Friday at the Swap Meet

Last fall I was told that there's a swap meet at the fairgrounds, and they'll have a bunch of parts for old Volkswagen Bugs. Currently I'm looking for a driver's side front fender. I checked the fair's website, and the swap meet looked promising. In a promotional photo from last year's meet, I could see three VW hoods, a rear deck lid, and an apron.

Back in February I put in a request for a personal day on May 2, and for three months I've been crossing off the days on the calendar waiting for the swap meet to come to town. 

I was wearing a hooded sweatshirt when the gates opened at 9:00. The sun was out, there was no wind, and the temperature was 52 degrees. It was a perfect morning; just look at that sky. 

It took about 45 minutes to walk past all the vendor tables, pickup beds, and auto parts picnics. When I had come full circle, so many new vendors had begun laying out their wares I was able to make a second pass and find it just as interesting. I kept checking my watching and laughing to myself that I wasn't at school. 

The closest thing I found to a Volkswagen part was a manual for '63 Beetle, so that was a bit of a disappointment. But I had so much fun picking through all this cool stuff; I hardly cared.

I think this is a 1956 Chevy.

The pin striping on the helmet is neat.

This place had all kinds of stuff for sale. Gas cans, floor jacks, bedpans... used bedpans? That's kinda gross. I think I'll be keeping my ten dollars in my pocket.

A girl in my junior high class had an older brother who built one of these from scratch. She used to complain that all he ever did was "play with motors in the garage", but that dude was the envy of most of the guys I knew.

Another old bedpan? Who collects these? I started thinking that bedpan people must be pretty weird, but then I realized I was taking pictures of old bedpans, and that was probably just as weird. So, I stopped doing that.

Vintage trail bikes are still cool.

So are Schwinn Sting-Rays.

Seriously, this is a muscle bike seat. It looks like it was stolen off of a 70's Harley chopper. (Pro tip: If you are talking to a person with a vintage bike, don't embarrass yourself and say that's a "sissy bar". They'll shut you down quick. It's a "strut".)

I had one of these when I was a kid. Your Hot Wheel car passed through the tunnel, and the speedometer would tell you how fast it was moving. It was as accurate as the recent weather forecasts, but still a lot of fun.

In the 80's, the Cragar S/S mag wheel was one the coolest wheels on the road. My sister dated a kid who had a set on his jacked up, '78 Camaro. That car was so bad ass.

So, did I buy anything at the swap meet? No, I brought $400 in cash, hoping to score some VW metal, but that wasn't to be. I didn't leave empty-handed, though. After taking the above picture at the "car corral", I spotted this key chain in the grass. The corral was at least 50 yards from the rest of the swap meet, so I don't think it was bumped off a dealer's table. 

As far as souvenirs go, it's a lot better than a bedpan.