2016 Camaro Nationals Re-cap
Category : Event Re-Caps
WOW! What a show. After two years of rain we finally had good weather for the Nationals. There will be many articles written about the 18th Annual Camaro Nationals including Facebook and U-tube, so I will keep my article about thank you, congratulations, and important facts. A special to all the sponsors of the Camaro Nationals for their continuing support of our show their support makes the show grow and continue to improve.
I want to thank the people on the committee April, Karl, and Cathy for all their help this past year for helping put the show together. Without them it would not have come together. To the members who helped to get the fairgrounds setup for the Nationals on Wednesday an outstanding job. The crew has this down to a science, and after watching them over the last 6 years, it shows. The show would not be possible without the great handling of the cars being placed in Building 9 and the controlled parking of trailers on Thursday. To the crew directing the spectator parking – special thanks. Watching all the pieces come into place is like watching a fine clock’s movement.
Speaking of Thursday if you missed the Annual Cruise on Thursday Night you missed one great time. April did a great job of laying out the route and even arranged for not one but two trains to meet us at Point of Rocks. Who would have thought that was possible. The scenery was wonderful.
Friday was a very busy day at Registration but nothing like Saturday. Camaros were lined up four abreast and parked in an over load area waiting to register. The people under the tent did a fantastic job of handling everything. You could see the years of experience and knowledge they have. Many people stopped me to comment how well and smoothly registration ran. Thank you to the judges who help judge all the cars. Yes, there were a few hiccups but that is being corrected and things still ran smooth.
The club members who displayed their Camaros on Saturday made a beautiful site. The support and club loyalty was noticed by all and the comments were flowing from all over the show field. Congratulations to those of you who took home an award but I feel that every member was a winner. Congratulations to Billy McKee and his fine 1969 Rallye Green SS Coupe receiving Mayor McClement’s favorite car of the Nationals.
Speaking of Mayor McClement I have attached the Recognition Certificate presented to the Camaro Nationals at Friday’s Dinner for the shows contributions to the City of Frederick and Charitable organizations it supports. No other show in the United States has the support of the local community like we do. Congratulations to everyone one of you.
I must also thank GM for bring 4 outstanding 2017 Camaros not in production as yet. There are only 4 ZL1’s and 2 1LE’s built to date. Scott Caradonna and Matt Smith from GM were a big help explaining the cars and answering questions, their knowledge of the new models was very clear. But things really opened up to the show goers when Todd Christensen showed up Saturday. He inserted not only enthusiasm to the GM display but additional information and future options and what lays ahead for the Camaro.
Now for the facts; we had 357 Camaros on the site. Many people will be back next year; they had a great time and felt they were treated to a very good experience that they don’t receive at lots of other shows. We parked 200 Spectators cars in the infield and that is a record. The Food Vendors all did very well thanks to the attendance and weather. They all had long lines in front of their areas.
The Show again raised a lot of money for Charities. The Annual Dinner and Charity and Raffle raised $9,229.00. When you include the Silent Auction, 50/50, and Win Kelly the Camaro Nationals raised a Total of $10,134.00. Money to be shared by several charities in and around the Frederick area. There are still t-shirts available if you would like one, contact April.
I must again thank everyone who helped with the show. Without them it would not happen, they made me look very good. The appreciation plaque given to Marla and I was totally unexpected and really caught us by surprise. That really got to us and I still choke up when I think of it.
Finally I want to thank the Maryland Camaro Club and its members helping to put on the show. You all can be very proud of what has been accomplished over these six years. We had 30 states represented and many Canadians who thanked us over and over again during and after the show. JOB WELL DONE. On to 2017 and the 50th Anniversary of our beloved Camaros. Look forward to some exciting things to take place at the Nationals.
God Bless and good health,
Bud Scolastico