Stranded or scared, LV tourists buy cars and head for home

Kevin Ferguson

Thursday, Sept. 13, 2001 | 10:30 a.m.

Several Las Vegas tourists bought cars and left for home Tuesday and Wednesday, saying they were either afraid to fly or didn't want to wait around for the airport to reopen.

Bob Lee, a sales manager at Gaudin Ford on West Sahara Avenue, said about three-fourths of the 27 cars his business sold Tuesday were to out-of-towners trying to get home.

"We had nine sold by 10:30 a.m. (Tuesday)," Lee said, noting that on an average day, the dealership sells about 15 cars.

Lee's co-worker, Mischon Loyd, said sales seemed to be fueled by customers' fear of flying.

Loyd said Gaudin's customers were heading as far east as Massachusetts. Others were driving to Illinois, Indiana, Texas, California, among other states.

Don Ackerman, chairman of Gaudin Ford, couldn't say how many cars were sold Wednesday, but said he expected sales to "drop off considerably," compared to Tuesday.

"I had talked to other dealerships and it seemed that most (out-of-towners) had gotten to where they needed to go,"Ackerman said.

Saturn on West Sahara sold three cars Tuesday and one by Wednesday mid-afternoon to out-of-towners, said sales manager Jay Scheinbaum.

"One (group Tuesday) night had to get to Louisiana, and one of the wives' was pregnant and was too afraid to fly after the incidents," Scheinbaum said.