Although our custom brothers and sisters from the Northwest might not experience the finest weather year round, they still sure know how to throw a party! Issue #2 of Slam’d Mag features shows from Canada and Washington state where we traveled North to bring you the finest rides that the Northwest has to offer. As some might say, the Northwest isn’t necessarily about the “quantity” as much as it is about the quality of both people and custom rides of all types!
Photos & Words: Mike Alexander
The Slam’d Crew traveled about 18 hours North of sunny SoCal (we drove straight through there and back, but that’s another story for another time) with cameras AND a laid out R32 MKIV in tow strapped to our Airbagged Trailer to setup for the weekend’s festivities. As the anticipation built, we neared the fairgrounds in south Chehalis, Washington and pulled in to be greeted by the very welcoming Underground Kustomz WA crew Friday morning. One thing that must be noted about the shows of the Northwest is the totally welcoming family environment and the exceptional hospitality. These guys treat everyone like family and that same respect and loyalty shows throughout the entire event.
As the campgrounds filled, we began to take notice of all sorts of different styles and builds and we couldn’t wait to get to work snapping pics throughout the show grounds. However, that would have to wait as Friday night hosted a “welcoming party” and since this is a camping show the majority of attendees stay on the grounds through the weekend so everyone is able to celebrate and be merry with no concern about trying to “drive” anywhere. We got a feel for the grounds, scouted locations, and then of course as the party raged on we decided to partake and wandered from camp to camp having a drink or ten with all of the clubs, builders, and vehicle owners who welcomed us into their campgrounds. It was great to talk shop and hear tales of builds in progress, trends, and the next crazy mod to hit the scene. It was also extremely humbling to hear from all of the people that already have checked out Slam’d Mag and enjoy the custom package that we’re bringing to the table each month – such positive feedback definitely made the trip more than worth it, and we hadn’t even laid eyes on all of the show vehicles yet.
Talking the night away led to an early Saturday morning with owners cleaning and polishing their rides and everyone moving their vehicles into the show field. It was a full day of shooting to take in all of the different styles and builds and we were extremely impressed with the turnout of quality rides! And if the killer customs slew across the field wasn’t enough to keep you busy, the show hosts tons of club events throughout the day including the hysterical “duck-tapped musical chairs” and the ever popular milk chug contest. Also with a big turnout was the club tug-o-war where No Regrets ended up coming out on top with the surprise win.
Wrapping up an awesome show was the “nighttime” events with the wild truck limbo and plenty more story telling amongst fellow gear heads. Saturday night came and went to give way to the Lowdown 2014 Awards Ceremony where Jason Haase and his 1965 bodied Impala (stay tuned for the full feature right here in Slam’d!) took home top honors and our Airbagged Trailer actually took home Best Suspension. All-in-all it was definitely a great trip and many lifetime friends and memories were made – we’re definitely looking forward to the giant 10-year anniversary bash for Lowdown 2015, we’ll see you there!
Check out the Grinder TV clip here:
