For the past 43 years, Portland, Oregon has hosted an auto swap meet that has grown to absolutely ludicrous proportions. This year I struggled to see everything in the two days that I attended. The thrill of the hunt and a deep running passion for things shinny and fast is what drew me and many other people to this year’s event. The lure of good prices, and an absolutely immense selection, has brought gear heads together from all over the United States and Canada. With all of this stuff together, it makes for a whole weekend of full-on car culture immersion.
Pouring rain and chilly temperatures didn’t stop people as an estimated 58,000 turned out for automotive lunacy. This swap meet is actually two separate, but concurrent, events that happen less than a mile from each other. The madness takes place on the first weekend in April annually. Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, the Expo, and Portland International Raceway, PIR, play host to these two giants. PIR Track Manager Mark Wigginton says, “Each year the crowds grow bigger and bigger and we’re looking forward to this year’s turnout being the largest to date.”
My first day was spent up at the Expo Center, walking around and hunting for bits of treasure. With 52 acres of automotive bliss, there is plenty to dig through. The shear variety of types of things that are for sale is utterly astounding. I spent my morning under the 360,000 square feet of covered area that the Expo offers. This is where most of the artwork and collectible memorabilia is housed. New and restored parts are also located in these areas. Outside is where you will find a majority of the used parts and cars.
While I was at the Expo, I had a chance to speak with Tex Lindquist. Tex, who is one of the volunteer organizers of the event, gave me a little history behind its inception: “It started back in the mid sixties. Some guys decided that they would exchange some parts and they had a little meeting at a Ford garage, a dealership, here in Portland.” He goes on to say, “We grew from a small operation into a humongous monster.” And what a humongous monster it was, by the end of the first day my feet and legs were hammered.
The second day was spent down at PIR, where vendors setup their wares right along side of the 1.96-mile road race circuit. Unlike the Expo, you can ride bicycles and small motorcycles; there are also no age restrictions on the vehicles sold at PIR. At the Expo, the vehicles being sold have to be at least 25 years old. This year I was lucky enough to have gotten to ride a nicely restored 79 Honda 50 for part of the day. It was a welcomed change after the 10 plus mile walk from the day before and blasting down the back straight on a mini bike kicked some major ass.
Even with the rain coming down in buckets sporadically throughout the weekend, people still had smiles on their faces as they mulled over the millions of things for sale. Gear heads were out in force because these types of events are a part of the foundation that hot rodding is built on. This is true across the board, no matter what type of motorized contraption you’re trying to make cooler or faster. It’s about more than parts. It’s about a life style, passion, and the pursuit of speed and beauty. If you are any type of a gear head, you need to get out and see what you’re missing. Make plans to come and see it next year, I guarantee you will be blown away.
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