Each year the crew at California Street Vans host one of my most favorite events of the year. B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Boogie) Van-in and Show at Canyon RV Park in Anaheim Hills, California. And for the past several years I was tasked to be the MC of the Saturday Awards Ceremony.
Let’s be clear. This is first and truly a Van-in. Couples, families and lone wolfs roll into the park on Friday to set up their camps for the weekend. Vanners come in from all over the southwest and occasionally from across the country and points internationally. Each year the three day event grows with more and more vanners registering for the fun and festivities of early October in Southern California.
Another fun-fact about this event is the unique spot it is hosted at. B.Y.O.B. is located in the far western side of Canyon RV Park which sits in-between rolling hills of the Santa Ana mountains and butts right up against California State Route 91, the only corridor from Orange County to points eastward. On the far end of Anaheim (the first incorporated city of OC) the hills above the park are dotted with modestly large homes built in the 1960’s surrounded by brush and chaparral landscape. But there is more. On Saturday of the event, at the entrance of the park is the Patriots and Paws Classic Car Show. Interesting to see all the classic and custom cars (with an occasional hot rod) displayed among the oak trees and gopher holes. A completely different crowd from the laid-back, almost hippie like culture of Bring Your Own Boogie campers.
This year, the eighth year of the event, The Ocho, I asked Pinky Swear if she would like to help me out on the stage handing out the trophies. But before all that we had a chance to go around and check out the vans and grab a few pics along the way. This year too, there were twice as many trophies to give out. 25 trophies were built by my friend Rod “Rockhead” Sexton. Some of the cool trophies include Best Boogie, TBAATW (Too Bad About All Those Windows), Best Graphics, Best Club Participation, Farthest Travelled, and more.
Sit back, grab the lighter and a cold one, watch the video above and the photos here.
