Nearly 2,500 cars packed the Kansas Speedway this fall, and save for the slight rain delay on Friday, the rest of the weekend proved to be a home run with moderate temperatures and loads of eye candy. The entire infield of the 1 1/2-mile oval was covered in not water, like the day before, but hot rods, musclecars, and street machines by lunchtime Saturday afternoon. Just goes to show you that in Kansas, they don't let a little rain ruin their fun!
By Saturday morning, though, the sun was shining and guys were lining up outside the speedway to cruise and peruse the weekend away. Like other Goodguys events, specialty parking areas like Homebuilt Heaven; Deuce Doin's; Low, Smooth, Cool; and Youngguys, for rodders 25 and younger, provided everybody the opportunity to park amongst their peers. Hot rod seminars were also in full swing with the guys from Air Ride, DuPont, and Detroit Speed & Engineering sharing their area of expertise with fellow rodders. Like some of the other events at various speedways throughout the country, one of the highlights for a lot of people is the chance to "open it up" on the NASCAR-sanctioned paved oval. This event usually takes place during Saturday afternoon, and judging by the line of cars waiting to gain access to the track, this is one popular aspect of the show.
The Winner's Circle was in full effect on Sunday, with all the awards chosen and the respective cars positioned within their chosen categories. The level to which some of those cars were built was astronomical, especially considering that most were garage-built as well as high-mileage drivers. The quality of cars seems to get better and better each year and I can't image what it will come to 10 years from now! Sunday also saw a return of the track cruise for a few hours in the morning, giving an opportunity to those who didn't get a chance or simply wanted to make one more round. By Sunday afternoon, those who had a Sunday Lucky ticket were entered to become one of the finalists for the 2005 Western Grand Prize Giveaways with items from nearly two dozen manufactures. The awards program closed out the weekend's events with nearly 100 winners walking away with trophies, hats, or jackets. We spent the weekend in the sun and even got to pick our own Top Ten winners--check 'em out!
Not only was there a sea of cars, but the swap meet contained an impressive gamut of early tin... | 
...From grille shells to vintage license plates to roadster bodies, we were trying to figure out how many more carry-on items we could possibly sneak onto the plane! | 
Jim Matthys was another local who brought out a dirt track-inspired hot rod. His '29 modified's full hood hid the motor, but can we assume that the "Half Fast Eng" reference may shed some light on this subject? We're not sure, but it looks like loads of fun! |
I can't remember when the last time I saw a '39 Merc four-door sedan, let alone one as clean as Mike Stewart's. The gray interior and wide whites with Flipper caps accent the Ruby Red paint, while under the hood, a Flathead keeps with the early styling cues. | 
Dave and Marilyn Underwood drove this gorgeous '33 Pontiac convertible all the way from Prescott, AZ, and went home with a Goodguys Best Bitchin' Award. The Poncho is powered by an LT1/4L60E combo and rides on a Heidt's IFS up front and four-bar-located 9-inch out back. | 
By noon on Saturday, almost the entire infield was full of spectators and cars. A sea of color floods what was otherwise flooded by water the day prior. The impressive turnout proves that Midwestern car enthusiasts don't let a little H2O stop them from having fun! |
Street Rodder Top Ten
We love it when guys build rare and unique makes and models, and early Chevy coupes are no exception. Robert Meacham brought out his clean '31 Chevy five-window with Chevy 350 running gear and snagged himself a Top Ten award. | 
The Midwest must have been a good location for a Chevy dealership in the 1930s. Here's a slightly later example--a 1934 driven in by Dave and Lori Jordan of Lake Ozark, MS. Rolling on Billet Specialties wheel, powered by a blown small-block Chevy, and sprayed a Champagne Beige and Cinnamon, Dave and Lori have got themselves a really unique head turner. | 
It's hard to believe by looking at how clean their Flathead-powered '36 roadster is, but Mike and Deb Meadows say they put about 7,000 miles a year going to street rod events across the country, including a couple of trips to California for the L.A. Roadster Show. |
We liked Daniel Olsen's treatment of his '37 Ford two-door sedan. Where a lot of guys take '37s to the more contemporary look by smoothing everything out, Dan has kept with a '60s vibe, evident by the chrome steelies, wide whites, era engine dress-up parts, and lobster claw-style flame job. In fact, we dug it so much that we gave it a Top Ten award. | 
What's not to like about a Willys coupe? Something about the throwback to the days of the gasser wars gets our blood pumping. Gene and Vicki Wray's '41 Willys coupe doesn't fall short in the impressive department, as is evident by the numerous Best In Show awards they have won in the past. Chalk up another win, because we gave them a Top Ten for all their hard work. | 
Rich and Barb Miller's yellow '34 Ford coupe is no spring chicken. Originally built by Rich's father in the '50s, Rich inherited the car about 30 years later. Wanting to keep the appearance as close to his father's intentions as possible, he kept the period wheels and hubcaps, whitewall tires, and tuck 'n' roll white leather interior, upgrading only the drivetrain with a 351 Ford crate motor backed by a C4 trans. |
You don't see one of these every day! Ray Beeson showed off his Riley two-port-equipped Model B four-banger at the speedway, making the trek out from Shawnee, KS. Kelsey-Hayes wires, juice brakes, a Model A banjo rearend, and T5 trans round out the equation. Cool stuff! | 
Bob Smith pulled his '33 Ford three-window coupe out of a ditch way back in 1973. It then languished in a pasture for another 30 years until he got around to building it. The car is kept in '40s fashion with all early Ford running gear, with exception to the T5 trans. The interior is wrapped in oxblood leather, with a matching stock dash and a '39 standard column and steering wheel. | 
Dean Johnson brought his Albert Blue '29 coupe out from Hutch, KS. Powered by a tri-carbed 301ci Chevy and mated to a T5 trans, Dean's coupe features unique '39 Ford wheels covered by '36 Spyder hubcaps and shod in Firestones. Brakes are '39 Ford with custom finned Franklin drums. |
What needs to be said of Dwight McGowan's altered '27 roadster? The car was originally built in the late '40s, raced on the dirt tracks, and then changed over to the current street guise in the middle to late '60s. The wheelbase was altered, bringing the rearend up about 6 inches, while the triple-carbed Flathead was pushed into the firewall at least as much. Other items include a '40 Ford gearbox with Zephyr gears, Halibrand quick-change and wheels, and the custom sextet exhaust pipes. | | |