We’ve all been to a classic car show and encountered ‘that person’. It’s the guy or girl who makes a complete nuisance of themselves by doing the most irritating things possible.
No one wants to be ‘that’ person. Classic car shows are things of beauty and fantastic days out for both enthusiasts and anyone looking for an exciting way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
With that in mind, and assuming you’ve reached this blog post because you’ll be heading to a few shows yourself this year, we thought we’d put together five things you absolutely should avoid doing at a classic car show.
1. Don’t touch (unless invited to)
As fabulous as the cars may be, reaching out and touching precious metal of this kind is pretty bad form at most car shows.
That doesn’t mean you can’t touch, but an introductory chat with the owner is the way to go about it. Most classic car owners are lovely and will invite you to, anyway!
2. Take the kids, but keep an eye on them
Now, we don’t want to teach you how to be a good parent, but this one bears mentioning.
Kids love classic car shows, which is why it represents such a fantastic day out for them. Just keep an eye on what they do while you’re there and give them the ‘look but don’t touch’ pep talk before heading out.
3. Don’t talk negatively about someone’s motor
Sure, you weren’t particularly impressed with the modifications made to that ’65 Corvette, but keep your opinions to yourself. Blatantly lambasting the hard work and pride of joy of someone else won’t win you many friends at car shows.
4. Talk to the owner!
You’ll certainly spend a great deal of your time at the car show looking at the motors on display, but if you don’t speak to the owners, you’re missing out, big time.
It’s courteous to do so, but beyond that, you’ll learn an awful lot more about the cars themselves. There’ll be stories and fascinating histories behind each one, so don’t be shy - speak to the owners!
5. Don’t lecture owners on their cars
Even if you do possess a significant amount of knowledge about a particular car you find at a show, try to reign it in. There’s nothing worse than lecturing the owner of a car or telling them what they should do with it.
By all means, share a your passion with them - just don’t treat it as an opportunity to school someone on something they probably already know a great deal about.
Wrap up
That’s it! We’ve neglected to list the obvious - such as stealing stuff and getting blind drunk - but that’s because you know the score on that front!
Enjoy 2018 - there’s set to be some fantastic classic car shows taking place throughout the country.
