This past summer's Goodguys...
This past summer's Goodguys PPG Nationals in Columbus was yet another fantastic show with acre upon acre of cool cars and trucks through 1972.
It's hard to believe that this past July marked the 10th year of the Goodguys PPG Nationals. It seems like just yesterday that we were anticipating the inaugural get-together-man, the time just flies by. In just nine short years, the PPG Nationals has become Goodguys' largest and most prestigious event. In our estimation, the 10th edition was the best yet, with more than 6,000 1972-and-earlier rods, customs, musclecars, classic trucks, and street machines making the event a natural destination for any performance enthusiast.
The PPG Nationals tradition includes the crowning of the Goodguys Street Rod of the Year and the Goodguys Street Machine of the Year (this year presented by Classic Instruments and Air Ride Technologies, respectively), plus the Goodguys Nationals is home to more than 300 vendor exhibits, giant stage shows, a model car show, arts and crafts, a swap meet, and cars-for-sale corral. On Friday night, Goodguys hosted its annual Hot Rod Drags at National Trail Raceway, and on Sunday, during the final awards ceremony, Goodguys gave away the Foose Challenger grand prize giveaway car built by Unique Performance to lucky winners Paul and Ellen Fordyce of Washington, West Virginia. West Covina, California's Dennis DeCamp's bright red, Indy car-influenced '32 roadster was named Goodguys/Classic Instruments 2007 Street Rod of the Year that weekend as well.
Another highlight of this year's Goodguys Nats for me (above and beyond the sea of cool cars and trucks on hand) was a special Lobeck's Reunion. Nearly 30 of Lobeck's V8 Shop-built cars and trucks were on display at and surrounding Barry's booth on the midway, and I was jazzed to see a guy I'm very lucky to call a good friend honored for his talent. There's just somethin' about that Lobek look-Jack and Coke all around!
Anyway, I could go on and on saying the same thing I've said for the last nine years about how great the show was, but I think I'll just quit blubberin' and save the room for more images; like they always say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here's about 39,000 words worth. Enjoy!
Here's a bird's eye view of...
Here's a bird's eye view of the Lobeck Reunion, held within the Lobeck compound at the Nationals this year.
The Pro's Pick area was a...
The Pro's Pick area was a madhouse, as you can plainly see. I opted to keep my distance since the top-shelf iron therein always draws a huge crowd.
Randy Northuis' Holland, MI-based...
Randy Northuis' Holland, MI-based '28 A pickup was a perfect example of the high-end contingent on hand in Columbus this year.
This no-nonsense '34 three-window...
This no-nonsense '34 three-window was pretty darn popular with the crowd at Columbus. Heck, I waited 10 full minutes just to get a clear shot of Jerry Rackley's cool coupe.
Dare to be different! Ray...
Dare to be different! Ray and Jackie Anderson hit a home run with their neat '29 Chrysler sedan. The pure "Mopowered" highboy sports a 318-cube small-block backed by a 904 trans-lookin' good!
Wayne Putnam's the rightfully...
Wayne Putnam's the rightfully proud owner of this awesome '32 Packard five-window coupe. Never seen one before? Well, that's because it's the only one in existence.
Newton Falls, OH, native Art...
Newton Falls, OH, native Art Logan showed off his awesome contemporary styled '30 A sedan, much to the crowd's delight.
The Lies family, Tim, Chris,...
The Lies family, Tim, Chris, and Jess, made the trip to Columbus from Wheaton, IL, in style.
Fifties GM vehicles are some...
Fifties GM vehicles are some of the nicest post-'48 cars on the road, and one of my all-time favorites is the '56 Olds, just like Keith Townsend's shining example shown here.
Trick trucks are another bonus...
Trick trucks are another bonus for Goodguys attendees to enjoy, and enjoy we did, especially Bob and Lynn Pusateri's '55 big-window.
We caught Classic Trucks editors...
We caught Classic Trucks editors Rob Fortier and Grant Peterson eyeballing this Fleetmaster that was for sale-though I noticed they were both on the return flight home after the show, instead of on the freeway.
Speakin' of Mopars, Vance...
Speakin' of Mopars, Vance Martin's beautiful black '33 Plymouth PD was another notable non-Ford at the show.
As is the case with most Goodguys...
As is the case with most Goodguys events, the swap meet area was chock-full with every manner of part and accessory.
Now here's a handsome lakes-modified...
Now here's a handsome lakes-modified for ya. Norm Anderson's '26 T has quite a following and was more than likely going home with a new owner before the show was over.
Jim Stockton's Springfield,...
Jim Stockton's Springfield, OH-based '33 roadster is another awesome traditional rod that gets my heart pumpin'.
Daryl Higdon's wide white-shod,...
Daryl Higdon's wide white-shod, slammed '60 Impala sports a healthy 348 backed by a Powerglide automatic, making for one cool cruiser.
Jason Graham's A coupe is...
Jason Graham's A coupe is one of my favorites-a Merc flathead backed by a Zephyr trans provides the motorvation for this chopped and channeled beauty.
Slammed and hammered is a...
Slammed and hammered is a good way to describe this mean-lookin' '35 Ford pickup belonging to Dave and Marsha Kotuby of Wampum, PA-love the stance and the cycle fenders.