After about 20 hours of driving with having to deal with two blowouts on the trailer, dealing with a shady tire shop employed with crack heads, and almost losing control of the trailer, we had finally made it to the big show. We ended up staying at the Stratosphere which was actually pretty nice for the price. It was my first time staying there and was crazy watching people ride the roller coasters at the top as well as jumping off from the top.
With the Smoothster unloaded, cleaned up, and put in it's spot at the show, it was an awesome feeling knowing Kris and the rest of his friends had made it happen. The truck had a ton of looks, a lot of photos taken of it, few video companies shot it, and Kris did a couple interviews about it.
Kris wasn't the only one there with a nice ride obviously and man oh man was this show PACKED with sick whips! Outside, all of the different styles were all jam-packed together not leaving much room to take photos easily. Inside, there are 3 different buildings for those who have never been. And yes, each building is HUGE and PACKED too. I was there every day and I don't know if I even walked half of what SEMA had to offer. There were so many different style of rides and tons of cool new products as well as tools. My legs were definitely sore after 4 days of walking and walking and walking.
If you read my previous blog you would of known that I turned 21 right before heading to Vegas. It was awesome not being "that kid" who wasn't old enough to go to the bars with everyone. Pretty much each night we'd go out somewhere to eat and do a little (or a lot) of drinking. It is WAY too easy spending money in Vegas, I learned that quick! Was fun seeing and hanging out with friends in the scene from all over the country too.
Once the last day of the show was over, we loaded up the truck and headed on out. Of course it would of been too easy if the drive home went smoothly. Right when we got to about the Nevada/Arizona line we hit snow. Yes, snow...and LOTS of it. Snow plus the middle of the night do not make a good pair. We kept on truckin' along and eventually beat out the storm without any problems. Did our bad luck stop there? Nope! We had stopped at the Texas/Oklahoma border to eat and fill up on gas. Well we pull into a Chevron/Taco Bell and go eat. We walk back out after stuffing our faces to only realize an entire wheel is gone from the trailer. There's no knowing when it fell off...and what's crazy is no one even noticed or felt the tire coming off or driving with it missing. We end up having to wait about seven hours for another truck and trailer from Arkansas so we could get the Smoothster home more safely. We finally make it back to the shop about 24 hours later from when we left Vegas with the only damage being the missing wheel from the trailer and somehow the Smoothster jerked on the new trailer and the tires hit the fenders causing a little body damage but nothing too bad.
All in all it was a trip which not many people can say they've been able to experience before. This will definitely be something I never forget. I went to Arkansas not really knowing anyone besides a couple people but left with new friends and people I had an honor meeting. California Customs and myself are already talking of another build video for SEMA 2012. Stay tuned!
To check out the photos I took at SEMA, click here!
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