SLAMFEST 2001

Recently, on the weekend of November 3-4, 2001, Truckin' Magazine made its presence known at yet another Sunshine State event. The 10th annual Slamfest Custom Truck Show held in Tampa, Florida, at the Florida State Fairgrounds finished off the summer show season with a bang.

Our arrival in Florida was on the heels of a long week at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, but our low energy levels were brought up to par the minute we hit the Florida State Fairgrounds on Friday evening. Catching a glimpse of all the hot show haulers being moved into the inside pavilion area for display opened our eyes as we made a mental list of all the trucks that had to be captured on film. The staff from Mini Madness has worked extra hard to put on a smash-hit, all-inclusive event that offers fun and excitement for all types of enthusiasts.

On Saturday by 8 a.m., with camera in hand, we were pounding the pavement to get some of the most radical show trucks in front of the lens for some extensive show coverage. The hardest part about photographing this show was getting these Florida truck fanatics to stop cleaning long enough to snap a few frames of their rides. After the majority of the gearheads in attendance finished shining their trucks to perfection, we cycled numerous rolls of film through our cameras and collected a diverse sampling of trucks to be photographed for features.

Vendor row was packed with vendors selling everything from billet wheels to custom lighting accessories to performance tires and custom truck clothing. Big names including BFGoodrich and Drop Em Wear were on hand offering the latest in rolling apparel and custom gear. Show sponsors included Street Heat Performance, N2Audio, BFGoodrich, and Wheel Tech of Tampa. The folks at Wheel Tech even gave away a set of 18-inch Giovanna wheels. After a stroll through the Manufacturers' Midway, we noticed a significant amount of past Truckin' magazine feature trucks all proudly displaying their feature layouts in front of their trucks.

Other truck shows tend to be dominated by either a majority of mini-trucks or a boatload of fullsize haulers, but we found Slamfest to have a bit of everything. A number of fullsize trucks were on hand at Slamfest and all of them were either on airbags or body dropped to the rockers. Mini-trucks from the Toyota, Nissan, and Chevrolet brands permeated the show grounds as well, all equipped with the mandatory pavement-crushing stance, large-diameter rims and rubber, and graphic-covered smooth bodies. A Nissan Hardbody with a 12-inch body drop was the talk of the show as the base of the taillights laid on the ground.

Back inside the pavilion, the indoor show vehicles were receiving quite a bit of attention as the line for fresh grub and liquid refreshments from the snack bar was continually growing. Just outside the pavilion, the Mini Madness staff offered event T-shirts for sale as show participants cruised the showgrounds throughout the day.

The happenings on Sunday were just as explosive as Saturday as a full-throttle burnout contest got the crowds cheering, and a bikini contest widened more than a few eyes. A series of games were set up for the various truck clubs in attendance to participate in which also brought participants together in some friendly competition. If you had a rockin' sound system, the sound-off competition was the place to be where participants were pushing their systems to the limit.

The Slamfest show hosted by Mini Madness is an all-inclusive event, which features many fun automotive activities. There was never a dull moment during our visit to this growing event. For information on next year's Slamfest Show, contact: Slamfest Hotline, (941) 366-9123, www.minimadness.com.