What happens in Vegas…..stays in Vegas….NOT!

You probably have seen the slick TV commercial by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Bureau. I think of a different spin on that TV ad. I think what happens in Vegas the week of the SEMA Show, doesn’t stay but immediately blasts throughout the world! Here’s why:

The SEMA show is the Specialty Equipment Market Association’s annual trade show held early in November in Vegas. There are actually two shows held in Vegas at the same time, one for Hard parts AAPEX at the Sands Convention Center and the other (SEMA) for all the exciting stuff at the Las Vegas Convention center. OK, OK sure I am biased. SEMA’s members products are cool and represent what the world’s automotive consumers REALLY want! It’s true! The SEMA show is chockerblock full of products n services that no one really needs but everyone HAS to have!

All the OEM’s (the car manufacturers) display their new vehicles and showcase some really cool and unusual vehicles that America’s best car builders have accessorized, customized and specialized to display in their booths. I find it amazing that many of these OEM companies send a number of their design teams to the SEMA show to connect, experience, get ideas and see trends. The most exciting and more importantly…profitable areas of their OEM offerings are focused around retro, specialty, performance trucks n cars which is precisely what we do at SEMA!

Back to the "sendin it out to the world". With maybe the exception of Import performance cars (drifting n all that makes import cars go fast, look cool and make loud noises),…. most of the cool products that SEMA members make are clearly and distinctly American! Hotrodding started here, the celebration and restoration of collector cars started here. Vans, styling, tuning n 4×4’s and everything cool about off roading started here. Drag Racing, Indy, Salt flats, Nascar, circle tracks and all the products developed to feed a racing addiction is clearly American. Aluminum wheels might be mostly made in China now but they were invented, created, designed and promoted here in the good ole USA first. All the products to restyle any vehicle including bikes started here in this country first. And now…the world (and it’s automotive media) comes to Vegas for the SEMA show to see the newest, the coolest, (some hotrodders say "the bitchinest") and most innovative specialty equipment products.

We (SEMA) have well over 120,000 people to visit the show ALL of whom are "in the business" which means no consumers. BUT there are over 100 television n radio groups producing, filming and documenting which consumers around the world can see and hear what goes on at the SEMA show. Of the 120k that participate and come to the aftermarket and motorsports mecca (SEMA), nearly 20 percent are from outside the USA. And they come from over 100 countries! I am particularly proud that what we at SEMA do, the world takes notice of and wants!

This year’s show was a milestone for Corky. This was my last SEMA show in an official capacity. I served over 12 years on the Board of Directors of SEMA, worked in many positions and capacities including Chairman of the Board 2003-05. At SEMA we keep the immediate past chairman (I probably prefer the title called First Has-been!) in an advisory position for 2 years. In July 2007, Mitch Williams, SEMA’s current chairman will move to the advisory (First Has-been) position and I will go back to spending 100 percent of my time doing the "head cheerleader, janitor, fireman and chief bottle-washer deal" for Coker Tire and Honest Charley Speed Shop. I could not have had a successful stint of service to SEMA without a supportive wife to put up with all the time a way and a wonderful staff who have risen to the occasion in my many absences. Thank you!

The second really fun milestone was to see the first of my two children experience and connect with SEMA for the first time. My daughter, Casey thoroughly enjoyed working the Coker Tire booth, networking with a lot of cool folks and learning that what Dad has been doing here with this SEMA thing is pretty dang cool. She met some real mentor material with friends of mine offering to help like Amy Faulk of Hypertech n racing fame as well as Cammie Edelbrock of…well, you know.

You would not believe the display that my friend, perennial "Bib cheerleader", Oscar Pereda coordinated for Michelin! The theme was that all of the top ten fastest production cars in the world trust Michelin, shouldn’t you? TEN Million Dollars worth of cars. What a fete to just have them all at one place! Thank you and way to go O!

One of the best things about the SEMA Show is that anyone who is in the business HAS to be here so you have the best opportunity to see old friends and make new ones. You can talk face to face with racing legends, celebrities and founders of our industry.

Honest Mike and I had great reception to the display of our Double Exposure Duece which we drove 2000 miles in to Vegas on the "Driven Dirty Tour". You can read my daily chronicle about it on earlier posts. Mike was pleased to have his sweetheart n fiancé, Connie Merriman fly out to Vegas to be with him. I think he missed her.

My wife didn’t come to Vegas this year. She left Chattanooga during the SEMA show week to fly to EL Salvador on a medical mission. Theresa really has a heart of mercy n service n loves to use her Nursing degree for that purpose. I am proud of her and don’t mind her not being with me in Vegas considering the higher calling. Besides…my daughter made sure I didn’t have any of those "Vegas stories" that are supposed to stay in Vegas. Who has time any way!

The traffic and interest at our Coker Tire booth was good. Our staff did a great job too! Todd (I lost my crackberry n was lost without it) Harless, Allen (had a birthday during SEMA n soon to be a poppa) Sturm from our Fresno store, Jess (I am wise for my age) Hoodenpyle, Gary (I think I can still play basketball but am kidding myself) Brewer, Jim (can’t believe they made me wear socks) Hildebrand, Casey (she can cut a rug) Coker, and Ricky (just let me loose with that truck back toward Chattanooga) Howell all worked well together, wore themselves out talking to visitors to our booth so to make the Coker Tire experience at SEMA the best it could be!

You will be see a lot of coverage of the Sema show on many of the car shows like Car Crazy (carcrazycentral.com), Overhaulin, all over SPEED channel, Two guys garage, My Classic Car, and many others. Semashow.com and SEMA.org will help you connect too. You can always just google "SEMA show 2006".

Great job Chris Kersting, SEMA staff and Convexx staff! It was a wonderful event! You done good!

From the road,

Corky Coker