As I walked down the rows upon rows of nostalgic Volkswagen off-road products, Bugpack and EMPI dominated over what would normally be rows of painted aluminum and chrome. I say normally, because most of the shows that we attend for the sand market are on the West Coast, and we all know how flash and horsepower have a profound impact over the type of vehicles we drive.

Right off the bat it was apparent that this show was going to be a completely different experience, and for me, a quick lesson in sand car history. Most of the shows that we attend for the sand industry are full of “please don’t touch” and “hands off” placards. The Michigan Buggy Builder Show in Lansing, MI, however, is a show for the blue collar, grass roots, sand and street buggy fanatic.

The Michigan Buggy Builder Show is held in Lansing, the historic downtown capitol of Michigan. The show is located inside the Lansing Convention Center, which sits right on the Grand River, Michigan’s largest flowing river. The historic city of Lansing is a perfect backdrop for the buggy show as it is centrally located in Michigan and adds to the ambiance of the old-school buggies. While sitting in the hotel restaurant the night before the show, we spoke with one of the Silver Lake Dunes visitors. Most of our conversation consisted of the differences in buggy designs. While Mike (the dune native) is mainly a street buggy builder, he loves the dunes. But, he told me that most of the buggies that we have on the West Coast would be almost useless in the small dunes of Silver Lake. So it wasn’t as much the fact that the East Coast was “behind” in the dune buggy market; it just isn’t rational to build a big twin turbo’d car and not be able to get it out of second gear. The big cars are in Michigan, don’t get me wrong, but they are not as saturated in the dunes as they would be in Glamis or St. Anthony where you can run bowls at 80MPH.

The show is much like many buggy shows I’ve attended, with: early check-in times for vendors, crowds of people waiting till the doors open, show and shine awards, raffle prizes, beer on tap, fried concession foods, and John Deere T-shirts. Well, maybe not that last one. The show is concentrated in the large hall of the Convention Center, which offers 71,760 square feet of display area. The show is packed into a single day and is a first-come-first serve basis for those looking to score deals on antiques and rare parts. What makes this show different from most off-road shows is the “swap meet” factor. Many of the vendors at this show are there to sell used parts to people looking to restore VW Bugs or VW-styled buggies. There are, however, a lot of vendors at this show who are there to show off their creations and latest products. Spectrum Sand Cars is one of the local buggy shops that specializes in long-travel buggies and is one of the first companies in Michigan to offer its customers long travel-kits for the Rhino. Another big vendor out at the show this year is Apple Tree Automotive, who is one of the largest distributors of stock VW and after-market parts.

So if you’re looking for a trip down memory lane or want to get a killer deal on some hard-to-find VW parts, the Michigan Builder Buggy Show is the show for you. We look forward to next year’s show in Michigan and will be getting out to the Silver Lake sand dunes this summer. So be sure to check upcoming issues for more info on these breathtaking sand dunes. Oh yeah, and if you ever get lost in Michigan, just look to the “Mitt” for guidance.

Next year’s date: SUNDAY, MARCH 30, 2008
For more info visit: www.buggybuilders.com

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