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2008 Georgia State Meet
by David Miller

 

Albany, GA – The South Georgia Chapter of the Studebaker Drivers Club sponsored the 2008 Georgia State Studebaker Meet April 11 and 12, at the Merry Acres Hotel.

      The theme of the meet was ‘Back to the Sixties in Studebakers’ and it was held at the perfect venue for the event. By all accounts, it was a resounding success. There were 33 cars and 5 trucks judged and half a dozen other Studebakers and Avantis present for display only.

     Ninety registrants represented eight states, from Ohio to Louisiana, including Indiana, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Florida, and of course, the Peach State. Twelve SDC chapters were represented, from Indianapolis to Miami.
 

     Overall, there were 164 people registered, or with registrants, and quite a few browsers from Albany who stopped by to have a look.

      For the most part, the weather was excellent, sparing the meet the heat and humidity that can roll into Georgia in mid-April. Saturday was set back for a short spell by an April shower, but it passed rather quickly, and gave way to clouds and a brisk breeze from the west.

     The state meet was well-publicized by the NBC television affiliate, WALB, which sent news crews out on Friday and Saturday to relay the event to a quarter million households in the Albany market.  Loren Hendley, meet chairman was our spokesman, and displayed the good spirit of the chapter and the event, as WALB’s cameras showed Many Georgians their first Studebakers and Avantis. You can link to WALB’s coverage at www.georgiastudebaker.com .

       Oddly enough, there was only one iconic Stude “Bullet Nose,” but several Avantis and Avanti II’s on hand, and the meet committee would like to thank the various Avanti clubs for their participation. 

     We were also pleased to see so many young people in attendance, since the future of our marquee is dependent on that generation to carry on what the older set began.

      Our chief judge, a fourth generation Stude man, Matthew Burnette of Hazlehurst, led an enthusiastic and knowledgeable cadre of judges: Tom Elliott, Joe Bacon, who is also the Jet Thrust editor for Turning Wheels, Scott Olsen of Tallahassee, and James Thornton of Baxley. The team judged 38 vehicles in two hours, as the cars came to them, under a tent. This system alleviated the need for owners to stand by their cars for long periods, waiting on the judges to come to them.

   The chapter ladies, led by Ann Lee and Betty Hendley, maintained their reputation for putting on a fine hospitality suite again in 2008. “That’s mighty good, and there’s plenty of it,” said venerable Stude and Avanti man Nollie Hinton, of the Northeast Florida SDC.  Nollie has been a good friend and a supporter of the South Georgia hospitality suite since the first Georgia meet in Warner Robins in 2004.

    “That food was outstanding, and I don’t think I’ve ever been made to feel so at home and welcome as I was here in Albany,” said Nancy Bacon of Indianapolis. “This was just the best ever."

    We tried to make the Saturday banquet match the hospitality suite as the meet wrapped up Saturday night. For $20, the crowd enjoyed a buffet of fried shrimp, trout, and catfish, all fresh-cooked on site, along with the Georgia requisites of cheese grits, hush puppies, cole slaw, and sweet tea. For barbecue lovers, there was smoked chicken, pork ribs, and pulled pork barbecue, as well as French fries, Brunswick stew, baked beans, and cake. And this was all you could eat! White’s Barbecue and Seafood of Albany did the honors. If you are in the Albany area, give them a try.

    Joe and Nancy Bacon came all the way from Indianapolis, so they were ready for some good food and fellowship when they arrived. Here’s what Joe had to say about the meet: 

     "Hospitality room, those 'South Georgia' folks take it to a whole different level! Food and beverages were in abundance the whole meet, be it breakfast, snacks or sandwiches, no one had a need to leave the grounds to purchase a meal. Bar none this was the best hospitality room at any meet we have attended and there was no charge nor donation requested.” Thanks for the good words, Joe!

     Friday afternoon became early Saturday morning before we knew it as many people sat in lawn chairs sharing car talk and jokes about previous experiences, and at 1:30 am we called it a night. Saturday morning was cloudy and then it rained for about two hours stopping just prior to judging. Judging was a easy and smooth experience and went rapidly.

    I heard the 'call' in early afternoon, 'Bingo in the hospitality room' and many ladies were heading that way.

     The banquet was held at 6:00 on Saturday and was FANTASTIC! We had a buffet type meal of smoked ribs, pulled pork, smoked chicken, fried shrimp, catfish, pollock and a host of side dishes.

    'Kudos' to the team who arranged that! After dinner and awards there was another lawn chair session. By 11:00PM we were all exhausted and retired for the evening.

      The T-shirts for the meet were a big hit, and every one of the 140 we had made sold.  A big thanks to George and Cat Young of Americus for ram-rodding this phase of the meet.

     Chapter president Neil Thornton said, “This was another great state meet, and the members of the meet committee are to be congratulated for their efforts.”

    The committee was comprised of: Chairman Loren and Betty Hendley, Co-chair Dave and Gayle Miller, Joel and Karel Daniel, the backbone of South Georgia’s state meets, Wayne and Ann Lee, George and Ann Klutkowski, and George and Cat Young. The Young's are due special accolades for taking the bulk of the registration duty, which no one is anxious to tackle.

    It seems like yesterday that the South Georgia chapter was planning the first state meet. It will be a proverbial blink of the eye until 2010, and time to put on another one.

By David Miller

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