The Specialty Equipment Market Association Show—better known as SEMA—recently celebrated its 50th year as an annual must-see Las Vegas event and as usual we were blown away by what we witnessed. Current numbers estimate that SEMA is the biggest trade show on the planet, eclipsing even the Consumer Electronics Show and San Diego Comic-Con.
Unfortunately for those die-hard automotive aftermarket junkies out there, the trade-only event is not open to the general public. Only qualified buyers, exhibitors and media directly related to the industry are able to attend, but the good news is the Dirt Toys magazine staff looks forward to sharing the highlights with our readers. Let’s get started.
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All major brands were represented, but Arctic Cat had the biggest UTV booth presence at SEMA by far. Attendees were given a quick glimpse of the “Arctic Cat UTV Experience,” which included a chance to ride along in a brand-new 2017 high-performance Arctic Cat Wildcat. We jumped at the chance but were a little disappointed that it was piloted by a professional driver (which meant we didn’t get to drive) on a specially built off-road course located outside the convention center (that seemed to go by faster than a New York minute).
Along with demo rides, Arctic Cat (www.arcticcat.com) had a full off-road event and accessories display where attendees could experience the company’s Virtual Reality and other event activation touch points.
“The Arctic Cat UTV Experience is the most significant powersports attraction to appear at SEMA,” said Peter MacGillivray, SEMA vice president of communications and events.
“We continue to provide the Ultimate Off-Road Riding Experiences to our current and potential customers via exciting new event marketing,” added Greg Williamson, Arctic Cat chief marketing officer.
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We met the Diesel Brothers, who of course are known for building over-the-top diesel trucks, but they also had a Polaris on display that they added their own personal touch to.
A random Richard Petty sighting. Even the King loves to attend SEMA.
Time in the booth can be a little slow for exhibitors, especially those working the entire four-day show. The staff at WASPcam—manufacturers of user-friendly, high-quality action-sport cameras for the average guy—decided to do a little booth pranking to pass the time. They swapped out their mannequin inside this loaded Yamaha YXZ 1000 (www.yamahamotorsports.com) with one of the sales reps who would surprise unexpecting attendees who assumed it was just a dummy inside. Using their cameras, they put an edited version of their prank online on their website at www.waspcam.com.
We’re not exactly sure what we found at the Mishimoto booth, but we think it might. Be. SPARTA!
