Holley Performance West Coast Spring Bash - May 29, 2008
By noderel:
HOLLEY PERFORMANCE
WEST COAST SPRING BASH
Holley throws a Southern-style party for the press
Text By Dick DeLoach; Photos By Dick DeLoach & Steve Brulé
The invitation to the Holley Performance West Coast Spring Bash read, “Come N Get it! Food, Fun & Southern Hospitality!” Well, as everyone in the industry knows, all you have to do to get the press to attend your function is say “free food” and they’ll come running. Plus, the party was being held at one of my favorite hangouts, Westech Performance in Mira Loma, California; a short, 10-minute drive from my Chino home base. So I immediately sent back my RSVP.
Every West Coast-based tech writer I know uses Westech for projects because they have two Superflow engine dynos, a Superflow Autodyn chassis dyno, a Superflow flow bench, distributor service, AsNu fuel injector service and much more! And, once Westech’s head honcho, Steve Brulé and his crew cleared out the cars, chassis, engines and various and sundry drivetrain components, the location was ideal for such an event.
The reason for the gathering of editors was simple. “Things are going good for Holley Performance and we just wanted to thank the media for supporting us through the years,” Holley director of marketing Bill Tichenor said. “Everyone at Holley truly appreciates what each and every one of you do for our business and this industry. So we wanted you to come hang out with us, shoot the bull, and check out the Westech Performance facility,” Holley media and PR manager Matt Held added.
As we arrived, Crystal Adkins from Holley and Steve’s lovely wife Tracee Brulé greeted us and took a business card for the drawing to win some really cool Holley products. Plenty of tables were set up both inside and outside for relaxing, chatting—and for lunch. A true Southern-style bill of fair was catered by Johnny Rebs’ Catering (www.johnnyrebs.com) that included whole turkey legs, fried catfish fillets, corn on the cob, Cole slaw, fried okra, hushpuppies, soda, bottled water—and peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream for dessert.
In addition to the fine food, casual camaraderie and shop tours, there were other fun things available to do. Inside, Nomad Slot Racing (www.nomadslotracing.com) had erected a four-lane slot car track, while outside an awesome mobile racing simulator from SpeedVisionRacing.com had was on site, a Holley beanbag toss was set up and large-scale R/C four-bys were available to race around—or over—some old Hooker headers.
In addition to the who’s-who of automotive journalists attending, legendary drag racer and Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen was a special guest. Everyone had a great time. We’d like to thank the folks at Holley for putting together a really cool event. In closing Tichenor added, “The future looks bright for Holley and we will continue making more and more great products.