There are folks who measure the success of an event by the number of vehicles registered. Don’t you think it might be time to adjust that attitude? Yes, there are still those who eschew the small local car shows in favor of the Nationals or the Regionals or whatever the trend is that’s being promoted at the time, but those horizons do appear to be narrowing ever so slightly. Reasons for that are numerous and varied. Now, I’ve done more than a few of those small shows over the years and lately, since it seems there are more of them every weekend and even some weeknights, it’s been pretty easy to find one that fits. More often than not I’ve come to the conclusion that when it comes to car-related get-togethers, size doesn’t really matter.
Earlier this summer there were a couple of back-to-back weekend car shows in my area, hosted during small town celebrations. The total car count for both of these shows combined probably wouldn’t have made up a half-hours’ worth of registrations for an event like Back to the Fifties. But you know what? I saw cars there that I had never seen before and discovered the stories behind them. I could have taken photos of every vehicle and not missed a single one. In fact, a couple of my friends did just that and posted ’em all online so the folks who weren’t there could see what they missed. What’s even better, I had the chance to actually relax for a bit and spend some quality time with friends. Same thought goes for those impromptu summer evening ice cream runs by our local club members. Or even a few buddies gathered at somebody’s garage to share a beverage and some good conversation. Yes, indeed. Think “small”.
I’ve been to bigger regional and national car events over the years and had fun at every one of them. I’ll no doubt continue to do that. But I’m also rediscovering the forgotten fact that it’s just as much fun to “shop local”.
(To read an earlier post about this very subject, you can click here.)
Support your hometown gearhead gatherings. And “dig the drive”!
terrysgarage.com 