Lou64

I saw this thing posted on Craigslist today...and as I am going to be in Gatlinburg that weekend I have successfully convinced my wife to go. The dates are Oct 15-17. Anybody going or have gone in the past? It doesn't have a website that I can find.

I won't be entering my car, but thought it might be a neat first show for the 64 since I will be in the area "vacationing."

robert miller

what show are you talking about here.

Lou64

The "Crossroads Corvette Show" in Morristown, TN.

BANG11

That's not far from me, didn't know about it. Thanks for the heads up

muskegonbrake

This is the first year for the show, it is replacing the Fall Knoxville show. They are scrambling for vendors from what I understand. If anyone goes we would love to hear about it.

Lou64

Yeah, the ad said "All your favorite vendors like..." and then listed a bunch, of which Al Knoch was the only one I had heard of! (although I am new to the hobby)

Lou64

Ttt

mudbone64

Huh, whaddayaknow. I did some looking around and did find this:
http://www.ws.edu/expo/default.asp
I'm glad that an effort is being made to get a fall Corvette show going. The Sevierville location was nice but way to corporate for my liking. The old digs at Chilhowee Park were much more enjoyable. The Chilhowee location was more like a county fair than that corporate crap at Sevierville. Still, whether it was spring or fall, weather seemed to always be a problem. It usually seemed wet and cold in the spring and quite possibly the same thing in the fall.

Here's to hoping the show works out great in a different location.

mudbone64

Incidentally, I did find some additional information for the upcoming show. I called the number listed in the following info:

Corvette Show
Day Star Productions,LLC
Dates:October 15, 2010 - October 17, 2010
Location:Expo Center
Division:Expo Center
Contact:Eddie Connor at 757-490-2570
Description:
Friday & Saturday Hours 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Sunday Hours 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

and was connected to "Vette masters". The guy seemed quite nice and said the show was being put on "by vendors for vendors". I still find it amazing that no more news has leaked out about the show than it has. I hope the organizers are able to make a better go of it.

robert miller

I grew up in morristown in the 60,s. May have to drive up to just check it out again.

gbvette62

The plans for this show were finalized back in May or June, but not much seems to have happened with it since. I was told about it in July by another vendor, and the show's promoter contacted me in early August. There were a couple flyers for it at Corvettes at Carlisle. At last weeks Fall Carlisle, there were small posters for it in front of 2 or 3 vendor's spaces. The promoter did stop around to see me at Fall Carlisle.

Most vendors I've spoken to are a little concerned about the lack of publicity and advertising, for the show. I understand that some local advertising has been done, but no national ads have been run that I know of.

I have one of the show flyers, here's some additional info from the flyer.

10-14-10 is vendor set-up day, closed to the public.
10-15-10 swap meet and cars for sale, open to the public.
10-16-10 Judging of the outdoor, "Park N Show" Corvette Show, & a Poker Run "Walk" (?) on the grounds.
10-17-10 Judging of the indoor Corvette Show.

Indoor show is $45.00, Satudays Park N Show is $25.00. Dash plaques to all entrants.

The shows website is: www.crossroadcorvetteshow.homestead.com.

I hope the show goes well, as I know and like the vendor who's putting it on.

mudbone64

Thanks for the info and the link gb. I'd really like to see the show get back to where it was some years ago. I started attending the Knoxville show back in the mid '90s and remember it being quite large. From what I've been told the show was much larger even before I started attending. As time wore on it had to just gotten less significant. Hopefully the show will regain some of it's lost popularity.

Robert,
I have some friends in Albany KY and family in Monticello KY. Obviously they're just up the road from you a ways. Hopefully I will be in sweet home Monticello this weekend. Maybe you could come up to the Somernites Cruise sometime? I'd say we had over 300 Vettes there for Corvette month just a week and a half ago.

gilbybarr

I believe this is NOT the same promoters as the Corvette Expo that we all have been used to.....they (the Cooper Bros.) have now limited their Corvette event to Spring. As I understand it, this is a new group trying to start up an event in a new place with a new format. A group of us from East Tenn Corvette Club plan to go up and check it out....NCRS is having a meet there on the Saturday of that weekend as well. I hope it does well.....we could use a quality event down here in the fall to close out each year.

mudbone64

You are correct in saying that it's not the Cooper Bros. promoting the show. However, after calling the number I listed above I found out the format will be much like it was when the event was at Chillhowee Park. The vendors will set up on Thursday with the show open to the public for the following three days. Again, let's hope the event gets some traction and continues to grow.

gbvette62

I really miss the show being at Chilhowee Park, and others who vended there do to.

It's nice that the Sieverville Expo Center allows most vendors to be inside, but the disadvantages outweigh that, in my opinion. Smaller vendor spaces, more expensive spaces, more expensive hotels, 2 show days instead of 3, limited parking, etc..., all work against the Expo Center. Heck, vendors aren't even allowed to bring in coolers! The vendors have felt that the Coopers have been doing all they could to kill the show the last few years. They've now finally succeeded to do that with the fall show.

The group running the Crossroads show had originally talked about returning it to the park in Knoxville. I don't know why this didn't come about.

If you've been attanding the Corvette Expos since the 90's, we've probably met, as I've been selling there since the early 80's!

mudbone64

Tell me about it. Like I've said before the Chilhowee Park venue was kinda like having a car show at a county fair and Sevierville was kinda like having a car show at some corporate center.

I hear what you're saying about the smaller vendor spaces costing more money. In fact, that was one of the first complaints I heard concerning Sevierville. At the end of the day you've got to have paying customers (attendees) to make the show financially viable. However, you've also got to have vendors that people want to do business with. Also, many of the vendors I spoke with complained of not having enough time in two days to make any money. I think the show needs to be made as "vendor friendly" as possible.

Quite likely we have met. Maybe we should wear "Corvette Forum" I.D.s.

Honestly, as nice as the fellow was that I spoke with at "Vette Masters" was, I still think these shows could be promoted better. Some of the promoters don't seem to understand the power of or embrace the internet. If I were promoting a car make/model event one of the first tasks (and quite possibly the easiest tasks) I would tackle would be to find the internet forum that services that particular make/model and get the word out. News travels fast on these things you know.

Maybe I'll catch up with you at the show.

Gene

robert miller

Sounds good man will give you a p.m. befor then...

vetteseller.com

This is the first year for the Swap Meet, and Tom Payne has already put together a SOLID BASE of Vendors that have also committed to be in next years Show. We see the need for a quality Event that will bring Corvette Owners and Hobbyist together. When Tom heard that the Sevierville Show was canceled, he hurried to put this Show together. As a Vendor at Sevierville, I am glad that I have another Venue to take it's place. If everyone in the Hobby would help spread the word about the "New" Show, then it would grow quickly. I hope to see a lot of you there.

GRTaylor

One of the promoters for this show attended my Corvette Club's meeting in Morristown last night to personally invite my club to attend the show. He said that since the Cooper brothers were not planning to have a fall Corvette Expo in the future they were trying to replace it with the show in Morristown. He said they had 120 vendors committed to attend the show. Here is a link to the web site with directions to the Walters State Expo Center http://www.ws.edu/expo/location/location.asp

Poorhousenext

If anyone wants interior parts are installs of Al Knoch interiors products, you might want to give him a call and see if he is doing installs there are not.

He told me at 1st of last week he was talked into attending and asked if I knew about show since I lived in TN.

He wasn't to happy to hear I didn't at time. If I had heard about it, I would have thought it was just a local show put on by Morristown club.

I hope the show is not a disaster due to lack of promotion.