2024 Central Ohio Car Show Season Recap

The last car shows of 2024 have concluded. Sadly, the time has arrived to put the cars away for another Ohio winter before the salt hits the road. Now seems a good time to look back and reminisce about the wonderful car show season that just finished.

Before I start, I must state the usual disclaimer. The opinions expressed in the following paragraphs are mine. They are from the events I attended and the vehicles l saw. If you agree or disagree with anything I've written, please feel free to post in the comment section. I'd love to know your thoughts.

The Stats:

Let's start with some stats. As a reminder, the area covered by carshowtalk.com is bordered by Marion (north), Springfield (west), Chillicothe (south), and Newark (east). Any car event scheduled in a box bounded by those cities is listed. A few events beyond those boundaries are sometimes listed when there is enough interest from the community.

I get asked all the time to list events beyond Central Ohio but I respectfully decline for the primary reason that it's a full-time job keeping up with what's going on in Central Ohio let alone the rest of the state.

Okay, back to the stats:

• From January through November, there were a total of 1111 car shows, cruise-ins, meet-ups, swap meets, and bike events listed on carshowtalk.com. Now you know why I hesitate to go beyond Central Ohio. No one should have had a problem finding a car show or cruise-in to attend this season.
• For the second year, July had the most events with 212.
• The week with the highest number of events was July 15 - 24 with 54. Interestingly, this was the week after Goodguys.
• The 29 events on Saturday, August 24th were the most for a single day.
• I took more than 10,000 photos of your cars and window placards.
• 37 cars and trucks were highlighted at the top of each week's post.
• I'd like to thank all the volunteers who sent photos and info from events they attended that I didn't. Reports from 269 events were posted on the website this year.

Participation Award:

I participated in 92 events which took me to 25 different Central Ohio communities. Most people might be impressed with that number but it's nowhere close to the number of events Jeff Tolley and Dave O'Brien have gone to this season. As of November 11th, both had been to 222 car shows and cruise-ins with more to add as long as the weather cooperates. I don't think anyone comes close to those numbers!

Car Shows, Cruise-Ins, Meet-Ups:

I think everyone will agree It was an unusually hot and dry summer. Here's a good example of how dry it was. Der Dutchman had six rainouts in 2023. This year there was only one. There were 36 days this year when the temperature reached 90 degrees or higher. That compares to only 9 days in 2023.

Registration fees stayed in line with 2023. The average fee was $15 with some shows still only charging $10. And yes, there were some shows with $20 or higher registration fees.

I attended a lot of good events this year. However, I can't say there was one that stood out above the rest. But I did have a few favorites:

Let's start with:

• Plain City Der Dutchman Weekly Cruise-in - In my opinion, there is no better way to spend a Thursday evening if you're a car person. This year the average attendance was 305 cars per week. There were 375 first-time participants in 2024. You just never know what unique or unusual vehicle might show up on Thursday.

• Rodgers Garage Memorial Day Car Meet - This year was the first time attending the Rogers Garage Memorial Day Car Meet in Johnstown, Ohio. I was surprised at the extravaganza Rogers Garage put on. There were door prizes, food trucks, bounce houses, and lots of cars. According to Rogers, they had more than 400 cars attend the meet.

• Triple F Event IV - If you're into multi-million dollar high-performance exotic cars, then the Kasich Building at the Ohio Expo Center on June 23rd was the place to be. The Triple F Collection held its fourth consecutive Event that day. The Event has grown so big it has moved from its original location at Mercedes-Benz of Easton to the Expo Center. Hundreds of spectators gathered in the Kasich Building to see cars from manufacturers such as Koenigsegg, Pagani, Bugatti, Ferrari, McLaren, and Lamborghini. There were no cars roped off or "Do Not Touch" signs. Spectators were able to get up close to these multi-million dollar cars and even sit in them. It was amazing to see what money can buy. Outside a large crowd had gathered around a Lamborghini Aventador about to do some engine revs. The look on that young girl's face in the photo below tells you all you need to know about The Event. All the money raised went to the Make-A-Wish Foundations in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky.

• Vettes, Rods, & Classics - If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know the Vettes, Rods, & Classics Car Show at Creekside in Gahanna, Ohio consistently gets high praise from me. The Capital City Corvette Club does a great job hosting this show every year. It's well organized. A cool venue. There isn't a better band to listen to than Realin' In The Years. I like that there are separate awards and Best of Show winners for the rods/classics and the Corvettes. This year the club made the smart decision to move the show from Saturday to Sunday thanks to a forecast of rain on Saturday. It resulted in registering 230 cars. Dale Pearce showed what a big heart he has by donating his half of the 50/50 drawing ($440) back to Nationwide Children's Hospital. Way to go Dale!

• Corvette Gathering XIX - If you're a Corvette enthusiast, what's not to like about a big ALL Corvette cruise-in at a historic downtown location? The Ohio Corvette Club Alliance hosted its 19th annual Corvette Gathering in historic downtown Lancaster, Ohio on September 8th. With just about perfect weather (light jacket in the morning, shorts and t-shirt by noon) this year's Gathering drew well over 400 Corvettes. Everyone who registered received a commemorative item. There were door prizes, a silent auction, 50/50 raffles, a DJ, and food trucks. What else could you ask for? As long as I own a Corvette, this event will get marked on my calendar every season.

• Speak for the Unspoken Car Show - No one worked harder this year to promote a car show than Phil Spangler. It seems like every car show I attended Phil was there passing out flyers. It paid off as the show registered 181 cars. Only the "free" Coughlin Pataskala Car Show had more cars that weekend. There were some unusual behind-the-scenes activities pre-show. It started with Arch Mayer asking me in late July if I was going to the Speak for the Unspoken Show. I was noncommittal at the time. That was too far in the future for me to make a decision. Arch said Phil was going to do some special things at the show and wanted social media coverage and recommended I cover it. I told him if I go, I will do a report. Oddly, Arch asked me again in the middle of August if I was going to the show. He says Phil needs to know because if I'm not going he'll need to make other arrangements for someone to cover the show. Impressed that Phil wanted me to report on his show, I finally told Arch I was going. I went to the show with full intentions of doing a detailed report without any clue that I would be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award for my contribution to the Central Ohio car community. What an absolute shock and honor it was to receive the award. As I've said many times, I couldn't do half of it without the support from the community. So yes, for me, The Speak for Unspoken was absolutely one of my favorite shows this year.

• Crossroads Car, Truck, & Bike Show at Wings & Rings - Any show that selects your car for Best in Show has to be a favorite. So for me, the second biggest surprise of the season was winning the Best in Show Award at the October Wings & Rings show in Lewis Center, Ohio with my Corvette. The funny thing is I was ready to follow the Best in Show winner out to their car to take a photo when Frank Russell called my name. Thank goodness Lynn Russell and Doug Glassburn were around to take photos of me and my car. I wasn't sure how I was going to take a selfie and get both the car and me in the photo. My arms aren't long enough.😎

• American Legion Southway Post #144 Trunk-n-Treat Car Show - I'm not sure what it was -- maybe missing the Empty Pockets Trunk or Treat Show this year -- but I enjoyed the C-Town Cruisers Trunk-n-Treat Show at the American Legion Southway Post. Everyone in attendance seemed to be in a good mood and the Halloween Spirit. From Jeff Tolley 1 & 2 to the lady who tried to win the Best Decorated Pet trophy, I don't think I've laughed that much at a car show.

• Miller's Fall Swap Meet & Car Show - This was my second year participating in the Fall Miller's Swap Meet & Car Show. I've got to say it is well worth the hour-plus drive from Columbus to Chillicothe. I like how the cars are grouped into model years - 87 and older and 88 and newer. This allows a wide range of cars to participate for an award. It's probably why 206 cars registered at this year's show. I also like how the cars are divided into classes for the "Special" Awards (Best GM, Best Ford, Best Street Rod, etc). The car show is well organized and the judging is done by "car people". The organizers make it a point not to have the same judges every year. It's a well-done car show with a nice size swap meet to go with it.

Shout Out to Our Local Event Organizers/Promoters

I'd like to take a moment to give a big round of applause to Dan "Boots" Longenette and the Auto Smarts Cruise and Ride Tour, Shaun, "Big Dawg", Sanders and the C-Town Cruisers, and Frank and Lynn Russell and the Crossroads Events team. The three groups combined to host 89 car shows in Central Ohio this season! We all know how hard it is to put on one show let alone multiple shows and travel all over the area to do it. Hats off to these three groups. We are truly blessed to have them as part of the Central Ohio car community.

Every season we lose a few shows and add a few shows to the schedule. Some that weren't on the schedule this year were the Columbus, Cars, and Coffee Arena District meet (one of my favorites), the Tolles Technical Center Car & Craft Show, North Hills Church of God Car Show, and Farrow's Hot Rods & Handlebars. First-time shows included the Tom Rogers Legacy Car Show, Goovy's Cruise-In/CarShow, Licking County Regional Airport Wings & Wheels, Ford vs Ferrari, and the Hi-Way Starz Spectrum Support Car Show just to name a few.

Pre-Goodguys Drama

Some form of drama or crisis always seems to pop up during the season. This year the drama came when a YouTuber by the name of Automotive Adventures With Austin posted a video about the major construction happening at the Ohio Expo Center three days before the start of Goodguys Summit Racing Nationals. In the video, the YouTuber criticized the Ohio Expo Center for not putting its best foot forward. The video showed buildings torn down, concrete and asphalt being poured, and dust and debris everywhere. His claim was the venue was anything but ready to host thousands of expensive classic cars.

I have to admit I got caught up in the drama and posted his video to the website with a warning to be prepared for lots of concrete blocks, fencing, and dust. This sparked a pretty good reaction from the community. Most people said they didn't care how much construction was going on, they were still going to attend Goodguys. A few said they weren't going because of the construction.

Within 24 hours, Automotive Adventures with Austin posted a second video stating that the crisis had been averted. It seems some Goodguys official got hold of Austin and late Wednesday afternoon took him around the Expo Center in a golf cart showing him the changes to this year's show.

When it was all said and done, it reminded me of Y2K—a lot of hand-wringing over nothing. Goodguys went off without a hitch. Yes, there was more dust than usual and some exhibits had been moved from their prior locations. But no cars were struck by a hunk of concrete or fell into a construction hole. It might have been different had it rained but thank goodness the three days were dry and hot.

The Bad Venue

We all know some locations are better suited for a car show than others. For years there has been grumbling about the hidden holes, ruts, and above-ground roots at Weaver Park inside the Franklin County Fairgrounds next to the Hilliard Historical Society. During the Conkey Classic Car Show this year we found out just how dangerous the park was. That's when Bart Triplett, owner of the Venom Ram pickup, tripped in one of the holes, fell broke his arm, and dislocated his elbow. Bart ended up in the hospital and required surgery. He missed the rest of the car show season recovering from the fall. I almost tripped several times that day walking around that field and taking photos. I vowed never to participate in another car show at Weaver Park from that day forward. It's too risky. Especially for us older adults. It's my understanding the Conkey family is looking at other venues for the 2025 show. Let's hope so.

Multiple Awards

There seemed to be more shows this year that gave cars multiple awards. In past years, there may have been one or two shows, maybe three at the most, but this year I counted eight shows. And that's just from the shows covered here.

Most were a special award or sponsor's pick and a top or favorite award. There were, however, several where the Best of Show winner also received a sponsor's pick or top award. My advice to anyone hosting a car show is to make it a priority to filter for multiple awards. Always instruct sponsors to pick alternate vehicles. Nothing kills a show's future attendance more than cars receiving two or more awards. It's always best to spread the love as much as you can.

R.I.P.

Sadly, here are the Central Ohio cruisers we lost this year:

Favorite Cars From 2024:

Here are my "Favorite" cars from this season. The only criterion for selection is that these vehicles had to make me take a second, third, or sometimes a fourth look.

In no particular order:

Final Thoughts

2024 was another great year for car events in Central Ohio. About the only thing to complain about was the hot weather. It was great to make a bunch of new friends this year and get to know old friends a little better.

The number of people who contributed content to carshowtalk.com was amazing. Here is the list of names:

A big heartfelt thanks to every one of them for their contribution. They made 2024 the biggest and best year yet for carshowtalk.com!

I'm taking a few months off unless something important happens between now and 2025. I'll be back in early February with the first edition of Save the Dates for 2025. There have been a half-dozen shows already announced for next year.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday Season. Please stay safe out there.

I'm going to conclude with a video that best summarizes the 2024 season. Enjoy!

See everyone next spring.