XH2Oskier

I don't really get into car shows that much, so I would like to hear the perspective of those that do. I probably attend eight or nine each year and only participate in a handful. Last year, I happened to attend both SLP day at E-town and the All GM-Nationals at Carlisle. As an F-Body owner, going into last summer I would have considered both of these shows to be very big, but once I walked away from them, my feelings changed dramatically.

I have always rolled my eyes when I saw used car ads that claimed a particular car "always wins at shows" or was a "multiple car show winner". I figured if someone put their car in enough local shows or had a really obscure car, they could win an endless amount of trophies. I didn't think with bigger shows, like the two I previously mentioned or Super Chevy and World of Wheels, that it was nearly as easy to win a trophy, unless your car really stood out. Apparently, that is not always the case.

I entered the World of Wheels show in Chicago this year and walked away with best in class. The car I entered was a bone stock, 2002 SS convertible. My display amounted to a placard I made the morning of the show, some orange safety cones and yellow rope. My paint was perfect, but the 10 spokes were a little dirty and the car was locked, which was supposed to be against the rules and hurt my score. Fortunately for me, of the hundreds of cars at the show, I apparently was the only contemporary convertible, so I won by default. As luck would have it, all 12 MFBA cars entered in that same show came away with awards. Last weekend, nine of ten MFBA cars won at Vettefest. Don't get me wrong, we have nice cars and all, but are they really that nice?

As it turns out, the WoW seemed to have a category for just about anything with wheels, which makes sense, but where is the prestige if someone can win just because they entered? If there were 500 cars in the Chicago WoW, no less than 400 walked away with trophies. The All GM Nationals was more of the same, as is every Super Chevy show I've ever attended. SLP Day was different though. With most of the cars being 3rd or 4th gen F-bodies and a parking lot full of them, the competition was thick.

I saw a car on the SLP board that just won at a WoW show in Omaha, I think, and his car was a million times cleaner and his display was infinitely better than mine. If both cars were at the same show in the same class, he would have been the easy winner. However, because we were at different shows, we both ended up with the same award.

For the serious car guys, do you care how many trophies a show hands out? What is a good ratio of entrants to awards at a big show- 30, 50, 80%? I know some of these people travel extensively and take this stuff very seriously. Should shows hand out trophies just because a car entered the right class? Do you think it tarnishes the prestige and/or legitimacy of awards if so many people receive them? If you don't care, do you just like to go to shows to hang out? If that's the case, do you tell the judges not to judge your car?

Sorry about being so long with this, but I find it fascinating.