming up at the end of this week ( July 10th ) Ed Iskenderian will turn 100 years old. Feel free to let that sink in for a bit. One hundred…

As our monthly Member of the Month picks go, this was an easy choice. Coming up at the end of this week ( July 10th ) Ed Iskenderian will turn 100 years old. Feel free to let that sink in for a bit. One hundred…

We are pleased to congratulate American Hot Rod Foundation Member Jon Fisher on being our AHRF “Member of the Month!” Although many in our community can lay claim to having had an eye for the more traditional style of hot rod or custom car for…

This month, we are featuring a “Person of the Month” for May 2021, as our late friend David Fetherston never got to sign up as a member of the AHRF but he certainly supported us in ways that we could never thank him enough for.

Kay Kimes, fiddling with the engine Congratulations to Kay Kimes on being our AHRF Member of the Month!  Born in Clearwater, Nebraska on November 20th, 1928, Kay Kimes is yet another WWII-era hot rodder who got an early start and has an important story… a story,…

We are pleased to announce that this month’s AHRF Member of the Month is Jennifer “Jenny” Sparks Crow. If some of you keen hot rod historians are thinking that her maiden name rings a bell, you would be correct…  Jenny is the daughter of hot…

We want to congratulate our AHRF Member, Zach Suhr, on being chosen as our Member of the Month. Zach’s story is one that should give each and every one of us great hope in the future of this tradition that we love so much. Zach…

Congratulations to Ray Evernham on being our AHRF Member of the Month!  We are pleased to have Ray Evernham on board as a supporting member of the American Hot Rod Foundation. As anyone familiar with Ray knows, he is as serious a car guy as…

Congratulations to Eli English on being our AHRF Member of the Month for December 2020!  Here’s his story, in his own words… Back in 2013,  after working at several autobody and restoration shops, I decided to take my career in a different direction and into…

Congratulations to John Carlson of Belcarra, British Columbia on being our American Hot Rod Foundation “Member of the Month” for November 2020. Although it might seem like an overstatement, it is reasonable to say that John’s involvement in the old car world is nearly second…

We want to congratulate Coco Shinomiya on being this month’s AHRF Member of the Month! As an independent art director and graphic designer, Coco’s artistic gifts spread across many disciplines that include everything from record album cover art (she is a two time Grammy nominee),…

Congratulations to Jon Ruvio of Port Washington, New York for being chosen as our American Hot Rod Foundation Member of the Month! Although each and every AHRF supporting Member is special to us, we think everyone and anyone reading this will appreciate just how extra-special…

We want to congratulate Carsten Bech on being this month’s AHRF Member of the Month!  Carsten may hail from Virum, Denmark, but don’t let that fool you into thinking he isn’t as serious a traditional hot rodder as you will find. He is! Not only…

Congratulations to Richard French on being our AHRF Member of the Month for June of ’20. Some of you keen hot rod historians will know Richard as “The Kid” who joined up with the original So-Cal Speed Shop Team and stowed away on their first trip to Bonneville…

Starting this month, the American Hot Rod Foundation will be presenting a featured “Member of the Month” as a way for folks to get to know some of their fellow supporting AHRF Members (or for those of you who are not yet members, to learn more about…