Club Cobra is now 10 years old! Oh, and Happy New Year!

[TerrysSPF]

Best wishes Brent. I'm just glad you didn't turn over while lying in that hospital bed and pull a Jamo on us. -Keep that gown tied up tight!

Thanks for keeping this great site running smoothly. I would also like to thank Jamo, Ron, and Turk (gone but not forgotten) for all they do, and have done in the past, to keep things on track and going in the right direction around here.

-Here's to another 10 years!

[MaSnaka]

What they all said, and Thanks!

John

[tmareina]

Brent,

Happy New Year and hope for a speedy recovery. Thanks for all for your efforts and hard work over the years to give us a place to gain valuable info, chat with our friends and just vent at times.

Tom

[RodKnock]

Originally Posted by rokndad

Stumbling onto this site almost two years ago is what gave me that final little "push" over the edge to take the plunge I waited for over the last 40years to get into the Cobra world. Thanks to Brent, Ron and Jamo for keeping this place a wealth of useful information and interest.

I hate to steal someone else's "thank you" note, but this is exactly how I feel, except not the "40 years" part. While my wait was long, it wasn't THAT long. Just kidding Tom.

I joined SAAC when I was a teenager, about 30 years ago. I have desired a Cobra since I was a kid. The combination of this website, the people who run it and the people who are members, gave me the extra push I needed to go out and buy one, though Evan will disagree.


Best wishes for a happy, healthy New Year to all!

[Snowsnake]

Happy New Year ! And to another 10 years with you at the Helm. Keep up the GREAT work you do for US ! Our prayers are with you.

[Rich]

Hi Brent,

10 years...how is that possible? Seems like only yesterday that I purchased that death trap of a Cobra and, with the help of a lot of folks here, made it into a fun, semi-safe car.

Hope you get better soon...see you at Greenwood this year?

Rich

[Buzz]

Happy new year Brent and wishes for a full, speedy recovery. There are a special few people in the world who go about quietly doing what they do for the purest and simplest of reasons, hardly realizing the profound and positive impact that they have on the lives of so many other people.

The ripple effect of your work has reached across the continent and around the world, directly and indirectly touching the lives of thousands of people in so many ways, ranging from the realization of a Cobra dream, to the sharing of charity and comfort and soul saving support networks with words of wisdom, condolence and life-changing advice in times of crisis and misadventure.

You may never have intended to, but you became a gatherer of souls in a sense - pulling together an unlikely, diverse multitude of people who may otherwise never have met, shared thoughts and experiences and above all, become friends. My photo below with Gashole John Simpson officially opening diplomatic relations with St. Lucia.

Thank you.

(and Computerworks, Turk*, and the other big Armenian fellow who helps out around here sometimes... can't remember his name...)

* Gone but not forgotten

[63Corvette]

Happy New Year Brent, and happy 10th anniversary! I am not a Cobra owner, but I have a lot of Cobra friends, most of whom are my honored vintage race competitors. I also have a little Cobra history myself, having attended the first race competition of CSX 3009 as a crew member. Skip Scott finished 3rd OA and 2nd in class at the 65 Pensecola USRRC in this car.
Here's to another 10 (or more) good years:-)

Garrett Waddell

[GREENSNAKE]

Happy New Year guys!!!!!! Hi Brent hope you get to feeling better soon. I can not believe its been 10 years since i joined. I was only 30 and owned my first cobra now hitting 40 this year and on my 3rd cobra this one im going to keep and enjoy it for years to come. Thanks for dreaming and coming up with this site its the best thing that happened to me . I even started a small custom street rod & cobra replica parts buisness with Paula and Enzo . That was one of my dreams too if it werent for you none of my dreams may not of come true too . Thanks and god bless . Lonny

[Jim Peters]

My Wife And I Are Both Cancer Survivors.NEVER GIVE UP THE SHIP!
To See Some Of Our Cobra Collection Posters Go To pittmodels.com
Click On Prints For Sale,Then On Fashion Photography by Jim Peters.

These Images Should Help Any Body Get Well Soon.

Hope To See You Getting Around Soon With A Lot Of RPM!

Jim And Kathy Peters
Fashion Photography
Pittsburgh, Pa.
fashionphotographyonline.com
pittmodels.com

[Sminor]

Hey Brent,
Get well soon. Thanks for all the hard work that goes into this web-site.
steve

[ac289]

Happy New Year and a speedy recovery Brent from across the pond


...ac289

[Enzo Alibrandi]

Brent,

10 years goes really fast. I remember finding your site even before I had an on line catalog to offer for Finish Line. I think I just had a typed list. I also remember John McMahon announcing that he would be at Carlisle that year and that he would be wearing an "Ask Me About Club Cobra" sticker and that is how we would find him. He was out letting everyone know about the site. I remember "Meat" and your frustration with him. I remember how you told me you heard about us through Sherrie who found us first and ordered you a set of sunvisors and gave you a catalog. I remember Wayne Turpin who used to organize the Run N Gun. I remember suggesting to you that you should have paid advertisers. I remember you took a poll about it on the site and we were your first paying advertiser. Before that we would hold an occasional donation time and let the members call us in a credit card or send you something directly to help keep the site going. Over the years I have sent many customers to the site that would call looking for something or with some sort of technical question that I had seen here and they would call me later and thank me for the site. When Enzo built his first two cobras there were no sites like this for help and we made a few costly mistakes. Now no one has to reinvent the wheel. Everyone lets you know all the different avenues you can take to solve a problem during a build. This site has had many many interesting topics over the years and has created many friendships. I've even been able to share about my grandson with cancer and many have arisen to the occasion and made the little boy happy with notes, presents, cards, donations. Thank you Brent. I remember some years you were so busy and things would get out of control and hard to handle and your moderators have really stepped in and helped you out. Thanks to all of them too. Here is to another 10.

Paula Alibrandi
Finish Line
www.finishlineaccessories.com

[koolmat]

I wanted to show you (since your side exhaust is black..) a side exhaust shield I have that would look great on your Cobra....see picture.....NO MORE BURNS...Take Care....>.

Originally Posted by Brent Mills

Well, honestly, the 10 year anniversary snuck up on me, and I am writing yet again, from a stupid hospital bed (finally getting the gallbladder out after my latest attack). You'll remember a couple of years ago I had my appendix out on Thanksgiving day, so I have a history of finding my way here on holidays. Anyways….it has been 10 years, as of January 1’st, since Club Cobra first opened its cyber doors and a lot has gone on.



A little CC history since it’s the 10 year anniversary…Since I was in high school, I had been dreaming of the day I could own a Shelby or a replica, and I had been saving for a while. In the middle of 1998, my wife Sherrie and I went to the farmers market in downtown Seattle (if you’ve never been, it’s worth the visit if you’re in town). We split up for a while to do some shopping and gawking on our own. As we were leaving, Sherrie told me that she got me a scratch lottery ticket (a nice potential surprise). As we were driving down the highway she asked me if I wanted to scratch it and that she was feeling lucky. I said sure, hold the wheel. Scratching….10k…scratching….10k….scratching….10k!! ! Wholly cow, I won 10k!!! I’m so stoked. I turned to her and said that a replica was now within reach! We both were very excited as we cruised down the highway at 65mph. Ok, grab the wheel and calm down, and tell your lovely wife (girlfriend at the time) that you’re taking her to dinner! So we find a nice place and sit down for a bite…The whole while I am going on and on about how crazy this is and how great it was. As we were waiting for the food, I am looking at the ticket and I turn it over. I start reading about how to redeem the money. “For all winners under $100 redeem at the point of purchase”. Ok, yeah, yeah, but I’m the big winner…What do I do for that? “For 1k and 10k winners, redeem at your mommas house.” Redeem at your mommas house? What? I look over at Sherrie and she can’t contain herself any longer. Oh…really? I’ve been punk’d, but I didn’t get on TV. I actually kind of mad at that point because I had already figured that we could get a Cobra. While this whole experience might sound funny to you, don’t ever do this to someone you care about….You might actually be surprised by their reaction….ask Sherrie! After laughing it off, I turned to her and said “you know, I made up my mind to go and make a dream happen, and it might not be the wisest of decisions, but I’m going to get a loan for the remaining amount and just go make it happen. Bet she didn’t expect that!

Fast forward a month or so, and we make a trip to Arizona where we found a couple Cobras in my range (under 20k) in Hemmings (not so much going on with internet sales at that point). First one had a small block, was nice, but wasn’t quite what I had hoped. The second one had a 427 center oiler, but the history was non-existent. Couldn’t tell the manufacturer and the body and frame seemed a little different than others I had seen. It did have a 427 though, which really was a kick! The guy I purchased from asked me to take her easy, but I couldn’t help but get on it one time and when I did, he about lost his marbles, but….he was happy to get a check. In October the car arrived at my house and I was a happy camper, though many questions lingered. Who is the manufacturer? Who built the engine? More importantly, who else out there has a Cobra?

My first cobra (all because of a fake lotto ticket):


After a bunch of looking on line and asking questions, I didn’t quite find all I was looking for and during my holiday break from my job, I decided to start a site called Club Cobra -- A place where people could come and talk and share with one another. A lot of this decision was based on my desire to learn more about my car, but I have always been an internet guy and even ran a BBS out of my parent’s home on a Commodore 64 when I was in high school, so this all came somewhat naturally.

Guys like John McMahon, Don Dupontee, Art Colley, Neal Jackson, ScottS, and David Gagnard were among the first to register. I think John was the very first with the initial makeshift forum software that I utilized for the first 20 days or so. He and I communicated a lot as he helped me to try and identify my car and other questions I had. A shell of what was there towards the middle of January can be found here: http://clubcobra.com/default2.html , though the links are not functional. As you can see it was a modest beginning, but one that was a foundation for the next 10 years.
Throughout CC's existence, there have been the great times and some bad times….It’s not always roses when you deal with many varying personalities, but there have been many more great things that make this a fun venture.

Since the early days we have had some great help from the likes of Computerworks, Jamo, and Turk. Without their help, the playground would be a mess without even more dedication from me, and given my work schedule and other life commitments I don’t think I could have done it without them, so my hat is off to them! They have been critical elements to our organization and database growth. Much appreciated.

Some of the great things that have happened from my perspective:

• I have met many great people along this road and I have a great appreciation for that.
• I have been flown down to Texas for their annual event a couple times and was awed by their hospitality and loved the people. I love all you guys! 
• I went to the London show one year (DVSII) and once again had the opportunity to meet many great people.
• I went to every WSCB event (thanks a bunch for all of your efforts Duane Cooney!). Again I got to meet a ton of people along that journey.
• We have seen many local clubs spring up (see the clubs section of the site).
• We have witnessed the number of enthusiasts for these cars we all love go through the roof.
• We have watched as various manufacturers have come and grown while others came and left.
• WE all built a huge database of information together and it has helped countless others avoide pitfalls or otherwise assist in projects.
• Of course the biggest benefit of all of this and the root of why it was all started, is to meet those other enthusiasts whom we would not have met otherwise. It is a really great thing that a site and a car could bring so many people together who share a common bond.
• There have been numerous long lasting and often viewed threads (for the top dogs you can see the list on http://ww.clubcobra.com/forums . Here’s a few samples below:

Cool Cobra tags
Average Age?
http://clubcobra.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46546 < Latest recognition

So where does the future take us? Well, I have some visions, but I’ll need input from you all over coming years. I think there is more for us to explore on the social networking side of things, including blogs, web spaces (think myspace), though we have a blog system that is very underutilized already. I would love to see more sharing of history, etc, and bringing those things to the forefront more. It would be great if as an organization we had better CC representation at events such as the one in London or Run ‘N Gun, etc, as far as planning more face to face time with other members, and things such as that.

It’s been mostly pleasure serving you guys/gals over the last 10 years and here’s to another 10. Well, I have written enough, and I’m fading quickly….Sitting in hospital beds suck!

Happy New Year and thank you all for your contributions to the site!

Please share below your favorite threads or pictures or history or whatever you feel pertinent.

[aks801]

Great work, Brent, and here's to 10 more years!

I have followed the site for some time, learning a lot and marveling at the craftsmanship exhibited by so many car owners and builders. Looking forward to my own "experience", and hope to start it by the end of '09.

[WarrenG]

Brent,
Happy New Year and thanks for all of your hard work at keeping this site up and running. It's been a great resource and release for me. Get well soon!

[Bugman]

I can't let the 10th anniversy post go by without adding to it! This site has fueled my dream and it is where I found MY Cobra!! Thanks for all you have done and helped my dream of owning the loudest smelliest most fun vehicle ever produced!

[GT35065]

Hope you are up and about and feeling better after your operation. Thanks for this site, it was instrumental in picking my Cobra. Still have her and a couple friends. You really provide a great service to the Cobra community.

Rick

[Sizzler]

You should update your website more often than once every 10 years or so ...

"cobradude@yahoo" apparently is long gone from their registry but still comes up as the only contact for you some places?

[ROUSHAC]

Brent, does your wife know that this



is your doctor?

Hope to hear from you soon that all went well.