His new business became successful because of his knowledge of hydraulics and the support of his wife who helped out at the shop 24-7. Besides selling and installing hydraulics, he also sells lowrider bikes and models. With the car hopping and dancing competition in full force for the last decade, Shorty built his first dancer, which was switch-controlled by David from the famed Red's Hydraulics industry. During that time his oldest son John got into building model car dancers that were hitting 18 inches on tabletops. John decided that school was not for him so he quit and started working with his dad at the shop full time where he has also become a master of hydraulics. Later, Shorty helped John build another dancer called "El Canio" and started competing with Shorty as a team. That year El Canio took Second at the Vegas Super Show in the Street Dance category.
After the show, dad and son decided to build a Mazda truck hopper. After attending a few hop competitions, the truck wasn't really doing well, it was only getting Second Place. During that time it seemed like everyone was building Mazda hoppers, so after inspecting the frame of a Ford Ranger, Shorty decided to build something that was unheard of, so "Texas Ranger" hit the show circuit and took First Place in numerous competitions all over the nation, including three-time consecutive winner at the Lowrider Nationals.
Shorty and his team have built quite a few competitive winners, including "Sky Scrapper," "El Mero Mero," "El Travieso," and "The Butler," but after reaching new heights in hydraulic competitions, Shorty gets a whole lot higher by helping his community with charity shows like the annual Latin Fantasy Jugetes Para el Barrio. This Christmas Toys for Tots event has been going strong for 17 years and gets bigger and better by the years. Shorty's family and the Latin Fantasy Car Club gathers early on Christmas day to pass out toys and goody bags to all of Houston's less fortunate neighborhoods. This past year, Jugetes Para el Barrio passed out over 6,000 toys and more than 3,500 goody bags.
Shorty would like to thank all the people who help out on those special days, including the car show supporters who showed up and raised funds for the toys, the local sponsors, and especially his car club members whose hard work pays off and is rewarded simply by looking at the poor and needy kids' faces and their happy expressions. Shorty's great generosity and positive attitude have given him the opportunity to travel all over the world, including to Mexico City and Spain. He has also been featured on many TV shows, like the Junk Yard Wars, where he took First Place, and MTV's My Sweet 16th. Shorty will always give credit where it's due, including to some of the legendary car clubs like the Viejitos, Old Memories, and Dukes, and lowrider families like the Tovars and De Albas who have put forth hard work to pave the future of lowriding. Shorty feels that the hopping movement is dying out due to the cost of fuel and travel to other state-held competitions, but the street competitions and the smaller, closer shows are keeping lowriding alive. Shorty plans to expand his business and his shop by adding a paint and body section and even doing air suspension! His legendary Veterano-style setups have put him on the map because of his one-of-a-kind old-school quality look. Shorty is excited to let people know that he has been working on his '64 convertible, and that it will be hitting the show circuit full force in 2009.