Rewinding the clock a little bit, Shawn had extended an invite to attend the soft opening of his new shop for Custom Decals YYC which was also serving as a joint season opener with Kings Must Rise and Lost Royalty. I wasn’t able to stay for long but I of course wanted to show support and check out not only Shawn’s new unit but also finally see KMR’s garage/storefront for myself as I’d still yet to stop by.
I wasn’t planning to take a ton of photos – and didn’t – but I made sure to grab a few while there for my own records and your viewing pleasure. Incidentally, I don’t believe I’d mentioned it on the site yet but earlier this year I invested in some “new” camera equipment for myself (used Rebel T3i and lenses) to add to my collection, so you may have noticed as various posts have gone up that some photos have a slightly different look (or admittedly, be of a slightly different quality) as compared to others; the reason for this is the new camera hasn’t replaced my old one entirely, but sits alongside it in my arsenal so as I have switched between them based on the occasion there have been subtle differences in the photo sets. This was one of the times I was shooting with the T3i for instance, whereas for Driven I had my trusty old Lumix GF2.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this quick little look at the gathering, and congratulations again to Shawn on the new shop! This was a fun get-together and a great chance to catch up with some friends.
A few cars were around the front of the shop but the majority of the vehicles (and all of the activity) was out back so that’s what you’ll see here. First up, parked down at the end, were Jacob’s 2 series with a tasteful IS-F behind it; you don’t really see many of those out in the wild!
If you’re going to look for the Focus in the photos, you won’t find it as it was back at home in the garage; I took the 240 instead for a change and so I wouldn’t have the only domestic at the event. Haha. As you can see, it fit right in with its sibling.
It’s a totally different setup of course but with the graphics my first thought was a flashback to Minho Kim’s old 350Z. Who remembers that name? Maybe I’m dating myself with that reference…
Of course Shawn’s ITR was in attendance, rocking the full Gathers livery as debuted at Driven. Nice touch having the spoke decals in blue to tie in.
Three iconic sports coupes from three manufacturers; FR-S, ITR, and E36 – what’s your pick?
Birdy’s always-changing FR-S was now sporting some additional gold accents to go with the tinted headlights and yellow seat. I made sure to grab a few photos of it because it seems I rarely get the chance to see it in person, and every time I do it looks different again.
Across the aisle sat his E36 daily/drift car, showing off the new bashbar.
Jesse showed up briefly with the Supra a little while after I arrived; I believe this is the last time you’ll see it on the site without the full livery that has since been applied, as mentioned in the Driven coverage. I won’t lie, seeing more local cars debuting liveries this year almost makes me want to have a car with one again.
I went back for another couple of pictures of the blue E36 just because. For a generally boxy vehicle, relatively speaking, the rounded flares worked really well on it. Of the modern-classic range of 3s I think I’m still more of an E46 guy but there’s no denying that the E36s are aging exceptionally well.
Still an FK8 fanboy too, in case you’d fogotten. Haha.
Anyway, this is where I’ll wrap tonight’s quick post. Thanks for reading, and be sure to check back this week for more including the conclusion to our Driven coverage! I have my file folder of photos yet to be edited open on the screen next to me, and there’s definitely a lot we still have to share with you all. 2019 has been a pretty good year so far in terms of car activities!
-Bill