On Sunday 18th June, I went to my first car show of the year. Billing Aquadrome often used to be the place of pilgrimage for these things but, since the holiday park turned its back on car events, new venues have had to be found by the event organisers and travelled to by fans like me.
The American Automobile Club International (AACI) chose Kelmarsh Hall for this event and, as far as I am concerned that was great. Less distance for me to travel and, by way of a double-whammy, it was cheaper than Billing to get into the show fields.
I wrote about both the AACI Open National events last year and the previous reviews are available below. Though the venue was different, the format was much the same. A show field packed full of Americana and encircled by traders selling their wares. There were hundreds of cars but also a significant number of HGVs too. The imposing Peterbilt trucks were impressive and drew loads of attention from kids and their parents alike.
When I arrived at about 10:30am, the weather was already scorching hot. I parked up and walked into the show ground. At that point there were three full rows of vehicles stretching the length of the designated field, the fourth was rapidly building and by the time I left, there were five full rows and then some offshoot displays too.
I wandered around taking photos (more than 250 in the end), admiring the vehicles and chatting to the owners. One of the cars on display was a 1973 Dodge Charger SE Richard Petty (AKA “The King”) signature car in its full original livery. The owner was very proud of it and justifiably so if you ask me. Though wheel chair bound, he wheeled along the car to show me the actual Richard Petty signature on the driver’s side rear panel.
The green Mustang I wrote about the other day wasn’t on display but there were plenty of vehicles that were as nice, and some that were a lot nicer too. The gallery below shared for your enjoyment.
Given that I have been to a handful of US Auto events now, a number of the vehicles were already familiar to me. I thought it was a bit like the automobile equivalent of meeting up with old friends.
Some of the vehicles on display were works of art and the love, attention and money spent on them was clear to see. I don’t get to spend much of my time in art galleries but this field in Northamptonshire was as good a display as you’d see in any of London’s finest artistic establishments…at least in my opinion anyway.
As an aside, of late, I have been getting into “Sin City Motors” (known in the US as “Vegas Rat Rods”), it’s a reality TV show on Dave that follows the trials and tribulations of Steve Darnell and his crew of welders, fabricators, mechanics and paint shop experts. The crew builds rat rods and creates all sorts of properly out-there vehicles. The programme is rather formulaic (just like Counting Cars, The Car Chasers, Pawn Stars and River Monsters) but I love it.
Darnell’s team finishes a lot of its projects by retaining the patina of the vehicle when it arrives. Surface rust is okay, evidence of various paint layers is acceptable; the ratty appearance is then protected by varnishes and wax.
Getting to the point of the digression, at Kelmarsh Hall there were a number of vehicles that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Welderup (that by the way is the name of Darnell’s business). Before SCM, I didn’t appreciate that the amount of work that goes into a rat rod is often just as much as a more traditional hot rod.
For 2.5-3 hours I was in heaven but by then the sun was starting to burn me to a more hellish shade of red and so I, sensibly, headed for home. Blimey the air conditioning was my friend for my journey.
There is another AACI event taking place at Kelmarsh Hall on the 6th August 2017, I am going to go, maybe I’ll see you there.
Click on any image to enlarge. Higher resolution images available, just get in touch if you'd like one.
The American Automobile Club International (AACI) chose Kelmarsh Hall for this event and, as far as I am concerned that was great. Less distance for me to travel and, by way of a double-whammy, it was cheaper than Billing to get into the show fields.
I wrote about both the AACI Open National events last year and the previous reviews are available below. Though the venue was different, the format was much the same. A show field packed full of Americana and encircled by traders selling their wares. There were hundreds of cars but also a significant number of HGVs too. The imposing Peterbilt trucks were impressive and drew loads of attention from kids and their parents alike.
When I arrived at about 10:30am, the weather was already scorching hot. I parked up and walked into the show ground. At that point there were three full rows of vehicles stretching the length of the designated field, the fourth was rapidly building and by the time I left, there were five full rows and then some offshoot displays too.
I wandered around taking photos (more than 250 in the end), admiring the vehicles and chatting to the owners. One of the cars on display was a 1973 Dodge Charger SE Richard Petty (AKA “The King”) signature car in its full original livery. The owner was very proud of it and justifiably so if you ask me. Though wheel chair bound, he wheeled along the car to show me the actual Richard Petty signature on the driver’s side rear panel.
The green Mustang I wrote about the other day wasn’t on display but there were plenty of vehicles that were as nice, and some that were a lot nicer too. The gallery below shared for your enjoyment.
Given that I have been to a handful of US Auto events now, a number of the vehicles were already familiar to me. I thought it was a bit like the automobile equivalent of meeting up with old friends.
Some of the vehicles on display were works of art and the love, attention and money spent on them was clear to see. I don’t get to spend much of my time in art galleries but this field in Northamptonshire was as good a display as you’d see in any of London’s finest artistic establishments…at least in my opinion anyway.
As an aside, of late, I have been getting into “Sin City Motors” (known in the US as “Vegas Rat Rods”), it’s a reality TV show on Dave that follows the trials and tribulations of Steve Darnell and his crew of welders, fabricators, mechanics and paint shop experts. The crew builds rat rods and creates all sorts of properly out-there vehicles. The programme is rather formulaic (just like Counting Cars, The Car Chasers, Pawn Stars and River Monsters) but I love it.
Darnell’s team finishes a lot of its projects by retaining the patina of the vehicle when it arrives. Surface rust is okay, evidence of various paint layers is acceptable; the ratty appearance is then protected by varnishes and wax.
Getting to the point of the digression, at Kelmarsh Hall there were a number of vehicles that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Welderup (that by the way is the name of Darnell’s business). Before SCM, I didn’t appreciate that the amount of work that goes into a rat rod is often just as much as a more traditional hot rod.
For 2.5-3 hours I was in heaven but by then the sun was starting to burn me to a more hellish shade of red and so I, sensibly, headed for home. Blimey the air conditioning was my friend for my journey.
There is another AACI event taking place at Kelmarsh Hall on the 6th August 2017, I am going to go, maybe I’ll see you there.
Click on any image to enlarge. Higher resolution images available, just get in touch if you'd like one.
Previous Related Posts
http://www.adrianbaldwin.net/blog/24424-the-aaci-summer-nationals-and-fathers-day
http://www.adrianbaldwin.net/blog/aaci-late-summer-open-nationals
http://www.adrianbaldwin.net/blog/car-sunday-2-nsra-fun-run-top-gear
http://www.adrianbaldwin.net/blog/billing-aquadrome-disappointment
AACI - https://www.aac-int.com/
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http://www.adrianbaldwin.net/blog/car-sunday-2-nsra-fun-run-top-gear
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