Introducing Ann Glennon, a 27 year old Packaging Consultant, part-time sidekick for Four and Rotary Promotions in Auckland and not to mention one of the female pioneers of the car scene.

First of all would you mind telling us a little bit about yourself?
Born and bred in South Auckland, I'm the middle child from a very grounded car-enthusiast family and background. My dad was a panel beater, my step-dad is a mechanic, my younger sister is a car enthusiast (and one of my key members in Girlspeed) and everyone I grew up with had petrol in their blood. This is definitely where my passion first came from and for me, cars aren't just a way of getting from A to B. They are a symbol of independence and freedom, a way of expressing yourself, a great way to bring people together and even an extension of one's own character or personality. I'm also the President of Girlspeed, and have been since the club was formed in 2002.

When did you first get involved in the NZ car scene?
That would have been in 2000 that I started looking for a car club to join. At the time I co-owned a gorgeous 92 MR2 and I didn't know anyone else that was interested in modifying their car, other than the Sunday afternoon quick-fix with the good ol' angle grinder. The very first club I came across was NZMMC (who are now known as MMC I believe). We didn't fit in too well there with a Toyota, so the poor 3S-GTE got the chop for a very flashy loooking Mitsubishi Evolution 4. After a couple of meets however, I decided that joining just wasn't for me, so after some digging and googling, I came across the old boyracer.co.nz forums (back before that term carried the negativity associated with it nowadays). It wasn't long before I came across the likes of Jenna Thomson (of PNKBTZ fame), Annette McVerry, Kimberly Rust and other long-time female car enthusiasts that showed me there wasn't really a home for ladies that were interested in working on their cars or throwing them around a track or strip. It was from the many discussions and the shared question of "Where do we fit in the performance car scene?" that Girlspeed was born. Club President is a fairly loose term as alot of work comes from my committee members, coordinators around the country and my secretary/treasurer/2IC, Christy Booth.

What made you decide to enter your first show?
My very first show was Autosalon 2002 with the civic, and I entered as a favour to my painters at the time. To be honest, the show didn't really do it for me. In 2003 I entered a club stand with Girlspeed and the bug bit hard from there. It was just so much more fun doing a display with other girls. I think I had way too many Red Bulls and missed way too much sleep that weekend but it really got the wheels in motion for Girlspeed and other females getting out there and displaying in shows.



Recently you were apart of the V 4 and Rotary Team that assisted at the 3 shows located throughout New Zealand, How did you get into that?
I've known Azhar for quite some time now through Girlspeed and work that we do with our sponsors, and I've always offered my help with the events. In 2008, Az took me up on my offer for Nationals and this year I'm back onboard for all three events. Alot of us that work on the team behind the scenes know each other from our previous work in or around the car scene, so that just makes things alot easier when it comes down to business.

With your recent experience with V 4 and Rotary promotions and also life experience is there something you have learnt that you would like to pass onto others?
Service = #1! I was so used to being treated as a number when entering events and coming from a service-related background, I found this really disheartening. We've really tried in 2008 & 2009 to make competitors feel good about coming along to events and have done our best to ensure that competitors, as well as consumers, are being treated as customers and with the best level of service that we can provide. If competitors can enjoy the events as much as we enjoy running them, then my work is done!

What is a quote that you live by or believe in?
"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you". I've always loved the simplicity of the ethic of reciprocity - it's a pity more people don't at least try to follow it. There's also a saying that you can tell alot about a person by the car they drive. I hope that isn't true to be honest, my car is always so dirty and in winter always smells like sweaty netball shoes.



Any advise for like minded woman wanting to give it a go?
Join a female car club - it's alot easier to get around the scene when you have a happy, willing community that you're a part of. Of course you can always join a mixed car club, but you'll find it's alot more supportive in a female car club.

What is your favourite make or model of car?
Anywhere between the Mazda RX2 and the 5.2L V10 Audi R8!

When you are not doing anything car orientated where would we find you?
At work, on a netball court, at the rink or on the couch (obviously my preferred place to be haha).

What plans do you have for the future?
4NR Jamboree of course. The event is going to go off, so I've been counting down ever since South Island Champs. Am also project car-shopping at the moment for myself, which has been a long time coming. Other than that, I'm really looking forward to some time off from events for a wee bit to just chill out and get back to basics.

If you could name three things you couldn't live without, what would they be?
My GHD's, iPOD and my forester of course.



With the current media releases happening throughout New Zealand what do you see happening to the car scene in the future?
The cars on the show circuit have dropped numbers a little bit compared to the years beforehand but the standard of cars out there is just amazing and higher than it has been in previous years. This year's 4NR Nationals has been the best event I've attended period and I think that's just fantastic in the current economic times. Fingers crossed we see 4NR in Christchurch again next year. For 4NR - bigger, better and brighter in 2010.

What is your all time favourite thing when your not doing anything car related?
Hanging out with my friends, with a couple of cocktails and some good tunes.

What do you believe is your biggest achievement to date?
In terms of the car scene, I would say Girlspeed and hopefully playing a small role in getting more ladies out of the woodwork and into clubs and the car scene. I love that there are so many ladies competing at events and really enjoying themselves while they do it.

Is there anybody you would like to take the oppurtunity to thank?
Everyone that's helped me over the years - Girlspeed, Azhar and the crew at 4NR, all our lovely sponsors (especially the guys at Mag and Turbo Panmure) and most importantly, my friends and family, for always being there to do all the scabby jobs I come up with at the last minute and for having no problem with shovelling trailer loads of wet, smelly bark on a Saturday or Sunday evening.

Thanks very much for your time today Ann and from the Team at Wheels and Heels we wish you the best of Luck for the future.