I've always been sort of fascinated by the seemingly cyclical nature of the custom car scene. The rise and fall of the custom car has been well documented through the decades from the golden eras of the 1950's and 60's to the deadlands of the 1970's ... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
Sounds like an opportunity for someone to put on a show at House Park in Austin again! Or for that matter a show at Festival Beach Park.
Twenty years ago, traditional rods were rarely seen -thus shows like Billetproof were begun and the flame was soon lit nationwide. Just ten years ago, I could not imagine the massive amount of new 'traditional' parts one can buy now,from newly CAD-designed flathead parts to brand new Stromberg 97-style carbs or moreover, the availability of brand-new steel bodies such as Brookville or the 40 Ford Coupe from Dennis Carpenter. Amazing times we live in to be a 'traditional' rodder, eh? I wonder if 20 years from now, the same varierty of parts, bodies and sundry items to create all new traditional Customs will be so easily available? We shall see.
The kustom scene lacked a" focused and tradionally inspired show"..and the hotrod scene had that ?..Hotrod shows have turned into rat rod fiascos and are really not focused or traditional anymore,i would say that Kustom shows have turned it around in the last 10 to 13 yrs and have been way more focused and traditional.Motorama for example,suede palace at GNRS,Deadend mag shows,etc...These shows have been pioneering the resurgence long before a sit down took place
hey ryan, thanks for posting the link to my thread. i have to say this show was GREAT! all kustoms and nothing but customs! no where else can you get that. i sometimes get frustrated with the hamb's lack of custom stuff but reality is custom guys are a very small group of car guys so percentage wise, custom threads will be a small group of hamb posts. as much as i realize that i still don't understand why. i try to do my part by posting a build thread, a yearly customs thread, and this event thread in the hopes of building more interest in customs. hopefully this show wins over some new ones as well. my thanks to the show organizers kevin anderson and bob davis. and my thanks to you ryan for giving us all a place to share this stuff. LONG LIVE CUSTOMS! jerseymike
You could be right... and hell, you probably are. I'm just speaking from my own experience. I've been to plenty of small/tight (under 200 cars) and traditional hot rod shows in the last couple of years... Things like the Revolution, various reliability runs, drag races, etc... But I haven't seen or heard of many small traditional custom shows around. I realize that there are some BIG shows that include a lot of customs, but to me those aren't focused... and while there is nothing at all wrong with big car shows, they aren't my thing. I like small and intimate gatherings. All that being said, I live in Austin. As such, your opinion from SoCal is probably more valid than mine. Totally give ya that.
Lots of guys get frustrated with the lack of custom content. I try to help by featuring as much custom stuff as I can, but at the end of the day it takes people like you (in mass) to make it happen... and there are a lot more traditional hot rod guys in world than custom guys. Back to the cycle I suppose - you know? In any case, I sure do appreciate the custom guys out there that have ridden the roller coaster with hella passion. That makes me smile.
My ideal car show is the Revolution... And that's by design obviously. I don't enjoy big car shows as much simply because I'm not comfortable in big crowds and get sensory overload very quickly. I truly feel like 150 is the golden number. It's enough cars to give you plenty of variety, but it's not so big that you can't get to know each car intimately. Even small car shows annoy my sensibilities at times. Like with the Revolution... Essentially, I charge guys (most of them buddies) to show their car at my show. I then turn around and use their cars as attractions to lure spectators to the event. It's complete bullshit when you think it out. But I have to do it to cover costs... The Revolution loses money, but it's the best money I spend all year. Really, all I want to do is hang out with a few like minded folks and stare at a few like minded cars. In my opinion, the "business" of the car show often gets in the way of that. And to me, that's the ultimate problem with car shows. Money.
I'm with you too.. I guess I'm "too dumb for New York, too ugly for LA." Unless I get lucky, I seem to see a trend of "More people = More lawn chairs, some of those weird kid dolls, and a higher overall chance of hearing 'Rock Around the Clock'"
This show was never about numbers or money. They thought if 30 real customs showed it would be a success. It was only $10 and 100% of that went to charity, 100% of the tshirt sales went to the charity, a portion of sales inside went to the charity. Kevin and Bob just a wanted show custom guys (and ladies) to get together and hang out. Friday night at the hotel you turn into the lot and see custom after custom with the owners standing around talking. Some of said Friday was like the old days. Said Friday was would have been enough but Saturday was icing on the cake. Thanks to everyone that helped and everyone that brought their cars.
Exactly why this show looked like something I would love to attend. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Anyone who says that there's no Kustom content on TJJ (and HAMB for that matter) is surely mistaken. I'm sure that there's many here, myself included, who dig both.
I don't think there is any question about the quality (just quantity) of kustom content on this forum- what I got out of Ryan's post was the higher quantity of "Traditional Hot Rod Shows" vs. "Kustom Shows". I don't think we'll ever have enough content about Kustoms. Can you ever get enough? From what I have seen about the Custom Car Revival, I think we are well on our way.. just like "Weaverville Studios" said, most people couldn't have predicted such a huge comeback of "traditional parts". I think one of the best things about the HAMB is the massive amounts of technical information. I am glad there are people and shows out there like the Revolution or The Custom Car Revival, all about the cars, not about getting as many cars through the gates, who gets the trophy and some promoter trying to make 6 figures. Been there, done that. The size sure matters. Just like Hombres Ruins said.. Some of these SoCal shows have degraded from Car Shows into "More-Rockabilly-Than-Thou-Shows". Like the cars are almost an afterthought. It says a TON that Ryan is actually losing money putting on HRR, but there is no doubt it is worth it to see people come together like that. Again.. It would be nice to have a Kustom brother to HRR. Honestly I have my preferences, but I don't care who you are, what you put in your hair, if it's hot rod or kustom or stock or pro-street.. Two things matter: Aptitude and (at least a little bit of) respect.... Lots of people lacking both.
"Really, all I want to do is hang out with a few like minded folks and stare at a few like minded cars. In my opinion, the "business" of the car show often gets in the way of that. And to me, that's the ultimate problem with car shows. Money." And that friends - is the damn straight truth. Rat
Congrats to Kevin and Bob...they've earned the "Bigtime" status by putting on a "small" show...and I'd get there next year if and when they set a date. Personally, I'll attend big shows to see what the "pro's " are building and I'll attend smaller shows to see what the "single car garage" guys are building and chat with both. I never let size or money intimidate me. FWIW, I've been a "kustom" nut since 1961 when ALL the mags focused on them...!!! Glad to see a "pure" kustom show spring up... R-
That looks like it turned out great! Some new cars and some old favorites. I hope that the show continues into the future, there is a lot of interest in it. Good luck!
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