Hi everyone! I just returned from an insanely wonderful, automotive-centered, week in Las Vegas, and now I am eager to share that trip with you. As it does every year, my trip included coverage of the SEMA Show and AAPEX (automotive aftermarket trade shows). Motorsports included drifting and insane burnout demonstrations (right down to the sparking rims) outside the Las Vegas Convention Center, and the OPTIMA Ultimate Street Car Invitational road course and autocross competitions on Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. I wrapped up my visit to Las Vegas on Sunday evening with a photo session on the Las Vegas Strip, followed by a visit to the massively larger new location (25,000 square feet) of the Pinball Hall of Fame Museum, near the iconic “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign.
I’ll begin today with an overview. Then, in the weeks and months ahead, I’ll edit more of my thousands of photos and write about them.
The SEMA Show and AAPEX focus on the huge automotive aftermarket, and together they are both filled with just about every kind of automotive product you could imagine.
The Las Vegas Convention Center — covering real estate from South hall to the new West Hall — is home to the SEMA Show. AAPEX is nearby, at The Venetian and Caesars Forum.
SEMA was founded in 1963, as the Specialty Equipment Market Association. The first official SEMA Show was held in 1967, at Dodger Stadium. The show moved to the Anaheim Convention Center in 1974, and then it moved again in 1977 to Las Vegas.
At the end of each SEMA Show, hundreds of show vehicles leave the Las Vegas Convention Center. This process was formalized in 2011 with the inauguration of the now-annual SEMA Cruise — an hours-long parade on Friday after the SEMA Show closes. Since this takes place outside the Convention Center, it is a great opportunity for the public to see the show vehicles. This year, since the new construction outside the North and Central halls occupied the road that the SEMA Cruise used to use, a great spot to watch the relocated SEMA Cruise was from a third-floor patio on the West Hall.
In 2014, the SEMA Show added the “Battle of the Builders” competition. “SEMA Ignited” was also added, on Friday night, following the SEMA Cruise. Again, this provides the public with the opportunity to see some of the products that had been on display at the SEMA Show. Drifting was a very popular element of that event. “SEMA Ignited” has since morphed into “SEMA Fest” — a ticketed event with live music that celebrates car culture.
Thrilling motorsports demonstrations are performed in parking lots at the Las Vegas Convention Center, and — on the Saturday immediately following the two shows — at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spectators were especially entertained by the burnout demonstration for about two hours on Friday afternoon, outside West Hall. Spectators lined the concrete barriers that enclosed a space where cars did massive burnouts. Even after the tires exploded — sending chunks of hot rubber in all directions, the drivers kept the burnouts going, creating sparks between the wheels and the pavement. At one point, several vehicles trailed intense flames. A group of people from Australia brought right-hand-drive Holdens to perform in the burnout demonstration.
AAPEX stands for the Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo. Like SEMA, AAPEX also brings together the global automotive aftermarket community. Joe’s Garage is a popular feature of AAPEX. Configured like a large, multi-bay auto repair shop, it presents hands-on training sessions. AAPEX included a a large number and variety of automotive parts manufacturers from China, as well as other countries.
Billed as having the world’s largest collection of pinball machines, the Las Vegas Pinball Hall of Fame Museum is filled with row after row containing hundreds of pinball and other arcade machines. This popular Las Vegas entertainment venue is perpetually filled with people playing the machines and having a blast. I previously covered an earlier iteration of that museum in “AutoMatters & More” #556. Check it out at AutoMatters.net.
To get there, head south from “The Strip” on Las Vegas Blvd.. You’ll find it just before you reach the iconic “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign. The museum has a huge sign next to Las Vegas Blvd., and the building is further adorned with massive letters spelling the word “PINBALL.”
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Copyright © 2024 by Jan Wagner – AutoMatters & More #860
