It has been a little over a week since the 2008 Grand National Roadster Show (GNRS), and it was another good one. However, a few things did put a damper in the weekend; constant rain, snow shutting down local freeways, and the main exhibition hall catching fire. There was no damage in the fire, but the fire department did evacuate the hall for a couple of hours.
Publisher Steve Coonan and Editorial Associate Geoff Miles drove the TRJ Deuce Roadster to the event in Southern California, and it rained the whole way. They said the rain stopped for about 10 of the 400 miles. Steve earned the much deserved “Street Driven” award at the show for their journey. I posted pictures below of their departure.
The 2008 GNRS lacked the “75 Deuces” that appeared last year, but this year had it’s share of cars that stopped me dead in my tracks. Three Barris cars were shown in the main hall; The Sam Barris Merc, The Aztec, and the newly restored Ala Kart. There was much discussion during the show about whether or not the Ala Kart would be crowned America’s Most Beautiful Roadster for a third time. Everybody knew the Ala Kart wasn’t going to have the most points on the judges scorecards, but we hoped that the unmatched history of the car would prevail. In the end, it didn’t. A Champagne colored ‘32 Ford called “Undisputed” took home the trophy, which was probably more deserving anyways.
The pictures below are of Steve and Geoff departing on their journey, and a couple of my favorite cars from the show.
