retrogeezer Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 Well, after getting my Mk3 Escort I thought I would have a quick look at what shows I could take it to.I couldn't believe the entry fees - stuff like the RS Owners club show, Trax (XR Owners), Ford Fair, Classic Ford etc are all £13-£15 EACH to get in! So I have to pay £30 for the privilege of showing MY car to the other paying public that come to the show. Not including fuel and food costs etc. Have these people not heard of the recession???I'm bloody sure when I used to take my supersport that if you went with a club to show your car it was free - after all, if people don't show their cars with clubs there is no show for the public to go to.And to top it all off, I've just noticed that the retrorides gathering has moved from Gaydon to the friggin Haynes Motor Museum in Sparkford - a 400 mile round trip! So thats another one out of the window....So, looks like I'll just be showing my car to myself and my neighbours... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Bo11ox Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 Thats a bargain compared to the BBC 'good food show' which costs about £28 to get in!!! I'll stick with burgers and supernoodles thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Station Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I think it's a bargain to pay for a 10' x 12' space of grass that costs £10 per century to maintain.You should take it to some of these club managed 'show and shine' dog shit car festivals. They're upwards of 30 quid. And you get free abuse from chavs in a Punto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollywobbler Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 So I have to pay £30 for the privilege of showing MY car to the other paying public that come to the show. Not including fuel and food costs etc. Have these people not heard of the recession???Have you considered how much these events cost to organise? Good locations don't come free. £30 is pricey though - 2CV club day rates never top a tenner.I do agree some shows are a rip off. I would never go to the NEC Classic Car Show if I actually had to pay for tickets and parking. It's hugely expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hertz Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I have to agree with Retro, it should be free entrance to people showing their cars. The WSR event at Silverstone is even worse, it's free to everyone except people displaying their cars in the "historic" area which costs £10 Anyway I am having a Renault Alpine stand at this in July: http://www.cpop.co.uk/ It's free to people with a car club showing their pride and joys. Might be worth seeing if there is a Ford stand there this year? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrogeezer Posted March 8, 2009 Author Share Posted March 8, 2009 Have you considered how much these events cost to organise? Good locations don't come free. £30 is pricey though - 2CV club day rates never top a tenner.I'm sure they do cost a few quid to organise - but I don't see why the people showing their cars (i.e - making the show!) should pay/pay as much to go in. It certainly wasn't the case a few years ago. As I said - no show cars = no show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
55bloke Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 Agree with what's already been said. Organisers should recoup costs from the paying public, anyone entering a car should get in free coz, as has been said, if there were no cars to look at, there'd be no show! The annual show at Graves Park in Sheffield (June 28th this year) charges TWO QUID to enter! It's a pretty good show too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keef Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 So, looks like I'll just be showing my car to myself and my neighbours...There are still a few shows that are free to exhibitors.Wrotham is one that springs to mind. :-http://tiny.homelinux.com/gallery2/main ... temId=3437Westbourne School is another. :-http://tiny.homelinux.com/gallery2/main ... temId=3950If the people continue to pay the organisers will continue to charge.I never used to pay and I'm not going to start now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FredTransit Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I have to agree that it should be free to show your car, and if people continue to pay organisers will continue to charge, but what are you going to do if you want to go? I think this year will be a clincher, people won't want to part with their money so easily, and thing s may change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seth Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I've never had a problem with paying for shows - or at least if I think the cost is exhorbitant I won't go again - as happened with the diddy show near Pogglsewade we dropped by a couple of years ago. Maybe some of my view stems from being involved in a relatively small are of the UK old car world where shows aren't likely to attract large public attendances? I'm more than happy to pay someone to organise a big gathering. This argument seems to raise its head every so often in the classic press. I'd like to know where all these free shows are?! Or did they ever exist? Some events at particular venues (Isn't one of the Ford ones mentioned at Santa Pod?) will have their entrance decided on by the venue to a large extent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew e Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 This ones in Essex, 15 minutes from the M25, free for public and exhibitors - and generally full of all sorts, if you show your car its on the end of the high street in Billericay so 5 minutes on foot from the pubs, resteraunts and a waitrose - what do you want for nowt? http://www.colonelcustard.net/index_files/page0003.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karmann Ghiaman Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I like to go to Donington to watch retro-racing. It's relatively cheap (usually about £12 -15 when you buy ticket in advance, £20 on the gate), and if you tell them you're coming in a nice car they let you park in the middle of the circuit. So you can wander round all afternoon admiring & photographing everyone else's stuff. Oh, and they have fast cars racing round the track too (and bikes). Did I mention that already? http://www.donington-park.co.uk/events (Just hope that boring F1 with those wingless aeroplanes & their dull pilots never gets there.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrogeezer Posted March 8, 2009 Author Share Posted March 8, 2009 This argument seems to raise its head every so often in the classic press. I'd like to know where all these free shows are?! Or did they ever exist?Not 'free' shows Seth, just free for an exhibitor....I can't think of anything else you would go to watch/look at where the performer would pay to be on stage/pitch etc etc.I'd fully expect to pay if I was a 'visitor' to the show.Surely enough could be made from footfall visitors and trade stands/autojumblers etc.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dead_E23 Posted March 8, 2009 Share Posted March 8, 2009 I'd like to know where all these free shows are?! Or did they ever exist?The Croxley Green and Harpenden shows are both free, and they're the only ones I've bothered attending for the last few years - plenty of quirky stuff usually turns up and they don't feature the wanky club stands and dreary arena events that you find at the bigger shows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ratdat Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 I've just got home this evening from show in France. It cost us £20 each for the weekend and it positively urinated on every show I have ever been to here in the UK. Seriously, if it had been half as much again it'd have still been worth it. I doubt I took pictures of even a fifth of the cars there and still managed to shoot over 500 pics. I've never taken anywhere near that many pics at a show here ever. The quality of events here by comparison doesn't even seem worth a fiver entry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kyle Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 I never paid entry to anywhere when I was showing the Mini, but I still found it expensive.NEC classic show meant fuel for 2 cars from Somerset to Birmingham and a nights hotel fees. Add the expense of the food and it gets out of hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtd2000 Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 The Best Classic Car shows I've been to are the free ones held in the local burger joint car park (sorry, "parking lot") in Anytown, USA.Bring your highly polished object of desire downtown on whatever night of the week buy a burger/coke/whatever and see everything for free - excellent p.s. the burger & coke are optional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keef Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 Add the expense of the food and it gets out of hand.Some exhibits are actually paid to display (e.g. military vehicles). Wouldn't be beyond organisers to pay others, but a certain amount of expense should be excepted as part of the "hobby". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CortinaDave Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 It annoys me as well, They need cars to have a show, yet they charge you to do it?I rarely do shows for that reason.. I still go, but just leave the car in the car park and wander round for a couple of hours for a look then go home.If you show, you have to be there all day and since you have to pay to get in either way I dont bother Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now