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Hot rodding started in the early 90s. It became famous instantly and went through a lot of phases to become what it is now. Hot rodding means modifying your cars and engines to make them more powerful and speedy.
At the start of hot rodding, car enthusiasts used to modify their cheap cars to use them for rash driving or racing. This car modifying hobby of some car enthusiasts from California started a new trend. Their love for vehicles started the world’s one of the most expensive sports, which led to today’s racing.
Back in the day, there were no sources to help p[eople understand cars. Today we have authentic sources like Chickeens Machines. Back then, people started to make clubs and organizations get the help and guidance needed.
Let us go through the things that changed the history of Hot Rodding.
Specified Clubs And Organizations
When hot brooding started, there were a few options for communication. To get the help, to organize races, and to get the maximum audience for car-related events, there has to be the spread of words. For this purpose, clubs were formed. Car clubs in the early 90s were all about car enthusiasts sitting together and sharing the same interests.
Those clubs were the only source to get the desired information without the internet. Latest car models, latest modifications, and upcoming races were part of the discussion in these clubs.
To get the trend of clubs rolling, SCTA was formed. The idea behind creating SCTA was to organize car clubs and promote racing events. Car clubs organized car enthusiasts all over California.
These clubs gave birth to a new trend in car rodding, that is, the publication of news related to racing events and other related stuff.
Rise of Car Magazines
Car enthusiasts didn’t stop at car clubs. They went on with their enthusiasm and started the magazines for this niche. Peterson and Parks established a magazine, and it started a boom of new magazines in this niche. Hop Up, Rod & Custom, and Car Craft started soon after the Hot Rod Magazine of Peterson and Parks. The magazines started spreading countrywide. With topics like car racing, car parts, modification techniques, and many more, these magazines made their readers hooked on this hobby. Soon these magazines became the source of worldwide news related to hot rods.
Car Shows
After the success of magazines, the races changed their shape. Car display shows started taking place. Some places offered drive-in facilities but using them to show off their vehicles was not enough for car enthusiasts. This reason became the beginning of hot-rod shows.
Peterson and Parks helped arrange the first hot rod show with their Hot Rod Magazine launch. These shows became instantly popular. After the first Grand National Roadster Show in 1963, it became insanely popular and gave the need for a controlling body. International Show Car Association. Formed to regularize these car shows. The Association formed rules and regulations to keep these car shows organized.
Currently, car shows are happening everywhere in America. Their occurrence is so regular that no weekend goes without a car show.
New and Improved Engines
Another thing that gave rise to the hot rodding was new and better engines. Chevy introduced the first small-block engine. That small engine got popular quickly and became a sensation among hot rodders. The reason for its popularity was its extremely lightweight and fast engine. This Chevy engine tended to drive big and small cars efficiently. The popularity of this hot sellar is still there, and hot rodders still love to modify their vehicles using this tiny engine.
The rise in automobile technology gave rodders a chance to explore their creative side. New engines and technologies are changing the way we see hot rodders. With imp[roved engines, better car bodies, and better resources, every car enthusiast is turning its ordinary car into a hot rodder. This accessibility of knowledge and tools is making hot rodding even cooler.
The Electronic Media
Electronic media is the reason for significant changes in different aspects of life. One such revolution is in the car industry. Movies and television injected the love of car rodding among people. But this popularity came with a negative image of hot rodding. Directors showed hot rodding and related activities in a bad light. All of the activities shown were kind of illegal and violent. But that didn’t stop the popularity of hot rodding. Television shows and movies became the source of negative publicity for hot rodding, and the public, especially the young generation, went gaga over it.
Drag Races
Drag races revolutionized the hot rodding community. People started modifying their cars for racing. The industry became an expensive and popular sports fraternity.
When drag races started, it was to give the hot rods enthusiast a place to show off their powerful beasts. But in the start, it was not well organized. There was a lot of trouble keeping them organized, and that’s when The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) was formed.
The NHRA was formed to regularize the drag race and establish ground rules for the racing.
Conclusion
Hot rodding has come a long way. The negative image didn’t stop it and gave it an edge. It is one of the most popular sports around the world. It is one of the most expensive hobbies.
The rise of hot rodding and its journey to its current form shows that it is here to stay forever. The rise in platforms like Chickeens Machines is getting insanely more enormous daily. The key to keeping it a popular and most followed sport is regularizing it and ensuring everyone follows the rules and regulations.
A sport with this much popularity and following comes once in a lifetime, and it is good to see enthusiasts keep thriving in hot rodding.
