A Shunpiker's Journal

Our friends at Hagerty, purveyor of classic and collector car insurance, largest private employer in Traverse City, just published a fascinating book celebrating the joy of being on the road in our cars titled Never Stop Driving, an anthology of stories by Hagerty content manager Larry Webster and other well-known contributors. One section of the book asks famous car guys and gals what would be their last drive. We talk to Jonathan Klinger, Hagerty senior PR manager, during the book launch event at M1 Concours in Pontiac. Listen next time for interviews with McKeel Hagerty and Larry Webster.

On these segments of A Shunpiker's Journal with host Steve Purdy is Kiekert. Kiekert is a 160+ year old German tier-one auto supplier making latches and latch assemblies. They are also the presenting sponsor of our Automotive Heritage Journalism Awards at the Concours d’Elegance of America. Keikerts general manager and global sales director, Mike Hietbrink, talks about his company’s innovative products, their activities in the Detroit area and involvement in our awards project.

'A Shunpiker's Journal's Steve Purdy recently encountered an interesting fellow from New Zealand who is not only an avid race car driver in an Asian spec-series for Ferraris but he also builds race cars for other adrenaline junkies like himself.

In order to support the Automotive Heritage Awards, Steve Purdy and his accomplices created the Automotive Heritage Foundation, a 501(c)3 charitable organization with a mission of preserving, promoting an promulgating automotive heritage, that is, automotive history, culture and aesthetics.

One of the special elements of Concours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s is our Automotive Heritage Awards presented in the Brembo Media Hospitality Tent on the show field at 10AM Sunday, show day, just as they are opening to the public. Your host here on 'A Shunpiker’s Journal', Steve Purdy, is the creator and producer of the project and spends this segment previewing the event.

This article shares the first half of the July episode for 'A Shunpiker's Journal'. Here, Steve Purdy conducts an expansive chat with Larry Moss, long-time chairman of the Concours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s, one of the three most prestigious car shows in the U.S.

It is said that the Concours d'Elegance of America has the most diverse field unrivaled by any other Concours. Our field for 2019 promises to not disappoint! The finest classic cars will be on full display for the purists at heart. They will be flanked by some of the most unique and exquisite featured classes ever seen together. Features including; Ferrari Race and Sports cars, The Rise and Fall of the Cadillac Fin, 100 Years of Bentley, Rolls Royce, Alternative Fuels, Woodies, Muscle Cars Class of '69, AA/Gas Supercharged Drag Cars and Modern Collectibles.

Car show season never really ends - think Motorama, NAIAS, and the huge, February swap meet in Kalamazoo - but it ebbs and flows. We’re planning ahead for EyesOn Design, the Orphan Car Show and particularly theConcours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s, acknowledged as one of the most important and prestigious Concours events in the country. As you know, that is the venue for our second Automotive Heritage Awards presentation on Concours show day, July 28 at the Brembo media hospitality tent. We expect to see many of you there for a reception and the awards event. Get your press credentials at: https://concoursusa.org/news-media/media-credentials/ You’ll see a link there to the AHA as well. If you don’t qualify as a journalist let us know and we’ll help.

On this episode of A Shunpiker's Journal is Ford Bronco enthusiast Erik Barnlund from Bloomington, Illinois who enjoys a hot niche in the collector car business.

Segments 1-4: Brian Baker, director of the Leland Chapter of the Society of Automotive Historians, joins us to talk about a variety of projects - his, mine and ours.