Don Rickles

Noticed by the turnout at every NCRS meet.........The number of judged cars has been shrinking, at all levels chapter, regional and national.

I also, pay attention to forum activity, ebay prices and activity, etc. All have slowed in the Corvette world as of late.

Is my perception simply seasonal? I will continue to watch and see......

BD104X

Americas love affair with the automobile in general is dying. Fewer people are into cars than ever before and most motorsports are struggling with reduced participation & fan attendance. When I was a kid I was mesmerized by cars but most kids now couldn't care less. I have a Corvette and a 7-second dragster & I can pull either one out of the garage and not a single kid on my block will bat an eye!

Nowhere Man

It all boils down to disposable income. Less people have it.

65GGvert

Maybe people are just tired of being judged. The ones who did well in judging don't want to go again and take a chance on dropping down, so the numbers are decreasing? (If indeed they are decreasing, I'm thinking you haven't counted all NCRS attendance numbers and compared them to years past.)

BD104X

I definitely agree that this doesn't help, but its more than that. I just read an article that says fewer kids are running right out & getting their license as soon as they reach driving age than ever before. Look around at a car show - most of the kids there look like their dad dragged them and there are very few teens. I go to the Corvette stuff, I drag race & I work in a car dealership - I see it everywhere.

2003pilot

My brother has a fairly large C2 collection and I think all of his cars are past NCRS Top Flights. I kind of look at it as "what do you do for encore?" as my father-in-law always says. I know my brother lost interest in the judging process a few years back as he said it had just gotten so picky and was no longer enjoyable to him. I just bought his white/red '65 fuelie and plan to drive and enjoy it. It's a past National Top Flight and Bloomington Gold car so nothing more to do in my opinion except take it on the road for my family and others to enjoy driving and seeing it. It's only been driven 1,300 miles or so since 2001 but it will see at least that much or more per year with me.

DansYellow66

There's definately an aging of the hobby of antique and muscle cars. Our car club can hardly get a meeting together anymore. Too many old timers died and gone. Others are raising their grand children or have medical issues. Younger guys still interested in cars are not into the club and orgainized enthusiast things. We still have good turn out at cruise night and car shows but it seems to more people are into just showing up for a couple hours but not wanting to particpate in anything orgainized. I think the disposable income issue is probably a big drag on the younger members who have an interest in old cars. I don't see it doing anything except continuing to decline or at least evolve considerably.

chevahaulic

It started out with a purpose.... to install pride of ownership in classic Chevrolets by removing " flaws " ( owner added features not available through GM ) preserving exact as possible examples of the mark.
Membership in the club grew and an organization was born. Soon these " very correct examples " made their way to the auction. Publicity of perfect surrounded the class. Soon big money was changing hands when investors / money men / ( bankers ) hunted, promoted, and filled their pockets with the research and guidance of this organization.
Enter the new generation. They decide the C-1 & 2 are classic designs but love the new drive line of the current sports car. Result, the restomod. The fire catches quickly with examples being replicated all over the world. Original parts, once scares as hens teeth are for sale with the new craze keeping only the body, title, and identification tags.
The " old school " members of NCRS dwindle in numbers as the older " by the book " enthusiasts buy condos on the beach in place of old cars. Yes there are hold outs and sparse judging clinics exist. The field is narrowed between " money " ( restomoders ) project hunters, and owners with mostly correct cars still hanging on the " numbers matching " money inspired concept.
Like the well known Marine boot camp saying ..... " Smoke'm if you got'm. The " club " has since dispersed from large numbers to smaller groups hanging with the title and status.
Members have privileges. The status paper trail, i.e. top flight, gold certified, survivor, and lets not forget the paper trail of your car from GM are probably in their golden years.
Many projects and owners who have lost interest will be marketing their cars to " gear head modifiers " ( six tail lights, flairs, custom hoods ) where the cycle began. It appears the big circle theory is true.
I am neither a restomoder or NCRS person. I like original but would never refuse to buy an example because of numbers or minor modifications based on value. I don't believe the interest in the hobby has diminished. Current owner preferences are wide spread , individualized and personal.

Frankie the Fink

Didn't we just go through this whole exercise in the "Are C1 and C2 prices softening?" thread?

Do we really need to rehash it?

6T5RUSH

chevahualic, well said!

Jim
In God We Trust!

Don Rickles

Thanks for your unuseful post.......Did that reply relate to the question above, no.

My question was towards participation of the entire Corvette hobby not the prices of C1/2....

Thanks for the posters above with their insight and interesting input!

fyreline

I think it's a combination of the reasons mentioned - the economy, a decreasing demographic of people interested and/or capable of owning, appreciating and maintaining an older Corvette, and the general "me" generation lack of appreciation for anything more than two months old.

My C6 is a great tour car, with all the amenities I could ever want and more performance than I could ever use. I enjoy it every time I drive it. My 1962 is an entire other animal. Driving it is an all-encompassing experience of what the "state of the art" was in the 1960s. It starts, steers, stops and drives entirely differently than a modern car. As a numbers-matching, stock 64K-original-mile car it's a pretty accurate reflection of what a 60s Corvette is (and was) like.

And it's not for everybody.

It takes work, dedication, research, knowledge, storage and work space, and yes, $$$$$ to make it all work. You've really got to WANT to. And not too many young folks today seem that interested. Those that are on the fringe seem to tend more towards resto-mod cars. Some of them build them themselves, but it appears to me that many more do not. They buy 'em already done by someone else, drive 'em for a while, get tired of "em, and then run them through a TV auction.

While you could get depressed about this state of affairs, I prefer to see it as an opportunity . . . and a responsibility. Those of us fortunate enough to own C1 & C2 (and increasingly, C3) Corvettes - and who preserve and maintain them to the best of our ability and resources "as Chevy built them" . . . need to realize (and most of us do) that we are not owners, but custodians. Caretakers of a little slice of automotive history, and a slice that will ALWAYS be of interest to a small but dedicated group of automotive buffs. We need to ensure that years from now, if someone wants to see a split-window coupe, not every one of them has a tubbed rear end and a blower sticking through the hood. Nothing wrong with that, mind you, but that isn't an accurate representation of a 1963 Corvette. So yes, we are guilty as charged of driving "rolling museum pieces", with all the good and bad connotations that go with that label. I look at it as "someone's gotta do it" - and right now, at this place and time, I can. So I will.

And the reason I do is not entirely altruistic. I do it because the C1 is the Corvette of my youth, that I was either too young or too broke (or both) to own when they were new. I always wanted one. I have exactly the one I always wanted. And I love it. I take VERY good care of it, but I do drive it. That's why I bought it. I don't care if I don't make money on it. I enjoy the NCRS meets, meeting and talking to others who share my interest and passion for these cars. Are there fewer of us every year? Yes, I guess there are. That's OK. I will tell you this - the expressions on the faces of other drivers, young and old, when I have it out for a drive tells me I need not be worried. I had it at a little local show & shine at the local Home Depot last summer and all those "wasted youths" we complain about so vehemently, what with their multi-colored mohawks showing their Subaru ricers with the fart-can exhausts and ironing-board spoilers, were looking my '62 over like it was from another planet. I'm sure that to them, it was. So I made it a point to look their ugly little cars (just my opinion, but I call 'em as I see 'em) over, and you know what? There was some pretty amazing engineering in many of them. These kids know their stuff - they just like different things than I like.

My grandfather said, "It's a good thing we all like different things - or every man in the world would be after your grandmother." Tastes change, but I still believe that well-preserved stock early Corvettes will always have both intrinsic and historical value, for those who can see it. Twenty years from now, I may or may not be here - but I am hopeful that my 1962 Corvette will be. It has lessons to teach. There will always be people interested in learning them, so I feel a responsibility to preserve and protect their rolling textbook. The fact that a quick blast down the road for ice cream on a nice summer night is part of the equation is my payment for that job.

And for me, it is enough.

65 fi

IMO and based upon the prices of not only Corvettes but many other classics, there is a greater pool of buyers than cars. Even in Obama supportive neighborhoods classic cars are not being given away.
Loss of interest? I am not seeing it.
Exasperation with judging? I would think so.

sub006

Network TV is declining as internet technology makes thousands of programs, series, films, etc. available, much of it free. Old car parts used to involve getting up early, travel, maybe a whole day of walking at Hershey, now 99.99% is available instantly from your keyboard at home.

One of my four kids does love and work on cars as old as 1904 at a private collection. He loves '60s muscle and drag cars. I started him working on the C2 with me when he was a toddler. My daughter has only driven BMWs. The other two boys see automobiles as appliances.

There have always been people into cars and people who are not. My younger brother, born 1951, did not get a driver license 'til he was 18 or 19.

Frankie the Fink

if you read that thread it devolved into very similar musings as this thread. But carry on. I won't be following.

ChattanoogaJSB

Frankie,

Here's an unuseful agreement to your post. This is getting to be a semi monthly topic.

gccch

One other thing that has been discussed many times but cannot be discounted... There are a lot more options now to buyers. The muscle car has been reborn with classic styling and performance second to none. This equals more competition to any of our classic rides. I have many friends that were classic muscle car enthusiasts that are driving new Challengers, Camaros, Mustangs, etc. I was also very tempted many times!

But, as Marketing theory goes, you need data to understand if a trend is actually present or if it is merely perception. What do the numbers say (participation at shows vs. history)?

I'm just doing this to satisfy a childhood desire and personal challenge to see if I can get a complete restoration done more than half right!

Roll on WB!

65tripleblack

...................and that's because of the lack of interesting threads here and elsewhere. I have noticed an overall reduction of posts and replies here. The NCRS TDB was very active, but that ended about 6 years ago. Now I go there and I see three new replies in 24 hours. CAC might get one reply every 24 hours. It is all very unactioning and untalkful.

65silververt

I think the internet contributes to it a lot. In the past people needed to go to Corvette meets to find information about out their cars, find people to help them work on their cars, get advise, find parts, etc.
Now we can just log into the corvette forum then hop on over to ebay or go to a website and make a phone call/send an email.

Jackfit

I agree, what would we do if Frankie stopped finding things wrong?

Jack