Nostalgia drag racing all weekend in Beaver Springs, PA Located about an hour's drive north of Harrisburg, PA, Beaver Springs Dragway is a dragstrip with lots of heart. The crew running the show goes out of their way to make you feel like part of the family. Their advertising slogan is "Nobody does it better!" and I would have to say that's definitely not false advertising! The "Beav" is the perfect location for Gasser Magazine's Gasser Reunion that was held June 10-12. We hit the road early to make the 3 hour drive from our home base in WV and it rained the entire trip! When we arrived, the spectators' parking field had an inch of standing water. Do you ever get the feeling that maybe you are wasting your time making a long trip for nothing? Well, luckily that feeling for us was wrong and the sun was shining by 8:30am. Everyone was able to enjoy a full day of racing. Randy Campbell's 1950 "Full Metal Jacket" Studebaker sits in the pits drying after the early morning rain. The track crew did an excellent job getting the dragstrip prepared...

Cool Hot Rods from 2011 York NSRA Nationals Car Show More than 3500 hot rods and customs registered for the 38th Street Rod Nationals East. You must be doing something right to be able to say this is the 38th time you have hosted an event and the 2011 event wasn’t any different. The city of York, PA has been lucky enough to be the location of this massive gathering for 31 of those 38 years. It has only been a few years since the National Street Rod Association (NSRA) relaxed the age restriction for vehicles entering the show grounds. Now, you can find more vehicles than just street rods, as long as they are 20 years old or older, driving around the event fields. Some of the best rides the East Coast has to offer attend this show annually. Right when we walked through the spectators’ gate I was greeted with one of my favorite paint schemes. There is just something about gloss flames on a flat black finish that appeals to me. Paul Kain’s 1948 Ford was done exactly the way I like it. Would you believe...

2011 AAF Tank Museum Military Extravaganza Editor's note: Bubba got some great shots of some of the baddest rides around on a recent trip to Virginia. When at the helm of  one of these tanks... protecting yourself and the soldiers with you, this is "My Ride is Me." So endulge us here and enjoy the heaviest hot rods around! What do you do if your hot rod is a 44 ton M60A2 tank? You crush stuff of course! In the three years that I have been working for MyRideisMe, I have covered hot rods, customs, street rods, lowriders, classics, rat rods, race cars, and a many other vehicles. It' s hard finding different vehicles that I can share with you. So when I saw that the AAF Tank Museum in Danville, VA was holding their Military Extravaganza once again I knew we had to be there. The Tank Museum houses over 117 tanks and armor. Many of these pieces are rare like this US M1917 known as a “Six Ton Special”.  Out of 950 built, only about a dozen still remain. What’s it like to stare down the barrel...

Tammy Ray wins the Northeast Cup with "Gold Digger" custom hot rod. The inaugural Northeast Rod and Custom Car Show, held at the Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, PA, was an awesome show by any standard. There was so much to see and do, including hot rods, historic customs, a Pro Mod Alley, a kid's zone, air brush artists, and local celebrities, that you would have had a hard time not finding something to peek your interest. The Expo center is large enough that we didn’t feel crowded as we gawked at the more than 300 cars on display. The major competition at this show is known as the “Elite 6”. From the organizer’s website, “This award package was created to recognize the creativity, engineering, workmanship, and also the “appeal” that each car has within our Show Class. Each car within the Show Class will be judged using traditional judging guidelines instituted by the ISCA, but will also judged using the above mentioned criteria.” Winners of the Elite 6 are awarded $2000. Out of those 6, one vehicle is selected to receive the Northeast Cup. “The NorthEast Cup is...

Tunerwars, Hot Rods and Classic Cars at Motorama If it has wheels and a motor you could probably have found it at the 2011 Motorama Events last weekend at the PA Farm Expo Complex in Harrisburg, PA. The 2011 Motorama isn’t a single show but many shows to entertain you. Three car shows (Tunerwars, Hot Rods and Classics, and the Speed Show) were going on at the same time. Over in the 7000 seat Autocross area there was four wheel and two wheel action all weekend. There was also a large gathering of go-karters and quarter midget racers competing for top prizes on different tracks. If you like remote control racing then you should have been here. Multiple HUGE tracks allowed for RC Nitro, 1/8th scale Electrics, RC Electrics, RC Rock Crawling, and even remote control Drifting! Maybe you like to watch things beat the snot out of each other? Then you should have been over in the Robot Conflict area. There were also less violent activities including the Miss Motorama Pageant, Bands, and carnival games. The Hostetter Family and crew does a great job producing this show. This is seriously...

Hot Rods and Custom Car Show in Maryland The 2010 East Coast Indoor Nationals brought together many fine hot rods, customs, classics, and nostalgia dragsters. Almost 300 rides gathered at the Cow Palace show building in Timonium, Maryland over the weekend to compete for $7000 in awards. This invitation only, Pre-1973, All American car show boasts being the largest of its kind east of the Mississippi and it just might be!  David Cohen, the event promoter, always assembles a great collection of vehicles to gawk at while helping to raise money for Toys for Tots. The show sponsor, Condon & Skelly, was also on hand to answer questions about insurance and to provide quotes. Over in the nostalgia drag section, Butch and Linda Szollosy’s 1957 Chevy 210 Sedan instantly caught my eye. The car runs in the Nostalgia Stock Eliminator class with a 283 and a 4 speed followed up by a 5.38 rear. How about something a little different? I think Pat McNeal’s 12 cylinder powered 1942 Chevy COE rat rod fits the bill. It might have been cold outside but the action inside was hot.  In fact, Jeff Gray’s 1939...

Famous Car Designers Say How it's Done Have you ever attended a manufacturers’ auto show and wondered what it takes to design a modern automobile? Then, Motorbooks’ new title "How to Design Cars Like a Pro", written by Tony Lewin and Ryan Borroff, is for you. This totally revised 2010 edition of the classic first released in 2003 takes you into the world of auto design. It includes interviews with top designers and top car makes such as Marek Reichman of Aston Martin and Adrian van Hooydonk of BMW. It also includes the design inspirations of such modern vehicles like the Chevrolet Camaro and the Volkswagen Scirocco. Find out what a typical week looks like for a designer by following chief designer at Land Rover, Oliver le Grice, as he goes about his week. How to Design Cars Like a Pro tries to define what makes a good design and the steps needed to get from concept to reality. I feel the best parts of the book are the chapters on "design and great designers" and "right idea, wrong time." Those two chapters are an excellent historical accounting of...

Carlisle Car Show: 2010 Truck Nationals The 2010 Carlisle Truck Nationals was, once again, a great event and MyRideisMe.com was there to enjoy the show. Truck enthusiasts from around the country were there competing for trophies and just to hang out with like-minded individuals. There was something for everyone including sky-high monster trucks all the way to frame laying minis. One of the highlights of the show was a display of Vietnam Gun Trucks from the reunion of Vietnam-era U.S. Army Transportation Veterans who were in Carlisle for their meeting known as "The Gathering." All of the vehicles present looked very impressive with their machine guns mounted up high. As a different form of tribute to our soldiers, Malibu Customz had their 2009 Ford F-150 truck that they call the "Freedom Truck" on display. This spectacular truck was airbrushed by Mickey Harris and depicted scenes from all the U.S. military branches. Over in Building Y, Dan Little organized a group of Rat Rodders to fill the entire building with all sorts of creative rides. Some people have an issue with the term "rat rod" but not George and Corey Green. Their entire 1936 Plymouth was...

The Hot Rod Power Tour is one of those car events that you need to experience at least once in your lifetime. This seven day/seven city driving tour changes location every year. The route for this year, the 16th annual, began in Newton, Iowa on June 5th and finished in Mobile, Alabama on June 11th. Caddy owned by "Kid Cadillac" who told us, 'On the Power Tour this year the odo hit 45 thousand miles on this since I finished her 3 1/2 years ago. She still gets looks and wins trophies. Don’t be afraid to drive them!' Each leg of the tour averages around 200 miles. Often times during the Hot Rod Power Tour a sponsor will host a lunch stop. This year we had a great lunch provided by Mid America Motorworks at their facility in Effingham, Illinois. Their reproduction vintage gas station made for a great backdrop for photos. You don't really need a souped up hot rod to run the Power Tour. As long as it runs and has four wheels it is welcome to ride. Each Hot Rod Power Tour sees more and more...

Who doesn’t love dune buggies? You could have gotten a good healthy dose of buggy envy at the Carlisle Import and Kit Car Nationals which was held last weekend in Carlisle, PA. Dig that metallic green finish!  Wow!  There were two seaters, four seaters, white ones, blue ones, green ones, and just about every color imaginable. If you strolled over to Building T you could have chatted with Bruce Meyers, the designer of the first fiberglass dune buggy known as the Meyers Manx. Bruce Meyers was present all weekend to sign autographs and pose for pictures if you asked nicely enough. The good news is that you can once again buy new Meyers buggies like the Manxter 2+2, which is capable of doing 0-60 times of just over 4 seconds. Want something with a little more displacement? How about a Cobra replica? The Cobras dominated the kit manufacturer area and there were plenty of them on the show field as well. Throw a 4.6L motor in a Factory Five Racing 1965 Cobra replica like Anthony and Robin DiMemmo did and I bet you would have a smile plastered on...

Carlisle Performance & Style 2010 showcased many highly detailed modern rides like Joey Talarico’s 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse. But, Mother Nature tried real hard to stop 14th annual Carlisle Performance & Style Show in Carlisle, PA. Despite the ferocious 40 mph wind gusts and the threat of morning rain on Saturday, over a thousand tricked-out cars, trucks, and SUVs turned out to participate in the festivities. The show organizers were trying real hard to overcome the bad image the show gained back in the rowdy early 2000s when it wasn't uncommon for the local police departments to make a couple hundred arrests during the course of the weekend. Their efforts to be more family friendly could be seen by such simple items  as “Parental Discretion Advised” signs posted on some of the buildings that contained content not suitable for the youngsters and passing out carnations to mothers on Mother's Day Sunday. For the most part, attendees were more laid back and respectful of others. The show was also changed to encourage more domestic muscle cars. There was a decent showing of Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers on the Carlisle Fairgrounds. There was even...

The Best of PA Car shows at the Motorama 2010 Mike Smyth’s highly detailed 1930 Ford Streetrod Truck at Motorama 2010 We knew this wasn’t going to be your normal indoor car show when a cloud of exhaust greeted us as we strolled down the main hall at last weekend’s Motorama event. Actually, Motorama isn’t just a car show. It is more like a celebration of all things on wheels. While the wife and I were at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for the cars, there was plenty of indoor racing and other activities to keep the large crowds entertained. Racing was everywhere; there was go-kart, quarter midget, and arenacross racing with quads and dirt bikes. While the R/C racers and the Robot Conflict participants may have been driving smaller vehicles, they were just as competitive. Bands and DJs were scheduled throughout the day on various stages to entertain your ears and of course the Miss Motorama contestants made their rounds to entertain your eyes. (Sorry, out of respect for my assistant and wife I refrained from snapping any photos of the ladies. Besides, they were way...