The Pomona Swap Meet is a wonderful patchwork quilt of people who bring their experiences, their ideas and, of course, their stuff to share with the world. There are quite a few of the vendors whom we’ve shared with you who make their livings and run their businesses right out of the Pomona Swap Meet. But then there are people for whom this is a fun day in the warm California sunshine or just a day out. One of the latter is Mike Reyes. “I just go out there to have fun – me and my buddies are always at Pomona,” gleamed Reyes.

Mike has been coming to Pomona steadily since 1989. Not as in just being a regular, Mike tells us that he hasn’t missed one show since then. Like so many of us, he started coming because he needed a this or a that for a project car. Then he realized how much fun it is to stroll all the aisles and eventually he started to know all the regular vendors and see some of the same people so it became as much about the people as about the stuff.

After a quarter of a century of coming out to Pomona you can bet that Mike’s got some good stories, too. For example, he once worked with a lady and, after the subject of the Swap Meet came up, he came to find out that her birth certificate actually listed the Pomona Swap Meet as her place of birth! You can imagine how this went – dad brings mom to the Swap Meet, mom is a bit hesitant what with the baby eminent, but she comes anyhow. Well, the Swap Meet is so appealing even the baby has to get out to see what’s for sale and so she did. “Hi, honey, how was the swap meet?” “Great. I got a carburetor for the Buick and, oh, a lady had a baby.”

But this is about Mike. And Mike’s table is also an interesting patchwork quilt representing 25 years of coming out to Pomona. “I find great treasures – then I find a great home for them. Some of the things I have on the table are things I’ve had since 1989 and have never made it to a car.” Mike’s not only got car parts, but at the most recent Pomona Swap Meet he had a true vintage classic that is likely to fade into the history books. Yep, he had a box of Twinkies. But you can also find car parts, bicycle parts, tools and more at Mike’s table.

While Mike’s been a buyer for most of the time, recently he decided that many of the things he’s purchased over the years might really be better off in someone else’s project pile so he’s changed which side of the table he stands on. Now he’s got a different appreciation for the Pomona Swap Meet as he sees the early set-up on Saturday and that’s been fun, too. “When the guys come in – we have the best time ever. Guys across the aisle brought in a miniature pool table and we had the best time.” You can get the sense that Mike Reyes is a beacon of positive energy.

Oh, there’s one more thing he loves about the Swap Meet – people watching. Now, honestly, who doesn’t love to people watch? And you never know who you might run into. For example, Mike’s seen Superman walking the aisles of the Swap Meet as well as a gentleman who dressed just like Colonel Sanders, except that his white suit was just covered in oil. Well, that’s what happens when you’re busy working on your ride, right? Oh, and he even saw baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson!

There are certainly a good number of people just like Mike Reyes who come to the Swap Meet to both have a great day and to help lighten their inventory of parts they might not be able to find a home for on their project vehicles. While we can’t promise that you’ll see Hall of Fame baseball players or, perhaps, a lady bringing a new human into the world we can tell you that you’ll come across some great treasures and, with an attitude like Mike Reyes, certainly have a great time. And, who knows, maybe pick up some incredible finds while you’re at it. I mean, where else can you get Twinkies nowadays?

This article was written by Tony Barthel from the Curbside Auto Column and Car Show Calendar. For auto articles, news and an on-line calendar of automotive events, please visit www.curbside.tv