Event Coverage 2018 La roadster show ... worst ever?

Went Saturday and turnout was low .still saw cool stuff and found a trans for my model a.good day

 

I have been selling at the swap for about 5 years and was always totally disgusted by the apathy of the LA Roadster folks when it came to the swap meet in prior years. They used to have people camp out in line for days only to allow people to rope off 20 spaces then get into arguments over who's spot it was. That was total crap, they didn't mark off spaces or let people buy in advance, just collect the $ and let the chaos begin. Being able to go online, select an exact spot by looking at a map was great this year and worked very well for me. There were many empty spots and the crowd was down but the weather was good and overall it was fun. I walked the entire meet and saw good stuff to buy and LOTS of great cars in both the swap and car corral areas. The show portion in the fairgrounds seemed basically the same as prior years although the lone exhibit hall seemed anemic. I hope the show/swap continues, but they made need a jolt to get the fans and vendors back. Maybe drop the prices and get a few special exhibits and famous people to draw people back. One other thing I noticed was the lack of buzz about the upcoming show on The HAMB or any other website. They need to do a much better job of using the web in future years.

 

I went Saturday, and as always, happy to participate. Yes, things are different...less of everything from a few years ago. But it was fun, saw good friends, some really cool rides and the weather was the best it's been in years. Due to the price for specialty parking ($50 includes 2 people, compared to $20 a car a couple years ago), we doubled up in cars with my group of guys, instead of each of us taking our our cars, so that could be part of why there are less cars. I would have still gone if one of my buddies didn't want to ride with, but helps a little with the cost.

I will continue to collect my dash plaques for the beer refrigerator... even though I had to buy it this year! Still agood show, with historic cars, cool swap and cool people.

 

Agreed. Went Friday. Got there at 8am and was stunned how thin the turn out was.

 

Let' see ,,, I had a nice drive in my roadster to the event , parked with some good friends , met and talked with a lot of old friends and a few new ones , saw some very nice cars and a few that weren't my cup of tea , bought a couple of items from the vendors , I brought my lunch so I can't bitch about the food , the weather was great , and I took the scenic route home thru the hills . All in all , better than sitting home . Be back next year .

 

Next time you go to the swap meet with a bunch of stuff, let me know @Pete Eastwood - I'll buy something, anything, just to say I bought it from you ....

 

Before people rant too much, they need to tell us what better event in So Cal they go to? The LARS swap is tons better than the general Pomona vintage swap and tons better than the BIG 3 annual swap in San Diego. The Grand National doesn't even have a swap meet. If LARS dies there will be no local event like it to swap, bring your car and hang out with friends and see a car show. It will get better.

 

Thanks For Your Positive Comment Charlie And It Is Appreciated...

 

Did Someone Promise Us A Rose Garden?...Enjoy What Is There And Move On...

 

Nothing is like it was 20 years ago,change is inevitable,some abhor it while others embrace it.

You ether except it and participate or seek out another venue you find more appealing. HRP

“You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time”

 

I had fun and I'll keep going back as long as they let me (even if they do make me park my roadster out with the coupes and pick-ups ).

 

Did you take any photo's this year? HRP

 

Hundreds.
Stay tuned.

 

Was my 26th or 27th year, drove 3000 miles round trip. Was I disappointed maybe a little with Friday but Saturday was better and the swap meet had lots of neat stuff. Thursday went to Kennedy Bros, So-Cal, Stokers, and Early Ford Store plus some time at the early swap meet. After a day on the blacktop Friday went to Walden's which is always a treat. Left for Nebraska Sat at noon, got home Sunday night. Oh yeah, I'll be getting my same swap space for next year and I made room reservations for next year.

 

I went Friday afternoon and again on Saturday morning.

It was only my second LARS and it appeared that attendance was down from last year. The swap meet was spectacular compared to anything I have experienced. Last year I didn't know what I was looking for, but this year I was better prepared. I found what I thought were some great deals and was able to get a number of needs for my build checked off my list.

I met some great vendors and established some new networks. Many of these vendors have a vast amount of knowledge and I learned much just by listening. Met some great guys who brought their cars. I really enjoyed the builds and conversations with the attendees who parked their cars out in the vendor area. Being able to crawl around the cars and discuss with their owners the build process. I don't know how many times I asked "How did you do that or where can I find that part?" Some really great people out there!!

I really enjoy seeing Model A's on Model A frames and they were few and far between. Almost everything was on 32 rails which is cool, but I really wanted to see more traditional builds. I can help that out by starting, finishing and driving my build to next years show.

I really enjoyed the people and the experience and can't wait until next years show.

Brian B

 

My take on any show, as I cross the mid century mark, is that I would like to see quality over quantity. Whether it be a car show, gun show, or antique show, I want to see the best. Rarity rates with me and I'll pay the extra for the opportunity to not rub elbows with the Griswold's, as they don't know a damn thing about our hobby and they don't know car etiquette. Case in point: I was at the Scottsdale Pavillions 15 years ago and my Cord was parked with several other Auburns. I came back to find the dad slouching against my car while his kids climbed on the fender of an 851. WTF?! I went ballistic and dispatched the mouth breathers to Chuck E. Cheese. Luckily, his silver lettering on his belt didn't make it through the paint and everything buffed out. You won't find that crap at LARS or Pebble Beach and that is worth the price of admission and then some. If you get to see cars that you've only seen on the internet, if you get that one nugget of information that makes you a better car guy, or,if you meet somebody that you have a lot in common with, it's like getting paid to see the show.

 

.....the question put forth at the beginning of this thread was, "worst ever?" by lumpy 63. Well, as a spectator, participant, vendor & swapper at the L.A. Roadsters Exhibition since the 1970's starting as an adolescent then a married parent, it was my experience this year from my swap meet spaces that this wasn't the worst year. Positives included convenience (pre-registration & payment of swap spaces in advance as opposed to the previous inconvenient, drawn out 'first come, first served' days long process of securing swap spaces), milder weather as opposed to the oppressive heat of the previous three consecutive events and definitely better organization, security, sanitation and facilities than last year (no free rides through the gate by non paying spectators, plenty of trash cans, reasonable amount of portable & permanent bathrooms for swap area as well). And, as with any enthusiast based event that acts as a convention for like-minded people to share their common interests through several avenues (a car show, swap meet, retail exhibitors and specialty car corral), I enjoyed meeting new enthusiasts and re-connecting with others I hadn't seen in awhile or just hangin' out with local friends and family. Watching cool cars cruise by, selling a few items from my parts pile, sharing what I know (or think I know) and learning something new (from others), meeting folks from outside the U.S. taking on a daunting automotive build (a '41 Ford station wagon in Scandinavia) is what was done this year as before in year's past from my swap spaces. The only difference was that there wasn't more of it, but less of it in contrast to years past.

Whether "less is more", or "quality over quantity" is someone's mantra regarding their perception of this years event vs. those held in the recent past overlooks the reality of the absolute matter of fact truth that this event is in decline. Marginalizing the matter by saying they had a successful swap selling experience, that they couldn't care less about wading through an extra 100 'belly button' 1932 Fords parked together or suggesting a fellow enthusiast shouldn't 'throw shade' on the most current edition of the event based on their years of experience attending the annual event is very short sighted in the context of the question posed. Instead of being myopic about this annual event & suggesting others should stifle their negative critiques that amount to 'bitching & moaning' because nobody 'promised them a rose garden' we'd all be better served by acknowledging the continued decline and shortcomings of the event and move forward together with a conversation of collective suggestions on how to get it back on track to the way it was before. Ask ourselves, "why was it able to function before so smoothly and successfully with much larger crowds for two whole days and now it cannot? What's changed, what's the cause of the decline? How can this be solved?"

I'm here sharing my thoughts and impressions of the event in it's current state because I really enjoy it and want to see it thrive and succeed at the level it used to. Preserving the event is important so that other generations can enjoy it as I have for 30 years which will help keep the enthusiasm for this hobby healthy and thriving. Is it helpful to say, "RIP L.A. Roadster Show"? No, probably not. But to ignore this opinion shared earlier in this thread is to be in denial, to put your head in the sand and not 'see the forest through the trees' as it pertains to the future status of the event. Maybe the question posed at the beginning of the thread should've been, "Was this the best ever L.A. Roadster show?". I don't think so. In my humble opinion the question for now should be, "When was the best ever L.A. Roadster show?". The answer to that question will no doubt offer some insight as to what's causing the current downward spiral of the event currently and how to approach fixing it. I hope this post will get us all thinking about contributing some perspective on what needs to be done to make it better instead of just saying it stinks or, even worse, just settling for the event just the way it is and chastising others for telling the truth. I've provided my thoughts & suggestions extensively last year here on the H.A.M.B in 2017 and even spoke to Rodshows, promoters of the event, last year as well. Hopefully they can eventually successfully transition as the caretakers of a great event from it's namesake, The L.A. Roadsters club as they did with the GNRS some years back (which was in serious decline after being held in the bay area for many years). In the meantime, let's offer constructive criticism here followed by ideas on how to address them and even contact Rodshow's proprietor John Buck and his staff with some direct input as well. Thanks for your time & attention to this post....PRE48V-8\:^]

 

Well spoken! And I too want the show to continue as I have supported it for the past 35 years.

 

@PRE48V-8 - Well stated Gary!

 

According to Autoweek, over 10,000 people paid the price of admission to the LARS this year. Not sure how that pencils out or if that includes entries (800??). There was a story in the WSJ last week on the drop in attendance at baseball games. Be happy that there are still promoters out there that put their money where their mouth is when it comes to events like this.