North American Concept Vehicle of the Year Awards
Jury Biographies
Paul Abelson
Lisle, Illinois
Paul
Abelson grew up as a sports car buff, competing with a modicum
of success in club events with his Volvo P-1800 S. After
landing on his lid and finding that wheel-to-wheel competition
was not his thing, he "retired" to the corners
as a turn marshal with SCCA and the British Sports Car Owners
Association (BSCOA) of New York in the 1960s. After a long
absence from organized competition, the transplant to the
Chicago area again became active in road racing. He maintains
his National Pit Marshal license and is a Regional Course
Marshal with the SCCA.
Paul is currently
Senior Technical Editor of Land Line Magazine, serving heavy-truck
owner operators and small fleets. Besides his articles on
equipment and maintenance, he has a column called "Personal
Wheels" in which he reviews four-wheelers. He also
serves as Senior Technical Editor of Road King Magazine,
written for professional drivers. Abelson writes monthly
columns on fleet operations for Public Works and The Concrete
Producer Magazines.
Previously, he
was Technical Editor of Super Driver Audio Tape Magazine.
At Super Driver, he reviewed passenger cars, pickups, vans
and SUVs each month, and wrote a column of miscellaneous
automotive information and opinion called "Car Guy."
Abelson has won gold, silver and bronze awards from the
IAMA, Truck Writers of North America (TWNA) and ASBPE. In
2006, Paul was honored with TWNA's Lifetime Achievement
Award. He is currently on TWNA's Board of Directors.
Paul is active
in industry and automotive affairs. A member of the Midwest
Automotive Media Association, he is active on the Spring
Rally organizing committee.
He is a program
chairman at the SAE Commercial Vehicles meeting and is among
the senior leadership of the Technology and Maintenance
Council (TMC). Between the two organizations, he wrote about
a dozen Recommended Practices on equipment and maintenance.
He served on various Boards of Directors, including TMC,
the National Association of Show Trucks and the Illinois
Trucking Association Maintenance Council. The Air Force
veteran has a BS from NYU and a Masters from Michigan State.
He has a Commercial Drivers License (CDL) and regularly
reviews trucks of all sizes.
Lyndon Conrad
Bell
Lafayette, California
Lyndon
Conrad Bell is Editor-in-Chief of OnWheels Incorporated's
publications African Americans OnWheels, Latinos OnWheels
and their website onwheelsinc.com. His work has appeared
in a variety of publications including; Automotive Marketer,
Autoworld Magazine, Essence Magazine and Forbes.com.
In addition to
a lifelong love of automobiles, Lyndon also enjoys going
places he has never been and seeing things he's never seen,
making him perfectly suited to judging a competition of
concept cars. After all, concept cars are cars nobody has
ever seen. Lyndon lives in Lafayette, California with his
lovely wife Lynda.
Michael Bettencourt
Oakville, Ontario
In
his adventures as assistant editor of Carguide magazine,
Michael Bettencourt has seen more than his share of weird
and wonderful wheels, both on the show stage and in living
metal. As a regular columnist for Performance Auto and Sound
magazine, he brings an aftermarket oriented perspective
to his work. "Think concept car designers are out there?
You should see what some people actually drive down the
street."
He also does
photography for the above publications, as well as writing
and shooting for Globe Megawheels, the weekly automotive
section for the Globe and Mail newspaper. Combine this with
his time as copy editor of motorsports magazine Performance
Racing News, and it's easy to see that he loves all things
sleek. "When a fresh concept hits the right buttons,
it's simply magic," says Bettencourt. "Hit the
wrong ones, of course, and it's more disastrous than amateur
standup comedy."
Kami Buchholz
Royal Oak, Michigan
As the name behind the online site www.kjbsyndicate.com,
Kami Buchholz provides readers with vehicle driving impressions
that emphasize the technical features of today's popular
automobiles. In addition to occasional general interest
articles in weekly and daily newspapers, she also reports
on product development trends as the Detroit Editor of Automotive
Engineering International, a monthly publication published
by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE).
Thom Cannell
Lansing, Michigan
This veteran automotive photographer and journalist
sold his first story to The Competition Press (later AutoWeek)
in 1976. Originally a racing reporter covering the North
American rally scene, Cannell began to cover USAC racing
during the turbulent changeover from Offenhauser engines
to Cosworth V-8s and CART. Additional assignments resulted
in stories about NASCAR and even Formula One.
Since then Cannell's
stories and photos have appeared US automotive enthusiast
publication: Car & Driver, Road & Track, Motor Trend, AutoWeek,
Automobile, Winding Road, Automotive Traveler, AutoTech
Daily, Truckin, Turbo, Sport Truck, Street Truck, TheAutoChannel.com.
Thom is the US correspondent for Germany's Auto and 4Wheel
Fun. As a corporate photographer he has contributed to "Every
automotive manufacturer from Audi to Yugo."
When not behind
the wheel, you will find him at a Lansing YMCA pursuing
his "if I ever retire" career in exercise and personal training,
or just out dancing.
Dan Carney
Herndon, Virginia
Dan
Carney is a lifelong car enthusiast residing in the Washington,
D.C. area. He is a freelance journalist specializing in
new technology and motorsports, writing for publications
such as FHM, Edmunds Inside Line, Truck Trend, Sports Car
International, and Automotive Engineering International
and many others.
Carney has authored
two books, "Honda S2000" and "Dodge Viper,"
both published by Motorbooks International. He is currently
president of the Washington Automotive Press Association
(WAPA). He is an avid motorcyclist, and his helmet is a
familiar sight at WAPA meetings. Carney also enjoys racing
his Formula Ford in Sports Car Club of America events.
Tom Crosby
Charlotte, North Carolina
Tom
Crosby is vice-president of communications for AAA Carolinas
and editor of GO Magazine, which is a bi-monthly publication
sent to 800,000 households. He writes new car reviews for
GO Magazine, AAA Carolinas' website and 10 newspapers in
North and South Carolina, including the Wilmington Star
in North Carolina.
Tom is a former
reporter for The Washington Star and NBC-TV in Washington,
D.C. He has been with AAA over 19 years and is responsible
for his club's public relations, lobbying, car buying service,
member relations and traffic safety departments.
Winston Goodfellow
Carmel, California
Winston
Goodfellow’s love affair with the automobile was kindled
in the mid-1970s when he was in high school. One day after
basketball practice, a teammate called out, "You have
to see this!" Parked next to the gym was a new Ferrari
365 GT/4 BB "Berlinetta Boxer" owned by a Saudi
prince who attended a nearby college. A few weeks later
Goodfellow saw another prince’s Lamborghini Countach
LP400, and he was hooked.
Goodfellow spent
most of the 1980s in the financial services industry, then
changed careers in the early 1990s to become an automotive
writer and photographer. Today his photos and words are
found in books and magazines around the world, and his fine
art prints hang in the homes and offices of auto executives,
designers and collectors. He is a Pebble Beach Concours
Chief Class Judge and a Seminar Leader with the Smithsonian
Institution.
"When I
started my career in the industry," Goodfellow reflects,
"I thought I would specialize in what
interested me—concept, performance and collector cars,
and their history. I soon found myself shooting and driving
things that were fast and cool, and spent time speaking
with the people who created them. I was like a kid with
his hand in a cookie jar!"
He hasn’t
looked back. "I am one of the luckiest people in the
world, for I have stumbled onto one of life’s great
secrets," Goodfellow goes on. "If you love what
you do, how can it be considered work?" Goodfellow's
photographic work may be viewed at RollingSculpture.com.
Ryan Gehm
Warrendale, Pennsylvania
Ryan
Gehm has been Assistant Editor for SAE International's four
publications - Automotive Engineering International,
SAE Off-Highway Engineering, Aerospace Engineering &
Manufacturing, and Truck & Bus Engineering Online
- since 2000.
In addition to
editing, researching, and writing on a variety of advanced-technology
topics, particularly in the areas of materials, body and
chassis, interiors, and performance and aftermarket, he
is also responsible for SAE's Materials and Truck &
Bus Technology eNewsletters. Ryan is a member of SAE International
and the Motor Press Guild.
Art Gould
Placentia, California
Art
Gould is the co-host of the weekly radio show, The Car
Show, on 90.7fm Los Angeles, aired continuously on the
same station, same day and virtually the same time slot
since 1973. This is the longest running electronic show
(radio, TV, or internet) on the automoblile industry in
the country. With 112,000 watts, the show is heard from
Santa Barbara to San Diego, CA.
Art writes a regular new car review column in The Washington
Times auto section, as well as a monthly column in Global
Auto News covering auto features, and auto events in the
movie industry.
Lou Ann Hammond
Auburn, California
Lou
Ann Hammond is an automotive entrepreneur, and the owner
and founder of www.carlist.com, the longest running used
car database and one of the first auto sites on the internet.
Before joining
the automotive industry Hammond bought and sold foreign
oil for Chevron Corporation. Her first driving experience
was in Tokyo Japan, where she graduated from high school
at the young age of 16.
Hammond can be
heard every week on the John Batchelor radio show broadcast
in New York, San Francisco, Washington DC and Los Angeles.
Hammond guests on MSNBC, CNBC, and KCRA Sacramento. Hammond
is a member of the Western Automotive Journalists (WAJ),
a former Vice President, and a member of the Motor Press
Guild (MPG).
Hammond resides
in Auburn, California, located in the Sierra Nevada foothills,
overlooking the Sacramento valley with her husband "Stretch"
and their dog and two cats.
Isaac Hernandez
Santa Barbara, California
Isaac
Hernández has been documenting automotive life for
over 20 years. His beautiful photographs are regularly published
on all inhabited continents. He writes in both English and
Spanish; his witty articles are also translated to over
a dozen languages, including Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish,
French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin, Norwegian,
Polish, Portuguese and Swedish. His photographs and paintings
have adorned hundreds of magazine covers, books, newspapers,
music albums and galleries.
Isaac is editor
at MercuryPress.com, an international media agency and photo
archive. He also publishes AutoTao.com, a multilingual blog
for automotive fans. Isaac is a US Correspondent for over
40 international publications, including El Mundo, the second
largest national newspaper in Spain. Above all, Isaac loves
humanity, as can be seen in his people photography, found
at IsaacHernandez.com.
Jim Jackson
St. Charles, Illinois
Auto
Writer Jim Jackson delivers The Times Newspapers' "driveTimes"
column to over 100,000 readers in 10 markets throughout
Northwest Indiana and Southeast Suburban Chicago.
The Chicago-based
journalist has worked at The Times for 12 years. He is also
the Motoring Editor for Shore magazine, a lifestyle publication
of The Times Newspapers.
Tom Kelley
Charlotte, North Carolina
As
head of The Deadline Factory, Tom provides freelance articles
and photographs that appear in dozens of national magazines
with nearly 1.5 million readers combined.
Active in many
industry associations, including Detroit's Automotive Press
Association, SEMA and its TCAA division, and the Automotive
Aftermarket Industry Association, Tom is the co-founder
of the South East Automotive Media Organization (SEAMO)
and serves as a director of the Truck Writers of North America.
Along with technology
coverage that can include editing a shop manual or writing
about the latest telematics and intelligent-highway systems,
Tom also writes numerous light truck reviews from both an
adventure-travel perspective, and the business-user's perspective.
BJ Killeen
Sherman Oaks, California
BJ
Killeen, one of only a handful of female automotive journalists
in the country, is well known in the industry. A former
Road Test Editor for Motor Trend magazine, BJ now freelances
for numerous automotive titles and websites, as well as
being a contributing editor to JD Power and Associates.
She currently is the Road Test Editor and co-host of Drivers
Talk Radio, a live Saturday broadcast that is heard in
over a dozen markets across the country.
After receiving
her degree in English from UCLA, BJ joined the staff of
Motorcyclist magazine, where she cultivated a fondness for
motorcycles and dirt bikes. She then moved on to Motor Trend
magazine, where she worked her way up to become the road
test editor, and was responsible for writing many monthly
columns, road tests and comparison tests, as well as voting
in the prestigious Car, Truck, and Import Car of the Year
competitions. BJ also is an occasional guest host on the
The Car Show automotive radio program. BJ also has appeared
on television as an authority in her field, most recently
on Home Matters on the Discovery Channel, as well as on
a variety of morning news shows across the country.
She is a multiple
winner of the prestigious IAMC awards, including the gold
medal for Best of Radio, and is a judge for numerous automotive
competitions, including Concept Vehicle of the Year, International
Car of the Year Awards, and Urban Wheel Awards.
A big racing
fan, her love of automobiles started early, having been
exposed to the field through her father, who owned an assortment
of collector classics, such as a 61 Austin-Healey 3000,
a 641/2 Mustang, and other vehicles. BJ, a native Southern
Californian, is married to automotive photographer Scott
Killeen, lives in Sherman Oaks, California, and is a two-year
past president of the Motor Press Guild, the organization
that represents almost 750 automotive journalists and industry
representatives across the country.
BJ and Scott
have embarked on a new publishing venture, called BUILD
BOOK, From Concept to Reality, which focuses on the build
of one specific custom vehicle. BUILD BOOK #1 features Joe
Rogans 1970 Cuda, built by Troy Trepanier of Rad Rides
by Troy. BUILD BOOK #2 showcases POSIES Rods & Customs
1935 Aeroliner Sport. BUILD BOOK #3 highlights a 1961 Starliner
built for Summit Racing by ProRides, BUILD BOOK #4 covers
a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air built by the legendary Boyd Coddington,
and BUILD BOOK #5 features the Ringbrothers Reactor Mustang,
the Goodguys Street Machine of the Year award winner.
Ashly Knapp
Seattle, Washington
Before
and during college, Ashly drove a Checker Marathon Cab nights
in his native Manhattan. It was his first job as a professional
driver. Over the next few years' young Ashly worked as a
car mechanic and an automotive retailer.
After college Ashly studied personal transportation costs
and their relationship to personal values. In 1977, he founded
AutoAdvisor, Inc. the nation's oldest national consumer
consulting and buyer's service. Today autoadvisor.com has
helped countless individuals acquire better, safer, more
reliable vehicles at lower prices.
Ashly became an auto writer in 1978 when he was asked to
write monthly automobile reviews for the AAA. In the late
80's he worked with Money Magazine to publish their first
real automobile transaction price guide and continued to
do so for many years. During his independent career he has
worked with J.D. Powers, Zeno Group, Automotive News, Reuters,
and had his own automotive talk shows on ABC and NBC affiliates.
In addition he has written for many publications over the
years.
Ashly has always enjoyed studying automotive technology
and its relative value to the individual. Presently Ashly
co-writes a monthly column for Physician' Money Digest and
Dentist Money Digest as well as others in the health care
lifestyle area. He co-writes his columns with his Award-winning,
auto journalist wife, Jean Swenson.
Ashly continues to be quoted regularly as well as doing
numerous national electronic media guest spots. He's presently
working on a book to be published during the'07 model year.
Ashly lives with his wife and family 417 feet above sea
level on Seattle's Queen Anne Hill.
Bob Kroupa
Greensboro, North Carolina
Bob
Kroupa is one of the Principals of the Automotive Writers
Group with offices in Greensboro, NC and Chicago, IL.
Bob is recognized for his work with new automotive releases
for all major manufacturers and models with his reviews
for the Greensboro News & Record daily newspaper, and
is a main contributor to their Auto Show Publication.
He is the Editor and Publisher of the Vette-N-Vestments
Monthly Corvette Market Letter now in it's 26th year of
production. He is recognized across the country for his
knowledge and expertise in the aftermarket Corvette arena
and has amassed an extensive data base on Corvette resale
prices. Bob also has a monthly column "sold, Sold,
SOLD!" in Corvette Enthusiast Magazine. In addition,
his articles are featured in Old Cars Weekly, Cars and Parts
Magazine, Magazine Corvette as well as the Corvette Quarterly
Magazine.
Jim Meachen
Goldsboro, North Carolina
Jim
Meachen is a retired editor of the Goldsboro News-Argus
in Goldsboro, N.C. He has been covering the auto industry
and reviewing new vehicles for more than 18 years. Although
retired, he continues to write a weekly review for the Goldsboro
News Argus, the Los Angeles Daily News and a half dozen
other newspapers in southern California. His reviews also
appear on several Web sites including car-data.com and motorway.com.
Meachen is a
native of South Dakota and worked for several newspapers
in South Dakota and Iowa before coming to North Carolina.
He spent four years in the Air Force during the Vietnam
era writing and compiling a quarterly history of the 68th
Bombardment Wing.
He won several
writing awards during his long tenure with the News-Argus,
first as sports editor and then as executive news editor.
Mark Phelan
Detroit, Michigan
Based in Detroit, Mark Phelan has covered the auto industry
around the world for nearly 20 years. Curently an auto critic
for the Detroit Free Press, he previously has edited and
written for a wide variety of consumer and business publications.
Phelan lived
in Europe for several years and wrote extensively about
the auto industry there. He was founding editor, and most
recently Editor-In-Chief, of Automotive Business International
Magazine, a German publication covering vehicle news, business
and technology issues.
Phelan has also
written for the New York Times, Road & Track Magazine,
Ward's Communications, Automotive Industries Magazine, and
many other publications.
Chris Poole
Peoria, Arizona
Chris
Poole is Editor-at-Large for Chicago-based Consumer Guide
Auto and corporate partner HowStuffWorks.com. Poole joined
CG's parent company, Publications International, Ltd. (PIL),
in 1979 as its first full-time auto editor. In 1984 he added
the title of editor-in-chief for the bimonthly Collectible
Automobile auto-history magazine. Poole moved to Los Angeles
in late 1986 to assume the newly created post of PIL West
Coast Auto Editor.
In 2007 he relocated
to the Phoenix area, where he remains a busy staff contributor
to the many print and online publishing efforts of Consumer
Guide Auto and HowStuffWorks.
A lifelong car
enthusiast, Poole is a member of the Los Angeles-based Motor
Press Guild (where he served as secretary and vice-president)
and is 2009 president for the Phoenix Automotive Press Association
(PAPA). He is honored to have served the past few years
as juror for the North American Concept Vehicle of the Year
awards.
Brenda Priddy
Phoenix, Arizona
Lens
extraordinaire Brenda Priddy has earned a reputation as
one of the world's pre-eminent automotive "spy"
photographers. Her undercover exclusives are a regular feature
of The Car Connection and other popular websites and publications.
These popular stealth-type photos are in high demand and
her client list has included publications such as Car &
Driver, Road and Track, AutoWeek, Forbes, Fortune, Business
Week and USA Today. Brenda's business has been highlighted
in several print publications, including Newsweek, Motor
Trend, Sports Car International, and various domestic and
international newspapers, and her pictures have appeared
in various books - from automotive interests to text books,
and even encyclopedias.
Her first "cover
shoot" was for the recently published book, Toyota
FJ Cruiser, written by Larry Edsall and published by Motorbooks.
Ms. Priddy contributed photos to nearly every chapter, and
for the first time in many years, didn't have engineers
and security personnel blocking her view.
In addition to
lurking behind trees and juggling multiple cameras with
high- tech lenses, Ms. Priddy also writes about the automotive
industry and is a contributing editor and photographer with
several national automotive publications. In what little
free time there is left, Brenda devotes herself to volunteering
as an advocate for AEDs (automatic external defibrillators),
and is helping to bring these lifesaving devices into schools,
work places and communities.
When not writing
reviews, photographing future cars or promoting AEDs, Brenda
relaxes with her family, including her two children, Becca
(a Theater Arts major) and Zak (a soon-to-be-famous rock
guitarist and robotic engineer). They live in Arizona with
a house full of dogs, cats, tortoises and a mother in-law.
Sylvie Rainville
Beauport, Québec
Thirty
six years old, Sylvie Rainville boasts of an enviable experience
in automotive journalism. Before taking over from her dad
Jacques Rainville who passed away in January 2001, she got
involved doing various things under her dad's supervision.
As a full time contributor with the Quebec City French paper
Le Journal de Québec, she covers various aspects
of the auto world like concept vehicles, industry news,
new cars review, gossips about local dealers and other relevant
companies. She also does an auto supplement 5 times a year
for the same publication.
Sylvie is also
the editor of the French edition (Le Magazine Carguide)
of the prestigious Carguide Magazine published 6 times a
year, by Formula Publications based in Oakville, Ontario
(Canada). Before her promotion as editor, Sylvie did various
assignments for the magazine. Sylvie also writes a weekly
column, a prestige and luxury car review, in Le Journal
Économique, a publication covering the economic activities
in Quebec, Canada. She is also an associate editor of the
website www.guideauto.com, founded by her father and some
of his colleagues back in 1977.
www.guideauto.com
is viewed as a major automobile website on account of its
complete informative content and presentation. Sylvie, being
a person who loves motorsport entered the 2002 Rally Targa
Newfounland, the ultimate North American tarmac rally that
run across that Canadian province. She also attends major
events in automobile such as international auto shows in
Detroit, New York, Montreal, Toronto, Quebec City, just
to name a few. In her everyday life Sylvie lives in the
suburb of Quebec City with her husband and her two lovely
dogs.
Bill Schaffer
Washougal, Washington
Auto
writer Bill Schaffer has had a long love affair with the
automobile back to pre-teen years where he says, “I
grew up in a small Ford dealership in Montana.” After
graduating from the University of Montana, most of his career
was in the newspaper advertising and management business
in California and Oregon.
In 1992, Schaffer
started to write auto reviews for the Central Oregonian
newspaper, which he managed. Before long, his wife, Barbara,
joined him and they became one of the first husband/wife
auto review teams in the country. In 1993, they started
Auto Digest Syndicate to provide automotive reviews to other
newspapers. Over the years, their reviews and columns have
appeared in hundreds of newspapers around the country.
Based in Washougal,
Washington, across the river from Portland, they currently
write two weekly car reviews, plus a Car Quiz and Auto Update
column. Their work is distributed through American Profile
magazine to their 1,400-member newspaper group, to several
other newspapers, Arizona Driver magazine and on the Internet.
Schaffer is a
member of WAJ, MAMA and serves as Vice President of NWAPA.
Jim Scoutten
Franklin, Tennessee
Jim
Scoutten's career began in All News Radio while still in
broadcasting school; then came TV News, starting as weekend
anchor for the ABC affiliate in Honolulu. He's been a Reporter,
Anchor, Producer and News Director, while working for stations
in Minneapolis, Honolulu, Phoenix, Seattle, Greater Houston,
and Savannah, GA.
Scoutten produced
shows on automotive news, new vehicles and classic cars
for TNN for 12 years. He formerly produced Car and Driver
TV, working closely the Csaba Csere, Editor in-Chief of
Car and Driver Magazine. Under Scoutten's direction, Car
and Driver Television won five International Automotive
Media Awards for excellence in broadcast reporting.
Scoutten continues
his long time Car and Driver association as a contributor,
providing new vehicle reviews for Car and Driver Radio,
heard nation-wide on 125 radio stations and on XM and Sirius
Satellite Radio.
Marc K. Stengel
Nashville, Tennessee
Marc
K. Stengel is a syndicated columnist whose "What I'm
Driving At" weekly column appears nationally in newspapers,
assorted magazines and the Internet "webzine"
CarList.com. Stengel also contributes to numerous lifestyle
publications, including Executive Traveler, RV Magazine
and Alabama Baby; and he has also written for The Atlantic
Monthly, The New York Times Book Review and The (London)
Spectator.
Stengel served
as founding producer both for TV's Road Test Magazine on
TNN: The Nashville Network and for Motor Trend Television.
Over the years, his work has been selected for various awards
from the International Automotive Media Conference and the
Tennessee Outdoor Writers Association.
Jeff Taylor
Chicago, Illinois
Jeff
has spent over 25 years maintaining, modifying and writing
about automobiles and related subjects. For the past 17
years he has been associated with the Chicago Sun-Times
Media, LLC. He was the very first automotive writer for
the Pioneer Press Newspapers. In that capacity he reviewed
new vehicles and reported on all types of automotive topics
from aftermarket to NASCAR.
Jeff has been
covering the Chicago Auto Show since 1989 and the North
American International Auto Show since 1992 as well as covering
additional auto shows in North America and overseas.
In addition to writing for the Chicago Sun-Times, Media,
LLC he produced freelance pieces for lifestyle magazines,
consulted on book projects and produced custom dealership
marketing and sales publications
Rounding out
his automotive experience Jeff has automotive marketing
and promotions experience as the marketing manger for a
mid-west conversion van and SUV manufacturer. He is also
skilled in automotive body repair and refinishing.
Kelly Taylor
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Kelly
Taylor has been a professional journalist since beginning
in 1988 as a general assignment reporter with the Winnipeg
Sun. That same year, he took a similar position at the Brandon
Sun in Brandon, Manitoba until August, 1989, when he began
at the Winnipeg Free Press as a business reporter.
In 1995, Taylor
began a series of upward moves, joining the night copy desk,
later becoming a makeup editor and assistant news editor
before assuming his current role as automotive editor in
August of 2000. Taylor is responsible for all aspects of
editorial production of the automotive section, including
recruitment of freelancers, writing and editing copy and
layout and design of the section.
Taylor is also
a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada
and an evaluator for the Canadian Car of the Year Award,
which is determined during a rigorous four-day selection
process at a race track outside Belleville, Ontario. Kelly
was recently named 2002 Canadian Automotive Journalist of
the Year by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada,
an award presented by Jaguar.
Rich Taylor
Sharon, Connecticut
The
author of more than 5,000 magazine articles, hundreds of
special sections and two-dozen award-winning books, Rich
Taylor is also the winner of 26 International Automotive
Media Awards, plus the prestigious Ken Purdy Award.
Taylor is also
a juror for North American Car and Truck of the Year Awards
and the Motorsports Hall of Fame. He is a judge at many
national concours, including Amelia Island Concours, Fairfield
Concours and Greenwich Concours. His Minisport shop has
created many concept cars for manufacturers and magazines,
futuristic vehicles that have been displayed at the SEMA
Show, Detroit and New York Auto Shows and in the lobby of
General Motors headquarters. He has also exhibited award-winning
restorations at Amelia Island, Lime Rock, Fairfield and
Greenwich Concours, as well as at Ford Motor Company's 100th
Anniversary Celebration.
His Vintage Rallies
company has donated well over $1-million to charity during
the past 18 years through its 1000-mile old car rallies,
for which Rich and his wife Jean were named "Hobby
Heroes" by Hemmings Motor News. A former AMA Expert
motorcycle road racer, Rich also won an SCCA Championship
and the 24 Hours of Nelson Ledges, plus raced IMSA, SCCA
Pro Rally and the Daytona 24 Hours as well as vintage racing
his own Devin SS, Kellison J4-R and B-production Corvette
Stingray.
Jim Tucker
Marietta, Georgia
Jim
is Publisher of Southern Automotive Journal, a monthly trade
publication focusing on news, trends and perspective in
the automotive aftermarket and retailing fields. The publication
is distributed in five southeast states: Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Jim began his
automotive publishing career with his first magazine, Georgia
Automotive Business. He has published several automotive
related publications over the last ten years.
Arv Voss
Vallejo, California
Arvel
"Arv" Voss is a Northern California based freelance
automotive journalist whose Auto Impressions column appears
in various newspapers and magazines across the country.
In addition to doing weekly auto columns for the San Franscisco
Chronicle and the Oakland Tribune as well as 6 other Bay
Area papers, Arv also writes a nationally syndicated monthly
motorcycle column called "2-Wheeling Today" for
the Motor Matters Syndicate.
A fan of things
automotive since childhood, he has collected and restored
many cars and trucks over the years, among those still owned,
are a 1925 Chevrolet Touring, a 1939 Ford sedan delivery,
a 1940 Ford Pickup street rod and a 1957 Porsche Speedster.
Voss made the
move from the advertising and marketing side of the newspaper
business over a decade ago to the editorial side where he
could pursue his passion for wheeled vehicles. A charter
member of the Western Automotive Journalists, he served
two terms as president of that organization and several
years as a Vice President prior to that. He and his wife
reside in a restored Victorian Vallejo city landmark that
is on the National Registry as well. Also an avid sailor,
he is a Past Commodore of the Vallejo Yacht Club and additionally
enjoys boat restoration.