What's up everyone! You learn to appreciate longer months when February comes and goes so quickly every year. The great advantage is that it takes us one more month closer to the outdoor season. Every season there are always those die hard enthusiasts locked behind closed doors molding and fabricating away on there upcoming projects and leaving no hint of what they will do next. As the winter months wind down the hype starts to build as these fresh show pieces approach their debut event and dazzle the competition. While everyone is always looking for that unique touch to top off their rides, the bar of perfection always seems to get kicked up a notch. The thought of settling for second best or an average modification never seems to enter into a conversation when speaking with your typical Custom truck or car builder. That's what will continue to keep this industry exciting for many years to come, and without that I guess we couldn't call it "Kustom".

This month the Gauge staff and I will be taking in some temporary sunshine as a teaser trip to Panama City Beach, FL for the Spring Fling event on March 11-13. It's that time again, Spring Break is in the air and for some people it's the opportunity to have a whole week to run around the streets and beaches like fools and it not even matter! The Vital Signs crew will be hosting their 9th annual event at the Frank Brown Park with the addition of a Mobile Dyno Challenge and 2 Bikini Contests. Stay tuned next month for the April Issue where we will have the coverage posted for this ever popular event. For more information or directions, check out www.vitalsigns.org.

This month I wanted to highlight one of our main photographers and congratulate him on his first cover to grace Gauge Magazine.com Chuck "Smalls" Couch operating out of Atlanta, GA and representing Acrophobia has been capturing coverage and vehicle features for Gauge since December 2002. The Gauge Staff and I actually met Smalls at the Spring Fling event while shooting vehicle features and having him parade around the show scouting for unforeseen models to dress up his fellow club members show vehicles. Shortly after we finished up with picturing his girlfriend at the time, he had stressed his interest in being a photographer for Gauge. Since then he has been representing the southern part of the U.S. covering some of the hottest events for your viewing pleasure. Be sure to congratulate Smalls on the first of many hot new looks he will bring to the magazine. Smalls will also be available for pictures and autographs in the ladies room at Spring Fling during the evening hours due to his busy schedule!

On the cover this month we bring you Chase Shiver representing Acrophobia in his 1995 Full Size Chevy Truck. Chase's "Daily Toy", like all the others it carries its own story of its decision to go under the knife. Already being a daily driver and seeing all the ignorance on the road, the truck got a dose of an invincible woman driver who succeeded in totaling his ride. In about 1 years time Chase was able to turn his luck around with help from friends and his insurance company of coarse to modernize his "Daily Toy".

To top off this months cover we bring you the stunning March Gauge Girl Whitney Addison from Athens, GA. While always entering bikini contests around some of the hottest events, Whitney has been working hard to further her experiences in the Modeling field. Be sure to check out Whitney's seductive Gauge Girl Feature layout.

To start off this month we hook up with Freelance Photographer Toby Mosholder for a weekend of Monster Truck excitement. The Parade of Champions rolled through Germantown, OH and stirred up more than just a little dust at the Veterans Park on August 21-22 2004. A wide variety of lifted custom vehicles towered throughout the show field as the Monster Trucks demonstrated their version of a compact car.

Next up we spent a day with Freelance Photographer Matt Willoughby as he covered Dropt & Destroyed presented by Dropt Out Customs. The event was held at the Gala Commons in Akron, OH on May 2, 2004. While the rain tried to play a factor during this event, it still didn't stop some of the hottest vehicles to cruise the streets of Ohio to be in attendance for one hell of a gathering. For more information on this years event stay tuned to www.droptout.com.

We hooked up with Kaotic Kustoms to have them cover their annual event Kaoticfest. The show was held at Chandler Raceway in Chandler, IN on August 8th 2004. A one day event jam packed full of hot rides and ground pounding entertainment shook the walls of the local raceway and left spectators in Ah! Unfortunately the crew over at Kaotic Kustoms will not be repeating their event, so treasure their last run and chalk it up as a going out on top. To check out the crew over at Kaotic Kustoms check out www.Kaotickustoms.com.

Next up the Gauge Staff and I packed up to stomp on the grounds of Cincinnati, OH. We were about to witness the annual Cavalcade of Customs presented by Championship Auto Shows, which was held at the Cincinnati Convention Center on January 7-9 2005. As always the best of the best crept into the convention center for a weekend of admiration and cleaning of course. To stay on top of the indoor show circuit, be sure to visit www.worldofwheels.com.

To start off this month's vehicle features we bring you Chris White representing Outkast Kustoms in his 1989 Chevy S-10. At the young age of 19 Chris's dream was to build up his very first vehicle and show it off for the fun that the automotive scene brings. That's where I was able to find Chris at Showfest this past May displaying his pride and joy. Chris has since made changes to his ride and plans on hitting the show scene even harder this year, be sure to catch up with Chris to see his latest mods.

Last but not least we bring you Marc "Spaz" Buehler representing Modern Speed Labs in his 1995 Nissan Skyline GFR. I was able to drag Marc out to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on the way home from the SEMA show this past November. While pushing our limits and the car, we were able to get close enough to a side track that had open racing circulating the winding course, which worked out perfect for the back drop for this intimidating piece of work. This right hand drive ride was produced in 6 months to promote his ideas and ingenuity for Modern Speed Labs located in Indianapolis, IN. To check out Marc's services be sure to check out www.modernspeedlabs.com.

As usual, if you have any questions or comments please do not hesitate to contact me!

Until next month keep your heads up and at least one frame rail on the ground! Peace!!
BIG WOOD
bigwood@gaugemagazine.com