C hanging with the times has been part of communication since the earliest of time. We’ve evolved from simple pointing and grunts between humans, to tip tapping on minia- ture computers we carry around in our pocket that connects us anywhere in the world. For many of us, our hands-on communication skills and experi- ences make it very hard to accept the virtual world that lies ahead. Having been in the hot rod maga- zine print world for half a century, I’ve experienced the highs and lows while watching the world dish the old and bless the new. My first encounter with the Internet and its promise of delivering the world’s eyeballs, started in the late ‘90s when I was VP of 18 magazine titles known as the “Street Rod & Performance Group.” Investors were buying up automotive pub- lishing companies at a rapid pace and the volume of work we were producing had the entire team running on all eight. As we entered the 21st Century the investors recognized our editorial material would be a perfect fit for the Internet, so they created GR8RIDE.com. A large staff struggled for several years setting up websites and trou- bleshooting operational systems. The team worked on the eleventh floor of an office tower (a gigantic window was removed with a crane to hoist garage doors for office décor), hosted lavish industry par- ties at SEMA, and tried to get the busy print staff excited about supplying editorial material for “the Web.” The transition wasn’t well executed. After several years they eventually focused on the “Sport Compact Group” with a much younger demo- graphic. At one point they wanted to create a huge shopping market for the entire industry with our print advertisers selling their parts through GR8RIDE’s channels on the internet. While its peak was in the early-to-mid 2000s, GR8RIDE.com repre- sented a significant era of online automotive cul- ture, bridging the gap between car events, online forums, and digital marketing. Over the years investors gave up on print, and so did many others who were lured by the world’s eyeballs, resulting in the demise of the automotive magazine print business. There were a few inde- pendent titles (StreetScene for one) that survived over the years, but the Internet has become so intertwined in our lives it’s become the driving force in today’s information world. Most of us real- ize the value of holding a magazine in your hands Talking to the World
and settling down for an uninterrupted read, but we must realize that to continue spreading the word and attracting new enthusiasts, the Internet is a necessary part of any business that wants to grow. A group of former co-workers from those corporate days decided to bridge the gap and launched three new titles under the name “In The Garage Media.” They quickly recognized the bene- fits of both print magazines and digital versions of their titles, giving the readers a choice and adding many side benefits on the digital format (video, newsletters, same day coverage of car shows). During all this posturing on the Internet over the past quarter century, StreetScene was taking advantage of moving to digital prepress but not too much had been mentioned about NSRA’s web- site, nsra-usa.com. At first it offered only basic serv- ices like the year’s Event Schedule and Entry Forms, Advertising and Vendor info/contracts and NSRA Merchandise. Today, those basic services are still available with payment accepted online. Access to the Fellow Pages has been added, a section describing the NSRA Autocross and Safety Inspection programs are available, and you’re only one click away from our Facebook page where you’ll be cruisin’ through the latest happenings. Special promotions like registering now to receive the special early entry fee of $40 and receive a chance to win the first $5,000 drawing for pre-reg- istered participants only in the 2026 NSRA Street Rod Nationals $20,000 $weep$take$ are easily articulated over the Internet. The staff of StreetScene magazine became very excited when the January 2025 issue became available on our website. Instantly our efforts were available to be seen and read around the world. Since then each month’s issue has been added to the NSRA website around the same time members receive their print copies in the mail. Time will tell whether our members prefer print magazines over electronic versions, but one thing is certain, we’ll be spreading NSRA’s “Fun With Cars” motto across the world with the help of the Internet. It seems Google Search, QR Codes and AI are pointing and grunting our way forward.
Tom Vogele tomvogele@verizon.net
8 JANUARY 2026
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