Things I Think I Think: Mecum Kissimmee 2021 Report

Mecum Kissimmee 2021 Report

I'm on a roll so I'm going to knock another one out. We headed to the Mecum auction in Kissimmee for the first time earlier this year. It's one of the biggest car auctions out there, spanning 10 days and moving thousands of cars. I was curious and excited to get to another new venue for us.

I'll start by stating the obvious - it's big. Probably too big. Unlike Houston and other venues where everything is under one roof, this is spread out over the expanse of the Osceola Heritage Park. The cars are all outside - some of them under tents - and in some cases a solid 5 minute walk away from the arena where the auction is taking place. If you're someone like me that likes to really look at the cars during the auction, this isn't ideal.

This map shows the grounds and the 23 different places where cars could be located. Another issue is that since the auction covers 10 days, not everyone brought their cars before the auction started. I found this to be confusing and unfortunate. We attended the first few days of the auction but flew home before the last days where I became an online bidder. There were cars I might have been interested in going later that I just didn't get a chance to inspect before we left.

I didn't love the set up either. They hold the actual auction in the arena - it's the only option really. They had tables set up on the floor, but with so many people in attendance there was no way to get a table unless you came early and never left it. Nel and I had to park in the stands when we wanted to watch and bid.

One thing that was much better than Houston was the food. The whole place had a sort of street fair vibe with stages and food trucks, etc.

One thing that was just as annoying as Houston was the mask requirements. Florida, like Texas, had lifted most mask requirements, but like Harris County in Texas, there were still blue pockets of defiance that the state hadn't figured out yet how to control. Orlando was one of those. The good news was that the Mecum folks couldn't care less if you wore a mask or not so it was just police and county officials you had to watch for.

Having struck out in Houston just a month earlier, and eager to add some toys and willing to spend a lot of money doing it, I was sure I was coming home with many things. It didn't happen. I don't know why I struck out again. There was certainly something for everyone, and while the prices were high, there were deals to be had if you looked close enough.

It wasn't a complete loss. We were able to catch up with our friends Dave and Becky for dinner. We still talk to them in spite of that fact that they're traitors for leaving Texas. (I mean, who leaves Texas - seriously!?!)

I'm not going to do the usual "things we didn't buy" thing this time because I'm still three auctions behind - just some pictures.