The Jalopy JournalThe 2010 Grand National Roadster Show
I walked a lot this weekend. I think there were seven (or eight?) buildings packed full of cars for the 2010 Grand National Roadster Show. Who’s counting? I certainly wasn’t. I was too busy admiring this thing of ours. Granted, The Jalopy Journal focuses almost entirely on the traditional (or at least the traditionally inspired), but there are other factions out there and they too are full of creativity, craftsmanship, and just down right good folks.
A guy named Hector enthusiastically showed me the finer points of his lowrider while it sat perched atop some crazy show contraption. Rick couldn’t smile enough that his track bike made it on the main floor. Joe K. was just tickled shitless to have his contemporary styled roadster on the road, much less in the show. Dennis and Jeff were pretty damned proud as well – their custom project has come so far and looked stunning under the lights.
If you were at the show, you probably heard or participated in a conversation based around what cars should and shouldn’t have been there. If you weren’t, you’ve probably read some of the same. I guess it’s human nature to attack the different and praise the familiar – I admit to doing the same more often than not. But for whatever reasons, I didn’t do that this weekend. Instead, I enjoyed all of it… and I enjoyed the folks that made it all happen. It was quite refreshing to park the cynicism and just take it ALL in.
That’s not to say that the 2010 GNRS wasn’t a good haven for the traditionalist. Quite the contrary in fact. Three of my top-5 favorite hot rods of all time were in attendance – the Dick Flynt Roadster, the Navarro Roadster, and the Niekamp Roadster. Each set the stage for their perspective buildings…
The Dick Flynt Roadster was located in the Rod & Custom Cover Car exhibit. This little building was put together by my pal Rob Fortier (editor of Rod & Custom Magazine) and featured a number of historically significant cars such as Blackies’ T and Pratt’s ’58 Chevrolet. The small yet clean space gave you the feeling of a museum, but the best aspect was the fact that the cars weren’t roped off. Blake, Silva, and myself must have spent a solid hour studying the various cars within. We’ve all seen most of the cars in person before, but none of us could get enough.
The Navarro Roadster was housed in a building dedicated to race cars. Axle (of Shifters fame) helped put this exhibit together and I can honestly say that it was the best indoor car show exhibit I have ever had the honor of browsing. The Hilborn recreation, the So-Cal tank, the Pierson Brothers coupe, the Triple Nickle, etc… The list goes on and on… Even so, it was the Eddie Miller streamliner that had me most in awe. I had never seen the little racer in person and the time spent studying the gorgeous craftsmanship was worth more than I can elaborate.
The Niekamp car, of course, was located in the main hall with the actual AMBR award contenders. Which brings me to a point of sorts – a few years ago, I bitched and complained about the competitors for this award (apparently, my hypocrisy knows no bounds). I felt that there was a lack of history represented in the field and that the cars judged were mostly generic and hunting for any kind of personality. Things felt different this year. Amongst the competitors were two or maybe even three traditionally styled cars and many of the rest of the field gave nods to tradition by way of a hint or two. This overall direction made me smile a bit.
Of course, this makes a good segway into the 2010 Jalopy Journal Roadster Pick. Logan Davis’ ’28 Ford roadster sat in a pseudo display with the rest of his club’s cars. I believe they call themselves The Reelers and they hail from somewhere in the Los Angeles area. A quick glance at the cars in the group tell you with no uncertainty that these fellas love and appreciate the late 1940’s style of hot rod. I studied each intently as I share the same tastes. The instant I got to Logan’s roadster, I leaned over to Blake and mentioned that I thought we had probably found our first contender for the 2010 Jalopy Journal Roadster Pick. Less than 48 hours and just over 4,000 votes later, Logan’s roadster won the award.
In the grand scheme of things, these awards don’t mean much to many. In my mind, a legacy is made while driving a car, not while parking it. Still, our little award means a lot to me… And I can only hope it means a lot to Logan too. I had to hop on an airplane and never got a chance to meet him, but all of his buddies gave him glowing reviews. He must be one of us.
The Logan Davis Roadster was parked in the Suede Pavilion. This was another building setup by Axle and it’s widely accepted as the “young man’s” exhibit. Rockabilly music, vendors, characters, etc… graced the floor. Sandwiched between them all was one hell of a gathering of real hot rods and customs. Unlike many of the other exhibits, most the cars housed felt ready to go – hop in, push the starter, dump the clutch, and tear ass towards the snow capped mountains that backdrop Pomona. Charm and quality all wrapped up in one big damned quonset hut.
I rest my case. The 2010 GNRS is over.
Special Thanks:
Blake. A good pal of mine… and yours. If it weren’t for Blake, this year’s photos might have been as bad as last years. He’s also a damn good travel partner that doesn’t fart all that often and even let me listen to 93.5 fm the entire time we cruised our hybrid rental. Pal, next time we will find a way to do the Ferrari.
Acme Speed Shop. I can’t say enough about John Mearns & his Acme Speed Shop. Not only do they sponsor our trophy everyyear, but John also makes sure it gets given out when I’m well on my way back to Texas. Put shortly, he makes this shit happen.
Axle. Another one that made it happen… Literally. Axle put together my favorite exhibit (the race cars) as well as the Suede Pavillion (a not too distant second in my mind). In between all of that, he also made sure that I got taken care of. I wouldn’t have done this thing this year if it weren’t for Axle.
The H.A.M.B. We had just over 4000 votes in under 48 hours. That’s pretty incredible to think about. Thanks to all of you that voted this year… It was also fun to meet a shit ton of ya at the meet and greet. Yeah, I attended… How bout that?
The Contenders. You guys brought out some incredible stuff this year. We all thank you for it.
Texans. Thanks to my pals that rolled out and supported me all weekend. I love you all.
Finally, here’s some favorite random shots from the cameras – mine and Blake’s:
