I joined Twin City Vans a few years ago and we just finished hosting the 52nd Annual National Truck-In (aka Van Nationals or "Van Nats" for short) in Albert Lea, MN with help and support from a few other local clubs. It was a good time and I took a ton of photos. Get ready for a series of very photo-heavy blogposts. Since I was part of the host club, I spent a decent chunk of time working and helping out. I couldn't go to all the events or get photos of all the things that went on. That said, what I did go to was fun and lots of photos will be shared but there was even more going on than what you'll see here.
On Sunday, I drove down in my truck to help with some setup.
I brought some giant light-up letters that I bought and modified. They came from a local high school production of Legally Blonde and originally spelled "Sullivan". I just bought the 4 letters V-A-N-S, added hinged backs, and repainted over a bunch of red glitter with blue paint. They looked awesome in the bar building, especially at night.
One of the perks of being in the host club is we could pick out good spots and fence it off before gates opened to the public.
Sunday was my first looks at "Miss USA" in person. I had seen progress photos online but it doesn't compare to seeing it in person. A truly incredible amount of work went into creating this vehicle from a bunch of donor vans.
It was complete with "fitness pole".
Dakota Street Vans had a building (The Lowlife Country Club) for all their activities. You definitely had to be there... especially the pub crawl.
In addition to the giant light-up letters, I also brought all my ramps and other features for the R/C Van races. I realized it would be helpful to make some signs to direct people to them so I quickly rattle-canned a few that night.
After packing up my camping gear, I headed back to the fairgrounds Monday in my van.
I had a neighbor already next to my fenced off campsite.
I set up my tent to keep the inside of my van clean and mostly empty.
Dash plaque! I made the Gophers & Cheese bobblehead out of a modified Caddyshack Christmas ornament and a cheese wedge shaped pencil eraser. He now rides with me in the van, usually on my drink tray.
Some additional decor enhanced my V-A-N-S signs.
Bad weather rolled in that night and it stormed quite a bit overnight. Out of an abundance of caution (and old brittle door seals), I put the van inside one of the buildings and slept in the tent. Thankfully it didn't hail on us and I stayed dry in the tent.
Tommy had his world-famous Econobar set up in the DSV serving up the finest horseradish and shots of Malort. He claimed the horseradish would offset the taste of the Malort. In reality, I think he just enjoyed watching people's expressions as they tried both.
Tuesday morning I got up and got in line for the DSV-led cruise to the
Spam Museum in Austin, MN. I had been to the museum before but wasn't going to pass on the cruise. Due to my work schedule, it was the only one I could go on. Two additional cruises later in the week would go to the Surf Ballroom just across the border in Iowa and around the lakes and into downtown Albert Lea for a public van show.
Vans then filled much of the parking in downtown Albert Lea.
Chili cheese dog couch:
Willie in his Mr. Peanut costume (of course):
Bacon-powered motorcycle!
I grabbed some tacos back in Albert Lea.
Back in the fairgrounds - home sweet home for the week. Since I was near water hookups, I added a pool. Why not?
Justin, Aurora, and James from TCV camped right next to me.
I really want a go-kart van... as if I need another project vehicle in my life.
First walk around the grounds to snap a few photos...
Babe the blue ox. Babe and Miss USA shuttled people around all week. Babe's tail moves as it drives around and the horn has a distinctive "moo".
Pat!
Skies occasionally looked ominous but we wouldn't end up getting rained on like we did Monday night.
Some people got really creative with their air conditioning setups.
My van has been sporting
Hevy's Big Rig Beef in my van for a while - I'm a fan and highly recommend it. Since I didn't need more floormats, I ended up buying yet another license plate to hang on the garage wall.
The fairgrounds had a few buildings open for camping, which is a nice option, especially to keep your rig clean and dry.
While the farigrounds had lots of facilities, private port-a-potties were available to rent and were delivered with a smile.
Justin, Aurora, and James' campsite (looks even better at night).
Golf cart parade!
I was working gate for a bit that evening, greeting people as they arrived and directing them how and where to register.
That brings us to the end of Tuesday. The Nats would officially start the next day. Sunday was setup, Monday and Tuesday was just early entry / pre-party.
Hundreds of photos from the rest of the week will be posted over the coming days. Keep checking back!
