[SeattleCarGuy]

I attended both Barrett Jackson and Russo & Steele and I couldn't make sense of some of the prices paid. In general, however, it seemed prices were down significantly. For me, the bad economy was most reflected in my income during 2012, as opposed to what was supposed to be the worst of the recession in 2009. I don't know if other felt the same way, but here are some of my observations, for what they are worth:

Floyd Garrett '62 Bel Air 409 at BJ - went for over $200k (with commission). That's gotta be a record and as far as I could tell, that was not a famous race car like the Strickler/Jenkins car. Beautiful car, big price.

'70 LS6 Chevelle 4 speed convertible at BJ - went for $200k plus commission. Beautiful restoration, with ownership history and Canadian docs proving it. The seller was hoping to have it listed as a Reserve sale for $400k, but was denied as they told him the reserve slots were filled. I guessed it would go for around $330k or so as a real 4 speed. I know the seller was extremely disappointed and I can't blame him.

The Douglas Yenko at R&S - $230k plus commissions. Beautiful car with all the papers. A sad day when a car like that only pulls $230k.

'70 Dick Harrell 454 Camaro at R&S - I used to own this car and sold it to Tony back in 2009. I think it went for $65,000 plus commissions. Sold very late in the evening when a lot of the crowd was gone and they didn't hype it very much, but $65,000 for an original SuperCar like this is crazy. I wish I were registered as I would have bought it back for that.

Just my two cents. A great several days in warm Arizona weather.