Well we are about to turn the corner into Spring and the bike show line-up looks healthy! Kicking off this year is a bike show in Atlanta. This one grows from the effort Pete D. did last year at his house in Hartwell, GA. Unfortunately severe weather the day before dampened (literally) enthusiasm and attendance was light. We still had a blast though with Pete and Mark providing a BBQ truck for breakfast and lunch. Thank goodness Pete’s wife was out of town because the BBQ truck had to be pulled out of the back yard and I think he spent the rest of the weekend filling in ruts!

The show this year will be held in Atlanta on March 12th. Please see my home page for flyers/info on all the shows. Years ago there was a show in Marietta when there was a healthy collector presence in this neck of the woods. I think we have regained that collector presence and I look forward to this show being the opening show each year to bicycle swaps.

Next up is the Knoxville. Iowa swap on April 16th. I have never attended this show and don’t know much about it and I’m not sure if this is a first year show or not. As I’ve said before bicycle shows/swaps are a great way to network and establish new relationships. You can accomplish only so much behind a keyboard and a lot of the good parts/bikes never see a public sale. Most of the stuff I acquire is done through a phone call, text, or email from people I’ve met at bike shows.

The Memory Lane Classics (MLC) show has traditionally always been the last week of April followed by the Ann Arbor (now Monroe) show. Monroe has moved to the first weekend in May so MLC has moved to Wed-Fri (May 3-5) to align with the Monroe show. Since the retail store is closed MLC is now held in downtown Bowling Green, OH at the fairgrounds. A pretty decent venue and even though it is totally outdoors this is a rain or shine event. I’ve been up there when it’s snowing and when you could wear a T-shirt (sometimes the same week) and regardless of weather there is always a huge crowd. This is the grand daddy of all bike swaps and people come from both coasts, Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska to attend this show. Many of the old timers who never touch a computer are there along with all the heavy hitters in the hobby. You never know what will show up and I’ve seen Deluxe Autocycles, Bluebirds, and all kinds of other rare parts and bikes just pop up here. Its always funny to watch a truck roll through the gate and a crowd gather and start following it until it parks. Then the person gets a lot of ‘help’ unloading!

For many years Paul and Annie Kleppert hosted and put on the “The Biggest, The Oldest, The Best” bicycle show and swap at Ann Arbor, MI. Paul and Annie are enjoying a well deserved retirement and the show has now moved down the road to Monroe. MI in a really nice facility. Cash awards are given out for “Classic Bike of the Year” winners and runners up as well as plaques for class winners in the bike show. Whether you win an award or not it is always fun showing one of your prized possessions. Because it follows MLC there are many of the same vendors but Monroe always draws its own unique blend of vendors to make it a different feel from MLC.