2009 Marks the Year of our 9th Annual Open Show.

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In past years the weather forecast has been very "iffy" as you know from reading our past entries. This year, however the weather promised to be in the 85 degree range with no deviation as we rechecked the forecast and as the show approached. Our show this year was on Sunday, May 17th. Everyone we had talked to said they were coming. The first Hot Rods and Harley's event was on Friday nite, May 15th and they had a record turn out. It seemed everyone was tired of winter weather and was anxious to get out their vehicles. There were two smaller shows in early May, but to quote one of the vendors, ours was the first "Big Show" of the season. I thanked her for calling our show a "Big Show".

The city of Moxee has expanded the park for 2009 and added another parking lot, a pathway and a new entry (possibly with us in mind). If you remember, the old entry at the other end of the park had a hump in the middle and many of the lower cars scraped coming in. The new entry was perfectly flat and led to the asphalt path allowing vehicles to travel the full width of the park before parking in their chosen slot.

We displayed signs this year leading people to the park and arrived early enough to decorate before the big rush. For the show, we had a new PA system and additional speakers provided by one of our new members. We even had Music this year.

Sponsorship was down this year because of the economy so there was not as much money to turn in before the show. Usually we raise enough before the show to cover the cost of trophies. This year, trophy prices had gone up considerably so we had to trim down the amount given out by eliminating third place in each class. Instead, we gave out first and second in 22 classes as well as "Best Paint", "Best Interior", "Distance", "Participants Choice", and "Best of Show"

I cannot give enough thanks to our club members. Their enthusiasm this year was greater than in past years and all of them were eager to help with anything they could. I am so proud. We arrived between 7:30 and 8:AM to set up and things started out smoothly and continued that way throughout the day. Everyone had their specific job and maintained their focus until the tasks were complete. You would have thought we were doing this for 20 years!

Registration for the show started at about 9AM and before you knew it we had over 125 entries. We had seven concessions this year including an Espresso Van, a Pinstripper, a Booth for License Inserts, Shirts, Signs etc., a Snowcone Booth, a Hamburger Trailer, an Outdoor Hotdog Vendor and "Miss Dee" the local Cajun Cook with Jambolia and Bar-be-que. A well rounded selection of goodies for the show.

Usually we have a table full of raffle items of 8-10 where people can buy tickets for $1 and drop them in a container placed by the item they would like to win. This year, we had about 25 items ranging from tickets to the Pat Benitar Concert to Dishes, Model Trucks, Gas Money, Ice Chests, Tool Boxes, Shop Vacs, Lawn Chairs and much more. We also had more give-a-way (door prize) items than ever before, with plenty of Hats, T-Shirts, Car Supplies, Pepsi, Clocks, Stuffed Animals, and other items for the lucky owner of the drawn car number.

We ended up with 152 entries from this area as well as all over the state. It is always good to bring in cars from other areas so the locals have something different to look at. Another reason for people to visit our show. People came from the Tri-Cities, Ellensburg, Moses Lake, and Seattle area. The distance trophy went to a couple from Lake Stevens, WA.

Last year we gave our 50/50 raffle to the Make a Wish Foundation with a promise from the club to match anything they could raise from ticket sales, up to a total of $500. Last year they raised about $425 in ticket sales, with half of that going to a lucky winner. The club gave Make a Wish $500, so their total for the event last year was about $720.

This year, Make a Wish sold $500 in tickets and was willing to offer an Air Compressor donated to them if the lucky winner would donate their half of the money. A lucky number was called and the winner took $150 of the $250 prize and left the air compressor to be auctioned to the highest bidder. The air compressor then brought another $280 and along with the $500 the club will donate, Make a Wish brought in approximately $1130 from the show. This is more money than the club will make from the show to share with their other charities. Congratulations Make a Wish! The money could not go to a better organization and we are happy to help.

Each year we try and make our show one of the best in the area. Our show is early in the season and hopefully will set a standard for everyone to compare to. It frees us up to enjoy other functions throughout the year. Please take a look at this years pictures I am also posting in this blog and visit our internet sponsors that are also listed. Without our sponsors and the support of the local community, we would not be able to put on such a great show each year. it just keeps getting better and better. Thank you to all that have attended our show in the past and thank you to each and every sponsor that helps us. We look forward to seeing you next year.

2009 promises to be a great year!

As we enter into 2009 and look back, we find that our club has gone through a few changes. The word got out and people started looking us over and as a result, we recently we have welcomed several new members into the club. In addition to that, a couple old members have also returned. It is always nice to see that old members think enough of the club to return when they have several other clubs in the area to choose from. That just proves that we are a family orentated club that thinks alot of it's members as well as the organizations we help to support. As a reminder, our club is now open to "all" american made vehicles from antiques, to the current model year.

This years car show is quickly approaching. It will be the 9th show for the American Reflections Car Club and as in the past, it will be held at the park in Moxee, WA. This year it will be on May 17th, 2009. The park in Moxee has recently gone through a remodel and expansion and should prove exceptional this year. Where the park was a great place to hold a show in the past, it should be even better in 2009 since we now should have more space to spread out and possibly display even more vehicles than before.

The vendors we have had in the past are excited about returning this year. We should have more items for give-aways and raffles than ever before because of the generousity of our local sponsors and we are always working on fine tuning the classes for the 50-60 trophies and I promise.......music this year.

The show is open to all Customs, Classics, Rods, Stockers, Lowriders, Trucks and Bikes. If you currently drive it and you are proud of it, bring it out and we will help you show it off. The show is an "open" show. Therefore any form of transportation is welcome. Oh, and by the way, spectators are always admitted free.

We are currently working on flyers for the show as well as the registration form. I will post a form for your convenience on this site just as soon as it is ready. Please check back often. You may also e-mail us at AmReflections@yahoo.com and I will e-mail you a form in return so you may pre-register your vehicle for the show. Please also send all other inquiries to that e-mail address

Pre-registration for the show goes until May 10th, 2009 and is just $15.00. After that and up to the date of the show as well as at the gate, registration will be $20.00. The first 150 registrations will receive goodie bags and dash plaques. Your registration fee will be well spent. Again this year, we will contribute some of the days proceeds to the "Make a Wish Foundation". We also help to support several Vetrans groups in the valley as well as donate each year to Camp Primetime.

The show for 2009 promises to be the best ever, rain or shine....

As We Approach Year End

As we approach the years end (for showing off our cars, that is). Let us "Reflect" on some of the things that have happened this year. We have seen all sorts of new (old) cars this year. It seems that everyone is getting into the hobby and having some fun. Gas prices have not detered us too much becuse I have seen some of the largest turn outs for several events this year that I have ever seen.

Although our American Reflections show was slightly down in attendence this year, other shows have shown increases. The weather was beautiful for us this year so we cannot blame the weather. Some of us attribute the slightly smaller attendance to the fact that we are one of the first shows of the season, or.....with all the shows coming up in any given season, some people might be picking the shows they want to attend and showing their vehicles off at fewer shows than in the past.

Now, lets talk about show increases. Hot Rods and Harleys has been successful each and every week this year. They have shown record attendance figures each week. Little or no rain this year and only a couple get togethers have had wind. This is where we are seeing all the newly acquired vehicles, paint jobs and tricked out stuff.

The Vintiques show this year was very successful and said to be a record turn out(approximately 750 vehicles). Trophy classes have changed for the better lately and even one of our club members, Alan Barsten took second place with his 1923 Model T streetrod. Congratgulations Alan! That is a first for one of our club members at this show.

This year my wife and I again attended two large car shows out of town. The first was "Cool Desert Nights" in Richland WA. where there was also said to be a record turn out (800-900 cars or so). Always some different things to look at there. We also went to "Hot August Nights" again this year. That was said to be a record turn out as well. Of course, they allow 5500 cars to register and there is always another 5500 or so on hand around the city. It is always fun when some of the local people join up at these out of town shows and this year a several people from the Yakima area also attended the show in Reno Nevada.

We have only a few shows left this season then it will be time to put the old cars away for the winter. Myself, I have about three winter car projects in mind if I can get them accomplished but that is another posting in itself. In the next posting I will also talk about our next American Reflections car show coming up. It will be our 9th Annual show in Moxee to be held on May 17th, 2009.

Winning Car Show for 2008!

The weather prediction for May 18th this year was good and it held true as the day started out with plenty of sun shine for this year's event. We all got to the park at around 7:30 AM for the show's set-up. Everyone had their assigned jobs and went to work. Banners and decorations went up, vehicles were un-loaded, registration was set up, give aways and raffle items were displayed, trophies were brought out and adjusted, vendors came and set up in their respective areas and everything else was going along very well. It was almost to good to be true.

We had told the city of Moxee about our electrical needs well in advance of the show. The city was in the process of remodeling their park and we had a trench in the ground to work around but had talked about that with Public Works and for the show, it presented no problem. However, the electricity for the vendors was still locked up. It was Sunday and the workers phone number that I had did not seem to work. We had electricity at the main gazebo but found that part of our PA system was not working.....Like the Music! Finally, we reached a member of Public Works to provide our vendors with some electricity. Vendors were now up and running, but ...still no music.

People started arriving and the parking layout was going well. Because last year's judging was such a disaster, we had a member who came up with a different way of judging this year. It looked like it might work. We had approximately 64 trophies to give away for everything including best paint, best interior, distance, classes from the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's to Present, streetrods, ratrods, trucks, 4X4's, lowriders, motorcycles, bicycles, participants choice, and best of show. Whew!

As noon approached we had upward of 110 entries. The show was declared a success! I think our local advertisements helped bring more spectators this year than in the past. There also were several people that attended this year that were not here in the past. There were also a few that had promised to attend that did not make it this year. I think it was their loss because the show was great. We had people from as far away as Camino Island, Port Townsend, Enitat, Moses Lake, Wenatchee, Chelan, and Spokane, just to name a few.

This year we had contacted the local "Make a Wish Foundation" to do the 50/50. The club took a vote and decided to match the money received by Make a Wish, dollar for dollar. During the show, Make a Wish managed to sell about $440 in tickets. The idea of the 50/50 is that they gave $220 of that money to a lucky ticket holder. The club in turn, will donate $440 back to Make a Wish, so their total for the show will end up at about $660. Not bad for an afternoon's work.

Some of the comments received were "Beautiful Park" and "Nice Show" . And we did it all without Music.

NEXT SHOW--MAY 18,2008

The American Reflections 8th Annual "Open" Show will again be held at the park in Moxee, WA. This year the show is on Sunday, May 18, 2008. Each year we proudly show off Custom Cars, Classics, Streetrods, Stock Vehicles, Trucks, Vehicles Under Construction, Foreign Vehicles, Tuners, Lowriders, SUVs, Motorcycles and even Bicycles. If your vehicle is a little different from the rest and you are proud of it, bring it on down and show it off.

Registration for the show until May 10th is just $15. After May 10th registration will be $20. Registration allows you to show your vehicle, receive a goodie bag, receive a dash plaque and become eligible for prizes and trophies. This show will go on, "RAIN OR SHINE".

In the past shows the car magazines have been a hit. Members bring in their magazines to share with show participants. There just may be an article about a vehicle like yours or project you find interesting. Go ahead, take one home, they are free.

Great music, amazing vehicles, new friends, prizes, trophies, and lots of good food are all expected at the show again this year. If you love to look at vehicles but don't have one yourself, come to the show anyway. Spectators can look around free of charge.

I am including a copy of the 2008 registration form on this page. Right click on it and either print it or "save" the picture to your computer. Then print it, fill out and send it in with your fee to The American Reflections Car Club, P.O. Box 11377, Yakima, WA. 98909. You will then receive a number in the mail or we can hold it for you until the show. See you at the show!

Gas Milage. What is that?

As 2007 comes to a close we are generally preparing our classic cars or trucks for the winter ahead. Some of us have shops where we can work on our rides or even work on new projects. It is always a special treat to see how a vehicle has progressed or a new project has been prepared for the next year's get togethers. The rest of us do the best we can to protect our classics and prepare them for the next year.

Mark your calendars everyone. The American Reflections 8th Annual Open Car Show is scheduled for May 18th, 2008 at the Moxee Park again. If you have joined us in the past, you know what a nice park this is with plenty of grass, shade and clean restrooms. Again in 2008 we will try and have plenty of food for your enjoyment during the show. Dash plaques for everyone coupled with over 40 trophies and lots of prizes, raffle items, free magazines, music and fun are again scheduled for the day. If you haven't been to our show before, please join us. Moxee is just 4 miles east of Yakima Washington on highway 24. All Customs, Classics, Stockers, Trucks, LowRiders, and Bikes are welcome. This year our show's pre-registration until May 10th is $15. If you choose to register after that or the day of the show, registration will be $20.00 for 2008.

THIS SHOW WILL TAKE PLACE, RAIN OR SHINE...

We always are looking for new club members. Our Club is in the process of changing some of the things we do. With your e-mail address, I can keep you up to date on local shows, and cruises as well as send you several newsletters and jokes. Joining the club also gives you an opportunity to talk about your passion with others that enjoy the same things that you do. E-mail us at AmReflections@yahoo.com for more information.

I always say that If you drive it and are proud of it, join us and we will help you show it off. Even if your project is rough, bring it on out. Lets show it off. Chances are many people have not seen that make or model.

IF YOU HAVE TO PAY $3.00 A GALLON FOR GAS, YOU MIGHT AS WELL HAVE FUN DRIVING A CLASSIC!

Now let me show you some pictures of un-usual vehicles from the past. Click on the pictures to enlarge. Click "back" on your browser to return to the blog. Thank you so much for visiting our blog. View the posted blog before this for pictures of our 2007 Show!



















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2007 American Reflections 7th Annual Show

My 1948 Ford F-1 Truck

We are the second club in the area to have our show in May. Some say that it is a bit early and we are usually taking a chance with the weather. The first "Hot Rods and Harleys" event was on Friday night, May 18th. The turn out was incredible! As the 20th of May approached the weather report started calling for rain as usual.

I advertised our 7th annual show for the 20th of May on every possible web site that I could find. I contacted the newspaper and enlisted their help on sort of a "count down" to the very day of the show. Club members contacted many sponsors and obtained money for trophies, bag stuffers and other give-a-way items for the event. Internet sponsors were coming through for us by sending coupons, certificates, caps and items for goodie bags. We have sent out hundreds of flyers inviting everyone to the show. We were ready.........

The morning of May 20th arrived and I looked out the window to a gloomy sky in the west. This is the time when people make decisions for the day. It was raining lightly outside as we readied the vehicles and took off for Moxee city. The show must go on.

After arriving at Moxee and joining other club members in the early morning set up, we found that the light rain had stopped, people were arriving in their classic and custom vehicles and by 9:30 AM the sky was beautiful. Several of our vendors arrived and we now had a well rounded mix of food on site with tacos, corn on the cob, hamburgers, hot dogs, espresso, and barbeque. There was even a Northwest based magazine on site called "Cruzin Times" doing show coverage for us. In addition to the magazine, "A View of America" (http://www.aviewofamerica.com/) was at the show covering it for their web site. Our show should be on their site a week or two after this blog is published.

Cars kept coming, steady until about 11am. We finally ended up with over 148 entries! The show ran smoothly and everyone had a good time. There were plenty of door prizes and we had about 63 trophies that were handed out. Because of all the spectacular vehicles, judging became a little tough as Shawn,our current president tried a point system of judging this year. It was the best show ever. We set the bar high for other shows in the area this year.

Here are some pictures... Clicking on a picture will enlarge it for better detail and when you want to return to the blog, just click on "back".

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