[Steve Cassani]

I don't read the post as 'FFR bashing.' Wolverine cites his dissatisfaction with the kit he received and how the management of FFR replied to his requests that he be treated responsibly, having paid for the kit under terms that apply to any purchaser: parts free of rust, all parts delivered, sound workmanship. This information is pertinent to his subject: Why he has been required to provide the court a deposition. The information he provides, especially the history of his dispute being "long standing" and his having carried on part of the dispute on a public forum all this time, helps towards understanding why he was picked to offer testimony. Shelby's attorneys are fishing.

If the point to be shown in court has to do with who gave the web site Ffcobra its name, and was his action subject to the agreement, then Wolverine's hard time doing business with Factory Five is beside the point. Still, him making his complaints public also makes Wolverine attractive as someone willing to provide information that may substantiate a point Shelby raises in his complaint. If Shelby can show the management of FFR responded to Wolverine and so used the site or information they could have learned only from reading it in conducting business, the court may be pursuaded that the use of the name 'Cobra' as part of the name of the web site continued a pattern of misrepresentation FFR had agreed to cease.

All of this sounds petty but it is not. It is the sort of problem that arises when a businessman trades on a history and a reputation he did not establish. As platforms for airing grievances Ffcobra and Club Cobra are passive. If Shelby can show management of FFR used the site to further their objectives, as opposed to advertising which simply makes information available to an interested audience, he may have grounds for damages under the terms of the agreement. I recall FFR stopped using the name 'Cobra' in advertisments in Road & Track and similar publications when they signed the agreement. They refer instead to a 'history made in the early sixties.' Fair enough. Connect 'Cobra' and 'Factory Five Racing' as the does the name given the web site and use the site or what management learned from it to resolve an issue with a customer and the situation changes to one of underwriting the site in the company's name.