Page 7 - Volume31Issue1R

th
The 30 Annual

HOT WHEELS CONVENTION

By Barb Robles
The 30th Annual Hot Wheels Convention was held
in beautiful sunny Los Angeles, Ca. from October
5th-9th, 2016. Our host hotel was the LAX Marriott.
Special thanks to the Marriott’s management and
great staff as they did another fantastic job! We had
an amazing experience! We spent time with members
of our Hot Wheels family, participated in some really
fun events and collected a few treasures….well, actual-
ly quite a lot of them!
I have to say….this is the first time I recall ever sharing
the hotel with such an unusual entity. Everywhere…
all around us…were kids of all ages on their electronic
devices trying and succeeding to capture those elusive
Pokémon. Crazy as it seems, I’m told that Pokémon
were almost as plentiful as Hot Wheels® in the hotel!
Even though Pokémon Go was sweeping the nation
then, for 5 short days it took a back seat to our own
kind of Hot Wheels convention fun! What I noticed
was that Pokémon Go players seem to be pretty much One of the most anticipated events happened his wife Bonnie’s last convention on staff. I know
the same as Hot Wheels collectors…passionate, driv- Thursday evening where the love of Hot Wheels that this was a difficult decision for them, as
en, focused and somewhat obsessive! Both can do was ever present! Ticketed enthusiasts gathered they truly loved being a part of your convention
a fair amount of walking while they hunt….for the Hot for a dinner honoring Ryu Asada’s achievements experience! Rick has mentioned time and time
Wheels collectors, we buy sell and trade or catch into and tenure with Mattel. Congratulations and again that meeting you, the collector, and the
the wee hours of the morning, roaming the hotel halls THANK YOU to Ryu who celebrated 12 years relationships made were so important to him.
hunting and socializing! In the game, the objective is contributing his amazing talents to the brand Rick and Bonnie will now be enjoying more time
to catch them all. Well….isn’t that what we do as Hot we all love! We appreciate what you do for the with family. We hope one day that they will
Wheels collectors? We hunt until we find that spe- hobby!! What a great night! Ryu treated us attend a convention in the future and catch up
cial car or a Hot Wheels treasure! From the opening into a glimpse of his life with an entertaining with all of us, their Hot Wheels family! We want
reception, where a few lucky winners grabbed the first presentation. We also enjoyed a great dinner to thank Rick and Bonnie for their service, their
convention code 3’s, to the finale, where the question- prepared by the Marriott staff. With a paid time, dedication and passion! You are loved
naire drawings provided the final opportunities plus dinner ticket, we received fun collectible items and will be greatly missed!
the many stops in between….convention goers did at the door! One of the most sought after items The exclamation point at the end of the evening
their best to catch them all! How did you do? was the dinner car, a limited stickered yellow is always the much anticipated announcement
Honda S2000. This is a replica of Ryu’s own ve- of where we will see each other again. We are
hicle. Dinner guests were very excited to have going somewhere we have not been before for
HERE’S JUST A PARTIAL SCORECARD! the opportunity to purchase additional unstick- the 17th Annual Collectors Nationals and that is
ered vehicles at the end of the evening. Sales super exciting! Please join us April 5-9th, 2017
• Souvenir Sales #1 - Thunder Roller - 1:2600 were brisk as all the unstickered cars were sold in the city of Pittsburg, Pa! This will be a great
-Red, White and Blue out by the conclusion of the event! Guests also time! We will be back at the LAX Marriott in
• Souvenir Sales #2 - ’67 Camaro - 1:2600 received a beautiful Code 3 ’70 Challenger in October of 2017 for the 31st Annual Hot Wheels
- Spectraflame Gold Lime Green. At the end of the evening all in the Convention! Please look for communications
• Souvenir Sales #3 - Texas Drive ‘Em - 1:2600 room had the opportunity to win fun alternate and updates on the Collectors Events Unlimited
- Spectraflame Black/White colors of this casting! The T-shirt, artwork and Facebook page or in the Newsletter. Mark your
• Souvenir Sales #4 - ‘69 Ford Mustang - 1:1400 pin were also amazing catches for the evening! calendars…hope you can join us!
- Metalflake Red I would encourage anyone to put this on their
• Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles “must do” list for future conventions! The rec- (Contiuned on page 8)
Charity Car - School Busted -1:500 - Spectra ognition dinner is always a great time!
Frost Satin Pink
• Dinner Car Stickered - Honda S2000 After the week wound down, the much antici-
- 1:2000 - Yellow pated finale was upon us! There were awards
• Dinner Car Unstickered - Honda S2000 to be given away….raffles to be drawn…..and a
- 1:1500 - Yellow great program to look forward to. Robert from
• RLC Party Car - Datsun 240Z - Spectraflame Pink Mattel presented an awesome slide show! He
started by addressing the proverbial elephant
in the room. He assured all in attendance that
PLUS THE MANY MORE GREAT CODE 3’S Mattel was as frustrated as we all are and hears
DURING THE CONVENTION! our concerns regarding the Hot Wheels.com
DON’T LET THESE PIECES OF DIE CAST HISTORY site. He communicated that Mattel wants the
SLIP THROUGH YOUR FINGERS! site to function as a useful tool and that they
CATCH THEM ALL!! are working on fixes daily. He also thanked
As always, Mark and Jennifer Millhollin led their team us for our patience! We then saw some fun
through many of the time tested and much loved sneak peeks into what we can hunt for next!
events. Our events functioned like Pokestops, each a There was also an active Q & A that all looked
place to energize their Hot Wheels passion and maybe forward to! Thanks to Mattel for taking this
catch a convention treasure! We witnessed lots of proactive approach!! We enjoyed the presen-
smiles and happy faces creating many happy mem- tation!
ories! Please make sure you read you read further
on in this newsletter for the fun details of these great During the finale, our Master of Ceremonies,
events! Rick Tippe, commanded everyone’s attention
when he announced that this would be he and