John is mostly correct in his memory of an experience I told him about, the main difference being that it didn't take place at a campground, but rather at the parking garage for Chicago's Navy Pier. I had an out of town friend who is interested in cemeteries spending a few days with me a couple years back, so naturally we spent a couple of those days in the city, taking him around to Chicago's notable cemeteries. He then mentioned how he'd like to see Navy Pier, so which I said "ok". Well the parking garage at Navy Pier is one of those with a gate at the entrance where you have to take a time-stamped ticket in order to calculate your parking fee when you leave.
So I pull in with a hearse, stop, and am in the process of reaching for the button to spit out a ticket, when a security guard comes running over, yelling, that I can't park this here. Of course I ask "why?", "Its too big, it won't fit", "Then explain the Suburban that's over there *as I point to it*, and the full size van over there", "I can't let you in", You just don't like hearses, don't you?", "I can't let you in", "Get your supervisor over here. I want to talk to him"
Well someone must have radioed the supervisor about the scene that was being created, because he was at my window almost instantly. "Sir, we can't let you in, you're too big", "I'm no bigger than that Suburban", "We can't let you in", "If you insist you can't let me in, I'm going to just sit here and block the entrance to your garage until I feel good and ready to leave."
After several moments of silence, in which I swear I could see the steam coming out of his ears, he finally said "Alright, but park in that far corner away from everyone else". So I got my ticket, and proceeded to (admittedly illegally) park in a handicapped space right next to the entrance to the pier so that everyone who came and went had to see my car.
Another negative story that instantly springs to mind is checking into a motel for the duration of a multi-day car show I took the Bayliff Packard to, and while I'm in the lobby getting a room, I see two guys who looked like they belonged to the undesirable element of the population, begin circling my car. When I walked back to the car, the usual small talk relating to "what is it" took place, and then one of the guys asked if it was for sale. Of course I said no, to which he then threw a 5-digit figure at me, which of course I also declined. He then said "Oh that's too bad. I could make this really cool! Chop the top, put a 350 with a blower in it, tub it out....etc etc etc." To which my mind instantly came up with two thoughts. One was "What the hell is wrong with you? There's only two of these. How much more unique does it have to be", and the other instant thought was "Not only is it not for sale, but it's DEFINITELY not for sale to YOU!"
Now in all fairness, I do have as many humorous, pleasant, and just plain good stories to tell about my cars too. Not everyone is an idiot, it just seems like they all are at times! LOL But when you do get the person who is genuinely interested, and wants to learn about something he doesn't know about, and has an open mind, that makes attending the show worthwhile. I have met so many people due to the attention that my professional cars attract, including a handful who have become the equivilent of pen-pals, two who have become close personal friends, and of course the fine people in this great organization of ours. I honestly don't think that I would have met anywhere near the number of people that I have, if I had been driving a more ordinary old car. So here's to being the unique individuals that we are! :cheers::cheers:
They know all about how Cadillac built them and sold them and all. How they souped up a 350 engine just for them and when l try to educate them and tell them how they were really built, oh no, no, no, that's not how they were built at all! And I'm thinking, yeah buddy, and you prolly have never even tightened a loose screw on a car much less know how one is built! Like Patrick and others I've been told how I shold do all this stuff to my cars, lowering, rodding, gutting out the interiors, yadda, yadda, yadda.
And talking about car shows a cruise-ins I've been burnt a few times as well myself. At a few shows I've been parked in the worst spots and have even been in show classes where cars (a 1969 Camaro with a billet pully cover on the A/C compressor that all the sudden made it a special interest vehicle) were added at the last minute just to skew the results so I wouldn't place in the class
. I prolly should have packed up my toys and left right then but I didn't because I knew it would piss them off if I stayed so I stayed put!
But I still show up and register show may car with a smile on my face and be friendly to all I show with and talk to knowing it frosts a few a$$es when I go ahead a show anyway!:4_11_9: And showing locally I've always very conscious on how I present, represent and show the cars along with myself at shows being a local undertaker. Around the town and community were I serve folks really appreciate seeing my cars at shows and cruise-ins and I'm always getting good comments and compliments on my cars and no one seems to have any qualms about me showing and having them. Its just at the shows were a bunch of high roller better than thou's are afraid they may get beat out of a trophy by a Cadillac hearse of ambulance I get burnt at!
