John Lee's Panhead

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It's funny how something so small can inspire a passion which can grow into one of the main threads in the fabric of our lives. We’ve heard time and time again how a ride in a hotrod as a child lit a fire in a youngster that ultimately led to a life of building amazing custom cars and hotrods. Or how a dad or an older brother who were always working in the garage tuning engines, fabricating parts or laying down paint influenced a kid to later do the same. Whether it is a person, a hot wheels car we had as a kid or something we saw on TV, inspiration can come from just about anywhere and it’s a vital part in the creative process.

Growing up in Bakersfield California, John Lee was around hotrods, custom cars and motorcycles and like the rest of us Bakersfield boys, he grew up attending the March Meet, Hotrod reunion, World of Wheels etc. Naturally he was inspired to have classic cars of his own and he's had his share, his favorites being his 1959 El Camino and 1962 Pontiac Bonneville. Growing up, John had a fondness for hotrods of the two-wheel variety as well and at age fourteen he got his first motorcycle which was a Honda xl175. He has many fond memories of ripping around the neighborhood on that bike as a youth dreaming of one day having a Harley.

Read the rest of this article in ISSUE 23: Citric Acid