Car TV Part IV – Fast N’ Loud (Discovery 9 PM Mondays)

If I was only writing about Fast N’ Loud I would have titled this post “George Lucas, Richard Rawlings and my inner child”; about a year ago I was at Barnes and Noble, browsing as one does, when I looked to my left and noticed someone I recognized; it was George Lucas shopping for books.  I was so excited that I started to bounce around and became flushed and finally rather than approach him and lose all dignity I decided to go outside and gather myself.  At forty-two I had regressed to the behavior of a 12-year-old boy; it is with slightly more enthusiasm that I greet each new episode of Fast N’ Loud.

Richard Rawlings, the owner of Dallas’ Gas Monkey Garage, searches out cool old cars, buys them and takes them back to the garage where mechanic extraordinaire Aaron Kaufman and their team do something more akin to reimagining than rebuilding.  These guys have gasoline in their veins, an artist’s eye and the penchant for thriftiness that most often comes out of living through the Great Depression (though they are far too young to have done so).  Case in point, Richard and Aaron found an Olds Rocket 88 out in some field, the paint was beyond aged and the interior was shot; they cleaned it up, repaired the mechanicals, put in an awesome white interior and clear coated the car.  It was stunning and it was done for a reasonable amount of money; and that is what appeals to me about this program, if I make a couple good financial decisions I might actually own a car just like those built by Gas Monkey Garage.  And this car was no fluke; they do it again and again.

Fast N’ Loud doesn’t just appeal to me, the program is getting great ratings and has a pretty wide viewing audience; this week alone I spoke to a barista at Starbucks who is a fan of the show, and when I went to the doctor the very sweet and bubbly medical assistant, Hailee, who took my vitals just gushed about the show.  In fact, she shared that she and her boyfriend Brian searched for (stalked?) Richard and Aaron at Reno’s Hot August Nights; she didn’t find them but she did get a picture of one of their cool rides, the now famous Keagle.  You’ll get ‘em next time Hailee!

Fast N’ Loud succeeds because Richard Rawlings and Aaron Kaufman are regular guys who are living their dreams and building cool cars within reach of the average person.

— John Morton

(Visited 33 times, 1 visits today)