Sunday, August 2, 2009

Syracuse Nationals


No true lover of old cars would knowingly forgo a visit to the yearly Syracuse Nationals where people from all corners of the US congregate each year to show restored cars from days gone by. I tell you it was a real treat for us to see all those wonderful cars exhibited in one place. Of course I took as many photos as I had memory space and now, without further ado, I will share them with you!

The first photo was taken in one of the many indoor exhibit spaces where all the pin stripers were showing off their skills. There were ongoing competitions where the artists had only a few minutes to come up and execute their designs, which were then auctioned off. From what we saw in the short time we hung out, a lot of money was raised which was then donated to a children's charity.

The young man in the photo has a pin striping business in Bakersfield CA called 'Diablo's House of Style (661-565-6871) and he had only just started on this design when I took this photo. Yes, that is Diablo himself holding the panel.



I hope you will enjoy the photos as much as we enjoyed the show!




As an inveterate lover of hood ornaments I must of course start with this one, though I must say that I was a little disappointed. I expected to see more unusual ones than I was familiar with already. Even so we spent an entire day walking through the exhibits, we barely managed to see even half of the seven thousand cars on show here. So it is entirely possible that all the really good ornaments were in the sections we were unable to visit!





Yep, that is a real Silver Shadow, it was sitting right next to a Bentley, but unfortunately I managed to get that photo all shook up so it ended up blurry (that is why they tell you to use a tripod). I really wanted to show you the cool leather interior with all the blue glowing armature! Oh well!

Btw, if you want to see a larger version of the photos, just click on them. You should be able to read the placards next to some of the cars that way.



Who among us hasn't dreamed of riding in a classy car such as this 1954 Kaiser Darrin? If you have never heard of this car, don't feel bad. This is car #145 of 451 produced. I think this car is just beautiful!




Here are two of Jon Button's race cars. I don't know what make the blue racer is, but the red one is a 1936 Hillegass.




And here is Jon Button himself tipping his cap and holding his old autograph covered helmet




There was just so much color on these restored beauties! If you think about it, most of these car's original paint jobs were much more conservative than what their current owners decided on. Those paint companies must be doing great business these days. I spoke to one owner of a 1970's Mustang and he said that he put over $4,000 into his car in paint alone and he did the painting himself. I understood perfectly why he did not want anyone touch his car!



Just look at this beauty, a 1930 Ford Woodie - that's when they still used real wood!





Someone used this is a car for a funeral - even though it says 'Superior oil Co' on the side. A mighty stylish way for your last ride...











I fell in love with this car, everything is perfect, the color the lines of the grille, the headlights! I have no idea what make this beauty is - any suggestions?





What would a carshow be without at least one stingray? Well this show had several that I saw, this one was the one I liked best.



These next three cars had gleaming spotless engines. I am sure they were transported here on a flatbed, they were in such a pristine condition.





Next comes a more unusual car. This one was built by the owner himself after a concept he saw in a 1965 magazine. On the accompanying panel he tells us how he did it. Just click on the photo of the panel to see a larger readable image open in a new tab.


And here is the finished car! Not bad for a retiree, eh?



I think this was one of my favorite entries. This lovely pickup truck owned and lovingly restored by a middle aged couple who told me that they just loved to take rides into the country and then tour around in their equally lovely and lovingly restored matching bikes, seen here on the back of the truck!



Here is a better look at the bikes. My only regret was that I did not also take a photo of the owners! They were sitting right there next to their truck - my bad!



I hope you have enjoyed the Syracuse Nationals via my little photo essay. Maybe next year you will join us there in person. Think about it!
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