How does Chrysler Carlisle compare to the Mopar Nationals with regards to the swap meet size? I've never been to the Mopar Nationals.
Thank you.
I went to the Mopar Nationals 1 time in 2021 and I have been to the Chrysler Nationals at Carlisle 5 years now. The swap at Carlisle is 10 times that of the one that I saw at the Mopar Nationals.
Seems like even the Carlisle one is shrinking every year...not necessarily in number of vendors or spaces but in the amount of good finds for the 70's era cars. Lots more truck and new challenger parts nowadays. Makes sense though. As time goes on, there are less and less parts to go around.
@GoMangoBoys,
@Cuda_mark,
Thank you for the feedback. I'd say internet sales probably contribute to smaller attendance as well as the heat this time of year. I certainly have much more appreciation for the sellers after a hot day at Carlisle (and Friday was cooler than average this year).
I was informed this year a few things about the nats.
No grass, all rocks and dirt. Hot and dusty.
Very little to no organization.
Vendors can't stay on site with their goods and I was told of many stories where peoples stuff were stolen while they were sleeping in hotels. People just threw the goods over the fences and off they went.
Bathrooms are terrible and are full with little to no maintenance. Carlisle has attendants at all bathrooms including the portopotties.
This is all second hand knowledge. I was still told that I should experience the nats once and it will make my appreciation for carlisle nationals much greater!
Quote from: cuda hunter on July 16, 2024, 06:38:08 AMI was told of many stories where peoples stuff were stolen
What a shame. Thank you for the info.
Quote from: cuda hunter on July 16, 2024, 06:38:08 AMI was informed this year a few things about the nats.
WOW!!! If that's true that's a serious degrading of a once awesome event. It seems it's going downhill year after year. I hope someone does go and gives us a first hand account.
Quote from: cuda hunter on July 16, 2024, 06:38:08 AMI was informed this year a few things about the nats.
No grass, all rocks and dirt. Hot and dusty.
Very little to no organization.
Vendors can't stay on site with their goods and I was told of many stories where peoples stuff were stolen while they were sleeping in hotels. People just threw the goods over the fences and off they went.
Bathrooms are terrible and are full with little to no maintenance. Carlisle has attendants at all bathrooms including the portopotties.
This is all second hand knowledge. I was still told that I should experience the nats once and it will make my appreciation for carlisle nationals much greater!
I've been going to the Nats nearly every year since 1987. I'll address some of these topics below.
1) Unfortunately, August in Ohio is usually very hot and humid. I can only remember a couple times over the years when the temperature has been mild.
2) I think just about 100% of the show cars are parked on grass. If you look at the satellite view on Google maps, you'll see that the only area that is gravel are the aisles between parking rows. The midway is all blacktop.
Google Image (https://www.google.com/maps/@39.9619904,-82.5458703,1145m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu)
3) Per the Nats website:
"Camping Rules – Only Motorhome/RV Campers that have self-contained restroom and sleeping accommodations will be allowed overnight camping privileges. All campers must remain within the area of their RV/Motorhome starting at 9PM until 7AM of the next day. Any campers found outside of their area or in the Manufacturer Midway, Swap Meet, Car Corral areas will be escorted off the grounds by security with no entry monies refunded. Camping is allowed Thursday night and ends after Saturday night. No Sunday night camping is allowed on the race track grounds. Entry and Exit from the grounds is restricted after 9PM. Must have proper credentials. Only Emergency situations will be honored, so plan accordingly. A Camping permit will be given to each Motorhome/RV to display in their front windshield and all campers must have entry wrist band worn. The Sheriff's patrol and Security will be patrolling by car and on foot throughout the night for enforcement of these rules and general security of the grounds."
4) I've never had any issue at all using the restrooms. They always seem clean, and I've never had an issue getting into them. I've never used any of the porta potties, so I can't say too much about those other than I've never heard anyone complain about them.
I've only been to Carlisle a couple times, but I do prefer Carlisle to the Nats mostly because it's much better organized and there are more cars. The Nats were really something back in the 80's and 90's and a few times since then they've been pretty good, like the e-body tribute year which I think was 2008.
In a nutshell, The Nationals is all about racing, Carlisle is not.
Thank you all for the feedback.
Of course, this is all very subjective but if I were going to break it down, I would estimate the Nats like this:
Unjudged Car Show 30%
Judged Car Show 10%
Swap Meet 25%
Drag Racing 20%
Vendors 15%
Quote from: PlumCrazyRTSE on July 16, 2024, 12:16:08 PMOf course, this is all very subjective
Thanks for the info. I was hoping my second hand information was somewhat biased by those who told me these things.
I`ve only been to the Nats once back in `89 when it was in Columbus at National Trail Dragway and that was a great venue - big swap area lot`s of show and drag cars and seemed to be decently run. The only complaint I heard was that there was no designated areas for show and drag cars so they were all mixed in wherever you could find spot. It get get a bit dusty in the non-paved areas and people drove too fast but otherwise I didn`t see any issues and had a great time and I love that they have drag racing on site - IMO that`s the only thing that would improve Carlisle. Obvioulsy it has changed a LOT since then, if I was able to go to another one other than Carlisle it would be Moparty.
Quote from: torredcuda on July 17, 2024, 04:17:50 AMif I was able to go to another one other than Carlisle it would be Moparty
I've never been but might be able to go next year. Thank you for the suggestion.
Quote from: mtull on July 17, 2024, 04:35:55 AMQuote from: torredcuda on July 17, 2024, 04:17:50 AMif I was able to go to another one other than Carlisle it would be Moparty
I've never been but might be able to go next year. Thank you for the suggestion.
The only thing stopping me from going is that it would an 18+ hour drive from New Hampshire, I would probably have to fly in and rent a car to attend.
I haven't been to Carlisle it sounds great, mopar Nationals is closer to me it does get dusty the racing is fun to watch and gives you a chance to relax from walking and looking at all the cars now a big plus for me and my friends we all have different cars, challenger, duster demon charger darts, so we can park together, I hear at Carlisle you can,t park different cars together, in my opinion the more mopar shows there are the better, people that can't go to one has a chance to go to a different one
Quote from: Mixup7071 on July 17, 2024, 09:57:15 AMI haven't been to Carlisle it sounds great, mopar Nationals is closer to me it does get dusty the racing is fun to watch and gives you a chance to relax from walking and looking at all the cars now a big plus for me and my friends we all have different cars, challenger, duster demon charger darts, so we can park together, I hear at Carlisle you can,t park different cars together, in my opinion the more mopar shows there are the better, people that can't go to one has a chance to go to a different one
Parking your car with friends that are in different classes would be nice but I guess each way has it`s pros and cons.
Quote from: cuda hunter on July 16, 2024, 06:38:08 AMI was informed this year a few things about the nats.
No grass, all rocks and dirt. Hot and dusty.About half of the pit area is asphalt. The other half is grass. There is a row of asphalt right next to the staging lanes that is prime car show territory and you'd better stake out your spot on Thursday or you won't get a spot there.
The rest of the car show field is grass. Some of the car show area has gravel driveways/lanes but not all. The car corral is all grass.
The swap area is grass with gravel driveways/lanes. The manufactures midway is asphalt. They sometimes have the survivor tent/special vehicle display tent over there on the asphalt.
Very little to no organization. This is true. I like that to a point but they could use a little more. Last year we staked a nice spot in the grass on Thursday afternoon as soon as we got into town. We set up the tent as a place marker. Friday morning was no issue. We went to the spot and set up. Friday night we took the top off the tent but left the frame standing for Saturday. On Saturday morning we rolled in and the people next to us on Friday parked another car in our spot and refused to move. There was nothing we could do but find another spot.
Vendors can't stay on site with their goods and I was told of many stories where peoples stuff were stolen while they were sleeping in hotels. People just threw the goods over the fences and off they went. This is true to some degree. I've never heard that theft is rampant but when you have a large show it's bound to attract that element.
Bathrooms are terrible and are full with little to no maintenance. Carlisle has attendants at all bathrooms including the portopotties.
This is all second hand knowledge. I was still told that I should experience the nats once and it will make my appreciation for carlisle nationals much greater! I've heard stories of full portopotties in the swap area before. I've never seen a full one in the car show area. Lately they have had bathroom trailers with A/C and are good about having them emptied throughout the weekend. It's nice to get a little break from the heat in the A/C.
Quote from: torredcuda on July 17, 2024, 05:05:18 AMQuote from: mtull on July 17, 2024, 04:35:55 AMQuote from: torredcuda on July 17, 2024, 04:17:50 AMif I was able to go to another one other than Carlisle it would be Moparty
I've never been but might be able to go next year. Thank you for the suggestion.
The only thing stopping me from going is that it would an 18+ hour drive from New Hampshire, I would probably have to fly in and rent a car to attend.
I vend at Carlisle and will be vending at Moparty this September. If there's something you're specifically looking for, send me a list.