Cars Wanted for NEC Show 10th -12th NOV 2017

[Steve]

All sorted Ali.... its a surprise.... you will have to wait for the photos to land on the thread

[cadboy]

I best get my ticket then, be there on Sunday I hope, look forward to it

[Cannonball]

Sorry guys i thought the mopar stand was very poor, terrible compared to some other years, say it as i see it,,

[Gas for GOSH]

Honesty always the best policy Dunc. I couldn't make it and not seen any photos yet......but I do know the committee would value constructive input so can you give a bit more detail please. What was the issue: location of MMA stand? lack of space? lighting? lay out? too many cars on the stand? too few? choice? amount of material about MMA....too much? not enough? what was different from previous? Any detail useful either on this thread or PM me. Thanks Simon

[Cannonball]

Hi Simon,
I know the guys involved work very hard to arrange it and then man it etc so it must seem bad that i having not helped in any way have critisized it,

But for me it had nothing no wow factor at all, just looked a budget stand shame as Mopars as wee know are the best brand so should have a bizness of a stand,,

[Gas for GOSH]

OK thank you Dunc so it sounds like impact is the ingredient you are summarising here. Sometimes cars on stands can talk for themselves and too much glitz or promotional material detracts. I do know from the year I was on the stand some clubs went for the back drop to create impact...they bring carpet, they bring massive banners. That takes more organisation and volunteers - as you rightly say those bringin their cars up and manning the stand put in time and effort already.
Other clubs used lighting to highlight curves or paint - you'd be amazed how much the stand costs and the price goes up depending how much power you draw. Cant remember if it was Must**g or Corv***te boys but they came with banks of lights which gave impact right til someone put the kettle on and off went one of the banks! So beyond the sheer fact we have Mopar design what would have created the impact for you please?

[cadboy]

The position for the MMA stand I thought was great just by Discovery Live stag where all the people go so prime position.

I hope that meant more enquiries on the cars and the club and hopefully members.

Thank you for all your hard work guys

[Blue]

I'd also like to thank the few people that put in so much effort to give us a presence at the NEC, it must be hard enough to do that let alone bring the house down, there's only so much a couple of people can do.

[Cannonball]

Having looked at Robs/Stu,s pics its obv to see lack of any material on the floor, lack of some decent signage, lack of wow factor sorry,

well done to all for your graft no matter how i feel the stand look,s,

[Steve]

Thanks for the comments on this gents. We all have broad shoulders and appreciate the point being raised.

A lot of background work goes into getting us to the show each year and I have to give a huge thank you to everyone who volunteered their cars and gave up their time to man the stand and most importantly, to engage the public. I recognise that the stand was pretty bare and we lack all the lighting, carpets, billboards etc but you wouldn't believe how much everything costs. Just one powerpoint costs nearly £200!! We are a small club and cant afford big vans to transport sets, hoardings, carpets etc and have nowhere to store it all. I know James, Dave (Long) and Pete spent a lot of money getting to the show and paying for hotels etc. Everyone involved took time off work to help and made personal sacrifices to be there and support the club.

I think the cars were fantastic and reflected the broad spectrum of the club memberships interests. Daves Dart represented just what can be done with a light weight, properly set up, small block. Stickies Barracuda is a useable everyday car that has a great history. James' Demon was a great example of just how bold Mopars were in the early 70s and Micks Roadrunner was a brilliant example of a homebuilt bruiser that looked straight from the streets of 1970s Detroit street racing days. They were all driven to the show and were all driven home again after the show.

Everyone on the stand spent 3 days engaging with the public. This is what its all about for me. I spoke to dozens and dozens of people and lots of them said there were some great displays but nobody spoke to them on the car stands and the others just wanted to sell them something. We were letting kids sit in cars, pointing owners in the right direction for parts etc (Dunc, your details were given out on more than one occasion as the go to guy for transmission work), telling the history of the cars and spreading the word. Public perception of the club is that we are grass roots, approachable and filled with knowledgeable members willing to help anyone who needs it.

You wouldn't believe how difficult it is to get cars to the show. As you can see from this thread, we were hardly inundated with people willing to bring their cars along. The old saying that '1 volunteer is better than 10 pressed men' comes to mind. We didn't have a brace of Hemi Challengers or Superbirds on show, and we didn't have red carpets or fancy tents but we did have 4 great cars, with equally great owners putting a huge effort into flying the flag for our club.

I obviously need to have a think about how I can make the stand more visually appealing and am very grateful that the point has been raised. I think it is very valid as Im aware that negative comments have been made on Facebook. Dunc, maybe we could use some of the great stuff you have at your place to dress the stand up next year? You wouldn't have to be at the show for the four days, just drop it off on the Thursday and collect it all Sunday. Maybe a few sets of heads, some fenders with race graphics on, big pieces of garage equipment etc etc.

I always welcome any help or ideas etc and would much rather we had too much than having the feeling that everyone is sitting on their hands when the call is put out.

Thanks again for raising the point Dunc and for giving us all food for thought to make next years show better,

Cheers Steve

[Cannonball]

Hi Steve,

As you prob know i do not do facebook so have not seen comments and would not post them on there anyway for the world to see, only on here for this group to see, I would certainly let you use anything that may be of interest to the public and maybe help to lift the stand a bit,Hat,s off as i said to you guys for sorting the Event i know it takes a great deal of time and effort to do, my comments certainley were not to upset anyone purely an observation from Bri and myself you were all chatting to people so we did not stop and say hello time was also against us,,

[R.RUNNER]

Come on "DUNC".............................lets see what you "CHESHIRE" boys can do at the club stand next year at the NEC. That`s if you`re up for the challenge

Well done Pete & Co for all your effort.



By the way..............the club stand looked "One SHEET"

[Steve]

That's brilliant Dunc.... thank you VERY much. Maybe I could hook up with you before next years show and run some ideas past you? I know you have tons of good stuff and it could really pick the stand up visually.

I don't recognise the guy on FB but just happened to see that he said he could do better. Maybe he will vote with his feet and put on a UKMOPARS stand next year that will eclipse everyone elses efforts (I may end up eating my words ... ha ha)

Thanks for your support Dunc,

Cheers Steve

[Steve]

Andy..... I was just smiling and thinking that was the nicest post you have ever put on here.... and then I read the bottom bit.....

I know you couldn't get your car to the show this year....next year maybe????

Cheers Steve

[Steve]

Cheers everyone and thanks for a great weekend...

Cheers Steve