paladin06
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Go and enjoy. It's not always about winning.
Car Show question
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69PLYRRUNNER
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Bruzilla is absolutely right on the GO button. Having loved Mopars for almost 50 years and having had a few growing up. It was only last year around this time that I was able to afford a luxury item in the form of a 69 Roadrunner. Our little town in VA has a Saturday night Cruzin from April til Oct. It was so much fun going there and hanging out talking to people who once owned "one of those" or whose brother bought one with his first pay check from the Army only to sale it when he married. It's fun hearing their stories and getting to know them and see their kids smile when they recognize the RoadRunner decals on the car. I have taken my car to a few shows last year and enjoyed that as well but it's not the same to me as those Saturday evening get Cruz-ins.
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Stopped going to car shows.... for every cool person you meet there's a dozen "hey I used to have one with a 350 in it" wagering if you boared and stroked it out to 350 1/2 like his good buddy...
Bruzilla
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Yeah, there is that crowd out there too. You hear a lot of stories from people who are trying to remember events from 30-40 years ago and get things mixed up, like telling you about a friend of a friend who drove a wicked cool Mopar, a Dodge Fury, that had a totally built 454... or something like that. 
And yeah, you can stand there and say "hey pal, first of all Plymouth made the Fury and not Dodge, and second, 454s are a Chevy engine, not a Mopar", but I prefer to cut folks like this a little slack. I've found that most of these folks are mid-life crisis guys who are at the show because they are thinking about getting into cars now that they're older, and their experience with these cars came more from friends of friends than from spending time around cars themselves. Then you also have the next gen folks who are repeating stories they've heard from their dads, uncles, older neighbors, etc., and they were either told the stories wrong or they're getting them mixed up in their own minds.
My take on these guys is whatever their motivation is, they've taken the time, effort, and trouble to come out to the show, and since they're standing here talking to my wife and I about our Road Runner, they've obviously seen something that peaks their interest, so what does it hurt to talk to them and enlighten them a bit? Instead of calling them out and saying "Dude, the 454 is a Chevy engine" and making him feel dumb, I just start talking about how my car was originally a 318 car and someone along the line put a 360 in it, and then tell them how I'm upgrading it to a 440. Who knows, that might just be the discussion that convinces the guy to move from relishing the stories he's heard from others to getting his own car and writing his own stories.
The only folks who really annoy me at shows are the purists, who I usually don't have to deal with because my car is just so utterly freaking and blatantly non-original that they don't feel compelled to come by and try to nitpick me on having the wrong bolt head or washer on something, and the trophy chasers, who like I said before are usually playing with their instashine and rags all day while they wait for the awards presentation... and who BTW tick me off when they make a big show of leaving immediately after the awards for their class are handed out rather than stick around and congratulate all the winners. To me that's the rudest behavior of all.
And yeah, you can stand there and say "hey pal, first of all Plymouth made the Fury and not Dodge, and second, 454s are a Chevy engine, not a Mopar", but I prefer to cut folks like this a little slack. I've found that most of these folks are mid-life crisis guys who are at the show because they are thinking about getting into cars now that they're older, and their experience with these cars came more from friends of friends than from spending time around cars themselves. Then you also have the next gen folks who are repeating stories they've heard from their dads, uncles, older neighbors, etc., and they were either told the stories wrong or they're getting them mixed up in their own minds.My take on these guys is whatever their motivation is, they've taken the time, effort, and trouble to come out to the show, and since they're standing here talking to my wife and I about our Road Runner, they've obviously seen something that peaks their interest, so what does it hurt to talk to them and enlighten them a bit? Instead of calling them out and saying "Dude, the 454 is a Chevy engine" and making him feel dumb, I just start talking about how my car was originally a 318 car and someone along the line put a 360 in it, and then tell them how I'm upgrading it to a 440. Who knows, that might just be the discussion that convinces the guy to move from relishing the stories he's heard from others to getting his own car and writing his own stories.
The only folks who really annoy me at shows are the purists, who I usually don't have to deal with because my car is just so utterly freaking and blatantly non-original that they don't feel compelled to come by and try to nitpick me on having the wrong bolt head or washer on something, and the trophy chasers, who like I said before are usually playing with their instashine and rags all day while they wait for the awards presentation... and who BTW tick me off when they make a big show of leaving immediately after the awards for their class are handed out rather than stick around and congratulate all the winners. To me that's the rudest behavior of all.
razreddobie
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Bruzilla gave alot of good info and advice. I say take it and enjoy it. That's why you have it right?
mr. b
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I don't go to shows for trophies like I said I go to hang out with the boys and the cars its more fun no matter how the car looks I am just glad to see another car on the road
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Welcome to FBBO...
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take it where ever you want to & enjoy yourself, finished or not Big Block or Small Block it doesn't really mater.... It's about you having fun & damn the rest...
Bruzilla
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I did see something pretty funny at the Middleburg Historical Society event last year. There was a guy nearby with a really bright yellow Chevy Chevelle, and some purist came by and started ripping the guy because that shade of yellow wasn't available as an option for that year and body style. The owner just looked at him and said "Man, what are you talking about? White was an optional color every year the Chevelle was produced!" The PITA purist looked like the guy had just smacked him across the face, then said "What white? That car is yellow!", and the owner said "what are you talking about? It's whatever the Chevy white name was!" The purist kept giving him this shocked look like the owner was crazy, and just kept getting more and more spun up about that shade of yellow, and the owner kept asking him why he thought the car was yellow when it was plainly white?
The purist looked over at me and said "This guy is blind. What color is that Chevelle?" I had been listening in to the exchange, so I got up, looked closely at the Chevelle, and said "I'm a Mopar guy, so I don't know much about Chevy colors, but if that were a Mopar I would say that's painted Arctic White." The purist looked at both of us like we were crazy then stormed off, and we kept straight faces until he was out of sight and then we started busting out laughing.
The purist looked over at me and said "This guy is blind. What color is that Chevelle?" I had been listening in to the exchange, so I got up, looked closely at the Chevelle, and said "I'm a Mopar guy, so I don't know much about Chevy colors, but if that were a Mopar I would say that's painted Arctic White." The purist looked at both of us like we were crazy then stormed off, and we kept straight faces until he was out of sight and then we started busting out laughing.
I love looking at projects. That's where new ideas come from. I'd rather look at a project car with cleaned and detailed small spots than a completed car that was done poorly. we have cars on both sides of the coin. At the last show we took both of these cars. Guess which one brought home a trophy? I'll give you a hint, it has 4 doors.
Doug
Doug
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khryslerkid
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dvw, what is the color of the two door? I just love that color!!!
Great advice. I got to this part and guess what came to mind?
You have a MISSION. ROFLMAO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQCkaGnTs9s
I hate to say it But it's GM Sunburst orange code WA 802K. New Challengers and Chargers have a very similar color, I painted the car before they were released.
Doug
khryslerkid
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Understandable, still looks sweet!
Gotta compliment Bruzilla for some of the best advice that I've seen regarding car shows and attending . . . by all means, take your car and go. Don't worry if the inside is not done, let the kids sit in it, then they can realize that ALL cars are not "picture perfect", it takes time to get them to that point ( if we ever get them to that point ), but we love them just as much, and we enjoy driving them just as much . . . it's all a part of the hobby.
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