Biker

I attended the event this past weekend in St. Charles, IL. This was my first time at the show. My wife and I were both surprised at the quality of some of the cars on display. Some in a category named "Survivor" were just plain horrible. Runny paint, scratches, and worn upholestery were some of the flaws we spotted. I thought this show was supposed to feature only nice examples of the marque. Am I missing something.

Don't get me wrong; there were many nice Vettes on display, especially the exceptionally rare '69 that was auctioned for $600k. My point is I've never expected to see junk.

BlueL36

There was a bit of everything there. Some of the cars out on the course were prettier than those being judged. :yesnod:

Lee80

The prime examples would have been judged on Sunday for Bloomington Gold Certification. The ones judged on Saturday (some of the "junkier" ones) were going for Survivor. In Survivor, cleanliness is not an issue - only originality. So those sharks that had the cracked rear bumpers may have been awarded Survivor if all the rest of the car were original and not restored. There were some real pretty Survivors this year, and also some others that typified the Survivor motto "Worn in, but not worn out". Survivor is designed as a fun event, not to be taken too seriously. If the owners had repaired that runny paint or reupholstered the torn seat or even painted that ratty air cleaner, they may not become a Survivor.

LemansBlue68

I was a bit disappointed too. The last time I attended the show it was still in Bloomington. It seemed like there was much more going on then. The swap meet area was definitely smaller with a lot fewer vendors. I'm speculating if Ebay and the internet in general, are taking some of the interest in attending these shows. Why bother hauling your old Vette parts state to state when you can have people bidding against each other for them in your own living room?

I shouldn't complain. At least St. Charles is close enough that I was able to drive there in the morning, stay the day, and get back home in the same day.
I couldn't do that when the show was in Bloomington.

I saw my share of nice cars--can't complain about that, either.

Biker

Lee, thanks for the explanation. I never attended Bloomington Gold, so I wasn't familiar with the various categories. I wish I was provided a handout that explained the categories. A map of the golf course (exhibit area) would have been helpful, too.

I wish I would have attended the show on Sunday instead of Saturday. Seeing those junky Vettes compromised my whole perception of Bloomington Gold. At least now I know there's a category for junk. Thanks.

A C

I missed it this year, but I have been to the show once in Bloomington, and twice in Springfield. I still think Springfield was the best place for it, although for me the drive was much longer. My dad has gone to the last two at the country club. He said it was 50 dollars for admission and parking there. After seeing over 10,500 top quality street rods and vendors for 8 dollars one week earlier, I think the price is way out of line. I don't think I will go back at that price.

AC

terry82

$50.00 dollars for admission and parking. wow that seems a little high.

Big Fish

It cost $50.00 to park on the golf course and display your car for up to 4 days, and that price would get a second person in as well. If you wanted to just attend it was $15.00 at the gate each day. I thought the show was great, but many of the vendors packed up Saturday night and were gone on Sunday (although there were quite a few remaining). Sunday was the best day to view the cars being judged, there were some really nice cars there. I attended on Friday and Sunday. Bought some of those really nice fender protectors from Ssnake-oyl products.

A C

Glad you clarified that for me. I thought 50 bucks was insane for that show....but 15 bucks is not too bad. I will have to set the old man straight. :smash:

:D

Paul Borowski

Biker, yeah, I know what you mean-I had one of those "Saturday Junkers" there too :rolleyes:

PRNDL

Paul, did you get that clunker gold certified? (As if you need to pay $500 for somebody else to confirm what you already know about your car!) Or whatever you were going for? :lol: MJ

mapman

Pages 38-39 of your program "Gold Standard" has an explanation of the various judging events including the "survivor". Survivor cars have to be significantly unrestored, unrepaired, and unmodified and useful as a historic reference.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, most owners are happy to talk about their cars (the judges are usually busy), a few questions can get you insight into what is going on with the judging. Those horrible original "survivor" cars are important to the hobby.

We went all four days and had a great time. My favorite part is the workshops on Thursday. The vendor action may have been down somewhat because of the schedule conflict with Nashville and Bowling Green. All the Corvettes parked on the golf course look great, the auction was interesting to watch, cars up for various types of certifications were interesting, etc!

You might also check out the pricing of various packages: Value pack ($80) has 4 days parking for your Corvette on the Golf Course, show credentials (access) for 2 people for 4 days, souvenir stuff, etc. Good place to buy or sell a Corvette as well. Unlike ebay you can INSPECT the car.

Biker

My wife and I paid $10 to park and then $30 to enter the event $15 each). Not exactly what I'd call a value. Next year I think I'll just skip BG and go riding on my Harley.

Tom73

They have a value pack for $80. Gets you 4 days admission for two and four days parking on the golf course. Only way to go.

tom...

Detroit Vette

You mentioned a c3 that auctioned for 600k?? What was that about?

Rowdy Rat

Scott,

It was actually a 1967 L-88 coupe showing 12 miles that sold for $615,000 to Roger Judski of Roger's Corvettes (also owns another 1967 L-88 coupe, a 1968 L-88 coupe, and the very famous Daytona yellow 1969 ZL-1 coupe). The car was being hyped as a "million dollar car", but apparently the reality never caught up with the hype. The car was bid to $750,000 a year ago and was a no sale, but sells this year for $615,000... Makes you wonder...

The highest sale price that I saw for a 1968-1982 car this year was a 1969 L-88 coupe (Cortez silver/gunmetal) that sold through auction to its new owner for $97,500. It was a good, solid car with 33,000 miles... Definitely one of the better ones out there.

Also of note was a 1971 LS-6 that was a no sale at $48,500 (I think the reserver was around $60,000). A really nice car that probably could have been had after the auction for $55,000 or so... The Brands Hatch green definitely hurt the value.

Another no sale (to my shock) was a 1969 L-71 convertible (burgandy/black) with two tops and a ton of documentation... No sale at $60,000... Probably $15,000 over the going rate for these cars. Gorgeous paint... Interior was sharp... Probably need another $5,000-$10,000 to bring the chassis and engine up to the same level of quality though which is what really surprised me.

A lot of cars sold at auction... Prices seemed to remain stable at the levels they have been for the past couple years.

Regards,

Robert N

I am so surprised that color makes that big a difference on a unique car. On a daily driver, run off the mill car, yes. On a 71 LS-6 that just seems odd.

"No sir, I only want a red 69 L88. Green will not do." I just don't get it.

Rowdy Rat

Robert,

The difference actually gets larger as the price goes up.... There might be a $10,000-$20,000 price disparity on something like a 1969 L-88 or a 1967 L-71 where the sale price will be $100,000+... Strange, but true.

What's really humorous is that the hypothetical conversation that you posted is almost exactly how it plays out in reality. Many of the collectors that buy and sell these high dollar cars refuse to buy anything but the desirable colors. I also explains why there are so many fake trim tags floating around.

As far as collector cars go, red and black are at the top of the food chain... Green, gold, and brown are at the bottom. Yellow and orange have strong following although that group tends to be small. White, silver, and blue tend to fall in the middle... This is what I have seen anyway. Personally, there aren't many of the factory colors that I don't like... Makes finding cars easier! :)

Regards,

Roscoe

The value pack is the way to go!

We took the 73 convertible and spent a week in the St. Charles area, with 2 days in the Windy City. Don't think we want to live out of a corvette for a week.


The best part is we came back with a 1964 Coupe :thumbs: :party:

Tom73

Just looking at the Bloomington Gold auction results. See a '63 Conv that sold for $240,000, but that is the only one listed at over $100K.

tom...