My first York was Fall 2000. I remember getting 2 guys in the parking lot to sponsor my membership and then standing in line to get in.
It was a 2-day show then and the opening was like a Le Mans start! Throngs of people (~16,000), crowded aisles, the barnyard smells, and the competing PA announcers talking over each other. 
It was a blast. At the end of the day, I would come home (feet aching) and go through all the "loot" I had acquired. Unforgettable. 
George
