Daytona 1: Spring Break 1992

I've been to Daytona Beach on a handful of occasions. I used to live in Jacksonville, Florida which is just 90 miles north of Daytona Beach.

The first time I went to the Daytona area was Spring Break 1992. A friend I worked with and I were car audio enthusiasts. We went to the convention center for the Spring Break Nationals and Consumer Show.

The Nationals were the car audio competitions. It measured how loud you could go and how clear it was at that volume, quality and complexity of the installation. There was also an Outlaw SPL competition where other than a basic safety check the only thing competitors could be concerned with is how LOUD they can play music. The best way to make something loud is put a lot of amplifier power to as many big speakers you can fit in your vehicle.

The Consumer Show was, as it sounds, a sea of booths with most of the industries most well known manufacturers represented. We walked around collecting free swag like keychains and hats. Some of the manufacturers also had display vehicles showcasing their products. Orion had a hearse full of subwoofers and amps. You can see an older version (1988) of that hearse HERE. I saw David "Fishman" Rivera who was famous in the magazines of the day for incorporating a fish tank, with live fish, into each of his mobile installations.

We spent a good part of the day there. Afterwards we checked into our hotel which was at the south end of Daytona Beach but it was across the stret from a Drive In Church. We paid to drive on the beach and cruised for hours up and down A1A.

The weather was great, the car audio events were enjoyable and we returned home the next day no worse for wear, with the exception of money spent on T-shirts.