2018 Hot Rod Power Tour begins at Bowling Green

They say the Hot Rod Power Tour is the largest traveling car show in the world. It draws in more than 6,000 cars as the gigantic caravan hits seven cities. At every stop, there are giant manufacturer displays, drag racing, autocross, and more. For 2018, the first stop was in Bowling Green, Ky., at the Beech Bend Raceway Park. Naturally, it rained while I was there, but there were still thousands of cars on display waiting for breaks in the weather. With so many to choose from, there were bound to be some interesting things to check out. Let’s take a look at a few of them.

2016 Wilson County Fair AACA Car Show

It’s county fair season, and folks around Nashville know that the Wilson County Fair is one of the biggest around. Even better, the AACA holds a big car show at the Wilson County Fair each year, so that makes it a must-attend event as far as I’m concerned. Attendance was down this year because it rained quite a bit in the morning, but the muddy conditions moved the show from the grassy field to the pavement surrounding the buildings. This turned out to be a pretty popular move, and it put the car show front-and-center among fair attendees. These AACA shows always draw a high-quality selection of show vehicles, and this event was no different. Let’s take a look at a few of the standouts.

The cars are sweet at Hot Rods on Beale Street

Beale Street is the most happening place in all of Memphis, and that makes the monthly Hot Rods on Beale event the most happening car cruise. Imagine an automotive gathering so popular that there’s a waiting list for parking passes. Only a limited number of participants even have the chance to display their rides, but those that do fill every available spot. While there, the smells of authentic soul food and the sounds of Memphis jazz fill the air. This more than just a car cruise. It is a party. But unlike most parties, the cars are the center of attention. Let’s take a look at some of the cars that showed up for the June edition of Hot Rods on Beale.

Even non-car folks like the Fontanel Concert Cruise

As you know, we’re big fans of the Fontanel Mansion Concert Cruise around here. For the June edition, my wife actually encouraged some non-car people to meet us out there. None of them strolled into the car show area even for a minute, but that’s the beauty of the Fontanel. You can go out there and enjoy the lush scenery, eat a nice dinner, and enjoy some quality music. Now for me personally, the car show is still the main attraction. I like the scenery and all, but cars are where it’s at. So I ditched the company for a while and perused the show field. As usual, there were plenty of nice rides to keep my attention. Let’s take a look at a few.

Let's go to the Crusin' Spring Hill Drive-In Car Show

Over the weekend, I found my way all the way down in Spring Hill, former home of the Saturn, for the Cruisin’ Spring Hill Drive-In Car Show. Now, the General Motors plant in Spring Hill might not build Saturns anymore, but they’re definitely alive and kicking, and still churning out Chevrolet Equinoxes. This event was held at the UAW 1953 Union Hall, and featured this car show along with GM displays, a craft show, live music, and even food trucks. It was actually quite a shindig. Here are some of the cars.

Old Skool and New Kool Car Show survives the storms

As I was pulling into the neighborhood to check out the 2nd-Annual Old Skool and New Kool Car Show at the Life Church/Broadmoor Family Worship Center, the rains came. I don’t mean a light shower or sprinkle, either. This was a deluge. I could barely see two inches in front of my face, not much less get out and take pictures of all the old cars that were sinking in the grass. But the thing about Tennessee rain showers is, once they do what they’re going to do, they’re done. It didn’t take long for the faucet to shut off, the sun to come out, and the car show to resume.

Pontiac Trubute Day brought pretty Ponchos and GMCs to Westfall

It couldn’t have been a more perfect day for the Fourth-Annual Pontiac Tribute Day at the Westfall GMC Truck Center on Saturday afternoon.  There was plenty of sunshine, it wasn’t too hot, and the parking lot was full of fine Pontiacs and GMC trucks.  In all, I’d say it was a pretty successful event for the KC Arrowheads Pontiac Club.

An epic event for an epic movie. The 2011 Bandit Run passes through Kansas Speedway

I have been within three feet of the guy who played Mini-Me. I have watched stock car football at the county fair. I have been to Comicon, and seen grown men dressed up like Storm Troopers. Needless to say, I have seen my share of awesome stuff.

But today, I attended an event that topped them all. I am certain that all will agree that Smokey and the Bandit is the greatest movie of all time. This fact is un-debatable. So when something like the Bandit Run passes through the Kansas City area, you can bet that I will be there to cover such an epic event.