Grand National Roadster Show

The Grand National Roadster Show (otherwise known as GNRS, or unofficially as the Oakland Roadster Show), is a showcase of custom cars and hot rods held each year at the Fairplex in Pomona, California, in either late January or early February.

Established in 1950 by Al Slonaker, the GNRS is one of the oldest and longest continuously operating exhibitions of custom vehicles in the United States, featuring an estimated 1,500 vehicles annually.

The GNRS is best known as home to the America's Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) Award. The AMBR is presented to the best pre-1937 vehicle in show, and has been won by many well-known car designers and builders, such as Blackie Gejeian, Carl Casper, Boyd Coddington, and Chip Foose.

Together, the Grand National Roadster Show and AMBR Award are considered among the two "Crown Jewel" competitions and awards for professional show car builders in North America, alongside the Detroit Autorama and its Don Ridler Memorial Award.

In addition to the AMBR, the GNRS created the Al Slonaker Memorial Award in 1974 to recognize the best "Non-Roadster" in show. The Slonaker Award has too been won by well-known car builders and owners, including rockers Eric Clapton and James Hetfield.

History
In 1949, while Al Slonaker was preparing for his first automobile show at the Oakland Exposition, an Oakland area hot rod club convinced him to exhibit ten of their cars. The Inaugural show was a massive success, attracting over a 100 cars and 27,674 attendees. The next year, Slonaker decided to focus solely on hot rods, but concerned for potential bad press, he promoted it as the "National Roadster Show." In 1962, "Grand" was added to the title, contributing to the show's long-time moniker as "The Grand-Daddy of them All".

In 1967, the show moved to the Oakland Coliseum Between 1998 and 2003, the show was held at a variety of other San Francisco-Bay Area venues before relocating to Southern California's Fairplex in 2004.

According to the show promoter, Rod Shows Inc., the GNRS features more than 600 vehicles over seven indoor pavilions, with somewhere between 800 and 1,200 additional vehicles filling the remaining 487-acre Fairplex property.

Over seven decades, the GNRS has been covered extensively in national automotive publications, including Hot Rod, Street Rodder, and Rod & Custom, with several AMBR Award winners gracing their covers.

Awards
Since the show's inception in 1950, the grand prize has been the "America's Most Beautiful Roadster" or AMBR award. It is a 9-foot "megatrophy" with the names of past winners engraved on its base.

From 1957 until 1971, there was also a separate "America's Best Competition Car Award" presented at the show.

In 1974, the GNRS created an additional award to recognize the best non-roadster entry: the Al Slonaker Memorial Award. The award is open to all types of vehicles, Rods, Customs, Street Machines, Lowriders, VW's, and Trucks.

In addition to the AMBR and Slonaker Award finalist, the show gives out place awards for more than 100 classes, plus 50 "Special" awards for clubs and outstanding displays.

List of AMBR Award Winners
See "America's Most Beautiful Roadster" (AMBR) Award