The Inagural National Hot Rod Reunion
Beech Bend Raceway Park
Bowling Green, KY
The Inaugural National Hot Rod Reunion was without a doubt one of the “best” Nostalgia Drag Racing events that I have attended. The setting for it was a beautiful venue and everyone involved was extremely nice and courteous. The staff from the NHRA Wally Parks Motorsports Museum did an extremely good job of staging the event and the staff at Beech Bend Park showed true Southern Hospitality to everyone involved.
As I wondered the pits and adjoining beautifully prepared grounds, talking with participants and spectators alike, I never heard one person complain about anything, except for the traffic on the small roads that wound through the beautiful countryside to reach the track. A problem that was easy for me to overlook
If there wasn’t something there that tickled your fancy, you were definitely not a “car person” as there was many hundred of the most beautiful street rods and customs along with hundreds of race cars of every shape and form. Along with all that there was a number of vendors and a huge swap meet. Add in beautiful weather and live music and dancing and top it off with a very good BBQ lunch on Saturday and you have all the ingredients for a “great time”.
Sam Jackson, Steve Gibbs and all the people from the Museum that made it happen should be commended along with the management and staff of Beech Bend Park.
I would like to personally Thank Sam Jackson and Bill Groak for making it possible for Nitrogeezers.com to be able to cover this great event and “please” check back often as we have a lot of photos to get on the site for this one.
I meet so many great people at this event and many of the participants are members of the NitroGeezer E-Group. Among the “E-Geezers that were taking part in the event were, Tom Hanna and Gary “Mr C” Cochran, Mousie Marcellus, Don Ross, with the Scorpion 1 recreation, Ken Kull and his beautiful 33 Willys AA/GS, Don Garlits, Al Schramm, who competed in the Top Fuel Class, Olin Davis, with the Troy Green Top Fuel Car and I am sure there are others that I have missed
There were also a lot of E-Geezers that were, like myself there to just enjoy the great cars and racing. Several I meet for the first time. Among them were David Dilbeck who dose the great www.Georgiadragracing.com website, Bill Pratt of www.draglist.com, FE Bob Fermier, John Spradlin and others that I feel sure I have failed to mention
There were also many E-Geezers that I have been privileged to meet in the past and who are fellow Standard 1320 members as well. Vic Cooke, who took great photos that will be in an album here along with his commentary very soon, Bill “Badco” Ott, Jim Burke and his new friend, Jerry Gross, Ron Miller, Norb Locke, Walt Huff and again I am sure I am leaving someone out.
One thing I will bet on is there will be even more there next year and God willing so will I. But for now click the links below to see some great photos of the first National Hot Rod Reunion.
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