wombvette

I started attending Carlisle sometime in the mid Seventies. At that time it was not just Corvette, but everything. They were still running the harness race horses on the track. Corvette row was J-Row. The majority of sellers were amateurs selling their leftovers, and there were some pretty good deals to be had. How things have changed. There are almost no amateurs left

jasonsamara

Nice pics I hope a bunch get loaded up. I never went until 6 years ago on a Saturday. I don't want to sound dramatic but it changed my life. I remember sitting in the stands eating chicken at noon when they did the salute to Chip and that is the moment I went Corvette crazy

wonderful

I started going in the late 70's. Attended mostly the fall events. Weather was always iffy, never knew if it was going to rain, be cold, be warm, be hot. Lots and lots of Vette parts in the "J" row. Also lots of deals every wheres else. My knees were still good then. Lost my sneakers in the mud one year.
Now with the internet, it's not the same-less parts, less cars, less everything, more expensive.
I have to dig up some of the photos. Will post them when found.

macdabs

I went in 1983 with a friend we drove a brand new 83 GT Mustang and skipped school on a Friday for fall Carlise. Got lost on the way down and still made the gates before 8 am.

What a site for two 16 year old cam heads! More hugger orange Camaros and 70's vettes for under $5,000.00 than I can remember. NOS parts were everywhere and you talked to the seller and developed a relationship ,instead of fleabay today.

OMG, I just realized I sound like my father talking about the 50's.

67's

Sorry, no pics all though they would be good, first time I went was spring I think in 94, I was about 20, there was a large snowfall on sat night need tractors to remove some cars.

gbvette62

The very first Carlisle event was in the fall of 74. If I remember the story correctly, Chip Miller had gone to Hershey in the early 70's, to sell some Corvette parts and was told he couldn't sell them. Hershey had a rule that required car parts being sold to be either 15 or 25 years old (I forget which now), so Chip decided to start a swap meet for any year parts, and Fall Carlisle was born. Fall Carlisle went over so well, that Chip started Spring Carlisle a couple years later.

I think Chip put all of the Corvette vendors on J Row, because it was the only paved road in the fairgrounds at the time, and Chip probably didn't want to walk in the mud!

My father and I played with antique cars for years and had been going to Hershey since 68. I bought my first Corvette in February 76, and started going to Carlisle that fall.

The Corvette show came along around 1980 (?). I've only missed one or two, and that was back in the 80's, when I was crewing for a Trans-Am team, and we had a race that conflicted with Corvettes at Carlisle.

Somewhere around I have some pictures from the early Corvettes at Carlisle. If I can find them, I post them up later.

W Guy

Glenn,
I forget the actual slogan, but I think the early promotions used the term "post war" in contrast to Hershey which was thought of as pre-war. I think my first event was '76.

Verne

midstyle

Corvettes ??? What Corvettes (1996)

Nowhere Man

Midstyle most of the early pictures my dad took of me up there were like that.

Blue Ridge 67

Started in the early 70,s when tractors pulled vendors out of the mud at the rear of the fairground. Horse track was still there, Big Dukes Rivera Supper Club was under the wood grand stands (burned down) offering a very affordable breakfast, survived several high wind events, lighting, small tornados, major snow storms and yes, a shooting. Been there about 130 times and every time there is something different to see and experience.
Many of the vendors are getting old as we all started in the late 60's and getting ready for the next generation.
Virginia Vettes

gbvette62

Hello Verne. There actually was a cut off based on years, for what you could sell at Hersey. After thinking about it some, I'm pretty sure it was 25 years, because that was the cut off for what the AACA judged too. Of course, when they chased Chip out it was around 72 or 73, so 25 years would have been mainly pre-war!

Funny thing, the restriction only pertained to parts, not cars. We bought and sold a few different cars of the 50's and 60's there back then, as did a lot of other people, and it was never an issue?


Back in the 80's, there were two beauty contests, at Corvettes at Carlisle. Besides Sunday's Miss Carlisle competition, there was Saturday's Miss Gentile Rear End contest! Gentile was a (now defunct) company that made heavy duty rear end covers, for 63-82 Corvettes, and they sponsored the annual "rear end" contest.

I took a few pictures at those contests years ago. I don't know what happened to the pictures, but I did come across the negatives recently. I'll try to find some time to transfer them to an SD card, and post some.