jimgessner

How many judged cars Richard? I heard that the new class of ''modified'' cars was going to have an area of welcome for people to come and enjoy. The subject will be confirmed or not after San Antonio Convention in July.

The SOLID AXEL CORVETTE CLUB , [SACC] is having great success just driving the cars and having ''FUN'' like the old days. Are these changing times a lasting trend or do you think the move to Lakeland is the problem?

The FRISCO, Texas Regional was well attended last October. It was in a large hotel complex with cars inside a carpeted area away from the elements.

jimgessner

God bless Tyler, Bill Heron, Rich Mozzetta, Tom Blount, Whit McFarland, Ed Augustine, Monty and the rest of the army for making the event happen, and the new Concourse class is interesting, but things need a 'punch in the arm' that even the nice weather couldn't accomplish...

In the old days it was ''free beer''. What excites old men today? SCOOTER RACES? They shut it down at the Veterans Hospital 32nd annual in Loma Linda, California in 2014. We were having too much fun racing around

Don Rickles

I just noticed that there is only one thread over in the C3 section on this topic, with only 4 replies.......

Is this a clear indication that the "old" NCRS crowd resides here?

provette67

I have been involved with car clubs and judging of different makes models and types for 45yrs. Both having my cars judged or as a judge. The NCRS judging like it or not is easily the best that I have ever been involved with.

MOXIE62

Were they Cubans?

provette67

I can't thank those who put this show on enough. Having been involved in large events in the past I know the hard work that goes into them.
What's the answer to why there are less vendors and less entrants some ideas have been mentioned in this thread. Dates,locations,etc. One thing that I have noticed though. Every time a show gets moved and dates get changed the show gets hurt. Just look at the Bloomington moves. I am just glad there are hard working people mentioned above willing to do what is needed for those of us who did make the trip an enjoyable event.

MikeM

That seems to be the precise consensus of people I know familiar with the show including myself. But I don't do judging. Just swap meet and shooting the breeze. No interest in the auction either.

capevettes

We've been attending the Fl Regional for years and used to spend 3 days there. I don't have my cars judged, so it's more about the vendors, old friends and great cars. We only go for 1 day and do the Mecum 1 day now. Since leaving Old Town the event gets smaller every year. We stopped by Old Town Wednesday. The old swap area is a large paved parking area that could serve as a vendor area now. Would returning improve the event, possibly. There are alot of factors contributing to the decline, as discussed.
Hats off to Tyler and everyone that works so hard to put this event on. Now that 3 years has passed in Lakeland they will have a decision to make. I would love to see it grow wherever they decide to have it. Car events in January are still very appealing.

mmaturo

I will politely disagree as I did on another post on this subject. I love Mecum and yet I would have really liked to go to this event. The date conflict is a problem especially on the prime Friday/Sat of the Mecum show. I have never been to an NCRS event (being new to Corvette ownership) but would really like to since I would like to learn a lot more about these cars and what to look for. I have one more classic I would like to own and that is a 63 SWC, but have a lot to learn about them first, and that is by watching and listening to you guys looking over these things. I live in SW Orlando but still couldn't make it down since I really do enjoy Mecum and was more interested as was my wife in that. I bought my 60 at Mecum last year and my 60 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz there 4 years ago now. If it was not at the exact same time or in my case of course easier if in Orlando area I could have dropped by and done both. Heck I could see myself learning to be a judge since I really enjoy detail. More accessible and more presence/marketing the event somehow. I learned about it on here otherwise I would have no idea being new to the corvette world.

The vendor aspect is difficult with the internet...you can find most anything on line though I do like to see things in person first.

All that said I know it is a ton of hard work to put together events and I certainly will do my best next year. Good news is I met some nice gentlemen who clearly knew what they were looking for at Mecum looking over a so so unrestored 63 and had been doing both shows...got on of their cards to email him about what i'm after in a 63 and talk more about what to look for I hope.

SW Vette

Folks ought to keep in mind that NCRS meets are not car "shows" per se. They are strictly club events, venues for Corvette owners to have their cars judged against an objective standard. As such, I would not expect much interest from the general public as compared to an event like, say, the Mecum auction.

Unless you have a car entered for Flight judging, or are a judge, or a friend of someone involved, there is hardly any compelling reason to attend - especially if the location is off the beaten path and without any interesting tourist attractions or recreational opportunities to speak of.

MikeM

I think you are saying what others have said, just a little differently and the shrinking size of the vendors and crowds reflect that.

capevettes

That is very true of most Regionals. Historically the Florida Regional was the largest for several other appealing reasons in addition to the judging. It had a swap meet that was a mini Carlisle, the lure of Florida weather in January, host hotels near the event with other things of interest nearby, like Mecum or Old Town.
There are many in the NCRS that chose to come to this Regional over the years even if they didn't bring a car to be judged.

SW Vette

As a Left Coaster it's never been on my agenda, but from what's been said here, it does sound as though the change of location has made this event less attractive to those who used to have it circled on their calendar. Unfortunate for the organizers, who still work as hard as ever to make it happen.

scopeli

quality of judging depends on the event and the knowledge of the judges at each event. the research done on survivor cars has enabled the ncrs to do a tremendous job on judging. But, there are judges at Bloomington that have tremendous knowledge in their given years and at times I have seen better judging at Bloomington. I am not a big fan of Duntov cars. in the quest for that award I have seen large amount of changes in certain cars to achieve that award. that includes engine changes with different engine pad numbers.

MOXIE62

Frank, how did your car do. If my memory is correct, last year you lost some points on your air conditioner. Did they do the same thing this year.

Frankie the Fink

I don't know if the team leadership changed this year for 63s so I didn't enter the car. When it does, I might...

Nuff 'sed...

Procrastination Racing

I'm going to start off by saying that Tyler Townsley does a tremendous job considering he does it all for free and there are thousands of people to try and please. I say that because I really am on his side, regardless of how I was introduced as his biggest critic.

(That was because two years ago, Corvettes drove down a muddy road when a paved one was about 75 feet away going to the same place. That is really the fault of those directing traffic, not Tyler. Anyone with a lick of sense would know that was a bad idea.)

There are a lot of issues. But to win the Corvette people, you have to win the wives and girlfriends. Without them, the guys don't go. This isn't the old days where a dozen car buddies took off for the weekend, slept 4 or 6 or 8 guys in a room, went nuts all weekend, and then went home Sunday night. We aren't 25 years old anymore.

This I know from as far back as Bloomington 1977. While the wives and girlfriends of many in our club loved the Corvettes, they didn't love walking around looking at old parts for 8 hours a day in 90° heat or sloppy mud for two or three days. They split about noon, right across the road to the mall and the restaurants that were all within a few blocks of the Bloomington show. Or went back to the hotels just a few blocks away to hit the pool.

That was the winning combination of Old Town. Tired of Corvettes, well, there were shops right there, restaurants in all directions, tourist things to do, and Disney just a few miles away to keep the kids happy. and many had hotels in walking distance.

But Old Town is NEVER going to work for this again.

I have gone since Cypress Gardens in '87. I missed '86 as I found out about it after. Like GB said, advertising of the show is and always has been poor. Advertising cost money, money that I doubt they have to spend, but without it, no one comes. My buddy and I went to Chili's after the show two years ago. We were the only Corvette in the lot. No one there knew that a Corvette show had gone on for 3 days.

Cypress had three issues. The first was the $28 fee to go into Cypress Gardens to see the judged cars. As such, most stayed outside at the swap. Second things began developing and there were fewer places for people to park to attend. And Finally, they closed. Cypress gardens is gone, although a beautiful location.

Disney as far too expensive to rent, from what I understand.

The Hilton was great in many respects, with indoor areas for judging, and paved vending area, although that could get hot, but never muddy. Still, did you ever get there after 9 am? I hope you have your hiking shoes on. There was far too little parking for people coming to look and buy. I knew guys who bought spaces just so they could park in the swap and not have to worry about cars a mile down the road in a ditch.

Old Town in the beginning was great. That is what everyone remembers. The auction was there. There was a lot of parking for visitors. There was plenty for the non-Vette person to do. It was close to food and hotels. It was as good as Bloomington in the '70s and early '80s.

But for all those looking at Old Town today, there is NO PARKING for visitors today. Three years ago, I took my family for the first time in a long time, and we parked at Red Lobster. The Corvette parking was wonderful, but if you brought anything else, you fought for 15 to 20 feet of grass on the edge of the road where you were in danger of being sideswiped by anyone trying to get through. Many of the shops were closed or filled with junk.


I like the Lakeland site. For a show and swap meet, it is great. It is easy access. It is wide open there. Terrific parking for everyone.

But there are absolutely facilities for anyone other than those showing, selling, or buying. Hotels are all too far away. Restaurants are far away. heck of a ride to an airport, even though we are at one. Too far from the auction.

As much as some dislike auctions, the auctions brings in a huge crowd. At the Hilton and Old Town, those waiting for certain cars to come up would wander through the swap area, the Corvette For Sale area, and the show cars. This boosted sales for those selling and made it profitable for them to come. In 2006, I took my 1979 there to sell. I didn't know the auction had moved, and probably 95% of the car buyers went with it. I didn't get a nibble. I would never pay all the expense to take a car to the Winter Regional to sell again. All the buyers at at the auction. No one with money is at the swap meet.


All of this said, how do we help Tyler fix it? Because we can't expect him to do it alone. and it needs to be fixed. The Winter Regional has too much history and is one of the few large shows around. We have to keep it going. but we have to make it so that it is profitable for those who come to sell or they won't come. And without them, you won't have a show.

Procrastination Racing

The loss of the auction has a severe impact on the Winter Regional.

1. It brought a huge number of people with money.
2. It isn't Walmart, you don't buy immediately, but have to wait for the car you want to come up. As such, you wander around the show and look for deals there.
3. Auction buyers pumped money into the swap meet vendors and made the Corvette Sales area worthwhile. Many cars sold because auction people were there.

Why does Bloomington Gold exist? Because the auction is the centerpiece for the last 25 years.

emccomas

The solution, and the formula for success is real easy to figure out...

You NEED the following:

1. A decent place to stage and crawl around cars for judging
2. A reasonably large area for a swap meet close to the judging area
3. A selection of hotels (with varying prices) that are close to the venue
4. Interesting things for wives/family to do that are also reasonably close

Old Town met all of those requirements (some better than others) for while.

I am really hard pressed to believe that in one of the largest tourist capitals of the world, we cannot locate another facility / venue that works at least as well as Old Town did.

Remember, we have ALL of central Florida (think I-4 corridor) from Daytona to Tampa to chose from.

Frankie the Fink

if you moved it back to Old Town tomorrow there would still be those who would b!tch.