John Ryan looks inside a car during the Gator Greasers car show on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (Neal Wong / Golden Gate Xpress)
San Francisco State University student Gabriel Allen could be heard outside of the Humanities building on Oct. 1 asking the same question to students walking by: “Do you like cars?”
Allen was bringing attention to a car show hosted by Gator Greasers, the automotive club at SFSU, where members showed off their vehicles and motorcycles from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m on an extremely hot, sunny day.
A light blue Porsche, a black BMW and a gray Lexus led the line of cars displayed, alongside vehicles of many different styles from various time periods.
“There’s a lot of people with cars on campus and so we’re here to be a community for all of them,” said Allen, founder of Gator Greasers. “Nice cars, shit cars, no car at all, we’ll take anyone.”
Allen did not bring his car or his truck but he brought his motorcycle instead, a 2019 Triumph Bonneville Bobber. The stylish motorcycle brought a unique look to the table, with a shiny purple color and the engine visible to the outside world. Gator Greasers are trying to build more motorcycle representation within the club, according to Allen.
Other members of the club were present at the event, including the president of Gator Greasers, Hudson Moss.
“I started as a member, I became really close friends with the people that were running it and they wanted me to help out,” Moss said. “I really appreciated the club because I was new to the school and I really wanted to make more car friends and I made— at this point— hundreds. It’s been amazing getting to know the community.”
According to Moss, this is the third car show that Gator Greasers has hosted. The first one also took place outside of the Humanities building, while the second took place at Lot 20 during the Spring 2024 semester. The club has been hosting car shows once a semester.
“That way it’s still cool and fun when it happens, but it’s not too overdone,” Moss said.
This event was a breakthrough for Gator Greasers, as they have been trying to host more events on campus since the club was founded in 2019.
“It was a pretty big deal for us because we’re able to bring all the members of the club and show their cars off to the rest of the campus and bring everyone around, which is really nice to do,” said club treasurer Dylan Faulder. “We’re one of the biggest clubs on campus, we have like 400 members in our Discord.”
Faulder joined the club in Spring 2022, back when there were only a few cars. Since then, the club has grown significantly.
“The club is great, I think we have one of the best communities on campus and I’ve been to a lot of different clubs,” Faulder said. “We’re mostly a social club, so in our Discord everyone’s talking and everyone’s really helpful.”
Walker Aguilar, a club officer, also mentioned how the club’s main communication platform has been helpful.
“The other day, there was a kid who is part of the car club whose car battery died and they were in the parking garage and within 30 minutes we had another student jump his car to make sure he could get home or to work on time,” Aguilar said. “It’s definitely one of the biggest perks I would say.”
Aguilar specifically loved seeing the Porsches at the event and seeing all of the students that showed up connecting over something interesting and unique.
“There’s a lot of people who do know about the car club but hopefully, if there’s people who don’t, they figure it out and find out about it,” Aguilar said.
About the Contributors
Jake Knoeller (he/him/his) is the sports editor for Golden Gate Xpress. He is majoring in journalism and minoring in communications. He was born in Eureka, California. He currently lives in San Francisco. He previously worked for The Lumberjack, the student newspaper of Cal Poly Humboldt. During his free time, Jake enjoys riding bikes around the city, listening to music, and watching soccer, especially the San Jose Earthquakes. Jake Knoeller (él) es redactor deportivo para Golden Gate Xpress. Estudia Periodismo y se especializa en Comunicaciones. Nació en Eureka, California y actualmente vive en San Francisco. Anteriormente, trabajó para The Lumberjack, el periódico estudiantil de Cal Poly Humboldt. En su tiempo libre, a Jake le gusta andar en bicicleta por la ciudad, escuchar música y ver partidos de fútbol, especialmente los San Jose Earthquakes.
Neal Wong (he/him) is a fourth-year journalism student and minoring in education. He was born and raised in San Francisco and attended Washington High School. He has photographed and written for Golden Gate Xpress first as a contributor, then as a photographer, then as the copy editor, and now as the online editor. His photos have also been published by the San Francisco Bay View, San Francisco Public Press, Mission Local, and Xpress Magazine. Neal has also created and taught four San Francisco State University Experimental College courses. His hobbies include traveling, cooking, and reading the news. You can contact him at [email protected]. Neal Wong (él) es un estudiante de cuarto año que estudia Periodismo con una Especialización en Educación. Es originalmente de San Francisco y asistió a la Washington High School. Ha fotografiado y escrito para Golden Gate Xpress primero como colaborador, luego como fotógrafo, después como redactor de textos y ahora como redactor en línea. Sus fotos han aparecido en San Francisco Bay View, San Francisco Public Press, Mission Local y Xpress Magazine. Neal también ha creado y enseñado cuatro cursos del Experimental College en la Universidad Estatal de San Francisco. Sus pasatiempos incluyen viajar, cocinar y leer las noticias. Puedes contactarlo en [email protected].
