Hot cars, hot bikes and hot women. Well, at least that's what the announcer said over the P.A. system every 30 minutes.
The whole point of going was for us to take Nolan to see Mater, the car character from the Disney Pixar movie Cars. Plus, he's just blown away with Hot Wheels and Matchbox toy cars. He has a pretty sizable collection and plays with the cars e-v-e-r-y day.
I've been to the Convention Centre for a few social events. Sam Roberts at the Grey Cup, Brier Patch, and 3 wine shows. All good times. This event was pretty cool too.
1st gear - former WWF wrestler Virgil was on hand for autographs. I was a pretty big fan of WWF during the Hulk Hogan day. Wait, that's not specific enough is it. The Hogan, Andre the Giant, Ricky Steamboat Dragon days. My dad reminded me not long ago that we had the play ring and the toy characters. I took a break from rastlin' for quite a few years. Kinda like millions of other fans did. In about 1999 I was hooked again with Stone Cold Steve Austin and DX. I'm not a fan anymore. I couldn't tell you who the champ is. So Virgil has a little booth and NO ONE is getting an autograph. Our entourage goes over and we are making no attempt to engage so neither is he until my mother in law picks up one of his 8 x 10 photos. "Autograph?" "Autograph?" Virgil moved in on her like he would have done in the ring to give some jobber a Fujiwara Arm Bar (thank you Internet). We politely declined the $5 autograph fee and the 8 x 10 photo and hurried along but not before I could hear him vent in frustration to his booth partner, "I'm just too pushy". I guess steroids doesn't help you sell autographs post wrestling.
2nd gear - hot women. I wasn't exactly out with the boys but I did notice some ladies with great... personalities.
3rd gear - Mater. Just like Virgil, Mater was pimping his charm for $5. Unlike Virgil, Mater had a sizable line. Picture with a full size version of the car for $5. We had to do it. After all, this was the major reason to go. A bit of drama over hand holding and waiting in line created some tension and the babe didn't really seem to enjoy it. He did get a decent shot so it was still worth it. Talk about good marketing though. Lots of young kids were there to see this car. Most accompanied by at least 2 grown ups or in our case, 4. $11 per adult or $9 with a reduced ticket to get in the door. Let's just say Mater brought it and Virgil better step it up a notch for tomorrow.
4th gear - wheel in the sky. Don't you just love it when a song is played and it makes absolute sense at that given moment? It's kinda freaky but really cool. I took all sorts of pictures at this event. I wouldn't recommend it without a camera. I attempted new things with the camera my friend showed me. Taking pictures of wheels and rims and different angles then I heard the classic rock of Journey and Wheel in the Sky. I looked around and I'm surrounded by classic muscle cars and middle aged guys and you better believe all of them own Journey's Greatest Hits album.
5th gear - hot bikes. I'm not a big fan of bikes. I can barely ride a mountain bike. My friend has a scooter and I won't even test drive that. I admire the detail but the thing that caught my attention in the bike section was the 12 year old dude wearing an Adrian Peterson Vikings jersey. That was cool to see and my mind wandered for a bit thinking about who the Vikings will take in the NFL draft. Every year the Vikings lose with Purple Jesus healthy and producing is just a shame. I refocused quickly after I spotted the absolute best car: 1977 Pontiac Trans AM.
6th gear - hot cars. I don't really know anything about cars. At one point my father in law said something about a car having dual manifolds. I had no clue what he was talking about. Still don't. I couldn't even tell you what a piston ring is and that is the damn title sponsor. But I can tell you that the 1977 Pontiac Trans AM is a beauty. Lots of other cool cars and trucks there too. There was a Mustang GT 500 E or the Delilah car used in Gone in 60 Seconds. Still didn't beat the Trans AM plus I'd take a car featured with Burt Reynolds over one with Nicolas Cage any day.
Despite Virgil, hot women smiling at him, Mater, hot bikes, and all the other really big cool cars my little guy found what he loves best...the toy cars. He laid out on the floor, settled in, and stared at a small toy car next to an awesome KISS themed sports car. Clueless of the extravagant workmanship of the real car and totally enthralled in the generic toy he could hold in his hand. Fortunately for the kid in me, it was the last thing he saw and that meant I was able to take in the World of Wheels and then give you the gears about it.
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