Talking Classics With The Bad Blonde

Caitlin Shook, better known as The Bad Blonde, has been around cars all her life. She regularly shares the interesting history that so many cars have on her YouTube channel. She also spends a lot of time in the workshop at her family’s automotive business – Shook Enterprises.

We recently had a conversation with Caitlin about her love of cars, her projects and lots more.

Tell us about The Bad Blonde.

I am a lucky gal with a love of cars and their stories.

Where did your love of cars come from? 

I was blessed to be born into a car family!

My dad is a mechanic, my brother is a mechanic, my uncle is a mechanic (insert Mona Lisa Vito voice)… Everyone in my family has their own unique fondness for cars. We have an MGTD to thank for that.

My father, Steve Shook, first car was an MGTD, back then finding a mechanic able to work on imports was infrequent. Also, he definitely didn’t have the money to pay a mechanic, so he worked on his MGTD himself. He would spend his youth working at motorcycle shops and on cars in his backyard until he and my mother decided to buy a turn-of-the-century building in downtown Corpus Christi, Texas. That building would become a living breathing entity within our family, it would become Shook Enterprises.

What cars are Shook Enterprises currently working on? 

We work on everything! From Toyotas to Lamborghinis! A few favourites on the lifts this week are; Jaguar Xk120, Bentley Continental, Porsche 356, 50th Anniversary Lotus Esprit, and a neat little Austin-Healey kit car.

We obviously love classic cars, what classics catch your eye the most? 

I am a lover of all. I don’t think there is a classic car I couldn’t find something interesting about. I grew up around European imports which sparked my love. One of my favourite car shows is the Little Car Show in Pacific Grove during Monterey Car Week. All engines under 1600cc are welcome. Many are the cars I grew up seeing in our mechanic shop. They are the everyday man’s collectors, Triumphs, MG cars, Austin-Healeys, 356s, BMW Isetta, Mini Coopers etc…

What do you think the future has in store for the automotive industry? 

Hoping it goes more in the fun direction and less so in the bean-counting direction.

Do you have a dream restoration you’d love to take on? 

I would just like to finish my Porsche 912e finally! Haha, that car is my Albatross. Kidding but not. I’ve had that car since I was 15 years old and it’s been with me ever since.

My dream restoration would be to get my dad’s XK120 which I fell in love with as a kid up and running. Seriously, it was love at first sight when I saw the XK120 at the age of six or eight.

What do you enjoy most about what you do? 

There is always such an interesting human element and story behind each car. I have a blast reading about them and then sharing their story.

Of all the car history you’ve shared, which story stands out the most? 

JEEZZZ… That is absolutely hard to narrow down! I love that the Dodge Brothers were such rascals, I am furious that Preston Tucker’s advancements from his Tucker 48 weren’t available to the world because of the Big Three and their government lobbyists, I am fascinated by the twists and turns of the story of the commuter car the Dale, I love that the Citroen factory workers sabotaged occupying Nazi forces by lowering the notch on the oil dipstick, it blows my mind that Dr. Ferdinand Porsche was at one point the chauffeur of Franz Ferdinand… Feels like there is no end to the interesting world of automotive history!

What’s next for you? 

Fingers crossed, I keep doing what I’ve been doing! My sister, mother, and I are in the process of turning a warehouse into a bar/lounge, The Annex. We’ve had this building for years, I spent many a summer day sanding down my Porsche 912e in this building as a teenager and it means a lot to turn it into an enterprise I’ve been dreaming about for quite some time.

Both my sister and I started off in the food/bev industry when we were 16, and we’ve both dreamed of having a spot of our own. Can’t wait! Naturally, we have an industrial theme and vintage automotive theme. My mother is painting two huge murals inspired by early Monaco GP race posters. She is doing a fabulous job with them.

Where can people find out more about The Bad Blonde? 

I (try) to post daily on The Bad Blonde Cars IG, Youtube, and Facebook. Folks can also find recordings from the Bad Blonde Radio show, a talk radio show that my brother and I do every week, on Spotify or 1440keys.com

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