Fresh to Death

Fresh to Death

MARCH 1, 2021

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Ah Sundays – with the NFL season behind us and another Brady Superbowl in the books, what else is there to look forward to at this point but morning car meets? (side note – you may ALWAYS look forward to cars and coffee, irrespective of whatever early East Coast game is playing that day). And while the parallels between gameday preparation for the gridiron and our prep for the morning starting grid aren't overwhelmingly great, they are there nevertheless. Painstakingly detailing interiors and exteriors by hand the night before, making sure the tire shine is on and windows are streak free. Jumping into your car early on Sunday morning, sometimes before the sun is even up, and meditating for a few seconds before flooding the neighborhood with an epic cold start (and hot take – classic “old car smell” beats “new car smell” by a mile). And that feeling you get when you first pull in at the meet's gates, bumping some tunes and waving hello to familiar faces, slowly prowling around for that perfect parking space. Nothing beats the anticipation of an awesome morning with friends old and new, surrounded by incredible automotive machines.

Heritage Gruppe’s February meet brought the heat, with some pretty amazing people and vehicles in attendance. For the track-ready speedfreaks, a pair of GT3 RSs side by side. I particularly loved seeing this white GT3 next to a Cayman GT4. From a distance, one can easily recognize the difference in body profiles of these beauties, but up close it is immediately clear how the House of Porsche took design cues and styling from the 911 and tastefully transported them over to the GT4. Personally, I’ve never been a Cayman guy but staring at this picture has me seriously reconsidering.

For classic JDM fans, a pair of Mazda RX-7s, immaculately lowered with hella gorgeous wheels. And in the case of the silver one, probably one of the best front fascias I’ve seen in quite a long time. I mean, those headlight hoods look straight out of something from the Transformers. Who knew panel gaps could look this damn good when factored into the entire aesthetic of an automotive profile?

New for this event was special space dedicated to businesses and vendors that embody the Heritage Gruppe ethos of art, racing and Socal car culture. CaliCrooks (@teamcalicrooks) was there with fresh stanced whips, cool gear and muffins (muffins!). I also had the chance to meet and talk with Tom and Jenny of Tu Sabes Motorsport (@tu_sabes_motorsports), a restoration garage, body shop and race team based out of Oxnard, CA. They’ll work on anything you’d like but have a particular fondness for classic BMWs, and their crew rolled deep with Bimmer pride.

And have I taken my new Illest (@illest) hat off since Sunday? Not for a second. Of the many SoCal-based streetwear brands out there, Mark and his team have built something incredibly special, imbuing heavy vibes of 80s and 90s street and drift culture from Japan into each one of their designs. Do I want an Illest RWB shirt? Yes, almost as badly as I want an RWB - heartbreaks and heartaches baby.

Watch your IG feeds and mark your calendars for the next event - sleeping in is no excuse. Until next time crew. - Brendan (@b.g.mckay)