32nd-Annual Wilson Bank Oktoberfest Car Show brings the best of the AACA to Lebanon

For 32 years, Wilson County Bank has hosted the big Oktoberfest event at their main branch in Lebanon, Tenn. That tradition continued last weekend, including the big AACA car show on Sunday. The car show season tends to wind down quite a bit after this weekend, but not before 451 entries converged on about four different parking lots to make up this last-ditch blowout. I’ve been to this show before, but this was the first time I entered a car. Not only did my car take home a class award, but I got to spend the day hanging out with my teenaged son, and we were able to take our time studying all the nice cars and trucks on display.

Return to Platte City

It’s been five long years since I’ve been to the Outta’ Control Hot Rods monthly cruise in Platte City, Mo., but I was in the Kansas City area last Saturday night, so I had to get back. This was the night before Easter, so the turnout was understandably light, but there were still some really great cars in attendance. Many of these were at this event when I checked it out five years ago, which says a lot about the loyalty of the people who support this show, and about how well it’s run. They always have a professional sound board set up to play music. They have door prizes and dash magnets. You’re right in the parking lot of the Pizza Shoppe so you never go hungry. Heck, they’ll even give you a coupon to eat there. If you can get to this cruise on the third Saturday of the month, by all means, make that happen.

Big turnout for the 12th-Annual Fall Redneck Rumble

If you like rat rods, the Redneck Rumble is the place for you. Held twice-a-year at the Wilson County Fairgrounds, this is the premier event for creative automotive rust manipulation. Yes, you may rub up against a car and get tetanus. Yes, you may get mowed down by an obnoxious kid screaming down the walkway on a mufflerless ’58 Cushman scooter. No, you are not going to like every car in the show—and you’re not supposed to. There’s no question that most every car here is interesting, and some of them are just plain cool. Everyone is proud of their creations, and they love sharing them with like-minded people. If you’re among them, let’s take a look at some of the standouts from last weekend.

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.

Highlights from the 39th-Annual Hunter's Custom Auto Show

The 39th-Annual Hunter’s Custom Auto Show at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds marks the last big car show in the area before the calendar flips over to spring. 2015’s event featured four buildings worth of customs, muscle cars, and classics to suit the tastes of any car aficionado. And even though the festivities took place indoors, the weather was still nice outside. It was a great weekend for both participants and spectators alike. Let’s take a look at some of the standouts.

Cruise season winds down at Coach's Eastgate Grille

Now I’m starting to feel a little sad. The first car cruise that I went to when I moved to Nashville was the first cruise of 2014 at Coach’s Eastgate Grille in Lebanon, Tenn. And now, it looks like one of the last cruises of the year that I’ll be going to is, you guessed it, the one at Coach’s Eastgate Grille. These guys started the season early, and are ending the season late. Plus, they do a good job with this event, offering door prizes and even lunch to participants. This is a pretty good way to end things. That’s especially true when you see what kind of cars they had on display.

Personal luxury abounds at the Fontanel Cruise

The picturesque Fontanel in Whites Creek has become a family favorite of ours, and the Thursday night cruise is one of the best around. The event flyer made it seem like last Thursday was the last one of the year, so we made a quick stop over there to have some dinner and check out the cool rides. Luckily, it sounds like they might have a few more car events at Barbara Mandrell’s old mansion, so we may just get to come back out here while the leaves are changing. But for now, let’s take a look at the nice stuff that was there while the sun went down.

Star cars of the Country Music Hall of Fame

Many years ago my dad and I stopped in at the Country Music Hall of Fame (CMHOF) during one of our visits to the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. I remember that it was a nice little place packed with memorabilia, and a car or two on display for good measure. Since then, they’ve built a new, 350,000-sq/ft. Hall of Fame, with more rhinestones, banjos, and vintage steel guitars than you’ll ever see in one place again. As you probably have guessed, there are also a few country music-related cars in there. That’s Alan Jackson’s ’55 Thunderbird in the picture. Of course you want to see the other cars, so here we go.

All's well at the Fontanel

Since I’ve been in Nashville, the Fontanel Cruise in Whites Creek, Tenn., is fast becoming my favorite car cruise in town. Thursday night was the third time I have attended this one, and I doubt it will be the last. There’s just something about the atmosphere out there that I really enjoy. The scenery is so beautiful. The live music is a nice touch. There’s good stuff to eat. And there seem to be more and different cars every time we go. I even took the HMC truck out there for the first time this week. Let’s take a look at some of the standouts.

Fontanel Cruise packs a bunch of cars in at Barbara Mandrell's old place

The big car event in Nashville last Thursday night was the weekly cruise at the Fontanel Mansion. Like most of these places, I had never been there before, and didn’t really know what to expect. What I found was one of the coolest places to have a car event I’ve been to in a long time. The Fontanel was originally Barbara Mandrel’s 27,000 square-foot log home, but now it’s used for private events. There are zip lines, restaurants, an amphitheatre, the world’s only Goo Goo Clusters store, and much more. And everything is surrounded by rolling hills, lush grass, and green trees. It’s really pretty out there.

What's new at the KC Classic Auto Display in Lenexa?

As much as I have been enjoying working on all these new car reviews lately, I still need to look at old cars once in a while.  But since it just snowed here in Kansas City, it’s not likely that we’ll be going to any car shows any time soon.  Luckily, there are places like the KC Auto Display in Lenexa where you can go check out old cars no matter the weather.  So that’s just what we did recently.  Most of these cars are for sale; some of them are just being stored.  But there are some really interesting things hiding in this industrial, warehouse-style building.

Cars of the 1980s

I was born in 1973, but I really started to notice cars in the 1980s.  There are plenty of valid arguments about how bad the cars from this decade were, but I still get excited about them.  Car companies were trying to meet new fuel and safety standards, but still satisfy the demands of enthusiasts.  It was a tough task, but they somehow made it happen.  Sure, the top-of-the-line Camaro Z28 only had 165-hp in 1982, but it looked good, it sounded good, and the advertisements were totally awesome.  The Heartbeat of America?  We Build Excitement?  Pure genius. 

Cars are the best medicine at the Lee's Summit Medical Center Car Show

BHo and I were on a car show mission Saturday, and one of the events that we hit was at the Lee’s Summit Medical Center. But we had to take pictures quick, because they were just finishing up the awards when we rolled in.  Luckily, we were early enough to take in the wide-variety of vintage iron that this show had to offer.

Vintage Thunderbird Club of Kansas City cook some pretty birds in the Thoroughbred Ford parking lot

People generally tend to visit Thoroughbred Ford in northern Kansas City to look at current model cars and trucks. But on Saturday, the attraction was a car that Ford doesn't even produce anymore--the iconic Thunderbird. The Vintage Thunderbirds of Kansas City (VTKC) club was on hand with a nice little display of examples from various points in the car's history. And while a '56 T-Bird has little in common with a '96, they still enjoy getting together and enjoying the legacy of one of Ford's most recognizable nameplates.