Our night flew by and it was once again an early morning for day 2 of our SEMA tour. It was our last day and we knew we had a lot of walking to cover all the grounds to be able to see a lot. We realized that 2 days just didn’t cut it, as we felt somewhat semi-rushed. After a quick bite, we were off to the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Our first day at SEMA continues. If you missed the early part of the day please check out Part I of our coverage.
November brings cooler weather to the Valley of the Sun, something that most locals look forward to. I myself was looking forward to November not only for this, but November meant that the mecca of aftermarket shows was around the corner. Last year I was not able to attend SEMA. I am not going to lie, I was a little bummed out that I was not able to partake in the event. It didn’t help that friends kept messaging photos and tagging on social media mediums.
Our coverage of the Eibach Meet continued, as I slowly made my way through the vendors section, I tried to take my time and look around before the gates were opened to the public and the flood began. If you missed our first part, make sure you head over to it and get caught up.
It is rather scary how quickly time passes. It has been exactly a year since the last major event that I attended, which was the Eibach Meet. I have attended a few small local track events but work has kept me at bay for most of the year. I was looking forward to the Eibach Meet because I knew a year meant new projects were to be revealed, and some would have new looks. However, I have to say that it snuck up on us and caught us off guard. Between work and an unexpected photo shoot the day before, I was scrambling to get ready. Matt was equally thrown off guard when a big shipment arrived just as we were loading the van with the gear for the ICB booth set up. Once we tackled both tasks, we were on the road. I don’t know if I somehow got stuck driving or if I volunteered but it was actually a welcomed change of pace from the madness that work throws my way.
Within the first week of November thousands of automobile enthusiasts come together, regardless of their background, location, race, social status, with the vehicle they prefer. Automobile geeks come from all over to share one passion, the love for automobiles and the aftermarket products. This is the only place where you can be next to a guy who has a sweet mullet, and the two of you can take a moment of silence, stand back and appreciate something proper. SEMA.
This story began 6 years ago. I drove to the then Firebird International Raceway to see the Modified Tuner Shootout/NASAAZ event. I had just finished a shoot and had a tele-lens, so I decided to take some photos just for the hell of it. In-between sessions, Paul came over and asked if I would take some photos of Phil. My response was along the lines of “Who the hell is Phil?” So he told me to just take a few photos of a black Civic EG with RegaMaster Evos’ wheels. “Ok sure Paul.” I don’t think that at that point Phil even fathomed the transformations his EG would experience through the upcoming years.
Last weekend I got the opportunity to go to Chuckwalla Valley Raceway for a NASAAZ track event. Initially I had no plans of attending, however Phil was running on Sunday and I decided to tag along. I had to work that Saturday so the plan was to leave after work. As fate would have it, I woke up super late and this prevented me from getting all my stuff ready before I left for work. This meant that I would have to return home after work before heading out to the Robles’ residence, therefore – late (Again! Damn it!). Luckily when I got to the house, Phil was still getting some last minute things ready. Since Chuckwalla was not around the corner, he wanted to make sure he had all the essentials and more. Paul and Nolan were supposed to join us but at the last minute something came up and they were not able to go.
Our second day at the SEMA – Las Vegas Convention Center was officially the first day of the show. Matt left early to pick up Dan at the airport; they would meet us later at the LVCC. During our bus ride Nolan, Paul and I started to talk about the new Honda Civic Si coupe. Honda was going to unveil the 2014 Civic Si Coupe so we were going to get a chance to see it firsthand. However, our conversation revolved around what we thought would be the ugliest thing about the new Civic Si. Paul and Nolan opted for the rear part of the car/rear bumper while I went with the front-fascia but I also thought that the wheels could possibly be hideous. Time will tell.
Fall is one of my favorite seasons; the weather starts to give you a break, at night you can turn off the A/C and open the windows to let the breeze in, football is on full force (both college and professional), Formula 1 is going strong and there is probably some drama going on, the U.S. Grand Prix is around the corner, basketball season begins (at both levels), there is some leftover candy from Halloween and of course there is the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) that takes place in Las Vegas.