What was the first NSRA Nats that you attended and what do you remember about it?

THATS IT!!---------Don

 

Where to start... I have only missed two Nationals, Peoria in '70 and Detroit in '72. My club, the Minnesota SRA was instrumental in setting up the event in Peoria and Tex Smith, Bud Bryan and Tom Medley asked us for some help. MSRA members Gary Magner and Gene Sonnen pitched in and got help from other members to man games, parking, etc. Gene also got the #1 registration number and his '40 was featured in R&C and other mags. Gene still owns the car and it looks as great now as it did then with the Dave Bell and "Peanuts" flame job. The MSRA was presented the Club Participation Award, a basket case Model T C-Cab that Tex Smith happened to have in Idaho. Tex gave it as sort of a joke, but the club said we would build it and drive it to the next Nats in Memphis the next year where we would give it away to a lucky street rodder. The club built it ( R&C covered the build in the magazine) and all the winner had to do was guess how much actual money MSRA had invested in the rod. A fellow from Alabama came within $1.50 of the actual amount, something like $260, and he won the car. I wonder if the C-Cab is still around??
Other memorable Nationals has to be 1982 in St. Paul when the MSRA greeted a bunch of rodders (30+) from England. Working with journalists Mike Key and Ian Penberthy, and tour guide David Bates, we arranged to meet the visiting Brits at the airport with their busses (so they thought). We worked with the airport police and had some 50 street rods cruise in to pick them up. It was quite a sight to see all of the Brits trying to decide which street rod to get in. Pure pandemonium! It all worked out and we took them to their hotel to get checked in. We made some life-long friends out of that experience. That is what is so great about the NSRA Street Rod Nationals... the friends you make that you may only see once a year at the Nats.
I have many more memorable thoughts of the Nationals, but this is getting too long now, so maybe I will come back later with more. JJ

 

Tulsa, 1973. I had busted my butt for about two months to turn a 75.00 48 Chev beater into a presentable painted an upholstered rod. The paint and upholstery were finished in the last week before the event per H.A,M.B. rules for taking your rig to it's first real event.

A few highlights or non highlights were:
plugging up a batch of fuel filters because we didn't tape off the gas tank filler neck when we painted it.
Rebuilding the transmission with junk yard parts in Marietta Ok with the help of Texan Bob Davis of TSTI instructor and 56 F100 fame.

On the grounds of the event seeing the famous at the time cars including the yellow Pete and Jake coupe, Dan Wood's C cab rig and many more that I had seen in the magazines.

Walking back to the truck to find a teenager having his photo taken beside it because he had a project like it in the works. I think that was the biggest "makes my day" thing of the weekend.
Standing in line for the rubber chicken barbecue dinner with Tex Smith (even he didn't get cuts in that line) and the awards after the dinner which we didn't get much of.

Getting hassled at the back gate by the gate guy because he said my 48 was too new to be in the event. I actually had to pull out my Texas vehicle registration to satisfy him on that one even though I had been at the event for two days before that.

My wife discovering that she really liked red 40 Ford Deluxe coupes. I could always find her as all I had to do is know where one certain coupe was.

Listening to the stories told by the Minnesota Street Rod repair crew of cars they had to go out and either fix or drag back to be fixed including one with 1/2 in conduit with flattened ends for radius rods.

My wife napping with her feet out the passenger window on the way South to McGregor Tx on Sunday and getting the bottoms of her feet sunburned.

With all the bugs worked out on the way up the truck worked like a champ on the way back south.
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Tulsa..........all the hot rods were pre-1948.

 

Tulsa '76, walking around in 3" platform shoes, watching Jake stripe, and sleeping in my '65 Chevy Impala at a truck stop 40 miles away. I loved it. The next time I went to an NSRA event was 1988 Louisville pinstriping next Herb Martinez. Was fun and hot.

Mikey did it
"does bad things to good cars"
www.mikeyspinstriping.com
www.autopsycho.com

 

Detroit 72, lived in Kalamazoo took my then eight yr and 10 yr old son's. for the day, remember lot of people complaining about the Pot Holes in Mi roads, I thought it's Mi whats the problem? We all live in Ca now!

 

I set a goal years (20+ yrs ago) to drive my own to a nats. By the time i was 50. Well i missed it by 7 yrs. So big deal. I drove my 48 chev. Areosedan. Got a early bird pin and loved every damn minute of it. Met some really great people and stayed until all was over. Came home on monday (9 1/2 hrs ) and told the wife i thought i had caught a case of limes disease. Drank too many corona's with limes in them. Will most likely not go again because i have dropped nsra because they have priced themselves out of my market and i don't care for the new rules. Hey,, to each his own , everybody has got to be somewhere.

 

Detroit 1972-remember riding around in the back of John[punk] Greer's Brinks Express when it was green. Went there with Butch Brinza in has wild pickup. Went to a party at Bob Reynolds house where He had a 32 two door body in the garage. Drove Joe Konkles El Camino back to Milwaukee on the return. God that was long ago

 

St Paul mn. fair grounds in 85, never saw so many hot rods in my life, reported to be 7000 at the time. I recall super hot, super humid mostly. I also recall seeing Jerry Morelands 40 there and at the Nostalgia Natls in Fremont Ca

 

"super humid" from the land of 10,000 lakes + ponds + swamps + rivers + creeks, yep! gets darn humid up there.

 

Tulsa, Oklahoma**** A ton of cars in the city!!! Got me hooked from that day on ....was in the 70's!

 

I wonder if you were looking at my red 3 window. Did it have Texas plates?

 

2004 Springfield MO. All I really remember is alot of streetrods with air conditioning. I don't recall seeing to many traditional style cars. And it was extremely hot.

 

I've never been to the Nats, but my Essex was driven to Memphis and Columbus by the original builder in '80 & 81. Still have the dash plaques stuck on the dash.

The only NSRA event I've made it to was the NW Nats in Spokane. Did that one 6 times between 1992 & 2001, in 3 different rods. I dropped my membership after they dropped Spokane from the schedule.

 

My first nats was '71 Memphis driving a '39 Ford pickup (my first hot rod); don't remember much, I was 23!! Next was '75 Memphis..then '76 Tulsa and remember the heavy partying and the streakers!..then I drove my just completed 32 Stude President all night to get to Columbus in '78. I was fortunate to have Tom Medley do a 2 page feature in R&C and I remain good friends today with Tom...then Mempho '80!!! (WOW) it was hot hot and 7 couples stayed with a friend at his 3BR home!! My friend Bill Akin and I were lucky enough to be in the Top 25 and we still drive these same two cars today!!! And the partying at the HQ motel...all went well with the police until some guys started bailing off the 4th and 5th floor balconies into the indoor pool (naked)!! Then I flew to OKC in '84 and rode back to Memphis with Bill in his '40. Nine guys shared a motel room in OKC!! I was out of hot rodding until '97 due to business commitments and I've attended every Louisville Nats since.
OH the memories are priceless and the many friends I've met along the way have been a highlight of my life...

 

If only we could gey all thoose paper copies pics scanned for internet sharing.
Thanks guys !
primerkid

 

1970 Peoria. MSRA, Slo-Pokes in Peoria and Bud Bryan of R & C came up with the idea. I was honored to rep MSRA on the endeavor as I was in LA a lot on business and met Bud regularly pulling the event together with all the early member of MSRA. There was no NSRA at the Peoria Street Rod Nationals but Walker & Bugg attended and wisely incorporated the idea. What a success that turned out to be. To be completely correct, the actual first "Nationals" was in Madison ,Wisc. which I missed. Backin the day MSRA never dreamed that Back To the 50's would be as large or larger than the NATS. Regards most vivid memory in Peoria 1970 was meeting with Jake of Pete & Jakes, Tom Medley and so many of the 'California Godfathers' that Bud Bryan had introduced me to earlier. There we were in the middle of no where (no offense Peoria) and anyone that was anybody in street riodding attended. OK so that is an exageration, but seeing so many cars from TN, CA, and ,mostly Minnesota was truly amazing.

That said, hats off to The Good Guys for a truly exceptional organization as well.

 

Yes, I only beat you by one. Elvis? That may have been true!

 

I drove my 34 ford p/u to the louisville nats in i believe 2003, had a blast, met a bunch of hambers at the Hamb tent, then went home and joined the hamb!

I know ive been the nats in years past when they were in st paul, with my dad, but im not sure what ones, i was born in 81, so any after 81 in st paul i was probably at!

JEFF

 

My first grand nationals was St. Paul with members of Vintage Tin of Maryland. After then I attended Timonium of course, then, Oklahoma, Memphis, North Carolina, Columbus, Louisville, so many times. I met many friends and have kept in touch with lots of them over the years throughout the country. Most memorable was the time I think in Columbus when mooning was the rage and a bunch of guys were on the top of a large tractor trailer as it pulled away from across the street from the headquarters hotel and dropped trow in front of everyone standing outside the hotel and in the parking lot. I think Phyllis Diller was a headliner show at that hotel that night and a lot of rich folks were taken aback at the anticks of the street rodders as they left the show when the trailer was moving out. Oh, what a site that was. Also, I think that was the same year that Posie jumped off a 3rd or 4th floor balcony railing inside the hotel into the center swimming pool naked!
Things were really gettin' a little crazy but fun and no one was getting hurt.

 

The first street rod nationals was in Peoria and I was working with Rod & Custom as a photgrapher along with some other MSRA guys who put this first event on with the Slo Pokes of Peoria and Tom Medley and a hiost of west coast guys. The NSRA was incorporated after our first show. By right, this summers show (2010) is #40, not #41. A technicality yes, but accurate. Nice to see some serious competition move in on NSRA. Things will only get better. Aside, the only other multi state meet was in Madison, WI in 1966 or so.

 

Went to the '71 Nats in Memphis. Drove up there in my '59 Vette. Owned a '34 2-door sedan that was not ready for the trip. Met Bud Bryan face to face after talkin' with him on the phone many times. Drove up to Tulsa in '73 from New Orleans in a silver/black '34 sedan that Arthur Borchgrevink of Metairie, La. and I thrashed-on EVERY night for three months to get it done. We were still glueing parts on that car an hour before we left, with only one trip around the block as a test drive. Made the trip w/o a hitch. Also made the '75 Nats in Memphis. We've also attended several SW Mini-Nats in OKC. DD

 

I remember that show like it was yesterday, I had a 33 Ford cpe, just finished it,kinda sorta, I had never driven it except around the block a dozen times. My buddy and I loaded up drove 3 blocks to the gas station put fuel in it and saw my new radiator pissing green shit on the ground. The guy that built my radiator didn't solder the top neck in very well. So I told my buddy to go meet the crowd where we were suppose to meet up with and tell them we're broke ain't going. So off he goes, Well fuck that I said after he left, I pull all the front shit off ran up to another radiator shop he fixed it but said it wouldn't hold up. Well, by the time my bud got back to the house it was going back together.. We arrived in OKC 1/2 after our group did, they ate lunch and all that shit, we ran across Kansas 80+ That was most damn fun I ever had in an old car It was hot and with the windshield open the bugs were Green and really big... Oh what a time!

 

I was at Peoria 1970 . My most vivid memories are of Tom Tulley in a goofy hat, The card table that was manned at the Sands? Motel parking lot signing up memberships for the NSRA, A certain 33-34 ford five window coupe powered by a big block chevy with jackson injectors.. The Captain America T-bucket. A purple Deuce roadster named California Dreamin with silver fenders , Andy's Instant T AMBR winner , Man it was so cool! I did'nt know that I was in the center of the BIG BANG. I don't think anybody did. There was hardly any aftermarket, the cars were unique to their owners taste. nobody had set down any " rules " yet and we were all a hell of a lot younger. The deuce was only 38 years old, younger than a '69 camaro today. Man, what a ride. Indy

 

Peoria Post Script. My memory must be wobbly, If the NSRA wasnt incorporated until after the first nats they couldnt have been signing up anybody yet. Must have been just talkin about the possibility of a national association. I stand corrected,It was a great event. Thanks guys, Indy

 

Mine was the '72 Street Machine Nats in Memphis. After reading about the first two Rod Nats and running my Porsche-urged '60 VW street racer, I thought the post-'48 event was a good thing. I ended up going in my friend's '70 Camaro SS and we had an amazing time - great people, wild machines and a hell of a road trip between L.A. and Memphis. I joined the NSRA on the spot and got quite involved, especially in relation to fighting possible legislation relating to modified vehicles which was a big issue back then.

Ultimately, I ended up being one of NSRA's first Street Machine/Van Division coordinators (still got my jacket) when the branch was established.

Obviously, with the organisation eventually turning into a business, things have changed, judging by the negative comments I've read on HAMB and elsewhere.

 

Mine was the 1974 St. Paul nats. I was only ten or eleven, but mom dropped me off at the gates, paid my way in, and picked me up at 3:00pm. There was no question as to my life's ambitions, I was gonna be a hot rodder!

 

Louisville 2005, I remember things floating away. I'll never forget the dumpsters full of mangled "easy-ups" And hearing about the guys that were holding onto thier canopy, and got stuck by lightning. Mostly I remember thinking "How the fuck are we gonna see all this in three days?"
Mind you, 500 cars was a really big show to me, then.

 

okc '83 for me also. i was 11, and dad showed me how to spot the "built" cars and the "build it for me" cars. not science but fairly accurate to this day. (how excited is the owner to tell you all about his car vs. or how bothered does he look when you ask about something)

 

went to tulsa in 76 i was a senior in high school i remember riding around saturday night in my dads 32 highboy i will allways remember he had this cassett player and he was playing jhonny rivers me and my little brother still get a kick when we talk about those days.....