Having spent a portion of their early years redeveloping coastal communities in Southern California, Larry and his wife, Karen, knew where to seek out their dream home when the time presented itself. When they discovered it, nestled in the hills overlooking the vast Pacific Ocean, they knew they’d found their sanctuary, their place to call home.
And, as it turned out, it was an ideal spot for Larry to create his ultimate garage.
“We’ve lived in the area for 37-years, and we like it here,” said Larry. “We were really fortunate to have found this house; it does everything just right for us. Especially the garage.”
Larry has always enjoyed designing and building, a talent he put to good use preparing his garage just for him.
“It was a sizable garage, and still is, and that size enabled me to design a layout within that worked for me, integrating where cabinets, outlets, machinery and so on would be,” he said. “I worked in construction, which made a lot of sense, because I love working with my hands, problem solving, and tinkering.”
As such, he’s always trying to stay one step ahead of the technology curve, keep abreast of emerging advancements, and try new things. For example, in 1976, he designed and built an electric skateboard, followed up in 1978 with an electric go-cart.
“The go-cart was capable of speeds over 80-miles per hour,” he said.
He amassed many awards, and developed a sizable reputation in the hobby world, and the bug has never been silenced. Lately, his garage has come in especially handy as he’s been dedicating his time to building one-of-a kind model tether cars. Electric, gas, and even CO2–powered, each of these cars took over 800-hours to complete. Obviously that’s a lot of time to work in any garage.
“Working on these cars, to me, is challenging and fun. I look forward to each and every new project,” he said. “It’s part of the reason I’m glad I took the time to develop a really nice garage, one that was well thought out and purposefully designed for me, by me.”
Larry and Karen both wanted a garage that was easy to park within, a pleasure to return home to, a comfortable place to enjoy company, and fun. Because of this, it was important that the space be kept clean, organized, and easy to use, but also serves Larry’s interest in building, designing, and tinkering. Accommodating both demands, the garage morphed into a sort of working museum – clean enough and organized enough to be impressive and enjoyable, but robust enough and with enough space and tools to allow Larry a lot of creative freedom.
When Larry commenced on his garage remodel, he wasn’t without help – he worked in construction. But, the entire project, from designing and gutting to rebuilding and enjoying, took six months to complete. He outsourced a few things, such as the floor, for which he depended upon J. A. Smith Company to apply a smooth, durable, clean epoxy coating.
“The smooth surface makes it a lot easier to keep clean, and it looks great,” said Larry.
Using bright-white walls and ceilings with clean T8 fluorescent lighting and an ample amount of window space for plenty of natural light, the garage never seems dark or shadowy. Unlike many larger garages, Larry’s is light and airy, creating a very welcoming, open feeling, perfect for high energy, and getting the creative juices flowing. It also doesn’t impose or overwhelm which, in and of itself, for a larger garage is an accomplishment.
“I wanted to create something fun, a place I and others wanted to go to,” he said.
Arranging glass-door display cabinets and shelves for pictures, die cast, models, and other collectibles, butcher-block topped work benches, and blue Lista drawers around the garage allowed him to showcase the things that he enjoyed so much – from the tether cars to pictures of his first car to projects past and on-going, Larry designed his perfect space. It’s as if the fun he had creating the space spilled into the aura of the garage.
“I have organized the garage for my purposes; it’s efficient and useful,” he said. “But it’s also aesthetically pleasing to people – I love tinkering in here.”
Even Larry’s watch collection came into play with the garage. Many of the watches he’s gathered need to be wound to keep them going. After seeing a watch winder, he was impressed by the craftsmanship and was interested in designing and building his own. After 700-hours of research, design, and development, Larry’s watch winder was completed – a beautiful brass device that winds five watches at a time.
“It was a challenge to produce it, but it was fun, and I learned a lot doing it,” he said.
Larry’s arsenal of equipment that helped him create and craft the watch winder, and several other projects, such as grinders, lathes, belt sanders, and more are arranged almost artfully around the garage, like a collector might arrange sculptures. In spite of the large amount of space these tools occupy, the size of the garage, and the arrangement of the pieces complement both the working and museum sides of the garage.
Above the main floor is a finished attic space, essentially a small, narrow room; however, Larry has maximized the space with many compartments which are filled with all kinds of artifacts and old tools. As Larry says, it gives the garage a Willy Wonka flair.
“It’s a fun little escape,” he said.
Aside from showcasing his interest in creating and using tools, his garage proves to be the perfect place to showcase his passion for automobiles. In his youth, Larry enjoyed racing and maintaining the first car he bought, a 1960 Chevy with a potent 348-V8. While he sold this car many years ago, it launched his appreciation towards all cars, especially those of a performance variety.
“I had a 409-powered Chevy after the 348,” he said. “Both of them were brutal, but so much fun. I have bought and sold a few cars since then, but I am more of a keeper; I buy what I like and just keep it around.”
Through his tenure with cars, Larry grew to appreciate a diverse spectrum of vehicles, but leans toward sports cars. One of his favorite cars, of which he is the original owner, is a 1969 Porsche 911S.
“I loved the torque of muscle cars, but it’s nice to be able to stop and turn as aptly as accelerate, and sports cars see to that,” he said.
The 911S is one of three Porsches in the family, but he’s also owned for a number of years an original fuel injected 1957 Corvette, 1926 Ford Model T, and a Ferrari 430. In the past, Larry also enjoyed driving and meticulously maintaining an F512M Ferrari, 1955 Chevy Convertible, and a 1979 Twin Turbo Porsche.
“It’s a lot of fun driving these cars in the winding hills near our home, and returning to my dream garage,” he said.
We wonder which is more fun – the driving or returning?
