Q:   From what I see on the show, you strike a balance when it comes to dealing with unprofessional management styles. It seems that you love what you do so much that you never let the "downers" get you down. When I say "downers," I mean the insane overtime and deadlines and the lack of people skills managing your job. I really admire your positive attitude and your enthusiasm for what you do. The question is, how do you maintain your positive attitude with such bad energy around you?
A:   There are definitely days when my patience gets stretched to its ever expanding limit. I try to keep focused on the fact that I'm extremely lucky to be able to make a living doing what I love. How many people work jobs all of their lives for the goal of making a home for their family, which is financially secure, and to build a future for their children ... but they don't have much else day-to-day (understand that I believe this to be quite the noble task). I am fortunate to be in the position to do both: make a living and express my creativity. While sometimes I have days where "punching a clock" would be preferable, overall I can't complain too much.

Probably the single most frustrating thing I have to deal with is the crazy deadlines. The severe time crunch usually "ties my hands" with regard to the amount of detail I would like to see go into the vehicles. I try my best to get as many of these aspects into the projects but, more often than not, there just isn't enough time.

Boyd has told me he would like to include me more in the initial design phase to aid with ideation, rendering and working drawings, which would help get more details worked out in the beginning.

Hopefully, this will lead to a better and more efficient use of our shop resources and, who knows, maybe we'll even finish one early. (Everyone can laugh now. I did.)

Thanks for your kind comments. They are greatly appreciated. I will continue to do the best possible job I can within the given time frame and always push just a little further with each car.

---

Q:   Do you enjoy drag racing? Do you attend the races in Pomona?
A:   I can't say that I'm a big drag-racing fan, although I do love to go to the strip occasionally. There's nothing quite like the awesome sounds you can feel and the smell of race fuel and burnt rubber.

The guys and I did go to the eighth-mile strip at Irwindale to watch Duane race against our new shop intern, Tyler. That was great fun and I wish we could go do it more often.

---

Q:   How does your family feel about the long hours you work? Is it difficult maintaining a good balance between work and family?
A:   As far as working for Boyd's shop goes, my advice would be not to have a family — be single with no usual schedule for life outside the shop. Sometimes things can be very demanding, and it takes a special spouse to allow you to place work's needs above those for family. While this is true of much of the industry, it is especially evident during the "crunch" times for these TV projects.

---