San Antonio, Texas, is the home of the Alamo, the Spurs and the halfway point on the 2006 Lowrider Magazine Tour. The competition starts to heat up like the pavement in the parking lot at the Alamodome as competitors jockey for position at the Super Show. With more than $10,000 given out, you can be sure that the money won here will be going back into the cars to get ready for the next battle in the pit.
Single-Pump Hop action was but a flick away with Shorty's Hydraulics of Houston, Texas, mashing his way to 66 inches and a First Place finish. As a matter of fact, "Shorty" Villareal took first in everything but Radical Dance and Car Dance. Jos Cortez and Keith Dienhart finished Second and Third respectively in Single-Pump. The Double-Pump Hop became a two-car shootout and when the juice finished flowing, Shorty's Hydraulics took First, followed by Rogelio Loera's '85 Chevy Monte Carlo.
The Truck Hop saw a trio of Ford Rangers fighting for the right to be crowned king for a day. Steven Alatorre and his '90 Ranger hit 69 inches for Third, Gilbert Gonzalez '82 hit 74 for Second, and Shorty's Hydraulics was once again victorious with an 86-inch hit.
The Radical Hop had its share of excitement with Shorty's Hydraulics once again leading the way. The car went over its tailgate and was saved from flipping over by its special hydraulically controlled platform. The measured height was 133 inches, beating second place by 47 inches. Brian Regalado and his '78 Chevy S10 took Second and Brian Ontivoros reeled in Third.
The Car Dance saw three contestants battling for the top spot. Jose Martines did his time and came out on the other end with a Third Place finish. Ted Quintero took Second and Rogelio Loera came out king of the heap.
The Truck Dance had some of the top dancers in the state of Texas squaring off in the pit. Two Mazdas, a Chevy S10 and Blazer, and one Isuzu Amigo all made their way into the pit and when the smoke and fires were done, Shorty's Hydraulics, Rob Robertson and Marco Lujan placed First, Second and Third. One point separated Second and Third Place, and a scant three points from First, so it was certainly a heated contest.
The Radical Dance battle between Carlton Tucker and Fernando Casas ended with Fernando taking the First Place spoils with 19 points over Carlton's 14 points. USA Motorsports then brought out their air hopper and wowed the crowd with 5 feet of air and some pretty mean-sounding valves.
As the 2006 Tour winds down, the competition continues to heat up as everyone tries to make the cut for the October Super Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The battle at the Alamodome was a memorable one, and we look forward to seeing y'all further on down the road.