GRM Staff: Try to Avoid Becoming the Next Autoweek

Avoid the temptation to add fluff and lousy photographs like other magazines...

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20090114/FREE/901149991

Having just seen the latest editorial calendar, I'm pretty sure "fluff" and "lousy photographs" are not planned.

No, it was planned alright, no accident that the magazine has gone down the tubes. Someone decided to do less race coverage and more silly articles on pens and watches and include more personality profiles (translation: less cars) and more blurry photos of cars and more artsy photos such as race drivers posing and taking closeup pictures of their hands and other nonsense. I put a plug in for GRM on their website, I imagine it will get removed...

Don't worry, we don't have any plans to suck more--or less. GRM should more or less stay the course, and as usual we have some neat stuff in the works. Thanks for having faith in us.

And as far as "going upscale," that's kind of where Classic Motorsports fits in. While I do dig watches, I don't see them in GRM.

If they made it Autoyear it would be an even thicker and longer lasting than Auto Fortnight, and if they printed it on cardstock it could be damn near unliftable to compliment it's being unreadable.

the only places i ever saw autoweek were in doctor's offices, never once have i seen one outside the workings of a health care practice.

While you're at it, can you please try to avoid becoming the next Home and Garden, Vogue, Cat Fancy, O, Psychology Today, People or New Yorker magazine? The car coverage in those magazines is very low quality.

Bob

I still sorta like Autoweek....but it wouldn't work very well as GRM...

Wally wrote: Auto Fortnight

I'm totally going to start calling it that now. Thanks.

plance1 wrote: Avoid the temptation to add fluff and lousy photographs like other magazines... http://www.autoweek.com/article/20090114/FREE/901149991

Well, how about that. Now you can have "Automobile" magazine delivered twice a month.

If Davis & Lindamood were still at Car and Driver with Csere & Sherman, I'd probably still subscribe to it. IMO, C&D during the 70s and80s was the best `street driving' enthusiast mag ever.

Whatever happened to Satch Carlson? I liked the stuff he wrote for AW. Last I heard, he was writing for the BMWCCA's "Roundel" after he'd been busted for the underaged girl stuff...

David S. Wallens wrote: And as far as "going upscale," that's kind of where Classic Motorsports fits in. While I do dig watches, I don't see them in GRM.

Heh. David, I've actually seen an issue of CM. In these days of $10K TR-6s, $20K BMW Coupes, $30K(!) E-Types and $3K Spitfires, it seems to me that Tim's "staying the course" over there as well. Seems to me that CM says anything you can find in a barn can be brought back to life as long as you're not afraid to get your hands dirty...and if you can finally learn how to weld.

How much did that Tiger y'all found up in Charlotte cost? I hope the answer proves my point..

friedgreencorrado wrote: Whatever happened to Satch Carlson? I liked the stuff he wrote for AW. Last I heard, he was writing for the BMWCCA's "Roundel" after he'd been busted for the underaged girl stuff...

He writes a monthly column for Hemmings Sports and Exotic Car magazine.

friedgreencorrado wrote: Heh. David, I've actually seen an issue of CM. In these days of $10K TR-6s, $20K BMW Coupes, $30K(!) E-Types and $3K Spitfires, it seems to me that Tim's "staying the course" over there as well. Seems to me that CM says anything you can find in a barn can be brought back to life as long as you're not afraid to get your hands dirty...and if you can finally learn how to weld. How much did that Tiger y'all found up in Charlotte cost? I hope the answer proves my point..

I believe the Tiger purchase price was $8000. Though it might have been $7k.

Margie

jimbob_racing wrote:

friedgreencorrado wrote: Whatever happened to Satch Carlson?

He writes a monthly column for Hemmings Sports and Exotic Car magazine.

Thanks for that. I always admired his style. Kinda like Clarkson, but much earlier. I'm gonna look him up.

Satch Carlson is the editor of the Roundel magazine for the BMW CCA. Personally, he gets on my nerves.

In reply to jimbob_racing:

Thanks! I'll have to check it out.

In reply to Marjorie Suddard:

Not bad, considering what they're going for when they're finished..

http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/sunbeam

I used to be in the "Satch Carlson bugs me" club myself. Although, my membership was based on hearsay and rumors. Then we got paired up at a press event a couple years back and I found him to be one of the coolest guys I've ever got to spend a few hours with. Seriously, I was ashamed of myself for having formed a negative opinion of the guy without even knowing him.

As for Auroweek, I looked over the first "new" issue in the corporate reading room today and thought it was kind of cool. It's certainly a bold step. They're kind of skirting the lines between the enthusiast mags and the industry mags, which is unique territory.

And, yes, we have no plans of sucking any time soon.

jg

Bring back Competition Press!

One of the first periodicals I bought was the issue of CP (it was like a tabloid back then) and it told the story of Dan Gurney and Rchie Ginther (AAR Eagle Weslakes)finishing 1-2 at the Brands Hatch Race of Champions

In 1967.

JG Pasterjak wrote: I used to be in the "Satch Carlson bugs me" club myself. Although, my membership was based on hearsay and rumors. Then we got paired up at a press event a couple years back and I found him to be one of the coolest guys I've ever got to spend a few hours with. Seriously, I was ashamed of myself for having formed a negative opinion of the guy without even knowing him. And, yes, we have no plans of sucking any time soon. jg

That's really funny. I met a magazine guy at an event in the early 90's and I thought he was kind of a knucklehead. But I continued to read his work anyway and have since gained tremendous respect for him. He's a really good writer and never fails to crack me up. I feel your shame.

As I recall, it may have been a GRM event....

We have the former Editor of a MAJOR car magazine living down the street from us. The guy is a complete Toolshed.. Looked at the LS1 corvair and asked why we would ever do such a thing, His only comment ont he RS america was how far porsche has come from the days of the older cars like "That one"

I told him to get his ass off my property! (haha)

He drives a Suzuki XL-7 and a Camry...

How people like that get into the industry I will never know. His former position was obviously based far more on linguistics then a passion for cars.

I think I will go egg his house.

Ladies, ladies, ladies.

I'll repeat myself:

www.windingroad.com.

Seriously. If you can deal with the non-print medium, it's the (second) best car rag out there!