Here we are, facing down the end of another year, and if I thought my first twelve months at BangShift was something to behold, 2015 has been nothing but a whirlwind, both as far as writing here goes and in my life in general. I can still say that I have the same viewpoint about what I do for a living that I did when I started: it’s certainly work, but it’s a fun job if you are willing to put the hours in. Following the lead of two of the hardest working men I’ve dealt with has been a challenge that I’ve enjoyed taking up, and writing for you, the readers, an even bigger challenge. But enough of that, let’s look back at some of my favorite moments from this year:

CHALLENGERFEST: I found out about this deal by accident, and I’m glad I did. Meeting people like “Speedy”, John Burleson and others who just want to help each other be the best they can be on the track made my weekend. Speedy and Burleson have been helpful in planning out some build ideas, and I can’t wait to see these guys next spring.

The U.S. 60 DIESEL DRAGS: Without divulging a lot about my background, there is a level of insanity that actually makes me feel at home. I found it here. In two hours I saw typical diesel racing. Then an oil down occurred and all hell broke loose when the burnout contest kicked off. Three trucks ran the contest. Divots were ground into the water boxes and one truck caught fire on both ends. I left afterwards…how in the hell do you top that kind of entertainment without the law showing up?

FORD EDGE TEST DRIVE: Nearly a year since, I’m still floored that I got to go on a preproduction press drive with Ford. Not nearly as floored as I was when I pinned the throttle in the Edge Sport, though. That mommy-mobile isn’t as much of a joke as a lot of people would make of it. It’ll hustle, nicely.

PAUL STEFANSKY’S SUPER STANG FUNNY CAR: From the moment I laid eyes on the weathered paint I knew I had to shoot this car. Brian Hatton and I talked off and on throughout the Hot Rod Reunion about the story of this car. Hopefully we will get to see it run again soon.

THE PLYMOUTH: Another old friend I found at the Hot Rod Reunion this year was this Plymouth. What do you think, BangShifters? Feature car?

THE COBRAVETTE: Greg and Susan Boger’s builds captivated me, but the “Cobravette”, a C3 packing a Terminator-sourced 4.6L Ford mill, captivated everybody. Their other truck, a 1951 Ford F-1 restomod, has been driving around Bowling Green in the absolutely horrid weather, bouncing between the stores doing Christmas shopping. They drive their creations, and that’s the other reason I love their cars.

SHORT STREET ROD SHOP: Jensen Masters was so grateful for the story we ran on his 1964 Rambler altered-wheelbase gasser that he offered me a shot to come shoot his hot rod shop. If none of this is familiar to you, stop what you are doing, and google “BangShift Short Street”. Trust me, it’s worth it. I’m planning on heading back soon, he’s had some new cars come in lately!

WILMINGTON LSR: In my biggest mis-step of the year, I botched a ton of photos due to my overeagerness at running Project Angry Grandpa down the mile. On the good side, the performance couldn’t have gone better: The Chrysler was five miles an hour under the rule that required a roll bar, but was five miles an hour faster than the speed limiter, and was bracket-racing consistent the whole time.

LS FEST DRIFT PIT: Of all of the action that goes on during Holley’s LS Fest (including, for the first time, action over at the National Corvette Museum), it was the drift pit where I found happiness. Getting photos like this Corvette screaming by makes the hard work worth every last second.

LS-POWERED MERCURY COUGAR: This is, by far, the most talked about feature car I shot this year. When Chad and I saw it roll by, we knew that it would stir up controversy, and we were right. Andrew Borodin’s Cougar is bitchin’ in all of the right ways, period. He ran it on the strip, he drove it in the downpours that hit, and it looked good no matter what.

THE “SUDDEN DEATH” MUSTANG II: Confession time: I was scraping for a story when I decided to write about Joe Ruggirello’s 1975 Mustang II. I did some research and made a decent rehash of a story that has been told over and over again. I did not expect the response that this car’s story got.

SEMA 2015: BFGoodrich, thank you for your hospitality and support. Thank you for hooking me up for a ride in that psychotic F-150 pre-runner. Thank you for letting me wrench on a Class 8 buggy. And thank you, Brian and Chad, for keeping me focused during my time there. All I can say is that I’m looking forward to next time.

THE SLEEPER CHEVROLET: Jalopnik found it first, but I found it a home. This 572-powered 1980 Chevrolet half-ton was snapped up by a reader within a couple of days of the story going live. Hey, “Rust”…can we get an update?

WRENCHING: Up until I bought my house and lived through a renovation, I was making good headway on Project Raven, my 1983 Imperial. The highlight? Finding a garden slug, drowned in a puddle of Marvel Mystery Oil, in the cylinder of a 400ci big-block Chrysler that had never been opened up before. I still have no clue how in the hell a slug wound up on top of a slug…

THE FOUR-DOOR BARRACUDA: ECS Automotive Concepts is probably close to done with their replica of a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda factory design study four-door. The original car was crushed after it got the thumbs-down from management, but workers saw the car in the flesh and provided their memories so that the replica can do the original justice. We can’t wait to see the finished product…or the Mopar crowd’s collective explosion.

MAD MATT’S A-BOMB CHRYSLER 300C: What can I say? “Mad”  Matt Leischer’s Chrysler 300C SRT-8 was the biggest rolling middle finger I saw this year. Are there fast Chrysler 300Cs? Yep. Blown, flat black, dirty on purpose and driven by a guy who just doesn’t give a f**k? Only one. The original 6.1 finally called it a day after 195,000 miles, but the “A-bom” will be back, with a built mill this time.

And finally, the clip of the year. YouTube is almost central to what I do for you guys…either it gives me a story or the inspiration to start looking around. Sometimes I use it as a palate cleanser, to clear my head so that when I go back to cars I have a new, clean view. I wanted something involving a 1969-70 Shelby badly the morning I found this dyno footage, and the only reason I ran it is because even at low volume, when this 427-powered beast came up onto the revs, it actually surprised me.

Here’s to the new year!  -McTaggart