Experiencing SEMA with Herb

As anyone that has met Herb will tell you, he is a very talented man and quite a character. He is also a very good friend. We should start by saying that the following experience is being written by the team that created and maintains Herb’s website. We are Cruizin66.com and this is our story of Herb and the SEMA experience.

We arrived early Monday after driving in from San Diego. With little time to get acclimated to the event, we attended out first set of free seminars at the Convention Center. We were very impressed with the speakers and the info gathered from these seminars. After the seminars, we checked into the Riviera and finally relaxed for the rest of the day. The show actually opened the next day and we wanted to be ready for it. We were glad we got some rest as we did not know how exciting and exhausting the next 4 days were going to be.

Since we had never been to SEMA before, Herb graciously invited us to meet him there to see what it was all about. Now, we had heard that it was THE show to attend in the automotive world and everyone that told us this was absolutely correct. WOW! It is hard to put the size and scope of the event in perspective but suffice to say that at the end of 5 days there, our feet (and a few other body parts) were screaming for mercy. But, enough about us…let’s get to the event.

First thing on the agenda for us was to sign up and become members of SEMA. It was not required but after seeing what SEMA has done for the industry, it was money well spent. We also joined the HRIA (Hot Rod Industry Alliance) association as well because of the support they provide to that sector of the market.

Herb met us at the booth and made sure we were taken care of. The folks at SEMA were wonderful and a bag of goodies accompanied our new membership. As we were standing there, Chip Foose rounded the corner on his way somewhere and that was a precursor to the rest of the show. A few minutes after that, Herb recognized an old friend; Pete Chapouris of So Cal Speed Shop fame and he came over and chatted with us for a few minutes. Very nice man and he and Herb discussed future pinstriping workshops at the Pomona shop. Stay tuned for the dates! The first day was starting out right!

So off we went into the Central Hall with our eyes wide open and our feet happy. Herb went off on his own to contact one of his friends before settling in at the Krause Publications booth for book signings. What first struck us was the size of the convention center. I swear, 6 football fields could have fit in the Central Hall alone…and there were 3 more halls to go!

As we wandered about, it became apparent that this was going to be no quick run through. Sighting so some of the industry’s heavy hitters abounded. There were the Edelbrock’s at their booth, movie stars Candy Clark and Bo Hopkins from American Graffiti fame, race car drivers Mario Andretti and Bobby Rahal, tons of young ladies in various stages of dress to help bring the crowds in for their respective companies, and so much more. Other than stopping briefly for lunch at the SEMA Members Lounge, we kept on trying to make our way through all the exhibits. We took in another seminar which not only gave us more information about the industry, but it also gave us a chance to rest our weary feet. After the seminar, it was back to the show. The highlight of the day was a meeting and signing with Chip Foose, world renowned automotive designer, builder, hot rodder, and star of the “Overhaulin’” TV show at the Lincoln Electric booth. Chip is a great guy and those smiles you see are genuine. He recognized we were with Herb and asked to tell Herb "Hi" for him and we were more than happy to oblige. His schedule must have been tremendous but he always kept up the smiles and treated everyone like an old friend. Thanks Chip! We did not make it through the entire Central Hall that first day. It was just way too big!

As Day 1 of the show came to an end, we met up with Herb and followed the crowds out of the hall and tried to find our way back to the parking lot. Along the way, we ran into the Italian contingent (Giuliano Rafetti, Giorgio Uccellini, and Pablo Isetta) and enjoyed a brief chat with our friends from across the pond. It was great to meet such exciting guys. Herb was very glad to see some of his European friends at the show. I hope we got your names right and to all of you guys, Ciao!

After having a few cold ones in the parking lot while waiting for the traffic to die down, we headed out to dinner. Since we were staying at the Riviera while in town, we just walked over to the convention center so we all piled into Herb’s van and headed for the Hofbrauhouse for dinner. Now Herb’s van is his work van with only two seats so guess where I ended up. Yep, holding on to his supply cabinet and sitting on a six pack of Hefeweisen. The ride was pure excitement!

Dinner was a blast! With the beer flowing and the band playing, it made for a great time. The food was incredible and you couldn’t help but get swept up in the entire goings on. After dinner, on to the Hard Rock Café!! We walked over and into the casino for some more refreshments and conversation about the day’s events. There, we met a wonderful young lady named Kim that was tending bar. Since it was the day before Halloween, numerous employees were strolling about in costume. So here we were, sipping beverages at the Hard Rock Café, chatting with a wonderful bartender, and seeing some pretty weird costumes walking about. Somehow, that seemed like a perfect end to a great day for all of us.

Day 2 we decided to tackle the North Hall and all it had to offer. Only about half the size of the Central Hall, it was still packed with so many vendors and displays that again, it was not able to be completely seen by us. This hall was the showcase for business enterprises and import cars along with some incredible tooling. Not too any sightings of celebrities but we did manage to catch a glimpse of Stacey David, former host of the Trucks! TV show. We knocked off a little early to catch up with Herb at the art exhibit area in the South Hall where he was finishing up some book signings. When we got there, legendary Hot Rod archivist Don Montgomery was showcasing his books. A very nice gentleman, Don has chronicled hot rodding and drag racing from the early days with some incredible pictures and text in his books. These books are a must have for anyone that has hot rodding in their blood. From there we headed to an International happy hour where we were introduced by Herb to some very important people. Herb settled into a conversation with Olaf from Art Scene International. We chatted for quite awhile with Andrea Pinkerton, SEMA European Representative, about happenings in Europe and Ms. Pinkerton was very gracious with her time to give us an update on what SEMA is doing in Europe. Thank you, Andrea! A gentleman from Knoxville, TN, Lane Smith, who had just received an award for his product Tilt-A-Hitch, was carrying on a conversation with our web guru and he was quite a character. Congratulations to Lane and thanks for the great stories!

From there we were off to the HRIA Awards banquet at the Hilton Hotel, next door to the convention center. Yep, more walking! This event was the place to be to spot some of the industry’s big wheels. Names like Gary “Goodguy” Meadors, Roy Brizio, hot rod builder par excellence, Brian Brennan, editor of Street Rodder Magazine, “Speedway” Bill of Speedway Motors fame, Gary Heidt of Heidt Suspensions, were there to name a few. Herb was rattling off people right and left to me but there were so many, I just couldn’t keep up! Next year, Ill have to keep better notes! As the banquet ended, we slowly made our way back to the hotel. Man, were we tired!

On to day 3 of the show. This day was spent attending one more seminar and catching up with Herb once again at the art exhibit. He was wrapping up his tour of duty behind the book signing desk and was making room for the King of Customs, George Barris to take over. We managed to get a picture of Herb and one of his mentors together for all of us to enjoy. Also, Thomas from the “American Hotrod” TV series was hanging around so we grabbed him for a pic, too! By this time, lunch was beckoning so we again visited the Members Lounge for some food and some much needed relaxation.

Ok, back out onto the floor, South Hall this time. The South Hall is actually a two story building and the Tires and Wheels vendors took up the entire bottom floor while the Off-Road and 4x4 crowd occupied the top floor. Herb was off again to do more signings at the Krause publications booth so we strolled around the South Hall for awhile. Now, the Tires and Wheels guys seem to have this thing about young ladies adorning their booths. No wonder this floor was jambed with guys!! Of course, there had to be some pictures taken with a few of the ladies to show all of Herb’s fans these gorgeous sales ladies.

Next on Herb’s list of things to do was an on air radio interview with Motor Trend Radio. After the interview, the crew from West Coast Kustoms were next so Herb headed back to the Krause booth to do some live pinstriping for the show attendees. If you have never seen Herb in action, it is a marvel to behold. This man is incredible. A keen eye and a steady hand is his trademark and that was proven to many at the show. Nice job Herb!

About this time, we left Herb to dazzle the fans and head out for an early dinner. After all the noise and crowds from the show, it was a welcome relief to find a place that was uncrowded and quiet. That place was the Gordon Biersch brewery. It’s funny how a couple of cold beers will help even the most tired of feet! We made our way back to the hotel and into the casino at the Riviera and played at the crap tables for a few hours. What a nice way to wind down! Pretty much broke even so it made sleep that much easier for us.

Day 4 had us once again heading over to the convention center but this time was spent chatting with Barry Meguire of Meguire’s fame about being Car Crazy. Barry is very sincere about the car industry and passionate about all the people that are a part of it, fans and vendors alike. Thanks Barry for helping the world understand just what us gear heads are all about! From there we went and checked out what was going on at the Overhaulin’ building. Sure enough, Chip Foose was working on the vehicle with the rest of the crew and making the car turn out superb. We weren’t sure what it was initially but a picture taken the previous Friday had it as a 4-door sedan (possibly ’50 Chevy?). When we saw it on this Friday, it was a 2-door convertible. I still can’t believe these guys get these cars done, and superbly so, in only a week. Hats off to all of you craftsmen and women!

Since this was about the only day we didn’t have anything scheduled at the convention, we headed down to the Mandalay Bay hotel for the NACE convention. This was the place to be if you wanted to see anything in the industry concerning bodywork and paint. Not nearly as big as the SEMA show, it was fascinating none the less, even if body work was not your bag. We met Herb again briefly to touch base with him and to say good bye till next time as we decided to head back to our hotel then out to eat. Once again, we headed back to Gordon Biersch for some reflection on the week and what we had experienced over a couple of Blonde Boch beers and food…a perfect way to end the SEMA experience. Saturday morning we headed home

So a week has gone by since SEMA. What can we say about our experience? To start, we are eternally grateful to Mr. Herb Martinez for allowing us to attend this event and for all that he did for us during the show. Herb had a full agenda there but he still took the time to ensure our experience was one we will never forget. We discovered that the industry is under the very capable hands and watchful eyes of SEMA and we wholeheartedly endorse the organization. We were tired but relaxed at the end and it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable experiences for all of us at Cruizin66.com. From the bottom of our hearts, we sincerely say THANK YOU, HERB!

The crew at Cruizin66.com