Best of france and italy November 6, 2022

Chris Obert

Chris Obert

autocrosser, X driver
Is anyone else going?
Fiat America is doing their traditional big tour from the SF Bay area. Leave Friday, back Monday.
I will be going down to help a friend show his two Fiats. No vending this year for us, but if you need something delivered let me know before end of day Friday 11-4-2022 (earlier preferred), and if I can squeeze it in I'll bring it.
 
Unfortunately I rarely get to attend this event. It is scheduled immediately following the SEMA show so by the time I finish up with the necessary activities closing that show, I'm too beat to take the trip. Sad too because the same weekend there are usually two other great car shows (non-Fiat) in SoCal that I'd also like to attend. I've done it a couple of times in the past but decided I'm getting too old to push myself that much anymore. Although last year would have been a great year to skip SEMA completely, it was DEAD. I have a feeling this year may not be too great either. But I also wonder the same about BFFI? Is that why you are not taking your vending trailer this year?
 
Dr.Jeff said:
But I also wonder the same about BFFI? Is that why you are not taking your vending trailer this year?
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We won't be taking the 1962 Fiat 1100 TN truck down. The way it sets up, folks stand in front of the open side and breath up into the area where Brookie and I are. So it's like sitting in an enclosed box. With the flu and covid on the uptick, we are just not comfortable exposing ourselves.

And like you, we are getting older. It's a hell of a drive at 52 mph flat out (much slower on hills), so it takes about 10 hours on the road each way. All the way that 1900 CC diesel is just sitting there in the cab with us making so much noise that you can't even talk. And more importantly, there is no room for the passenger to kinda kick back and take a nap because the seats don't move.

We are enjoying the break.
 
Yes. Leaving in just over an hour. Three cars again definitely, and since my daughter hates the long walk from the parking across the street, I told her if she washes her 500 and removes the accumulation of interior ‘stuff’ (school books, curled up papers, empty Starbucks containers, etc), she take it on the grass for up front seats—and not walk. I think that appeals to her.
 
Coupefan said:
Yes. Leaving in just over an hour. Three cars again definitely, and since my daughter hates the long walk from the parking across the street, I told her if she washes her 500 and removes the accumulation of interior ‘stuff’ (school books, curled up papers, empty Starbucks containers, etc), she take it on the grass for up front seats—and not walk. I think that appeals to her.
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Then again, she may view cleaning the car to be more work than walking across the street. :p

Please let us know how the show was.
 
Dr.Jeff said:
As the saying goes, ask me how I knew. :D

How was the show?
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I would put it at very good turn out when compared to other years, but I did also notice the absence of at least a dozen people that I only mange to catch up with at the show once a year. While there was no show in 2020, something odd appears to have happened both last year and this year. I'm not alone in noticing it. People begin leaving earlier now than they did in prior years. The weather as usual was perfect, so that wasn't the consideration. I do miss the group that Tony N. used to get together on that back table under the pine trees. Maybe that large assembled group and all of the laughter kept the masses around longer.
 
Coupefan said:
I would put it at very good turn out when compared to other years, but I did also notice the absence of at least a dozen people that I only mange to catch up with at the show once a year. While there was no show in 2020, something odd appears to have happened both last year and this year. I'm not alone in noticing it. People begin leaving earlier now than they did in prior years. The weather as usual was perfect, so that wasn't the consideration. I do miss the group that Tony N. used to get together on that back table under the pine trees. Maybe that large assembled group and all of the laughter kept the masses around longer.
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That's why I asked about this year's turnout. I've noticed the same with some other major cars shows; when COVID was big the shows were cancelled for a year, and ever since then they just don't seem the same. For example SEMA was closed in 2020. Reopened in 2021 but was at least 70% down compared to past years. This year's (2022) show was still down at least 40%. And the show had a noticeable lack of really great cars as well. Furthermore there has been a lot of other annual shows that still have not reopened. At this point I'm not sure if the future will come back to the level of the past or not. It feels like the whole climate has changed for the worse.
 
Coupefan said:
People begin leaving earlier now than they did in prior years. The weather as usual was perfect, so that wasn't the consideration.
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A lot of the Fiats were on a tour from Fiat America, so they needed to leave right after "lunch" so they could get to the hotel destination before it got too dark. I did not ask if they were successful.
I did catch up with them on Monday for lunch. Or, they caught up with me. They arrived after 3, and still had a long ways to go. Fortunately the restaurant that was arranged in Paso Robles was extremely patient, keeping crew on later than I am sure they had planned. They were ready for them, and was serving everyone very quickly when we left.

I was at the show helping a friend show his two cars. We got there late because of some unplanned non Fiat morning delays, and were almost the last cars on the show field. We left earlier than I would normally had left so we could get home by dark. As it was, we just barely made it, and unloaded as it was getting dark.

As this was my first year at this show as a participant, and not a vendor, it's difficult for me to say about the amount of folks there. My vending friends told me they thought the amount of folks at their booths was down, but I got to say I went shopping first thing, before I looked at cars. Normally we would have been very busy at that hour, but the folks just didn't seem to be there. As for the money flow, I was approached by a lot of folks who wanted to buy from me. Who knows if by the end of day if sales would have been normal, or depressed. Since the show is a long distance, and is expensive to attend as a vendor, 2023 will be a tough decision.

As Jeff has said, the whole climate for shows seems to have changed.
 
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