Keith Martin
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Keith’s Blog: Taking the Wrong Fork in the Trail
Fun with an element of danger — that’s a forest run in a vintage Land Rover. On Saturday afternoon, I got separated from the other 20 Rovers in my Caravan. I came to a fork in the road and had to make a decision. I made the wrong one. Every year, the Pacific Coast Rover…
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Keith’s Blog: I Didn’t Mean to Dent the Ferrari
It was a hectic day. I had just picked up the Bertone 308 GT4 from Matt Crandall at Avant-Garde Collection. Its throttle had been sticking, which made driving in rush-hour traffic more exciting that I wanted it to be. Matt’s ace mechanic Chris Smith attended to it quickly. It turned out to be a combination…
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Keith’s Blog: Slip-sliding along in the Defender 90
I barely saw the brake lights ahead of me go bright red before I started sliding sideways at 40 mph down the ice-covered highway. For the past couple of years, I’ve had my own secret escape from the complexity — and sometimes drudgery — of the Thanksgiving holiday. I simply pack up the SCM Defender…
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Keith’s Blog: SCM’s Bradley GT Finds a New Home
The next chapter in the life of the Bradley GT has started. It sold last week on Bring A Trailer for $4,000. There were over 12,000 views of the auction. If we had charged just $1 for each view, think how far ahead we would be. Our good friends at the Avant-Garde Collection, Matt Crandall…
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Like a Kid in a Candy Store
I grew up in the Parkside District of San Francisco, with a view of the Pacific Ocean from the bedroom in the back of our house. There was a bakery shop around the corner on Taraval Street. Each day on the way home from elementary school, I would stop in. The baker would squirt some…
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Keith’s Blog: The SCM Bradley is on BaT!
The SCM Bradley GT is one of a kind. When was the last time you saw one actually running and driving? And now you can be part of the adventure. It’s being auctioned on Bring a Trailer at no reserve, with the auction closing this Thursday at 2:40 pm, Pacific time. Our good friends…
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Keith’s Blog: The Hilton Head Concours – An All-Star Weekend
This was my fourth time attending the Hilton Head Island Concours d’ Elegance. Over the years, it has grown to be a more than just a concours. It bills itself as a Motoring Festival, and that it is. The festivities start the weekend before with the Savannah Speed Classic, which includes vintage races held…
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Keith’s Blog: Leave Your Car Alone
I’d like to start following my own advice. When someone tells me they have acquired a new classic car, one of the first things I say to them is to just leave it alone. Attend to any basic running and safety issues and have the car inspected. (My 1967 Duetto’s brakes failed 30 miles after…
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Keith’s Blog: A Renault Le Car Wins SCM Choice at the European Auto Festival!
It’s not as formal as a concours, but more upscale than a cars and coffee. This was my third year as emcee of the European Auto Festival in Greenville, SC. Held on a golf course adjacent to an Embassy Suites hotel, the Euro Auto Festival is a delightful event. The mix of cars is eclectic,…
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Thirty Years, 1,000 Miles
On July 12 of this year, the last of the classic cars on the SCM 30th Anniversary tour arrived at the posh Heathman Hotel in downtown Portland, OR. For the previous four days, these 1950s and 1960s sports cars, all owned and driven by SCM subscribers, explored the backroads of Oregon. Stops included Timberline Lodge…