You know what I never realized is kind of uncomfortable and exciting and terrifying and possibly could be a bit addictive? Sort of like a cross between gambling and shoplifting and flirting? Bidding in auctions. Car auctions, specifically. I’ve never bid on a car auction before, mostly because I’m not really the sort of person who had bid-on-car-auctions kind of money, but recently, while at the Amelia Island Concurs, my friend and business partner Beau Boeckmann gave me an amazing opportunity: the chance to actually bid on a car at auction. And, hopefully, win. And you know what? We did.
Even though I was not bidding my own money, and Beau and I discussed limits and amounts and some strategy beforehand, it’s still an incredibly nervy thing to do! Fun, exciting, absolutely, but extremely nervy, too. So much is at stake, so quickly, and with such tiny subtle motions! It’s dizzying!
We have a full video of the whole experience coming soon, but because you are all Members, beautiful, wise, and, yes, sexy Members, you get a sneak peek at the goings-on:
Look at that! And look at the car we got! It’s that incredible little Berkeley I wrote about when I first got to Amelia! This one:
Did you see all the smoke that it was billowing as it got onstage? It’s a two-stroke, so, incredibly, that’s normal, but holy crap was it timed perfectly. Feels right, my first time sorta-buying a car at auction, for that car to announce itself with a massive cumulus cloud of oily smoke.
Now it’s Beau’s which means we have Autopian access to this crazy little 328cc of fun. We will make some great content with this little citrusy goofball, you’ll see!
I paused Belafonte to watch the bidding video, and was not disappointed. I would be a bundle of nerves facing that. Ebay freaks me out enough.
Haha! You got me with that one! I clicked because the smoke obscured car looked like my wife’s 2002 Thunderbird! I was thinking weirdness at beer level and you went tequila on me!
Nicely done! It looks like a lot of fun.
What a delightful little lemon! I look forward to seeing some wrenching articles and driving articles pertaining to it. That paint scheme is gorgeous.
You got the lemon/lime motor pants – congratulations! That’s a sweet little car. Can’t wait to see what kind of fun adventures you have with it.
Woohoo!! Congratulations!! 😀
That is an absolute jewel of a little car, and I look forward to reading about it.
And agreed: getting something excellent like that at an auction really is a heck of a feeling.
Be honest, were you a little disappointed the auctioneer wasn’t talking like a micro-machines spokesperson?
Congratulations.
It looks like a lot of fun.
It would never be safe in my care, two strokes can make such wonderful fleeting power. (-;
Indeed. I’ve raced them:
https://www.murileemartin.com/UG/LTH13/1000-Thunderhill_24_Hours_of_LeMons_2013-UG.jpg
I would get too excited and raise my own bid. I just know it.
Congrats to Beau and Jason both… that little yellow beauty is definitely one of the more irresistible vehicles posted in these pages lately! 😀
Nice one! Should be easy to find parts for it too.
Congratulations on the “new” car! I imagine it’ll be a fun little car for you Jason.
Having bought a car at auction, and bid but lost on several more, I completely agree with your opening paragraph. It can be a very emotion roller coaster bidding on a car, wondering if you’ll get it or how much it’ll go for, the devastation when the costs go beyond what you were hoping for and the excitement of being declared the winner.