The LA Roadster Show (its real name is the L.A. Roadster's Exhibition, Trade Show, and Swap Meet) has been called the "Mother of all Father's Day events," and it's easy to see why. For the past 40 years, the LA Roadsters Car Club has taken that particular weekend in June to not only create the largest roadster show in the world, but to also raise thousands of dollars for the club's various charities.
More than 800 open-top cars made before 1937 (the pre-determined cut-off date for both the event and the club member's cars) roll into the Pomona Fairplex Fairgrounds in Southern California for the weekend event. But after 40 years, the adjoining parking lots, which are separated into a swap-meet section and preferred parking for hot rods (which usually boasts 2,000 vehicles itself), has become a bigger show than the only-roadsters section. Add to that one of the largest rodding manufacturer midways in the country, and soon you'll see why the event comes in at the top of everyone's list of shows to see.
Back in the day, the rodding world was a lot like today's kit-car market, with only a few aftermarket bodies and some hard parts available but, over time, it's grown into a multimillion dollar business with nearly anything you can think of being offered. And even though most rodders don't want it said they drive kit cars-if every part on the car is less than 60 days old, then it's a kit car (albeit most are built to the highest order)!