This could possibly be the most important thing I write on Speedhunters. Well not that of course, but what follows: my first editorial. A few weeks ago some of you noticed my name rise up the list at the bottom of our homepage; by the time it got somewhere near the top it had Editor In Chief written alongside it. Trust me, this was as much of a surprise to me as it may have been to you and in no way is that some sort of humbled, forced “Oh my, aren’t I lucky” kind of introduction. No, I’ve been around long enough now to know this new role for me is very much a double edged sword. So I thought we’d better have a chat and I can reassure you it’s all going to be alright…
I’ve been writing about cars and the culture that surround them professionally since 1997. Just as the internet started knocking on the door of our daily routines, I began a career that I didn’t know existed until a guy called Rod Chong asked me to take this role on. Because truth be told, I’ve spent the last 17 years wandering the earth talking to people and taking pictures of things I love. A very happy consequence of that was that I’d get paid, which would enable me to buy more cars and plane tickets. That might sound naïve, but it’s not: I knew what I was doing and that was hanging on to the last chunk of money to clear in the bank, hoping and latterly trusting that somebody else would want what I’d produced and pay me for it.
In those years I’ve traveled the world, photographed Evos in Thailand, gatecrashed F1 circuits, commentated on drift events in Romania, blown up a Cadillac in the Nevada desert and driven the most obscure line-up of vehicles I never dared to dream existed. It transpires that Rod gave what I was doing a name: Speedhunting. Plain and simple. Through living this way, often to the detriment of a proper place to live or missing family events, I’ve met and hold dear many incredible people and places. What I want you to know is that I value this place as highly as anybody; what we get to do here is very free of constraint. Magazines are wonderfully focused views into a selected world, so what I’ve felt here is a growth in my work and my horizon broadening even further.
The pictures I’m showing you here have all been produced recently and sum up my Speedhunting experience, which I’m hoping is reflected by your own varied interests. Whether the subject matter is new like the Pagani coverage, old like the truck rod or maybe it’s about the photography and people, each year we continue to grow because of a tireless need to know and see more. So that’s the double-edged sword I was talking about, because it can be the most wonderfully powerful curse this Speedhunting lark. It’s also brought together everybody else you can see listed in our roll call, and if you’re reading this then you’re part of it too. The point of all this is to let you know there is still so much in this automotive world to discover and marvel at, which is what Speedhunters is, and will continue to be, all about.
So there you go, I won’t bore you with plans, promises and projections. I just wanted to say hi and that driving fast, taking chances and talking to strangers isn’t so bad. Because you never know where you might end up. Thank you Rod and thank you Speedhunters.
OFFICIAL SPEEDHUNTERS SUPPLIERS
Congrats on the position. Keep the great material coming!
Congratulations Bryn. There were several members of SH that have been around since 2009, but you have the honor to take the top spot. That's a major achievement to my book. I can name a few respectable members that belonged to SH that I do really miss them and have not been replaced since then, but I wont elaborate. #iloveconspiracytheories
Please take the following words in a constructive way. Segmenting a short post with chapters is redundant for me, unless you consider your articles as academic journals which have to follow certain rules. Another thing that no one has mentioned is that it is frustrating to browse for older posts. Why did you remove the column that segregated posts by months? I remember seeing posts that were more than a month old to have 50 people listening (according to livefyre). In contrast, with your new layout, a post that is 3-5 days old will not have more than 15 people listening (according to livefyre). #colormeahater #designersmakingpoordecisions
Last but not least, the Skyline of the opening picture reminds me of one I have seen in UK when I was a postgraduate student there. It belonged to one guy who is a part of SH, Andy Barnes of Sumo Power. #blastfromthepast
Congratulations Bryn. I've been reading your stuff since those early days (in some hot rod mag or another, I recall) and enjoy every word. That you now have such a global audience is fully deserved.
Congrats Bryn. Keep speedhunting fun! Lol.
seattlejester Thank you, that's the intention
@Seeking Perfection Thank you! Very kind of you to say, Speedhunters is very much a product of everybody who has participated in it, so whether people are part of it now or not doesn't mean their mark isn't still here.
I appreciate your feedback and please rest assured that we're monitoring how people interact with the site at the moment. Changes and tweaks are being made all the time, just today a fundamental display change was made for example. We listen to the feedback and act on it, statistics give us something to work with but ultimately can be swung whichever way you need them to #weonit
The GTR is an original Bee*R demo car that lives in the UK with Paul Howard of JDM Garage and has done for many years, more in the future!
HeatherSabin Thank you, I will
antonyingram Thanks Anthony, sounds like you've been there for most of the journey. It was Street Machine my first article was published in, May 1997. I would love to have the time to work out how many thousands of words I've written in that time, it must be approaching a million! If not more. Thanks for reading
Good work, cousin. That is all.
Congrats on finding your way here, we're all looking forward to more of your work.
Happy Speed hunting!
Are you the picture man?
congrats and best of luck
Larry Chen No I'm the piano man, you've seen my teeth right?
obsession_Si Couldn't have done it without you.
Easily the best drift commentator in Europe, love the excited kid enthusiasm that even comes through in your articles, it's infectious!
All hail stunt Bryn.
Alex Broadbent Haha, thanks! I am a child most of the time...
SuzyWallace Nice one brother... I said nice one BROTHER!
Congrats man
Speedhunters_Bryn SuzyWallace NICE ONE BRUVVA!
Excellent news! Easily the best wordsmith on these hallowed pages. I doff my rafia Stetson. One thing: more old, pure gold. 10/10.
LULZ.
Speedhunters_Bryn Larry Chen Well sing us a song then?
I know you, you're the other one!
Alright Bryn.
Alright! Thumbs up!
Well done Bryn! I've been a fan of your stuff in Retro Cars over the years (since I first found a newsagent who actually sold it... I think I bought the one with Tank's Lancer in it initially), so to see you rise to the top of your game for such an important online publication is fantastic! Hopefully you'll be back over in NZ in the not too distant future and we can show you a great time. Stay cool.
Bryn Alban It's Brynception. #justaposhBrian #withouttheA
Could you promise a better across the board quality of journalism? Suzi mentioned in a conversation of FaceBook that often the people writing are the same ones taking the pictures and that finding someone who can do both well is challenging. Be that as it may, it would be fantastic to read more well written, in depth articles (to go with those fantastic photos). Everyone loves to read a story, and a picture may tell 1000 words, but it's nice to have those words written down too. It's nice to feel engaged. To feel that the writer has as much passion for his or her subject as their readers. Welcome to the helm, good luck and god speed.
picture number 2 is amazing, i want that. What is it?
big_chris1981 I can agree with this, speedhunters has some talented photographers but reading the articles kills it sometimes. Hopefully I see this site go back to it's roots while still rising to new heights.
PaddyMcGrath Bryn Alban I'd like to think of it more as a Brynvasion!
I'd sat more like the ETS hi-lux Series herre the bulder is the writer.
I realise that could present a languege barrier, but whos bytter at passionately telling the story than the person who built it..
Speedhunters_Bryn I would have to agree with Seeking Perfection. I loved this site, but the new design, while asthetically pleasing, doesnt do the site content justice. I miss the descriptions and the extra photos which would entice the reader into the post. I do find myself coming here less.... and I don't think the content quality has dropped. Ultimately, your analytics will show if the new layout is working.
Love the full screen mode. Haven't seen that elsewhere, so if that's a SH project, well done, epic.
BTW - Many older posts are also broken with the update, just a header and a white screen.
I dont get the point of the chapters, some of the titles are irrelevant and you have to provide more clicks to read a story. Doesnt everyone else aim for less clicks?
Good to see you onboard. as mentioned, the writing on here is sometimes the polar opposite of the photography in terms of grammar but also accuracy and research. It did turn a corner when Charles was editor, but then he got moved aside
Lille Buller You really want to know? Someone who is passionate about the subject matter on an emotional level as the builder. The wordsmith can bring cadence and tone to elation. Provide nuance in the depths of dread. A proper writer can build the hypebeast without pronouncing their presence and leave their audience in full admiration of the effort brought to their minds.
Not everyone can take a picture. Not everyone is a writer. I've been trying for years to get a shot at writing for Speedhunters but I understand they are building a team from the ground up and pictures provide an gratification that writing is still grasping at air to achieve.