“The Guys”
John has known Leno the longest; with a penchant for motorcycles, Leno and he ripped up some LA roads years ago on the two-wheelers. Those times are part of what helped them to forge a friendship, and a working relationship. John began maintaining Leno’s motorcycles in the early-90’s, when Leno had just begun building his ultimate garage. All the tools, equipment, and extra help were still yet to come.
Born in Switzerland, raised in Southern California, Bernard grew up in the hot rod heyday. He later established himself in Northern California, and ran a Jaguar shop, and built a good reputation racing E-Types. He and Leno met when an XK120 was giving Leno a bit of grief; later, when Bernard decided he was going to close the Jag shop and retire, Leno asked him to come work with his cars, and Bernard hasn’t looked back.
“There is always something to do here, it’s always fresh,” Bernard said.
When the garage needed additional help, Bernard’s vintage racing buddy popped up on the radar. Jim Hall’s work as a fabricator on a variety of racing teams was second to none, and he was a terrific addition to the team.
Per had been working at a body shop in Santa Barbara, and was doing some work on one of Bob’s Corvettes. Bob recognized the skill level that Per offered, and was able to convince him to come work at the Big Dog Garage.
“It’s terrific here, there is so much to do, it never ends,” said Per.
