June 28, 2025 • 41 mins
Do you love Skill Sharing, road rally racing, Creative Designs and general Maker Shop Talk?
If so, join Tamara Robertson (Mythbusters, Seekers of Science) as she revs up the fun in this all new mini-season dedicated to the Hemming's Great Race and the amazing team of Trailblazing Creators assembled by Riley's Rebuilds!
As a shout-out to Race Sponsor Real Deal Revolution, this episode kicks off with a Tech Talk about Pinstriping before Tamara sits down with Offroad Racer, Trailblazer and Maker Extraordinaire Theresa ( @DesignMuse )!
Topics they cover include (but are surely not limited to):
- Pin Striping
- Real Deal Revolution
- Baja Forged
- King of the Hammers
- Sturgis
- Jessi Combs
- Glamis
- Offroad Racing
- Graphic Design
- Bronco
- The Great Race
- Riley from Riley's Rebuilds
- SBN Women's Network
- SEMA
- Working in Non-profit
- Breaking Industry Stereotypes
- Empowering others
- Women led, Not Women only
- Launching a Youtube
.. and so much more
As we dig into Season 3's 30th episode of Tinkering Belles you're surely not going to want to miss it!
So join in on Tamara's adventure as a Maker as she works to amplify the BAMF Females Behind the Builds one interview at a time!
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If you enjoyed the show join in on the Maker adventure with Tamara and her guests on the Tinkering Belles Instagram page.
You can follow Theresa's adventures here, here, and here:
Website - https://www.theresacontreras.com
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/designmuse/
Real Deal Revolution - https://www.realdealrevolution.org
YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/@bajaforged
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/RealDealRevolution
Music for this Episode was provided by Bill Trowell Music. Visit BillTrowellMusic.com to hear more and to subscribe to Bill's Patreon, where he covers favorite showtunes, movie themes, classic rock and jazz, as well as requests from Patron's.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Tamara Robertson (00:00):
Shopmates and welcome to Tinkering Belles, a
show about DIY, design, and allthings hands-on.
Sky's the limit as we talkprops, metalwork, cosplay,
woodwork, leather, electronics,and so much more.
I'm Tamara Robertson, yourhost, so strap on your tool
belts because we're about to getinto some skill sharing, y'all.
(00:23):
Today, I'm going to be joined bya maker who is the literal real
deal.
I don't want to give away toomuch, but this maker is teaming
up with the community torevolutionize the perception of
skilled trades and the women'sroles in them.
So if that doesn't make youwant to stick around and hear
more, then you might be at thewrong podcast.
(00:45):
Let's go ahead and have our techtalk of the day.
We're going to be talking allabout the Hemmings Great Race
and the amazing partners thathave made it happen.
Now, That includes groups likeReal Deal Revolution.
These skilled tradeswomen arepassing on skills like welding,
carburetor rebuilds, epoxy,leather, and even at the helm,
(01:05):
pinstriping.
So let's back it up.
Where did pinstriping get itsstart?
Pinstriping as an art form datesback to horse-drawn carriages
in the 1800s.
Yep, you heard that right.
Horse-drawn.
drawn carriages.
They were actually used to addelegance and emphasize the body
(01:30):
lines of these carriages.
Now, fast forward to post-warhot rod scenes, and you're going
to see pinstriping exploding inpopularity thanks to legendary
artists like Von Dutch, whointroduced freehand designs with
flair and attitude.
Now, traditional stripers usesquirrel hairbrushes called
(01:51):
swords to lay down perfectlysymmetrical lines by hand.
No tape, just skill and musclememory that is to die for.
Now, this process isn't justdecorative.
It actually visually reinforcesbodywork and can help to cover
up flaws or panel seams that youdon't really want the users to
(02:15):
be seeing.
you can reflect your ownpersonal style as well with the
usage of pinstriping.
Now today, pinstriping is acherished subculture in
automotive art, kept alive byartists like the Real Deal
Revolution co-founder, whoteaches in demos at live events
across the country.
Well, That's it for your TechTalk.
(02:37):
You can join in on theconversation with my maker
friends and me on the TinkeringBells Instagram and X pages.
Just search for BellsTinkering, hit follow and share
your DIY adventures togetherwith us.
Have a tool you want to learnabout?
Let me know and it might befeatured in a future episode.
Tell us what you liked, whatyou hated or possibly even what
we missed.
(02:59):
So now we're going to begetting into the main event.
And I am so excited tointroduce you to our next maker,
one of my favorite people.
Please give me a drum roll.
*drumroll* presenting.
Theresa (03:10):
Wooooohoooo! All right.
Tamara Robertson (03:13):
I love it.
Theresa, thanks for joining me.
How are you?
Theresa (03:16):
Absolutely, Tamara.
I'm honored to be on heretalking about stuff.
Always love just hanging outwith you, you know?
Tamara Robertson (03:26):
I'm so excited.
So we are probably going to goon so many wild tangents, but
like to start, I want theaudience to know where can they
find you, follow you, and whatshould they expect to see when
they go there?
Theresa (03:37):
Sure.
Well, the first thing is justmy name, Theresa Contreras.com.
And I have all the links to allthe things I do.
So I am co-founder of Real DealRevolution.
Real Deal is a nonprofit thatJessi Combs and myself started.
It is to change the perceptionof skill trades and women's
(03:57):
roles in them.
We have people like Tamara hereteaching workshops, hands-on
skill trades all over thecountry.
So that's amazing.
I also have Baha That is mypersonal brand right behind me
right here.
I got the Bronco.
We're working on 68 Ford Broncoright now.
All the things I just like tobuild, like to tinker, right?
(04:17):
That's why I'm here.
So Instagram is designmuse, allthe things.
Tamara Robertson (04:23):
Everyone, as always, the show notes will be
packed full of links andpictures.
So go over there, have anadventure, find Theresa wherever
she is, because believe me, itchanges every single day.
Like trying to keep up withyou.
I'm like so happy that we sharelocations because I'm like, is
she home?
No, she's not.
Okay, where is she right now?
Well, even when you're home, Ilove it because I'm like, oh,
(04:45):
she's in the garage.
Love it.
Theresa (04:47):
And that goes the same for you.
Where are you in the world,right?
Tamara Robertson (04:50):
Yeah, exactly.
We need like a MapQuest to findeach other, which they, this
audience may not even know whatMapQuest is.
Oh my goodness.
Anyways, before I get olderwhile we're speaking.
So we did, we met a few yearsago at Sturgis.
I had the joy of coming in.
I like, little tiny regionalairport.
I was going to meet the JessiCombs Foundation officially and
(05:13):
Real Deal Revolution.
And then I got the joy of likebecoming a renegade and working
to actually teach welding.
And it's just, we've just beengoing ever since.
So I've had the chance to getto know you over the years.
But as a superhero scientist,one of my favorite things is
origin stories.
So I would love for theaudience to hear the origin
(05:36):
story of how you became agearhead and why you're still in
it today.
Theresa (05:41):
Love that.
Definitely.
Definitely grew up in it.
Literally, my parents weretaking me, you know, I'm in
Southern California, so I'mclose to, you know, Mexico to
Baja.
We have tons of off-roadingareas here.
So one of the places that myparents first took me to is
(06:02):
called Pismo Beach.
And you can off-road, you cantake four wheelers, anything on
that beach and drive around.
And so they took their ElCamino and I was probably about
three weeks old or so.
And we camped out in the backthere in the El Camino.
And that was kind of like myfirst experience.
And really ever since we'vebeen going to Baja, we started
(06:25):
Doom Buggies.
I was always in the garage withmy parents because my dad
was...
You know, he worked and hefixed cars and he taught himself
how to do that.
And my mom was right next tohim helping him do it along the
way.
So I was right there, too.
You know, like we wouldliterally all be in the garage
working on cars together.
(06:45):
And that's just part of part ofmy life.
I rode ATCs when I when I wasabout 12.
two, three years old.
I got my first ATC 70.
So right next to my parentsworking on my own bike next to
them, you know, and it wascustomized and I would, you
know, go race it when I wasolder and we would go to places
(07:06):
like Glamis.
It's like, The sand dunecapital of the world, you know,
and Mexico to San Felipe toBaja, you know, all these
different places.
And so we were always outadventuring and off-roading.
And then my parents, basically,they started their own business
because the economy crashed inthe 80s.
(07:27):
And...
my dad lost his job.
And so my parents basicallystarted working in the garage
and fixing cars.
So that kind of turned into abody shop.
I actually didn't go into thefamily business directly.
I actually became a machinistduring high school, you know,
helping someone else do things.
(07:49):
And so I loved that.
I just was a hands-on person.
I was just always doing thingslike that.
But then eventually I ended up,you know, going back to the
shop.
I went to school for graphicdesign so I love the creative
process I love the hands-onaspect of things you know I went
to an all-girls school so wehad sewing and that was about it
(08:12):
for you know an art for for ourcreative there was no like you
know auto class or you know woodshop or anything like that so
so I was taking you know I tookthat so I was sewing and I was
doing things I just loved doingYou know, and doing building and
creating things and doinganything with my hands, you
(08:32):
know, so when I became amachinist, that was like another
level of what that could be,you know, and so that actually
put me through college, went toschool for graph design.
loved the idea of how you'relearning different mediums in
graphic design right becausethat's what that was about like
(08:53):
you could go from charcoaldrawings to printmaking to
sculpture and again that waslike oh well I love creating and
I love different mediums likelike you like we always just
want to know like what's thenext thing what else can we
create with this like oh my goshwell we could use this also you
know so we're not we're likevery open right to like learning
(09:16):
new things and you know exactly
Tamara Robertson (09:19):
we're just trying it all
Theresa (09:21):
Ya! Totally!
Tamara Robertson (09:22):
Like whatever the material I'll figure out how
to get it together guys yeah
Theresa (09:25):
because the thing is is you don't know like all of a
sudden it sparks something newand you're like oh my gosh I
love this you know or or I don'tyou know like you know and so
uh so one of the things um sothen after college which
Technically, I did not graduatebecause I'm still six units
short, which everyone's alwayslike, oh, you graduate.
I'm like, no, I actually wentto college, didn't end up
(09:47):
graduating because of that.
But I walked and everything.
I did the walk, right?
Because it was enough to do allthat.
But I still haven't gone back.
So funny side note story,right?
But then I finally eventuallystarted working for my parents
for the family business, theauto body shop.
And that's where I actually...
taught myself how to pinstripeone day how to paint i tell
(10:12):
people i locked myself in apaint booth for two years and
finally got good at it you knowum i am a person that learns by
association like i could be nextto someone watch what they're
doing and then do it you know soi was just around the
environment soaking it up andtaught myself how to paint, kind
of knew the design aspect ofit, and so started building and
(10:34):
painting cars myself andmotorcycles and all the things.
And so it led us to, you know,to Jessi and I meeting.
We met on the first all-femaleSEMA build back in 2012.
And so that's really where,like, then that story of, like,
real deal and everything elsehas kind of evolved from there,
(10:55):
so...
Tamara Robertson (10:56):
Amazing.
And actually, so that there areso many places that I don't
even know which one I want tosay.
I think I'm gonna I'm gonna puta button in one.
And first, we're gonna talkabout this whole like,
rebuilding cars painting becausebehind you is this beautiful
Bronco.
And having talked to youpersonally that there are some
(11:18):
big ambitions and goals for it,which also still connected to
Jessi in a way because it's It'sin your backyard.
So tell the audience about whatyou're hoping to be doing with
that Bronco.
Theresa (11:32):
I love that.
So like you, like, I am notafraid to like jump into a
project because the thing is, islike, we all have to do
something for the first time.
Right.
And I know that my, my bestresources, all of our best
resources are people.
Like there's so much knowledgeout there and I have amazing
friends that will help guide methrough it.
(11:53):
So we are chopping this Broncoin half, which I did, if you can
see.
The back half of it's gone.
So we chopped it in half thebody.
Now we're lengthening the frameand we are going to be, I'm
going to be racing it.
So that is part of it.
It's so funny because I havehad this Bronco for literally
(12:14):
like over 20 years and it's justsat here.
Like I I've used it tooff-road, but I'm like, ah, it's
kind of slow and kind of this.
And I'm like, and I complain, Idon't have race car, you know,
I don't have this.
And it's like, stopcomplaining.
You have something right there.
Just build it.
Right.
So that's the first thing rightthere is just, you know, you
just got to do it.
(12:34):
You got to jump in.
Now, you know, obviously we'redoing research.
We're calling people.
We're making sure that, youknow, we're on, you know, like
right now we have the nextthing.
The next step is to get oursuspension ready.
So like the guy that's helpingus do that.
So it's Icon Vehicle Dynamicsand Dylan that started it.
(12:55):
He's an engineer.
So he sent us the calculator tofigure out the geometry for all
the suspension, you know, sothe weight of the vehicle, the
length, the wheelbase, all thosethings.
So I'm sure you love how thatkind of ties into that, right?
I love that.
I love it.
Right?
So, yeah.
So jumping right into thisproject, it will be going to the
(13:18):
SEMA show this year in 2025 andwill be in the Randy's
Worldwide Boost.
So Icon, I've been working withthem for years.
And so it's really cool.
I have the Dynatrack axles onit as well, which Jessie had on
hers too, on her Jeep.
And yes, I will be racing Kingof the Hammers next year.
(13:40):
So very excited about that.
Tamara Robertson (13:42):
Very stoked, very stoked about that.
And so staying on this likeidea of racing, we are actually
about to head out today's timetrials, right?
Tomorrow's official kickoff ofthe race for the Hemings Great
Race.
Now, you heard of the GreatRace.
I know Jessie obviously wasGrand Marshal, so I heard of it
(14:05):
a little bit from her.
But I had never really had theambition myself because it's
like you have to have a vintagecar and, you know, precision
race, they say, instead of aspeed race.
But, like, was it somethingbefore you got the invite this
year that was on your radar of athing you were hoping to do?
Theresa (14:23):
You know, so what's funny is I love racing.
It wasn't on my list onlybecause I love off-roading.
So mostly on my race, on mybucket list, right, is more
off-roading.
off-roading style stuff.
But because Jessie had donethis, the second that they
reached out about it, I waslike, oh my God, absolutely.
(14:45):
I would love to be part of thisbecause, and it's, it's
supporting obviously somefantastic women that, you know,
these creators that are, they'recoming up in our industry.
And, you know, as much as, youknow, you and I both want to see
that next generation reallythrive in that.
So I was like anything I can doto support them and be there
(15:09):
for them you know what does thatlook like so so really yeah it
wasn't on my list but it'salways been on my radar but I
was like the second theopportunity I was like done I I
how can I help you knowdefinitely
Tamara Robertson (15:23):
and I love it I kind of joke that uh Riley has
been assembling us like theAvengers you know she had her
criteria of like wanting allfemale creators, women that were
hands-on, women that were thereal deal that knew what they
were doing and could keep thecars going.
But deeper than that isactually like I met Riley Seema
(15:45):
in 2023, signing autographs inthe She Shed booth, which, you
know, for those of you thatdon't know, the She Shed was
Real Deal Revolution comingtogether with the Jessi Combs
Foundation, coming together withAll Girl Gangs Garage.
And so Riley actually not onlysigned with me, but you gave her
the opportunity to teach herfirst, not first carburetor
(16:05):
class for her, but first atSeema, right?
So can you talk a little bitabout how You met Riley and how
that relationship developed.
Theresa (16:15):
Yeah, no, definitely.
Riley's been amazing.
Riley and then her dad.
Her dad is such a great supportsystem.
We all need, you know, asupport system in our life like
that, you know.
So I've been following Riley,kind of knew about her through
doing SBN, the SEMA BusinessWomen's Network, and had met her
(16:39):
that way and then reached outand was like, oh, my gosh, it
would be amazing.
You know, I saw her doing theconversation.
doing it with all of these highschool kids in the garage and
stuff and so I reached out toher to see if she wanted to
teach a workshop and absolutelythey were so stoked to be doing
that to be part of it so yeahDefinitely.
(17:01):
And so, so SBN, the SEMABusiness Women's Network, it's,
that's definitely a place whereI met Jessie.
I've met so many amazing womenin the automotive industry.
It's like my extension of myfamily, you know, of who that
looks, what that looks like.
Tamara Robertson (17:19):
I love it.
And, you know, and Riley seeingRiley teach those classes and
just like, like to your point,Dane, her dad injure is like the
absolute best.
The two of them just have theirspirits so high, you know, and
we're all aware that we've hadlots of hiccups with the fair
lane going into this race.
And we still don't know.
We may show up and just be ahuge cheer squad, a mechanic
(17:41):
squad for Riley in the Corvette.
And we will be just as happy ascreators and tinkerers to get
hands on with that as well.
Um, but her energy and just theway that she has brought these
women along and it's not, it'snot just young women.
It's women from our generation.
It's women beyond ourgeneration.
Um, and she's just lifting thatveil of like, Hey, this is how
(18:05):
you get sponsors.
This is how you have meetingswith sponsors.
Let me, let me share this withyou.
And so it's like, while she'syou know, in the number two spot
behind the grand Marshallrunning this race and hoping to
win it.
She's also bringing along allof these incredible women who,
you know, are trailblazers intheir own and own niches and own
(18:26):
rights.
And then they really are thereal deal.
So it's, it's to me, such aperfect culmination that it's
the Jessi Combs foundation asthe charity partner and the real
deal revolution as a sponsor,because it's like empowered by
running forward, you know, theThis is exactly what I think
both organizations we've alwayshoped would happen with this
(18:48):
generation, right?
And it's just so cool to see itall come together.
Theresa (18:53):
Definitely, definitely.
And I say, like, it's so greatbecause you see exactly what you
explained about Riley.
She had that support systemwith her family, you know?
Like, her dad is right therebehind her in any way he can
supporting what she's doing.
And not only...
So it's not just the support.
(19:13):
He's having her do it.
She's doing it.
She is building this.
She's built the business, youknow, and he's just helping her
along the way because he knowshow important it is for her to
do it herself.
That is such an important partof everything is that that's
what we're doing when we'reteaching workshops.
(19:34):
We're not doing it for anyone.
Everyone is coming there andthey are learning themselves.
Like we're just, we're sharingknowledge with them and they're
building it.
They're creating.
And that's it.
That's the type of sharing andlearning that we want to share
in the community.
We want to build with the restof the world.
Right.
And so it's so great.
(19:55):
Just like you said, to have ourdifferent organizations and her
and Riley's rebuild of thatcoming up to share the same type
of message that we're trying todo as well.
Tamara Robertson (20:06):
great is that like your jesse story your riley
story your you know your realdeal story they're they're all
interconnected and i would justlove to hear you know when you
started real deal like withjesse like what were you what
were you hoping to to do whatwhat was the discussion you guys
had under the stars that night
Theresa (20:27):
And it was literally that.
Well, you know, so I love, so,so Jessi, my art origin story, I
love that part because what itwas is, you know, in 2012, we're
building, um, the first allfemale SEMA build.
And it was, it was at my familybusiness.
And so we were doing the paintwork and stuff.
And Jessi was one of thepeople, you know, on the team.
(20:50):
So she was coming to work onthe car that day.
And I just remember, I mean,literally like I remember it,
like it was yesterday and shewalks through the door and she's
like, Hey guys, you know, likeher usual, you know, spirit and
bubbly self.
Right.
And she just looks over.
So we're, you know, we're,we're putting a bumper on a car
(21:12):
where we're like, look over if,you know, someone walks in the
door and she looks over at allof our bikes.
We have five of our motorcyclessitting, you know, in our, our
shop.
And she just points to mine andgoes, whose bike is that?
And literally, it's like thefirst thing she says, and I was
like, mine, why?
Because she liked the look ofit, you know?
(21:33):
And she knows, because that wasreally important to us.
We liked cool things.
We wanted to meet other peoplethat liked cool things like us,
right?
She pointed to it, and she waslike, do you want to go on a
ride?
I was like, yeah, sure.
Okay.
Like, literally, that's ourfirst interaction.
And then we were like...
are you going to come help ushold the bumper?
(21:55):
Because we're like holding abumper and she is like talking
or like, and she comes over andI still have, it's so funny
because we would always likewear similar things.
Like we had the same pants fromtarget.
We had these same things andstuff.
Right.
So like even that day, thefirst day we met, we both had
black tank tops, black pants on,you know, like it was just one
(22:17):
of those things.
We, design was really importantto us.
We loved building.
We loved working on thingstogether.
It just, the relationship just,it just grew.
We just knew we didn't mindlong hours.
We always found ourselves inthe garage working.
We weren't doing anything else.
We just tinkered, you know, weliterally music blaring in the
(22:40):
background, rocking out and justlike, what can we build today?
What can we create?
You know?
And so we just always wentthere.
We were on our motorcycles andthen you know, she was like, oh
my gosh, you love off-roadingtoo.
So then, you know, I startedracing with her in ultra four.
And so it was this thing oflike, we just, she knew where my
(23:02):
heart was coming from and thatI loved teaching other people
because I also was working at anonprofit too, that we did high
school ROP.
So for automotive classes, wesupplemented their auto shop
classes because they weren'toffering them.
So I was also doing that.
And so she kind of saw like allthese other things I do as
(23:24):
well.
Like my family was always, youknow, we're doing chamber of
commerce events.
We were always giving back tothe community and that was
really important to her too.
You know, like she wanted tosee like how that next level of
people operate in that way isit's not just about us and what
we're doing for ourselves, buthow are we helping others, you
(23:45):
know, see what the world's likeand stuff.
And so- As our friendship grew,we just kind of knew like we
needed to do more with that.
And she had, she had like, thishad been something in her head
for a long time.
Like she wanted to buildsomething like this.
And she's like, I've beenthinking of a nonprofit.
I've asked other people and itjust hasn't worked out with
(24:07):
people.
She's like, is this somethingyou would want to do?
And I was like, absolutely.
You already know this is what Ido.
So anytime I can help someoneelse and I'm like, like, our
symbiotic relationship wasalready there.
So we literally, you know, inOctober, 2024, we literally
drove, you know, to Long Beachoverlooking the ocean right
(24:30):
there and sat in the car thatnight, like you were saying,
under the stars and just wroteout our, you know, our dreams,
our goals of what we wanted tosee, you know, real deal become
and stuff.
And It just went from there.
You know, we were just like,we're always doing things.
We always love, like literallyit's not going to change like
(24:51):
what we do and what we lovedoing, you know?
And so we just started goingout.
We, our first event was BornFree.
We wanted to empower women inthe industry.
And so we were, even though wecalled it Real Deal, like the
idea behind Real Deal was thatpeople always told us, they told
(25:11):
her like, Oh, you're the realdeal.
They would tell me like, you'rethe real deal.
Like you actually do things.
You're not just talking aboutit.
You do it, you know?
And so we knew that that reallywas what resonated with us of
like, that's what we need to putout into the world, you know?
But we did want it to be morefemale focused and build that
(25:33):
community for females.
But we went to our first event.
So it was Born Free, which isso funny because literally this
weekend is Born Free.
Yeah.
right um and so in in 10 yearsago literally this weekend um we
went to our first event whichwas born free and no women
wanted to come up and learn theythey were all this is 10 years
(25:56):
ago now there were kids andthere were guys that were like
yeah of course i want to learnand we're like well we're not
going to tell you no like thatis definitely not what we're
about you know like So attendingthat event, that's when we
realized, like, we don't want tobe exclusive.
The whole idea of women beingpart of this and showing the
(26:16):
equality and all that was to beinclusive, to include everyone.
But we still wanted to reallyshowcase women doing this, that
women were in the industry andthat we just we did.
We teach differently, we leaddifferently.
So that's really where itbecame women led and we teach
(26:39):
everyone.
So we are teaching a six yearold little boy how to weld, a 60
year old.
I've had all gamuts of peoplein our class and that's what's
so exciting is you're never tooyoung or too old to really
learn.
It's really about sharing youknow, respecting the tools and
(26:59):
understanding them, you know,like personally, my son was, you
know, like he, you know, he's agunner's mate in the Coast
Guard now.
He literally was at five yearsold shooting guns, but we taught
him, it was really important tous that he knew and understood
how they worked, what thingswere happening.
We were around when that washappening, you know, and it's
(27:22):
like them understanding, like,they have more knowledge to know
that.
Now, is that for everyone?
Probably not, you know?
But the thing is, is we wantedto really share with people,
like, the respect of, like, yousaid, like, welding.
Like, I mean, it's a torch.
You're using fire in your hand.
But if they understand all ofthat and they're willing to
(27:42):
listen to what we have, thenthey're going to respect that
tool.
They're going to understandthat.
And so, and the way that womenshare that is just a little
different than men sometimeYeah.
Tamara Robertson (27:53):
Yes.
I think, I think it's just, wehave, we have, we have more
patience sometimes.
The whole aspect of not, notwomen only, it's just women led
and like being able to start.
Yeah.
Redefining what it is to be awelding instructor, you know,
instead of that stereotypicalimage of a burly dude and
(28:14):
coveralls.
Now, sometimes they start tosee a five foot redhead that's
been fired and running aroundlike crazy, you know, and, I
think that that's, that's kindof a benefit that we can give
this next generation is like, asI, like, you know, I've had as
young as a three-year-old littlegirl walk up and be like, I
want to learn.
And it's like, okay, let's, Ican retrofit this gear.
(28:37):
That's been my whole thing.
I want, I really want to getPPE for kids.
And so I retrofit it as thedesigner that I am and I get
them going and I keep them safe,but it's something that they're
excited about forever.
And I love it.
I just love it.
It's great.
Theresa (28:51):
For sure.
Yeah.
We, we create that one spark,that moment that just inspires
people.
And that's really what we wantto do.
Like we know how much we getexcited about creating and, and
that is really something I,that's like, to me, like a God
given gift that all of us createin our own way.
And a lot of people just don'trealize that because a lot of
(29:13):
people always tell me like,well, I'm not like you.
I don't, I don't have thosetalents and ability.
And it's like, I put so muchpractice and so much time and
effort and work behind thescenes that you probably don't
know.
I have 20 years doing this.
This doesn't just come easy,but it comes if you want to
learn.
There's that part and thataspect, and we're all capable of
(29:38):
creating.
Tamara Robertson (29:39):
As you're looking at, or as I guess, as
the audience is looking atpotentially wanting to get into
a place where they can shareskills that they have and build
community around it.
Is there any advice that youwould give, you know, people
young and old that I think, Hey,I think my next adventure is
going to be paying it forward.
Like who else can I gethands-on with the tools that I
(30:01):
love every day?
Theresa (30:03):
I love that.
Yes.
Uh, The first thing, you know,a lot of people are intimidated
right away.
Like I'm not good at sharing orteaching.
I don't know what to do.
And the thing is, is we're alldifferent.
Understand, like, like, likeembrace your uniqueness.
The way that you're going toteach is not the same way
(30:26):
someone else is going to teach.
And that's okay.
You don't have to be perfect atit the first time.
You just have to start justlike anything else, just like
this Bronco right behind me.
You just have to get out thereand start.
So reaching out, you know, itcould be just, you know, on
social media, like showing, hey,a little how-to of what you did
(30:46):
in the garage, you know, sothat, you know, someone else
might ask a question, you know,like, Hey, you know, we're doing
things like with this, like howto remove our bed liner.
Well, we went through, youknow, multiple tools and we were
like, oh my gosh, this was somuch easier.
We want to share that with allof you.
So you don't have to deal withthe same type of stress that we
(31:07):
did of going through that, youknow?
So just get out there and doit, you know, put a one minute
video up of just a how to, andit's that simple to get started,
but don't be afraid.
Like, Are there going to bepeople that think they know more
than you?
Of course there are, you know,but the thing is, is let them
know that I don't knoweverything still.
(31:28):
I am, I am a, you know, I amalways growing.
I'm always learning.
Embrace that.
Don't, don't go out there andthink you're better than
everyone and you're going to befine.
You just, you know, learn alongthe way, have fun doing it and
just get out there and sharewhat your skill is with the
world.
Tamara Robertson (31:46):
Yeah, that's exactly right.
Because I feel like everytime...
Whether it's teaching a STEMcamp or a resin class or a
welding class, like I'm learningjust as much through the people
that I'm teaching as they'relearning from me.
Like I remember being at DOPUwith you this year and doing the
resin class.
And I had this one person whothey were amazing.
(32:11):
They were like, Oh, I do thisall day long.
And they were showing meBattlestar Galactica builds that
they've done with resin and SLAprinting and all.
And then they were like tellingme, they're like, Hey, you
know, if you want to be able todo this a little faster, you
could do it in this way.
And I'm like, please keepgiving me the guidance.
Like, because it is one ofthose things.
Right?
Yeah.
Any trade skill, you know, weall are going to have the number
(32:35):
of hours it takes to becomewhat we consider mastered at it.
But then there's so much morethat you learn by being in it
every single day that perhapssomeone else doesn't see, you
know, if I'm predominantlymaking, you know, jewelries and
trinkets and things like that,I'm not going to see what
someone that's making likeactual structural, like
(32:56):
starships are going to beseeing.
Right.
And so there's this reallycool.
ways to just as a communitycollectively learn.
So I just love it.
I love it.
Theresa (33:06):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So for me, like residencestuff, I'm doing fiberglass.
So I'm going to be buildingfiberglass fenders for this.
So I have like the shape of thewheel well, because I'm going
to be building that out.
And that's how, so like yousaid, the structure of that
completely different, the typeof resin I'm going to be using
is different.
You know, all of these thingsare, are different in that
(33:29):
aspect, but it's just what welove doing with, with real deal
is getting that basic groundlevel of, of just inspiring
people to go out there and tryto do it, you know?
Yep.
Tamara Robertson (33:40):
And what I love about the workshops is that
we really do spark thatinterest by taking away the
fear.
Right.
And that was one of thosethings that I really love that
Jessi used to say is that like,it's not about like, not having
fear.
It's about moving forward withyour fear, right?
And that fearlessness was moreabout...
(34:01):
Fearlessly moving forward, eventhough, you know, you might be
terrified.
And so I love that, you know,we take away the scary aspect of
welding by literally gettingthem in the tent, sparking it
up, letting them get hands on,letting them know like, hey,
here are a couple safety thingsthat you should be aware of when
you're around it.
But otherwise, like take thetorch and go like literally
(34:25):
getting to pass that torch andgetting people hands on.
I mean, like, it's always myfavorite thing to see this.
And the first time that theylike weld something together and
they're like, oh my gosh, likeI did that.
I did that with fire.
I did, you know, like, I'mlike, that's it.
Theresa (34:39):
And that's hands on.
That's, that's exactly thatmoment.
The spark, right?
Yeah.
That moment of them going, Idid that.
See, it's, it's not even us.
Like, All we're doing issharing something with them.
They're doing it.
They're the ones creating.
And that's what we're sharingwith everyone.
And like you said, it's thatfear.
It's the intimidation factor.
(35:00):
That's what Jessi and I wantedto do is that the second people
come up, they're like, oh, I'vealways wanted to weld.
I've always wanted a pinstripe.
And we're like, great, you'regoing to do it right now.
And they're like, I'm sorry,what?
And it's that little thing thatlike triggering your mind that
you're like, wait, I'm reallyconfused right now, but I guess
I can't say no.
I literally just told them Iwant to learn this, you know?
(35:20):
Like, so it's funny because itjust, it switches and we all
know like how our mind worksbecause we're like, oh,
comfortable.
Like, no, no, that's too muchfor me.
And we're like, we're here.
We got you.
We create this community andthat's what we're doing.
We're connecting with people ina different way that like
allows them to know we're therefor them.
(35:42):
You know, in the moment theyknow that, that we got their
back, like they're all in, youknow?
And so that's what we're outthere building.
Tamara Robertson (35:49):
Which I absolutely love.
And, and it's all, it doesn'tmatter the ages, right?
Like young and old, we're alllearning.
And so speaking of teaching anot so young dog, new tricks,
you are launching a wholeYouTube channel for Baja Forge.
So awesome.
What has that been like?
(36:10):
What are some of your learningsthat you're already coming
across as you jump into this newendeavor?
Like you needed another thingto do, right?
Theresa (36:21):
Well, yeah, exactly.
So, you know, okay.
Building the Bronco first offwas been like, it's been that
thing that definitely the fearwas there.
The fear has been there.
Like, oh my gosh, should I dothis?
There's, you know, I got tosink a ton of money into this.
(36:42):
I already know that it's goingto take a ton of my time.
I'm going to have to likecompletely kind of change the
way I'm doing things.
Like I have to actually, youknow, devote and dedicate more
time to this than I am doingother things right now.
So, so yeah.
I am completely changing somany things in my life to try to
(37:03):
do, including doing like achannel too.
We're like, how can we not dothis?
So like one of the things isI've been building SEMA vehicles
for 20 years and we can nevertalk about them until the SEMA
show, until they're revealed tothe rest of the world.
But then none of the behind thescenes gets talked about in
(37:24):
like the craziness of the longnights and the long hours of
people not seeing andunderstanding what people are
really going through, likecutting something in half.
Like, where do you cut it?
Why do you cut it here?
What do you have to dobeforehand?
So like, you know, we had tobuild a structure to hold
everything together before wecut it so it stays together.
(37:47):
You know, like there's justthings like that along the way,
which were like, you know, weneed to share this.
We need to share the hard stuffthat we deal with, you know,
all the trials along the way.
And yes, learning video andcapturing content and what that
looks like, that's a wholenother, you know, learning curve
(38:07):
and education.
Do we need to do it?
Absolutely.
This is like, you know, the newera of what that looks like.
And you have to be capturingcontent.
You really do.
So I don't, you know, like,almost anything that you're
doing.
If you are a small businessowner, you are doing anything to
sell, you have to be capturingcontent.
(38:30):
So what we've really done iswe're trying to showcase the
build on, you know, the actualsteps.
I mean, we're in the middle ofnowhere.
We don't have a lift here.
So we're using a forklift tolift the body up, you know, and
that's the thing is, don't letthings stop you like we want it
yeah and right and we want toshow people like don't let that
stop you like well I don't havethis okay what's your next
(38:53):
option let's figure it out youknow and so it's really getting
to that point of like sharingthat with the world of like you
know like that doesn't stop uslike like if you have a dream
realize like anything ispossible like Just keep talking
about it, putting it out there,and the gears will turn.
(39:14):
Someone will chime in here andthere, whatever, and it'll
happen, and it'll all cometogether.
And sometimes you don't evenknow how it's happening, and it
just does.
Tamara Robertson (39:26):
And so we're coming down to time, and there's
one question I love to askevery single person that's on
the show, and that is, if youcould have a superpower, what
would it be and why?
Theresa (39:37):
Oh, no.
Uh, that's just such a loadedquestion.
Oh gosh.
A superpower.
Oh.
It could also be a super
Tamara Robertson (39:49):
tech, you know, you could be like, be like
Iron Man and have one coolpiece of tech or something.
Theresa (39:55):
I guess it would be to flash into different areas.
Like if I had to be here andthen I could show up in my paint
booth instantly and be like,Oh, I'm doing this and I got
this.
And then flash back to where Ineed to be.
So flash is a good one.
I love lightning bolts too.
Right.
So, you know, that's kind of mything is the lightning bolt.
So I
Tamara Robertson (40:16):
love that.
I love that.
I would
Theresa (40:18):
just like be there.
Tamara Robertson (40:19):
Nightcrawler can totally do that.
He like dissolves and appearsin different places and then the
flash just gets there superfast.
So I love it.
Super speed, get lots of thingsdone.
So, okay, everyone, the HemingsGreat Race kicks off June 21st
in St.
Paul, Minnesota, and we'll runall the way until we hit the
finish line, hopefully on June29th in Moorpark, Irmo, South
(40:40):
Carolina.
Follow our Instagrams to stayup to date with all things
Creator Race as we tackle thisiconic vintage rally road race
one mile at a time.
That's it for Tinkering Bells.
This episode is assembled andready for delivery.
Theresa, this has been soamazing.
Thank you so much.
Theresa (40:57):
Always fun chatting with you.
And I will get to see you inperson at the Great Race.
Tamara Robertson (41:02):
So excited.
I'm so excited.
I want to thank you forchoosing Tinkering Bells as your
user's manual for all thingsMaker on a bi-weekly basis.
If you want to continue to hearmore, don't forget to rate and
review the show on yourpodcasting app of choice, as
well as sharing it with yourfriends.
I look forward to seeing younext time.
Until then, don't forget tokeep making!
Shopmates and welcome to Tinkering Belles, a
show about DIY, design, and allthings hands-on.
Sky's the limit as we talkprops, metalwork, cosplay,
woodwork, leather, electronics,and so much more.
I'm Tamara Robertson, yourhost, so strap on your tool
belts because we're about to getinto some skill sharing, y'all.
(00:23):
Today, I'm going to be joined bya maker who is the literal real
deal.
I don't want to give away toomuch, but this maker is teaming
up with the community torevolutionize the perception of
skilled trades and the women'sroles in them.
So if that doesn't make youwant to stick around and hear
more, then you might be at thewrong podcast.
(00:45):
Let's go ahead and have our techtalk of the day.
We're going to be talking allabout the Hemmings Great Race
and the amazing partners thathave made it happen.
Now, That includes groups likeReal Deal Revolution.
These skilled tradeswomen arepassing on skills like welding,
carburetor rebuilds, epoxy,leather, and even at the helm,
(01:05):
pinstriping.
So let's back it up.
Where did pinstriping get itsstart?
Pinstriping as an art form datesback to horse-drawn carriages
in the 1800s.
Yep, you heard that right.
Horse-drawn.
drawn carriages.
They were actually used to addelegance and emphasize the body
(01:30):
lines of these carriages.
Now, fast forward to post-warhot rod scenes, and you're going
to see pinstriping exploding inpopularity thanks to legendary
artists like Von Dutch, whointroduced freehand designs with
flair and attitude.
Now, traditional stripers usesquirrel hairbrushes called
(01:51):
swords to lay down perfectlysymmetrical lines by hand.
No tape, just skill and musclememory that is to die for.
Now, this process isn't justdecorative.
It actually visually reinforcesbodywork and can help to cover
up flaws or panel seams that youdon't really want the users to
(02:15):
be seeing.
you can reflect your ownpersonal style as well with the
usage of pinstriping.
Now today, pinstriping is acherished subculture in
automotive art, kept alive byartists like the Real Deal
Revolution co-founder, whoteaches in demos at live events
across the country.
Well, That's it for your TechTalk.
(02:37):
You can join in on theconversation with my maker
friends and me on the TinkeringBells Instagram and X pages.
Just search for BellsTinkering, hit follow and share
your DIY adventures togetherwith us.
Have a tool you want to learnabout?
Let me know and it might befeatured in a future episode.
Tell us what you liked, whatyou hated or possibly even what
we missed.
(02:59):
So now we're going to begetting into the main event.
And I am so excited tointroduce you to our next maker,
one of my favorite people.
Please give me a drum roll.
*drumroll* presenting.
Theresa (03:10):
Wooooohoooo! All right.
Tamara Robertson (03:13):
I love it.
Theresa, thanks for joining me.
How are you?
Theresa (03:16):
Absolutely, Tamara.
I'm honored to be on heretalking about stuff.
Always love just hanging outwith you, you know?
Tamara Robertson (03:26):
I'm so excited.
So we are probably going to goon so many wild tangents, but
like to start, I want theaudience to know where can they
find you, follow you, and whatshould they expect to see when
they go there?
Theresa (03:37):
Sure.
Well, the first thing is justmy name, Theresa Contreras.com.
And I have all the links to allthe things I do.
So I am co-founder of Real DealRevolution.
Real Deal is a nonprofit thatJessi Combs and myself started.
It is to change the perceptionof skill trades and women's
(03:57):
roles in them.
We have people like Tamara hereteaching workshops, hands-on
skill trades all over thecountry.
So that's amazing.
I also have Baha That is mypersonal brand right behind me
right here.
I got the Bronco.
We're working on 68 Ford Broncoright now.
All the things I just like tobuild, like to tinker, right?
(04:17):
That's why I'm here.
So Instagram is designmuse, allthe things.
Tamara Robertson (04:23):
Everyone, as always, the show notes will be
packed full of links andpictures.
So go over there, have anadventure, find Theresa wherever
she is, because believe me, itchanges every single day.
Like trying to keep up withyou.
I'm like so happy that we sharelocations because I'm like, is
she home?
No, she's not.
Okay, where is she right now?
Well, even when you're home, Ilove it because I'm like, oh,
(04:45):
she's in the garage.
Love it.
Theresa (04:47):
And that goes the same for you.
Where are you in the world,right?
Tamara Robertson (04:50):
Yeah, exactly.
We need like a MapQuest to findeach other, which they, this
audience may not even know whatMapQuest is.
Oh my goodness.
Anyways, before I get olderwhile we're speaking.
So we did, we met a few yearsago at Sturgis.
I had the joy of coming in.
I like, little tiny regionalairport.
I was going to meet the JessiCombs Foundation officially and
(05:13):
Real Deal Revolution.
And then I got the joy of likebecoming a renegade and working
to actually teach welding.
And it's just, we've just beengoing ever since.
So I've had the chance to getto know you over the years.
But as a superhero scientist,one of my favorite things is
origin stories.
So I would love for theaudience to hear the origin
(05:36):
story of how you became agearhead and why you're still in
it today.
Theresa (05:41):
Love that.
Definitely.
Definitely grew up in it.
Literally, my parents weretaking me, you know, I'm in
Southern California, so I'mclose to, you know, Mexico to
Baja.
We have tons of off-roadingareas here.
So one of the places that myparents first took me to is
(06:02):
called Pismo Beach.
And you can off-road, you cantake four wheelers, anything on
that beach and drive around.
And so they took their ElCamino and I was probably about
three weeks old or so.
And we camped out in the backthere in the El Camino.
And that was kind of like myfirst experience.
And really ever since we'vebeen going to Baja, we started
(06:25):
Doom Buggies.
I was always in the garage withmy parents because my dad
was...
You know, he worked and hefixed cars and he taught himself
how to do that.
And my mom was right next tohim helping him do it along the
way.
So I was right there, too.
You know, like we wouldliterally all be in the garage
working on cars together.
(06:45):
And that's just part of part ofmy life.
I rode ATCs when I when I wasabout 12.
two, three years old.
I got my first ATC 70.
So right next to my parentsworking on my own bike next to
them, you know, and it wascustomized and I would, you
know, go race it when I wasolder and we would go to places
(07:06):
like Glamis.
It's like, The sand dunecapital of the world, you know,
and Mexico to San Felipe toBaja, you know, all these
different places.
And so we were always outadventuring and off-roading.
And then my parents, basically,they started their own business
because the economy crashed inthe 80s.
(07:27):
And...
my dad lost his job.
And so my parents basicallystarted working in the garage
and fixing cars.
So that kind of turned into abody shop.
I actually didn't go into thefamily business directly.
I actually became a machinistduring high school, you know,
helping someone else do things.
(07:49):
And so I loved that.
I just was a hands-on person.
I was just always doing thingslike that.
But then eventually I ended up,you know, going back to the
shop.
I went to school for graphicdesign so I love the creative
process I love the hands-onaspect of things you know I went
to an all-girls school so wehad sewing and that was about it
(08:12):
for you know an art for for ourcreative there was no like you
know auto class or you know woodshop or anything like that so
so I was taking you know I tookthat so I was sewing and I was
doing things I just loved doingYou know, and doing building and
creating things and doinganything with my hands, you
(08:32):
know, so when I became amachinist, that was like another
level of what that could be,you know, and so that actually
put me through college, went toschool for graph design.
loved the idea of how you'relearning different mediums in
graphic design right becausethat's what that was about like
(08:53):
you could go from charcoaldrawings to printmaking to
sculpture and again that waslike oh well I love creating and
I love different mediums likelike you like we always just
want to know like what's thenext thing what else can we
create with this like oh my goshwell we could use this also you
know so we're not we're likevery open right to like learning
(09:16):
new things and you know exactly
Tamara Robertson (09:19):
we're just trying it all
Theresa (09:21):
Ya! Totally!
Tamara Robertson (09:22):
Like whatever the material I'll figure out how
to get it together guys yeah
Theresa (09:25):
because the thing is is you don't know like all of a
sudden it sparks something newand you're like oh my gosh I
love this you know or or I don'tyou know like you know and so
uh so one of the things um sothen after college which
Technically, I did not graduatebecause I'm still six units
short, which everyone's alwayslike, oh, you graduate.
I'm like, no, I actually wentto college, didn't end up
(09:47):
graduating because of that.
But I walked and everything.
I did the walk, right?
Because it was enough to do allthat.
But I still haven't gone back.
So funny side note story,right?
But then I finally eventuallystarted working for my parents
for the family business, theauto body shop.
And that's where I actually...
taught myself how to pinstripeone day how to paint i tell
(10:12):
people i locked myself in apaint booth for two years and
finally got good at it you knowum i am a person that learns by
association like i could be nextto someone watch what they're
doing and then do it you know soi was just around the
environment soaking it up andtaught myself how to paint, kind
of knew the design aspect ofit, and so started building and
(10:34):
painting cars myself andmotorcycles and all the things.
And so it led us to, you know,to Jessi and I meeting.
We met on the first all-femaleSEMA build back in 2012.
And so that's really where,like, then that story of, like,
real deal and everything elsehas kind of evolved from there,
(10:55):
so...
Tamara Robertson (10:56):
Amazing.
And actually, so that there areso many places that I don't
even know which one I want tosay.
I think I'm gonna I'm gonna puta button in one.
And first, we're gonna talkabout this whole like,
rebuilding cars painting becausebehind you is this beautiful
Bronco.
And having talked to youpersonally that there are some
(11:18):
big ambitions and goals for it,which also still connected to
Jessi in a way because it's It'sin your backyard.
So tell the audience about whatyou're hoping to be doing with
that Bronco.
Theresa (11:32):
I love that.
So like you, like, I am notafraid to like jump into a
project because the thing is, islike, we all have to do
something for the first time.
Right.
And I know that my, my bestresources, all of our best
resources are people.
Like there's so much knowledgeout there and I have amazing
friends that will help guide methrough it.
(11:53):
So we are chopping this Broncoin half, which I did, if you can
see.
The back half of it's gone.
So we chopped it in half thebody.
Now we're lengthening the frameand we are going to be, I'm
going to be racing it.
So that is part of it.
It's so funny because I havehad this Bronco for literally
(12:14):
like over 20 years and it's justsat here.
Like I I've used it tooff-road, but I'm like, ah, it's
kind of slow and kind of this.
And I'm like, and I complain, Idon't have race car, you know,
I don't have this.
And it's like, stopcomplaining.
You have something right there.
Just build it.
Right.
So that's the first thing rightthere is just, you know, you
just got to do it.
(12:34):
You got to jump in.
Now, you know, obviously we'redoing research.
We're calling people.
We're making sure that, youknow, we're on, you know, like
right now we have the nextthing.
The next step is to get oursuspension ready.
So like the guy that's helpingus do that.
So it's Icon Vehicle Dynamicsand Dylan that started it.
(12:55):
He's an engineer.
So he sent us the calculator tofigure out the geometry for all
the suspension, you know, sothe weight of the vehicle, the
length, the wheelbase, all thosethings.
So I'm sure you love how thatkind of ties into that, right?
I love that.
I love it.
Right?
So, yeah.
So jumping right into thisproject, it will be going to the
(13:18):
SEMA show this year in 2025 andwill be in the Randy's
Worldwide Boost.
So Icon, I've been working withthem for years.
And so it's really cool.
I have the Dynatrack axles onit as well, which Jessie had on
hers too, on her Jeep.
And yes, I will be racing Kingof the Hammers next year.
(13:40):
So very excited about that.
Tamara Robertson (13:42):
Very stoked, very stoked about that.
And so staying on this likeidea of racing, we are actually
about to head out today's timetrials, right?
Tomorrow's official kickoff ofthe race for the Hemings Great
Race.
Now, you heard of the GreatRace.
I know Jessie obviously wasGrand Marshal, so I heard of it
(14:05):
a little bit from her.
But I had never really had theambition myself because it's
like you have to have a vintagecar and, you know, precision
race, they say, instead of aspeed race.
But, like, was it somethingbefore you got the invite this
year that was on your radar of athing you were hoping to do?
Theresa (14:23):
You know, so what's funny is I love racing.
It wasn't on my list onlybecause I love off-roading.
So mostly on my race, on mybucket list, right, is more
off-roading.
off-roading style stuff.
But because Jessie had donethis, the second that they
reached out about it, I waslike, oh my God, absolutely.
(14:45):
I would love to be part of thisbecause, and it's, it's
supporting obviously somefantastic women that, you know,
these creators that are, they'recoming up in our industry.
And, you know, as much as, youknow, you and I both want to see
that next generation reallythrive in that.
So I was like anything I can doto support them and be there
(15:09):
for them you know what does thatlook like so so really yeah it
wasn't on my list but it'salways been on my radar but I
was like the second theopportunity I was like done I I
how can I help you knowdefinitely
Tamara Robertson (15:23):
and I love it I kind of joke that uh Riley has
been assembling us like theAvengers you know she had her
criteria of like wanting allfemale creators, women that were
hands-on, women that were thereal deal that knew what they
were doing and could keep thecars going.
But deeper than that isactually like I met Riley Seema
(15:45):
in 2023, signing autographs inthe She Shed booth, which, you
know, for those of you thatdon't know, the She Shed was
Real Deal Revolution comingtogether with the Jessi Combs
Foundation, coming together withAll Girl Gangs Garage.
And so Riley actually not onlysigned with me, but you gave her
the opportunity to teach herfirst, not first carburetor
(16:05):
class for her, but first atSeema, right?
So can you talk a little bitabout how You met Riley and how
that relationship developed.
Theresa (16:15):
Yeah, no, definitely.
Riley's been amazing.
Riley and then her dad.
Her dad is such a great supportsystem.
We all need, you know, asupport system in our life like
that, you know.
So I've been following Riley,kind of knew about her through
doing SBN, the SEMA BusinessWomen's Network, and had met her
(16:39):
that way and then reached outand was like, oh, my gosh, it
would be amazing.
You know, I saw her doing theconversation.
doing it with all of these highschool kids in the garage and
stuff and so I reached out toher to see if she wanted to
teach a workshop and absolutelythey were so stoked to be doing
that to be part of it so yeahDefinitely.
(17:01):
And so, so SBN, the SEMABusiness Women's Network, it's,
that's definitely a place whereI met Jessie.
I've met so many amazing womenin the automotive industry.
It's like my extension of myfamily, you know, of who that
looks, what that looks like.
Tamara Robertson (17:19):
I love it.
And, you know, and Riley seeingRiley teach those classes and
just like, like to your point,Dane, her dad injure is like the
absolute best.
The two of them just have theirspirits so high, you know, and
we're all aware that we've hadlots of hiccups with the fair
lane going into this race.
And we still don't know.
We may show up and just be ahuge cheer squad, a mechanic
(17:41):
squad for Riley in the Corvette.
And we will be just as happy ascreators and tinkerers to get
hands on with that as well.
Um, but her energy and just theway that she has brought these
women along and it's not, it'snot just young women.
It's women from our generation.
It's women beyond ourgeneration.
Um, and she's just lifting thatveil of like, Hey, this is how
(18:05):
you get sponsors.
This is how you have meetingswith sponsors.
Let me, let me share this withyou.
And so it's like, while she'syou know, in the number two spot
behind the grand Marshallrunning this race and hoping to
win it.
She's also bringing along allof these incredible women who,
you know, are trailblazers intheir own and own niches and own
(18:26):
rights.
And then they really are thereal deal.
So it's, it's to me, such aperfect culmination that it's
the Jessi Combs foundation asthe charity partner and the real
deal revolution as a sponsor,because it's like empowered by
running forward, you know, theThis is exactly what I think
both organizations we've alwayshoped would happen with this
(18:48):
generation, right?
And it's just so cool to see itall come together.
Theresa (18:53):
Definitely, definitely.
And I say, like, it's so greatbecause you see exactly what you
explained about Riley.
She had that support systemwith her family, you know?
Like, her dad is right therebehind her in any way he can
supporting what she's doing.
And not only...
So it's not just the support.
(19:13):
He's having her do it.
She's doing it.
She is building this.
She's built the business, youknow, and he's just helping her
along the way because he knowshow important it is for her to
do it herself.
That is such an important partof everything is that that's
what we're doing when we'reteaching workshops.
(19:34):
We're not doing it for anyone.
Everyone is coming there andthey are learning themselves.
Like we're just, we're sharingknowledge with them and they're
building it.
They're creating.
And that's it.
That's the type of sharing andlearning that we want to share
in the community.
We want to build with the restof the world.
Right.
And so it's so great.
(19:55):
Just like you said, to have ourdifferent organizations and her
and Riley's rebuild of thatcoming up to share the same type
of message that we're trying todo as well.
Tamara Robertson (20:06):
great is that like your jesse story your riley
story your you know your realdeal story they're they're all
interconnected and i would justlove to hear you know when you
started real deal like withjesse like what were you what
were you hoping to to do whatwhat was the discussion you guys
had under the stars that night
Theresa (20:27):
And it was literally that.
Well, you know, so I love, so,so Jessi, my art origin story, I
love that part because what itwas is, you know, in 2012, we're
building, um, the first allfemale SEMA build.
And it was, it was at my familybusiness.
And so we were doing the paintwork and stuff.
And Jessi was one of thepeople, you know, on the team.
(20:50):
So she was coming to work onthe car that day.
And I just remember, I mean,literally like I remember it,
like it was yesterday and shewalks through the door and she's
like, Hey guys, you know, likeher usual, you know, spirit and
bubbly self.
Right.
And she just looks over.
So we're, you know, we're,we're putting a bumper on a car
(21:12):
where we're like, look over if,you know, someone walks in the
door and she looks over at allof our bikes.
We have five of our motorcyclessitting, you know, in our, our
shop.
And she just points to mine andgoes, whose bike is that?
And literally, it's like thefirst thing she says, and I was
like, mine, why?
Because she liked the look ofit, you know?
(21:33):
And she knows, because that wasreally important to us.
We liked cool things.
We wanted to meet other peoplethat liked cool things like us,
right?
She pointed to it, and she waslike, do you want to go on a
ride?
I was like, yeah, sure.
Okay.
Like, literally, that's ourfirst interaction.
And then we were like...
are you going to come help ushold the bumper?
(21:55):
Because we're like holding abumper and she is like talking
or like, and she comes over andI still have, it's so funny
because we would always likewear similar things.
Like we had the same pants fromtarget.
We had these same things andstuff.
Right.
So like even that day, thefirst day we met, we both had
black tank tops, black pants on,you know, like it was just one
(22:17):
of those things.
We, design was really importantto us.
We loved building.
We loved working on thingstogether.
It just, the relationship just,it just grew.
We just knew we didn't mindlong hours.
We always found ourselves inthe garage working.
We weren't doing anything else.
We just tinkered, you know, weliterally music blaring in the
(22:40):
background, rocking out and justlike, what can we build today?
What can we create?
You know?
And so we just always wentthere.
We were on our motorcycles andthen you know, she was like, oh
my gosh, you love off-roadingtoo.
So then, you know, I startedracing with her in ultra four.
And so it was this thing oflike, we just, she knew where my
(23:02):
heart was coming from and thatI loved teaching other people
because I also was working at anonprofit too, that we did high
school ROP.
So for automotive classes, wesupplemented their auto shop
classes because they weren'toffering them.
So I was also doing that.
And so she kind of saw like allthese other things I do as
(23:24):
well.
Like my family was always, youknow, we're doing chamber of
commerce events.
We were always giving back tothe community and that was
really important to her too.
You know, like she wanted tosee like how that next level of
people operate in that way isit's not just about us and what
we're doing for ourselves, buthow are we helping others, you
(23:45):
know, see what the world's likeand stuff.
And so- As our friendship grew,we just kind of knew like we
needed to do more with that.
And she had, she had like, thishad been something in her head
for a long time.
Like she wanted to buildsomething like this.
And she's like, I've beenthinking of a nonprofit.
I've asked other people and itjust hasn't worked out with
(24:07):
people.
She's like, is this somethingyou would want to do?
And I was like, absolutely.
You already know this is what Ido.
So anytime I can help someoneelse and I'm like, like, our
symbiotic relationship wasalready there.
So we literally, you know, inOctober, 2024, we literally
drove, you know, to Long Beachoverlooking the ocean right
(24:30):
there and sat in the car thatnight, like you were saying,
under the stars and just wroteout our, you know, our dreams,
our goals of what we wanted tosee, you know, real deal become
and stuff.
And It just went from there.
You know, we were just like,we're always doing things.
We always love, like literallyit's not going to change like
(24:51):
what we do and what we lovedoing, you know?
And so we just started goingout.
We, our first event was BornFree.
We wanted to empower women inthe industry.
And so we were, even though wecalled it Real Deal, like the
idea behind Real Deal was thatpeople always told us, they told
(25:11):
her like, Oh, you're the realdeal.
They would tell me like, you'rethe real deal.
Like you actually do things.
You're not just talking aboutit.
You do it, you know?
And so we knew that that reallywas what resonated with us of
like, that's what we need to putout into the world, you know?
But we did want it to be morefemale focused and build that
(25:33):
community for females.
But we went to our first event.
So it was Born Free, which isso funny because literally this
weekend is Born Free.
Yeah.
right um and so in in 10 yearsago literally this weekend um we
went to our first event whichwas born free and no women
wanted to come up and learn theythey were all this is 10 years
(25:56):
ago now there were kids andthere were guys that were like
yeah of course i want to learnand we're like well we're not
going to tell you no like thatis definitely not what we're
about you know like So attendingthat event, that's when we
realized, like, we don't want tobe exclusive.
The whole idea of women beingpart of this and showing the
(26:16):
equality and all that was to beinclusive, to include everyone.
But we still wanted to reallyshowcase women doing this, that
women were in the industry andthat we just we did.
We teach differently, we leaddifferently.
So that's really where itbecame women led and we teach
(26:39):
everyone.
So we are teaching a six yearold little boy how to weld, a 60
year old.
I've had all gamuts of peoplein our class and that's what's
so exciting is you're never tooyoung or too old to really
learn.
It's really about sharing youknow, respecting the tools and
(26:59):
understanding them, you know,like personally, my son was, you
know, like he, you know, he's agunner's mate in the Coast
Guard now.
He literally was at five yearsold shooting guns, but we taught
him, it was really important tous that he knew and understood
how they worked, what thingswere happening.
We were around when that washappening, you know, and it's
(27:22):
like them understanding, like,they have more knowledge to know
that.
Now, is that for everyone?
Probably not, you know?
But the thing is, is we wantedto really share with people,
like, the respect of, like, yousaid, like, welding.
Like, I mean, it's a torch.
You're using fire in your hand.
But if they understand all ofthat and they're willing to
(27:42):
listen to what we have, thenthey're going to respect that
tool.
They're going to understandthat.
And so, and the way that womenshare that is just a little
different than men sometimeYeah.
Tamara Robertson (27:53):
Yes.
I think, I think it's just, wehave, we have, we have more
patience sometimes.
The whole aspect of not, notwomen only, it's just women led
and like being able to start.
Yeah.
Redefining what it is to be awelding instructor, you know,
instead of that stereotypicalimage of a burly dude and
(28:14):
coveralls.
Now, sometimes they start tosee a five foot redhead that's
been fired and running aroundlike crazy, you know, and, I
think that that's, that's kindof a benefit that we can give
this next generation is like, asI, like, you know, I've had as
young as a three-year-old littlegirl walk up and be like, I
want to learn.
And it's like, okay, let's, Ican retrofit this gear.
(28:37):
That's been my whole thing.
I want, I really want to getPPE for kids.
And so I retrofit it as thedesigner that I am and I get
them going and I keep them safe,but it's something that they're
excited about forever.
And I love it.
I just love it.
It's great.
Theresa (28:51):
For sure.
Yeah.
We, we create that one spark,that moment that just inspires
people.
And that's really what we wantto do.
Like we know how much we getexcited about creating and, and
that is really something I,that's like, to me, like a God
given gift that all of us createin our own way.
And a lot of people just don'trealize that because a lot of
(29:13):
people always tell me like,well, I'm not like you.
I don't, I don't have thosetalents and ability.
And it's like, I put so muchpractice and so much time and
effort and work behind thescenes that you probably don't
know.
I have 20 years doing this.
This doesn't just come easy,but it comes if you want to
learn.
There's that part and thataspect, and we're all capable of
(29:38):
creating.
Tamara Robertson (29:39):
As you're looking at, or as I guess, as
the audience is looking atpotentially wanting to get into
a place where they can shareskills that they have and build
community around it.
Is there any advice that youwould give, you know, people
young and old that I think, Hey,I think my next adventure is
going to be paying it forward.
Like who else can I gethands-on with the tools that I
(30:01):
love every day?
Theresa (30:03):
I love that.
Yes.
Uh, The first thing, you know,a lot of people are intimidated
right away.
Like I'm not good at sharing orteaching.
I don't know what to do.
And the thing is, is we're alldifferent.
Understand, like, like, likeembrace your uniqueness.
The way that you're going toteach is not the same way
(30:26):
someone else is going to teach.
And that's okay.
You don't have to be perfect atit the first time.
You just have to start justlike anything else, just like
this Bronco right behind me.
You just have to get out thereand start.
So reaching out, you know, itcould be just, you know, on
social media, like showing, hey,a little how-to of what you did
(30:46):
in the garage, you know, sothat, you know, someone else
might ask a question, you know,like, Hey, you know, we're doing
things like with this, like howto remove our bed liner.
Well, we went through, youknow, multiple tools and we were
like, oh my gosh, this was somuch easier.
We want to share that with allof you.
So you don't have to deal withthe same type of stress that we
(31:07):
did of going through that, youknow?
So just get out there and doit, you know, put a one minute
video up of just a how to, andit's that simple to get started,
but don't be afraid.
Like, Are there going to bepeople that think they know more
than you?
Of course there are, you know,but the thing is, is let them
know that I don't knoweverything still.
(31:28):
I am, I am a, you know, I amalways growing.
I'm always learning.
Embrace that.
Don't, don't go out there andthink you're better than
everyone and you're going to befine.
You just, you know, learn alongthe way, have fun doing it and
just get out there and sharewhat your skill is with the
world.
Tamara Robertson (31:46):
Yeah, that's exactly right.
Because I feel like everytime...
Whether it's teaching a STEMcamp or a resin class or a
welding class, like I'm learningjust as much through the people
that I'm teaching as they'relearning from me.
Like I remember being at DOPUwith you this year and doing the
resin class.
And I had this one person whothey were amazing.
(32:11):
They were like, Oh, I do thisall day long.
And they were showing meBattlestar Galactica builds that
they've done with resin and SLAprinting and all.
And then they were like tellingme, they're like, Hey, you
know, if you want to be able todo this a little faster, you
could do it in this way.
And I'm like, please keepgiving me the guidance.
Like, because it is one ofthose things.
Right?
Yeah.
Any trade skill, you know, weall are going to have the number
(32:35):
of hours it takes to becomewhat we consider mastered at it.
But then there's so much morethat you learn by being in it
every single day that perhapssomeone else doesn't see, you
know, if I'm predominantlymaking, you know, jewelries and
trinkets and things like that,I'm not going to see what
someone that's making likeactual structural, like
(32:56):
starships are going to beseeing.
Right.
And so there's this reallycool.
ways to just as a communitycollectively learn.
So I just love it.
I love it.
Theresa (33:06):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So for me, like residencestuff, I'm doing fiberglass.
So I'm going to be buildingfiberglass fenders for this.
So I have like the shape of thewheel well, because I'm going
to be building that out.
And that's how, so like yousaid, the structure of that
completely different, the typeof resin I'm going to be using
is different.
You know, all of these thingsare, are different in that
(33:29):
aspect, but it's just what welove doing with, with real deal
is getting that basic groundlevel of, of just inspiring
people to go out there and tryto do it, you know?
Yep.
Tamara Robertson (33:40):
And what I love about the workshops is that
we really do spark thatinterest by taking away the
fear.
Right.
And that was one of thosethings that I really love that
Jessi used to say is that like,it's not about like, not having
fear.
It's about moving forward withyour fear, right?
And that fearlessness was moreabout...
(34:01):
Fearlessly moving forward, eventhough, you know, you might be
terrified.
And so I love that, you know,we take away the scary aspect of
welding by literally gettingthem in the tent, sparking it
up, letting them get hands on,letting them know like, hey,
here are a couple safety thingsthat you should be aware of when
you're around it.
But otherwise, like take thetorch and go like literally
(34:25):
getting to pass that torch andgetting people hands on.
I mean, like, it's always myfavorite thing to see this.
And the first time that theylike weld something together and
they're like, oh my gosh, likeI did that.
I did that with fire.
I did, you know, like, I'mlike, that's it.
Theresa (34:39):
And that's hands on.
That's, that's exactly thatmoment.
The spark, right?
Yeah.
That moment of them going, Idid that.
See, it's, it's not even us.
Like, All we're doing issharing something with them.
They're doing it.
They're the ones creating.
And that's what we're sharingwith everyone.
And like you said, it's thatfear.
It's the intimidation factor.
(35:00):
That's what Jessi and I wantedto do is that the second people
come up, they're like, oh, I'vealways wanted to weld.
I've always wanted a pinstripe.
And we're like, great, you'regoing to do it right now.
And they're like, I'm sorry,what?
And it's that little thing thatlike triggering your mind that
you're like, wait, I'm reallyconfused right now, but I guess
I can't say no.
I literally just told them Iwant to learn this, you know?
(35:20):
Like, so it's funny because itjust, it switches and we all
know like how our mind worksbecause we're like, oh,
comfortable.
Like, no, no, that's too muchfor me.
And we're like, we're here.
We got you.
We create this community andthat's what we're doing.
We're connecting with people ina different way that like
allows them to know we're therefor them.
(35:42):
You know, in the moment theyknow that, that we got their
back, like they're all in, youknow?
And so that's what we're outthere building.
Tamara Robertson (35:49):
Which I absolutely love.
And, and it's all, it doesn'tmatter the ages, right?
Like young and old, we're alllearning.
And so speaking of teaching anot so young dog, new tricks,
you are launching a wholeYouTube channel for Baja Forge.
So awesome.
What has that been like?
(36:10):
What are some of your learningsthat you're already coming
across as you jump into this newendeavor?
Like you needed another thingto do, right?
Theresa (36:21):
Well, yeah, exactly.
So, you know, okay.
Building the Bronco first offwas been like, it's been that
thing that definitely the fearwas there.
The fear has been there.
Like, oh my gosh, should I dothis?
There's, you know, I got tosink a ton of money into this.
(36:42):
I already know that it's goingto take a ton of my time.
I'm going to have to likecompletely kind of change the
way I'm doing things.
Like I have to actually, youknow, devote and dedicate more
time to this than I am doingother things right now.
So, so yeah.
I am completely changing somany things in my life to try to
(37:03):
do, including doing like achannel too.
We're like, how can we not dothis?
So like one of the things isI've been building SEMA vehicles
for 20 years and we can nevertalk about them until the SEMA
show, until they're revealed tothe rest of the world.
But then none of the behind thescenes gets talked about in
(37:24):
like the craziness of the longnights and the long hours of
people not seeing andunderstanding what people are
really going through, likecutting something in half.
Like, where do you cut it?
Why do you cut it here?
What do you have to dobeforehand?
So like, you know, we had tobuild a structure to hold
everything together before wecut it so it stays together.
(37:47):
You know, like there's justthings like that along the way,
which were like, you know, weneed to share this.
We need to share the hard stuffthat we deal with, you know,
all the trials along the way.
And yes, learning video andcapturing content and what that
looks like, that's a wholenother, you know, learning curve
(38:07):
and education.
Do we need to do it?
Absolutely.
This is like, you know, the newera of what that looks like.
And you have to be capturingcontent.
You really do.
So I don't, you know, like,almost anything that you're
doing.
If you are a small businessowner, you are doing anything to
sell, you have to be capturingcontent.
(38:30):
So what we've really done iswe're trying to showcase the
build on, you know, the actualsteps.
I mean, we're in the middle ofnowhere.
We don't have a lift here.
So we're using a forklift tolift the body up, you know, and
that's the thing is, don't letthings stop you like we want it
yeah and right and we want toshow people like don't let that
stop you like well I don't havethis okay what's your next
(38:53):
option let's figure it out youknow and so it's really getting
to that point of like sharingthat with the world of like you
know like that doesn't stop uslike like if you have a dream
realize like anything ispossible like Just keep talking
about it, putting it out there,and the gears will turn.
(39:14):
Someone will chime in here andthere, whatever, and it'll
happen, and it'll all cometogether.
And sometimes you don't evenknow how it's happening, and it
just does.
Tamara Robertson (39:26):
And so we're coming down to time, and there's
one question I love to askevery single person that's on
the show, and that is, if youcould have a superpower, what
would it be and why?
Theresa (39:37):
Oh, no.
Uh, that's just such a loadedquestion.
Oh gosh.
A superpower.
Oh.
It could also be a super
Tamara Robertson (39:49):
tech, you know, you could be like, be like
Iron Man and have one coolpiece of tech or something.
Theresa (39:55):
I guess it would be to flash into different areas.
Like if I had to be here andthen I could show up in my paint
booth instantly and be like,Oh, I'm doing this and I got
this.
And then flash back to where Ineed to be.
So flash is a good one.
I love lightning bolts too.
Right.
So, you know, that's kind of mything is the lightning bolt.
So I
Tamara Robertson (40:16):
love that.
I love that.
I would
Theresa (40:18):
just like be there.
Tamara Robertson (40:19):
Nightcrawler can totally do that.
He like dissolves and appearsin different places and then the
flash just gets there superfast.
So I love it.
Super speed, get lots of thingsdone.
So, okay, everyone, the HemingsGreat Race kicks off June 21st
in St.
Paul, Minnesota, and we'll runall the way until we hit the
finish line, hopefully on June29th in Moorpark, Irmo, South
(40:40):
Carolina.
Follow our Instagrams to stayup to date with all things
Creator Race as we tackle thisiconic vintage rally road race
one mile at a time.
That's it for Tinkering Bells.
This episode is assembled andready for delivery.
Theresa, this has been soamazing.
Thank you so much.
Theresa (40:57):
Always fun chatting with you.
And I will get to see you inperson at the Great Race.
Tamara Robertson (41:02):
So excited.
I'm so excited.
I want to thank you forchoosing Tinkering Bells as your
user's manual for all thingsMaker on a bi-weekly basis.
If you want to continue to hearmore, don't forget to rate and
review the show on yourpodcasting app of choice, as
well as sharing it with yourfriends.
I look forward to seeing younext time.
Until then, don't forget tokeep making!
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