I won a trophy!

[Kern Dog]

...playing BASEBALL when I was 12. That was over 45 years ago. From there, the only chance to score a trophy for me was at a car show.
I've noticed something lately and it disappoints me a bit. Follow along and see if you agree.
Many of us go to car shows as spectators. We ogle the cars, look at the stuff in the swap meet and have a good time doing it. Some of us look at the cars in the show to see how that guy routed his exhaust or wiring, sometimes we inspect the fit and finish with hopes to get our own cars to look as good when we are done.
Next are the guys that have "finished" cars that are in the show. We wash and wax them, clean the interior and park them in the show field and sometimes, park a lawn chair behind them and enjoy the day.
Awhile back, FBBO member Dennis H was at our show in Sacramento and in bold print on the face of his registration card, he wrote DO NOT JUDGE.
I remember then being surprised at that. He drove 2 1/2 hours to this show, spent the money on gas and the hotel and he didn't want a chance at a trophy?
Why?
I asked him and he played it off as if there were better cars at the show but I don't think that was true. What I learned that day had stuck with me since.
What Dennis was doing was something that strikes at the core of car guys and going to car shows.
It isn't the trophy that matters. It isn't the patting on the back, the picture with the trophy girl or any of that. What makes the experience worthwhile is the whole day....the environment, the people, the cars. It is the guys and gals getting together to celebrate these great cars regardless of what some judge thinks of the car itself. It is the telling of stories of when the cars were new or the trouble you got into with them. The girls you met, the experiences you lived with them.
A plastic trophy cannot compete with that.

 

[kiwigtx]

Then there are the guys who go to a show with expectations of returning home with a trophy.

They get all bitter and twisted when they don't.

 

[moparedtn]

It's never occurred to me to want any trophy from attending a car show. Honestly.
Not that Fred is award-worthy (he's not), but I always figured that he and I even being able to attend
was reward enough - and further, my wife agreeing to go with us is just icing on the cake.

She's of the 10-second friendly variety, though; I'll spend 10 minutes chatting with a stranger.

 

[davek]

I dont know how you guys can sit at a car show for 5/6 hours. And most of the time its in a parking lot. Im just not built to do that. Once I see 15 RR or 15 chargers Im done. I think Dennis knew what he was doing when he wrote that. Maybe Dennis was saying something to a certain person. Now Mike, @Charles Cook loves to shot the breeze at these shows. And he has quite a few trophies.

 

[Cranky]

Never ever received a trophy except for drag racing and imo, that's all that mattered but what really mattered was going 7 rounds for the win with the slowest car in the field!! The faster cars hated me but then there were the ones that cheered for that slow *** but consistent car lol

 

[Kern Dog]

We have a few members in our Mopar club that don't go to certain shows because they think that their cars are not appreciated enough to win a trophy.
That is the core of my disappointment.
Is that the entire reason to build and show a car? Really? You base the value of the show and your car on a silly trophy?
Spring Fling in Van Nuys, CA this year was possibly the best time I've had at that show and the show itself was not the reason for it.
No, I didn't win a trophy. It wasn't the point.
What made the show so great wasn't just the show. It was seeing people that I only see once or twice a year. It was talking cars with real enthusiasts, driving the cars on the road, fixing stuff on the cars in the parking lot, having meals together, cracking jokes and telling stories with great people that share the same interests.
Dennis opened my eyes to the fact that it isn't the trophy that matters, it is the entire experience of the show from the moment that I leave home to when I get back.

 

[eldubb440]

I barely look at the cars anymore........I just like hanging out with my peeps

 

[davek]

Yes it is all about the people. My problem is there is a lot of a holes that think they know everything and their car is the best one. I had to pay,sweat and work hard for my car. My car is not a show car but it is a Blessing that I have one. Just my 2 cents.

 

[68BabyBlue]

I barely look at the cars anymore........I just like hanging out with my peeps

With Carlisle coming up soon, I was already thinking that this year I was probably going to spend more time at the FBBO tent than on the show field. To me, it's the high point of that event, after attending for over 30 years.

 

[moparedtn]

I dont know how you guys can sit at a car show for 5/6 hours. And most of the time its in a parking lot. Im just not built to do that. Once I see 15 RR or 15 chargers Im done. I think Dennis knew what he was doing when he wrote that. Maybe Dennis was saying something to a certain person. Now Mike, @Charles Cook loves to shot the breeze at these shows. And he has quite a few trophies.

The key is not to sit, Dave. We park Fred, get out and we're gone until we've made the rounds, maybe
eaten some food, visited with some folks, checked out the rest of the festivities.
When the lawn chairs come out afterwards, it's mostly to take a rest for a little bit.
Then, inevitably she'll say to me "we can leave if you like", which of course is Code for "I want to leave".

 

[6PKRTSE]

I never go racing or shows for the trophies or awards. I won 2 classes a few weeks back, Best In Pro Street (even though my car is not tubbed or a big tire car???) And, best In Street Machine with over 800 cars. I had already left for the day. My buddy called me to tell me that I won twice. I told him to tell them to give the trophies to some near by kids.

 

[davek]

With Carlisle coming up soon, I was already thinking that this year I was probably going to spend more time at the FBBO tent than on the show field. To me, it's the high point of that event, after attending for over 30 years.

If I was going that right were I would be.

 

[68BabyBlue]

For me, the five decade quest to acquire the one I loved back in the day can never be matched by a trophy. Sharing the story has been the ultimate recognition.

 

[Kern Dog]

I'll admit, I was that guy when I first started taking my car to shows.
I actually won the first show that I ever entered but I was in the Under Construction class and my car was the shiny one of the group. My interior was still gutted at that time.
The other 4 cars in the class looked like Jigsaw:

It was sort of like beating your grandma at an arm wrestling contest. I won, but the competition wasn't strong. ONE guy though...he had a Barracuda with worn out paint but a finished interior. He was PISSED that he didn't win and he bitched so much, the judges scrambled to find an extra trophy just to shut him up.

Then there are the guys who go to a show with expectations of returning home with a trophy.

They get all bitter and twisted when they don't.

Yeah...that Barracuda guy fit that description exactly.
The next show I went to was after I finished the interior. I was in the B body class at a show in Petaluma CA. The other 4 cars in the class were nice but I thought I had a shot at a 1st place.
I didn't even get 3rd place! I found out later that their show used participant judging and I wasn't given a sheet to vote. Of the the other 4 cars, 3 were owned by members of the club hosting the show so I didn't have a chance anyway. That whole scam happens a lot.
Our car club didn't allow us to enter our own cars in our show for this very reason.
Now, maybe I might seem like a hypocrite for taking the "trophies don't matter much" stance since I have won before but I see it as a natural maturing of my view on this hobby. The few times I've won are great but the trophies are NOT stored in a hermetically sealed glass case on display. They gather dust and get thrown away like any other junk. The trophies are gone but I reflect on the events and the people I've met when I've attended them.

 

[Cranky]

We have a few members in our Mopar club that don't go to certain shows because they think that their cars are not appreciated enough to win a trophy.
That is the core of my disappointment.
Is that the entire reason to build and show a car? Really? You base the value of the show and your car on a silly trophy?
Spring Fling in Van Nuys, CA this year was possibly the best time I've had at that show and the show itself was not the reason for it.
No, I didn't win a trophy. It wasn't the point.
What made the show so great wasn't just the show. It was seeing people that I only see once or twice a year. It was talking cars with real enthusiasts, driving the cars on the road, fixing stuff on the cars in the parking lot, having meals together, cracking jokes and telling stories with great people that share the same interests.
Dennis opened my eyes to the fact that it isn't the trophy that matters, it is the entire experience of the show from the moment that I leave home to when I get back.

Going to 'shows' was never a high point and never took a car to a show. What I liked was talking to friends and seeing all the cars. For 2 years I was a show judge and even though that was cool, it wasn't something that I wanted to do anymore than that. It was pretty interesting to see some get mad about something that wasn't right or didn't belong on their car and see them blow up and is one of the reasons that I only did it for 2 years. Some guys got pretty bent out of shape if their car got points against it.....and the show wasn't concourse at all but when you have a 72 Cuda with a big block in it and was in the factory stock class, well, what can I say lol

 

[Kern Dog]

I barely look at the cars anymore........I just like hanging out with my peeps

Oh, I do still look at the cars. I love seeing the different things that guys do with them. 100% stock and in perfect condition is pretty but it gets boring after awhile though. I like a slightly modified car, what some might call a "Day Two" sort of thing.

The key is not to sit, Dave. We park Fred, get out and we're gone until we've made the rounds, maybe
eaten some food, visited with some folks, checked out the rest of the festivities.

I rarely ever stay beside the car when I have it at shows. I used to, but most of the time I like to get out and see other things. I'm not hanging around the car expecting to set up a podium and answer questions like a press secretary!

 

[eldubb440]

every now and then, I'll get a trophy pic text from someone who's car I worked on ........ it does give me a little bit of the fuzzies

 

[Cranky]

every now and then, I'll get a trophy pic text from someone who's car I worked on ........ it does give me a little bit of the fuzzies

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Any time that I did work for someone that did well, it made me feel like I did a job well done and the one of them was a race car that ran in the low 9's! It took a bit to get there without some issues but once it happened, it was pretty cool.

 

[71RRHI]

We don't have any large car show's, just the small parking lot type. I enjoy taking my cars to the shows. Mostly I walk around, look at other cars, talk to other car guys. Most of whom, I only know from the shows. I like seeing and talking about things we have done, or plan to do to make our cars better.
In Hawaii, we have a large military population. Many service members come to check out the cars and talk about the cars they have back home. I love talking with them, reminds me of my days back in the Navy, with my 68 charger back home in storage waiting for my return.
There is a group that puts on a judging type show. You have to pay to enter, if your car meets their requirements. Rules on when you have to be there and when you can leave. At the end of the show you might win a trophy. Does not sound like fun to me.

 

[68BabyBlue]

Then there are the guys who go to a show with expectations of returning home with a trophy.

They get all bitter and twisted when they don't.

I attend local shows with three guys who graduated from high school with me in 1971. Watched some arm twisting with judges in years past when they didn't get the results they wanted, thought it was kind of sad in guys their age. Having hung out with them since 2015, I now try to limit my attendance with them to non judged events, my personal preference anyhow.