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

Remember: "OLD FARTS ROCK !!!"

 

2004 at Pueblo... I remember seeing the Loaded RPU that Pinkees had just finished in their booth. I remember that I was in awe of all of the cars that were there and the variety of cars. I remember thinking what in the hell was my dad thinking when he scrapped a 32 5 window body for "quick cash." I decided then and there that I wanted a "street rod" at the time. Since then I have gone thru about 100000000 books looking for my ideal starting place. After that I went to Goodguys Loveland in 2006 and never went back to Pueblo cuz the venue and the cars were so much better.

 

My first was Memphis 1971.. I was under so many cars my elbows and nees were swolen for a week. Totaly blown away be the number of cars ank the great builds for that period of time. I've been to all 35 Nats East shows,, All Nats North,,All Nats Northeast,, all-Columbus and all Louisville... Thats a pile of miles ..And lots of great years looking...

 

Memphis '71. Eighteen years old and flat blown away by all the hot rods.

 

Man oh man would I like to see some of those! Do you have any of them scanned?

 

That was looong time ago and many, many cheeseburgers since then!

Is that your car? I posted a few pics of that car on the "60's T Bucket" thread.

 

OK, Cuzinbrucie--40Ford---Deuce Roadster---You KNOW what I'm about to pop off with, HUH?----Too bad the question was not DRIVEN instead of ATTENDED, oh well,----As a CHARTER member of NSRA #1956, I've always been treated well & had a great time at all NSRA events since the first one my wife & I attended in 1972 at Detroit, Mi., we had the pleasure of traveling with Bud Bryan (Rod & Custom ed.) driving his just finished '29 Ford hiboy flathead powered, & Tom Medley (Stroker Mcgurk) riding shotgun with Bud, it took us 5 days & 2500 miles to reach Detroit, where there were 1600 street rods gathered, when we made the return trip to L.A. 2 weeks later, we had put over 5000 new ones on the odometer. You can read the Rod & Custom story by Bud in Oct. 1972 issue. Also Rod Action magazine paid me 50.00 (WOW) to write the same adventure story, only in MY WORDS, from the "drivers view", it made print in Dec. 1972 issue of Rod Action. Thats all it took!!! we drove to Tulsa Ok. 1973, son rode in rumble seat all the way!!!---Skipped 1974, took off the fenders & went as a hiboy to Memphis Tn. 1975, Back to Tulsa Ok. in 1976, & stayed home until 1994 drove to Louisville Ky. to celebrate NSRA's 25th anniversary, then a short one over to Colorado's NSRA Rocky Mtn. nats in 1997, combined milege----300,000 happy miles chasing those lines!!---Don

 

Orv & Shirley now live in Bend, Or. 6 miles from me, & he's still building nice cars!!!-----------Don

 

The first NSRA nationals I went to with my own car was Winston Salem N.C. Nationals South. It was 1976, I was 15 years old driving a 48 Chevrolet Fleetline 4-door. It was lowered front and back had chrome reverse wheels , a sunvisor, and had the patina of what we call rat nowadays, back then we called it beater. I thought I would get youngest participant , but somebody beat me out. I met Pete & Jake, Norm Grabrowski, Jim Ewing,Ron Weeks and lots of other neat people that weekend. My dad still had to go with me because I still had my learning permit to drive. We use to laugh about how my 48 would bottom out in the back against the axle on every expansion crack on I-40 on the way there and back! I remember being one of the lower cars there.Rod runs were fun back then, Street is Neat!

 

1979 St Paul in my chopped and channeled 32 5 window. Camped on the fairgrounds. Listen to the live entertainment on Saturday night. Best time of my life.

 

I went to the Nats East when they were still held at the Timoniun Fairgrounds in the suburbs of Baltimore. My buddies Andy and Rick already had hot rods, so I was a passenger. I immediately fell in love with everything hot rod.

The thing that made the biggest impression on me though was a pair of T-Buckets. One black and one orange, both blown, one with 3 4 barrel carbs and the other with the more ordinary 2. Neither of these cars were ordinary as any of you east coasters know. They were Sunkist and Moonkist. Those cars made an unmistakeable and indelable impression on me back in 1979. I still look forward to seeing them together again somewhere. Sunkist is actually a regular attendee at the Wheels of Time rod and custom show in PA.

Can't wait to go back there!!!!

 

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No that is not my car. I had a T-bucket at the time but mine didn't have any paint or interior so I didn't it was good enough to take. What a mistake. I couldn't afford a hotel then anyway. I was going to college and "OH MY" we weren't married yet.

 

Detroit '72. Had just about finished a '31 Model A PU and thrashed like mad to finish it so I could say "I DROVE". Time ran out and my daily PU was the ride. Attended quite a few after that but I've only been to Louisville 3 times, and not in the last 3 years.

Frank

 

A proud card carrying charter member.



I even joined their club once.

 

Not my first, but one you can't forget!!!

 

I posted them here before and the thread was deleted. I;ll post some on another site and email you the link. I'll have to dig the pics out.

 

1973 Tulsa nationals. I was nine, Hotter than hell with no shade, we parked two cars together and stretched a tarp between the two. Dad bought a NOS rear fender for his '38 Chev. coupe, still wrapped in straw and paper. There were rows of NOS fenders.

My favorite photo is my brother and I peering into Jim "Jake" Jacobs coupe

 

My absolute first was Memphis in 1975. Drove a domestic there and back. Rained all the way there and the whole time we were in Memphis.

My wife (then girlfriend) drove a blown sbc T-bucket from Indy to Tulsa in 1976. Other than the drive there and back, I remember it was hotter than hell for sure.

I also saw this cool looking two tone green 32 Chrysler coupe out of Denton, Texas that was there. At the time, it was one of the highest quality cars at the event. Little did I know 17 years later I would get to own that same car

 

Frist, last, and only time at the Nats was 89 Columbus. Went with 2 friends and took the wifes video cam.. She's long gone, but I still got a cool tape. 6,000+ cars as I recall...

 

Thanks! I appreciate the effort and look forward to the pics.

 

1978 - Columbus, Ohio.

Something like 5128 street rods. Had never seen more than 250 in one place before. It blew me away.

 

1972 at Detroit with my future wife in my 40 Ford coupe. Still have the tee shirt and jacket patch

 

Detroit 1972 while on unemployment check in a late model while I was building the 34 Panel. 73 Tulsa and every one since with the 34 Panel (308,000 miles on the old girl now). Memorable moments, hell where do you start? All the things mentioned above like the Memphis Meltdown in 80 (a lot drier than the wet Memphis in 75, th year no one could get across the Mississippi to Columbus due to flooding and it took 11 pulls to give away the giveaway car, the flood in Louisville (which would be 3/4 of the way into the building today since they've doubled the size of the building twice), the great grounds in Saint Paul, having made every Mopar Mini Nats at the Nats since it started in 76, Waitng in the line from hell in Tulsa for the free meal they used to do (yes they actually fed everyone at the Nats), the great shows MC'd by the Polish Ham (Normy Poo) with his amazing whistling, going from motel to motel at night meeting people and seeing cars (back before everyone but me and Skip hits the hay by 9 PM), the helicopter aiding in breaking up the night time burn outs in Columbus, the streaking in st. Paul and Memphis (74/75) and the smoke bomb set off at the headquarters hotel in Memphis in front of the hotel's A/C intake that brought the hook and ladder trucks at the same time the Phillis Diller show was letting out - what a mess!!

But more than all the traveling, places we've visited on the way and cars we've seen, the best part of attending 36 Nationals is all the great people we've met and friends we have all over the country, many of which started at the Nats.

 

DelMar Fairgrounds in Delmar Ca. 1975 I think. It must have been a regional event. Lots of cars. only time I got to see a StreetKana event. Watched the "Go and Whoa" races. There were alot of T buckets. Some were getting the rear axel bearings changed-out from the stress off the majorly offset wheels and L-60 or N-50 tires. A major player in the competion was the black 303 Topolino. What ever happened to that car? Oh, also, I remember that the wife and I walked all day without fear of getting run over by some lazy-a. in a golf cart. Mo.

 

I posted up earlier but thought I'd drop my thoughts in here about the Southwest Mini Nats. We in Tulsa would have a happy shit fit just to get the NSRA Southwest Nats back in Tulsa. If you would like to come back to Tulsa let me tell you the fairgrounds have had a major upgrade. Millions of $s worth of improvements. If you are bored with OKC the drop Frank Sloup, Special Events Director a line at 9510 Enchantment Lane, Stockton, California 95209. Let him know how you feel. We want you all back in TULSA.
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Like I told the kid,"Your music not too loud, it just sucks!"

 

Columbus in 89. Went on Friday and Saturday. Came home late Saturday night, then left early Sunday for the Nomad convention in Detroit.

 

First was '77 in St. Paul. I was ten years old and we were "spectators". Only real car I remember was a white '34 five-window with colored flames called the Koolaid Kid.

Second was '79 in St. Paul and Dad had the '33 tudor done. Way more fun.

Since then I've been to St. Paul again, Columbus, Memphis in the heat wave, Oklahoma City in the heat wave, Louisville, and Louisville in the flood (this weekend I actually wore the T-shirt I bought that day to have myself a dry shirt to change into).

Haven't been to any since the flood. I wish they would move them around again.

 

Detroit 1972 as a passenger in my buddy's '27 Chevy coupe. Then Tulsa '73 in my T Bucket. I remember how hot it was there and the rain at night. We pulled a tent trailer and camped at the KOA. Water was up past the floor of the trailer. We had a great party in the A Frame/ laundry area at the campground all night long. And how cold it was on the way home. Got down to 40 degrees. My wife and I wore everything we had in the suitcase - didn't help much though - nuth'n but T shirts and shorts! Sold the car right after that - Ontario Canada to Tulsa OK and weather varying from well over 100 down to 40, rained so hard in Indy that you couldn't see to drive (hand operated T wiper) - had my fill of buckets after that trip.

 

Nats East 1990. We had just started our car club and I was driving a '65 MalibuSS conv. But most of the guys I was getting to know owned streetrods and invited me along. I was just blown away by the 5500 cars that were there, the swap meet, the cruising and bands at night. Man, those were the good old days when York was fun,fun,fun. A guy could walk up to the West York Inn,have a few beers and supper for under $20 ,stagger back and watch the cars cruise the fairgrounds until the wee hours.
Then NSRA screwed it all up !!!! Now I don't go anymore,but in 1994 I sold that Chevelle,bought a '40 Ford coupe and never looked back. NSRA has had a big influence on my car tastes.