by Matt Konkle
Managing Editor
LAS VEGAS — From automobiles to education, overlanding to electrification, as well as plenty of new products, the 56th annual Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show boots up today for a multi-day run at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
The whole thing attracts well north of 100,000 souls to the southern Nevada desert, as well as thousands of vendors and media from all over the planet.
For those not in the know, SEMA is a show that brings together many in the automotive industry, both manufacturers and buyers, to discover (among other things) the latest trends and products, as well as the ability to show off countless vehicles stuffed full of those products so everyone in attendance can see how they look.
The organization brings in professionals to teach about numerous subjects and trends, holds seminars involving celebrities, automotive professionals, keynote speakers and even lets attendees hole up inside a vehicle with a professional driver for some ‘aggressive’ parking lot driving.
"No two SEMA Shows are ever alike," said SEMA Trade Show Director Andy Tompkins. "Every year is a new year, filled with new opportunities, new exhibitors and new concepts. There are new products, new advancements, new launches and new brands that have never been part of the Show before. Even our returning exhibitors never sit still. Our marketplace is exciting and dynamic, and the SEMA Show embodies it all."
This year also marks the third that most off-road and truck vendors will be in the Conference Center’s $1B, 600,000 square-foot West Hall. The spacious facility has more than enough room to support most of the top manufacturers around, with rows and rows of everything from front bumpers to rear hitches.
The convention center’s West Hall provides SEMA with plenty of extra space, as the event is stretched out in four halls that total about three million square feet. It also features a massive, state-of-the-art video wall in the lobby that is the largest digital screen in the United States convention industry.
This year, the event even takes the popular overlanding theme and moves it outside — repositioning the Overland Experience just outside the West Hall’s doors where people can find plenty of builds, expert speakers, and others to talk about the category.
"This section begs to be outdoors, so we're excited to be relocating it to the Diamond Lot," says Tompkins. "The Overland Experience is a unique showcase centered on outdoor recreation, and this change really gives us a chance to educate attendees about pastime's vehicles, accessories and lifestyle in a setting that they're designed for."
And, once again, Quadratec will be right in the middle of the whole event taking you along for the ride — spending time in each of the four halls searching out the best builds, products and talking with experts in every off-road element. After all, as an industry-only event, there really isn’t any other way to get inside and see what is going on during the show.
Additionally, we’ve brought back our supremely popular JTe hybrid two-door Gladiator build and placed it right with its builder Greg Henderson, owner of Unofficial Use Only.
From the opening bell Tuesday morning inside the Las Vegas Convention Center, through the rest of the week, check out Quadratec’s social platforms — as well as Torque — each day for all the newest product information, builds, vehicles, booths, interviews and top takeaways from the show.
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