Midwest Car Culture
Enthusiast

Pistons, Power, and Pounding Hard Rock: A Writer’s Memoir of Midwest Car Culture

Christmas Eve is a fitting time for any writer to look back upon their career. This fall, we asked staff contributor Jon Weirman a bit about his origins, and uncovered an interesting memoir. Here we look at the bread basket’s unique automotive flavor with a writer’s memoir of Midwest car culture. 

A Writer’s Memoir of Midwest Car Culture

I was born in 1974 in a small town near Lincoln, Nebraska. Some of the most economical models of the time were the Ford Pinto and Plymouth Valiant. When Star Wars came out in 1977, all of my kindergarten friends were beyond thrilled. 

Even though spaceships were the predominant draw, George Lucas’s imagination made us dream of high-speed chases. The Dukes of Hazzard was dominating the TV screen. I received a Matchbox cars set for my fifth birthday and was ecstatic! I would spend hours with classmates in the backyard making tiny dirt tracks to race and jump them on.

From Encyclopedias to Engines: The Birth of a Lifelong Fascination

During elementary school, I was an avid reader that devoured many types of books. I would even sit and read the World Book Encyclopedia on hot summer days. I loved to be active and play outside, but started reading faster and faster. Didn’t really know many car makes and models, but was fascinated by classic greats such as late 1960s Mustangs.

When I was 9 years old, my parents went overseas to be missionaries in Bangladesh. Here I became fascinated by motorcycles, as Honda 175s and Kawasaki 75CC bikes were a sensible means of transportation. We even built dangerous rope swings while imitating Indiana Jones himself.

Portal to the Past: The Day I Saw Simplicity in Action

There in the Bangladesh jungle, I came upon a viewpoint that allowed me to see 60 miles directly to the ocean. The “salt flats” were layers of land that disappeared into a surreal blue hue. A field was being plowed by an ox before me, and the year could have as well been 1660! There were no cars at all nearby, and I thought long and hard about the Earth’s origins.

Was technology like cars a necessary evil? This man plowing the field with the ox seemed to be completely content. I’ll never forget that very intense portal to another time. When we returned to the States, I was overwhelmed with culture shock when the billboards pushing products lined the interstate. 

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From “The Fall Guy” to Car and Driver: The Early Seeds of Enthusiasm

There weren’t as many flashy sports cars in Southeast Asia during the 1980s, as efficient Mitsubishi and Izuzu Faster trucks were the norm for moving cargo. The trains in Bangladesh were ancient, rusty, and fairly unreliable! Here we crowded around black and white TVs to watch “The Fall Guy” television show.

This successful early 1980s series starring Lee Majors also featured a very sweet 1982 GMC KM2500 Sierra Grande truck. Watching it marked the first time that I wondered what kind of burly engine would be needed to power this capable beast! The first issue of Car and Driver I read was in a DR’s office waiting room.

Chasing Bad Guys and Supercar Dreams: Miami Vice’s Automotive Allure

Here I read a full-length article review about the 1985 Audi 5000S Turbo. I had not yet seen one on the street, but was fascinated by its unique appearance. When we arrived back in the states and turned on the TV, Miami Vice was on. Here my friends and I marveled at Corvette Daytonas, the Ferrari Testarosa, and the Chevy Camaro.

Miami Vice had played on the appearance of the Ferrari frequently. As Crocket and Tubbs chased down bad guys in the streets, Michael Mann’s lucid vision and plots gave me dreams of supercars. This was the first time that I sought out a print issue of Car and Driver, at around age 11. 

browsing records

Mall Hangouts and Thrasher Pages: The Day My Wheels Took a Turn

I was once browsing in a Waldenbooks store in the mall, where we loved to congregate with our friends. As I prepared to buy it with my hard-earned paper route money, I was suddenly distracted by another publication about wheels. Thrasher Magazine was right in front of me, angering many parents with its graphic drawings and rogue attitude.

Skateboarding became my main forte, and my entire high school years were spent with as much time on the wooden plank as possible. We didn’t care if our friends had the most beat up cars in existence, we only wanted to get to a place to skate. If a friend had something ordinary like a Civic or Camry, we were all about it!

Surfing a Cutlass: The Reckless Joy of Graduation Night

The night that I graduated high school, a friend from across town pulled up in his 1976 Cutlass Supreme. It had a black vinyl roof and charcoal top, and I was pretty impressed with its growl. I knew I was leaving to go to Denver to attend the Art Institute in a few short months, and it was time to celebrate. 

As the lights of the city disappeared behind us, we cranked up the heavy metal and got crazy. We even rode on the top of the car that night, stomach down and dangerously “surfing” the dirt roads. While a bit scuffed and snarling, I never forgot how that Cutlass roared quickly off the line. 

Ramen, Telemarketing, and Speed: College Life in Downtown Denver

I didn’t even own a car during college! Two years of living in Downtown Denver saw me studying to become a TV broadcast technician and becoming quite acquainted with Ramen Noodles and night time telemarketing. While sitcoms like “Seinfeld” dominated the ratings, my friends and I were more interested in the wild nightlife that didn’t exist back home.

Once during those two years, I took a wild ride west down I-70 with a quite attractive classmate. She was driving a blue third-generation Ford Mustang. She pushed the throttle well over 100 miles an hour, and I suddenly remembered those nights being amazed by Miami Vice!

Midwest Car Culture

From A/V Setup to Auto Aspirations: The Early Days of My Career 

She was excellent at cornering, and the ride was thrilling. For a brief instant, I thought about how inspiring it could be to write about cars all day. As we all began our post-college lives, I went to work doing testing and A/V setup for the Discovery Wings and Starz Movie Channels. I drove an old Plymouth Acclaim.

Weekends were spent cheering on the Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche hockey team and networking with other broadcasters. A few of them had some pretty cool Ram 1500 trucks, and I noticed how capable they were while navigating the backcountry. An all-night party on the side of Lookout Mountain alerted me to the useful pull the large Suburban was capable of.

Concerts, Cuisine, and Copywriting: Rediscovering My Passion for Words 

15 years later, I ended up back in Denver after a sudden divorce. This time I used the light rail for transportation, and thrusted myself into the world of advertising. Working at the busiest intersection in town, I hardly thought of cars. I was writing about concerts for Twist and Shout, and gaining traction reviewing local restaurants. 

Writing for real estate agents became my passion, and I spent 7 days a week with clients from Virginia, Canada, and Denver boosting their online presence. I learned to describe, analyze, and depict quite well. Then all of a sudden, fate headed me off at the pass like an 18-wheeler.

Midwest Car Culture

Horsepower Crash Course: Learning the Language of Muscle and Machines 

7 years ago, began working for an ad agency in St Louis handling Chevy, Dodge, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, and Kia dealerships in the region. I had to quickly learn about torque and horsepower, test drive results, and what consumers want from a car. I faltered a bit and overextended myself while still working for realtors. 

I learned that I most definitely prefer the muscle cars of the 1970s! Their raw character and brutish performance meant more to me than an urban-dwellers’s ultra-efficient EV. I still have a weakness for Alfa Romeo’s new offerings, no matter what the reliability record dictates. Every morning editors and writers from car publications flood my feed with the latest, while I piece articles together. 

Headlights and Holidays: Capturing the Spirit of Americruise and Classic Cinema

This holiday is special for me because it marks a few years of stepping out of an incredibly dark place many writers find themselves in. I have enjoyed the lights, classic films, candle lit services, and warm comradery of many. There will be many opportunities to spread joy during the coming year, and refuse to turn our backs on someone just because they may have different customs. 

The Americruise unsanctioned event roared to life here in Lincoln this summer, and we captured raw video for our Headlights article. The big-screen classics like Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars used to play in the drive-in theater right behind where I stood, but now everyone has their smartphone out while watching the festivities. 

The streets are still fully alive here in Lincoln, as they are from coast to coast. There’s nothing like a pure blast off the line and screeching of tires when you are fed up with life’s pressures. Many loyal followers and guides have helped me over the years, including the one whose tree we put a special train under this year. We wish you a Happy Holidays from the Headlights staff, along with a reminder to shine your own light brightly during turbulent times! -J

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Jon Weirman
I am a freelance writer in the Midwest who specializes in vehicles built for expert-level off-roading, and anything with a staggering amount of horsepower. In my first life I worked in broadcasting for Starz Network and Discovery Channel. I also love retro video games and sci-fi movies. Everything from the loud and burly muscle cars of the late 1970s to new crossover SUVs with futuristic tech features have populated my inbox!

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