Central Ohio Car Shows, Cruise-Ins, & Meet-Ups for October 7 – 13, 2024

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NEWS AND NOTES

Last week's News and Notes didn't have much content thanks to the weather. This week, thanks to the weather, has a TON of content so buckle up.

Grace Chapel Wednesday Night Cruise-In:

Bryan Mauger stopped by this week's Grace Chapel Wednesday Night Cruise-in. Bryan estimated there were about 30 cars in attendance.

Bryan's 1970 Chevy Monte Carlo was joined by another first-generation Monte Carlo. The owner purchased it brand new in 1972. It still has the original paint, interior, and 80,000-plus original miles.

Here are some more cars from the cruise-in:

The last Wednesday night cruise-in of the season will be October 23rd weather permitting. The Church will host a Fall Party and Car Cruise-in on Sunday, October 27th.

Corvettes Convene:

Ricart Chevrolet in Dublin, Ohio hosted its second annual Corvettes Convene on Thursday.

My Corvette was still in the shop for a transmission issue at the time so I couldn't participate with my car but I stopped by for about an hour.

There were two food trucks, a DJ, and around 50 Corvettes in attendance while I was there.

The weather couldn't have been more perfect for this Corvette owners' meet and lot party.

Der Dutchman Cruise-In Banquet:

The Der Dutchman Restaurant in Plain City, Ohio held its season-ending cruise-in banquet on Thursday.

This year 173 people signed up to attend the banquet.

As usual, Wayne Nisly presided over the banquet and presented some interesting stats about this season's cruise-in.

• There was only one rainout this year compared to six in 2023. There were three other evenings where the threat of rain did affect attendance. Wayne did say there were a few evenings most of us would call hot but he classified them as warm.
• This year 375 first-timers attended the cruise-in.
• A total of 5809 cars participated in the cruise-in 2024. That's the largest number ever.
• The cruise-in averaged 305 cars per evening.
• Wayne's database currently has 1059 names in it. This equates to people who have attended the cruise-in at least once in the last four years.

At the end of the banquet, Wayne and the restaurant presented everyone with a special gift as a token of their appreciation for supporting another great season. One table had a gift for the Ford fans the other table had a gift for the Chevy fans.

The first cruise-in for 2025 will be May 1st. Wayne would like to set an attendance record to start the season so mark that date on your calendars now.

Friday Night NAPA Cruise-In:

Between 30 and 35 cars stop by the NAPA Auto Parts store in Hilliard, Ohio for a beautiful Friday evening meet-up.

One plus for getting dark earlier these days is that everyone can show off their car lights.

Auto Smart Cruise & Ride at Massey's Pizza:

Dan "Boots" Longenette and the Auto Smarts Cruise & Ride team were in Grove City, Ohio on Saturday hosting a car show at Massey's Pizza.

This was the 10th year Boots and Auto Smarts have been the host of this show.

The total number of registered vehicles on Saturday was 89.

Here are some of the Special Award winners:

Award of Excellence (Previous Auto Smarts Best of Show winners):

The Auto Smarts Super Pick went to Jim Loftus and his 1957 Chevy Bel Air.

The Best of Show was John Picken's 1931 Ford Roadster.

Mario Knapp Car Show:

The 11th Annual Mario Knapp Car Show took place on Saturday at the Polaris Parkway Quaker Steak and Lube in Columbus, Ohio.

This year the show registered 207 vehicles.

Our good friends Bryan Mauger and Dan Varner received Top 40 awards for their 1970 Chevy Monte Carlo and 1964 Chevy Impala respectively. Bryan's Monte Carlo also received "Best Make Out Vehicle".

Lynette Sowell received the Best of Show Award with her 2017 Chrysler 300 S.

Here's a sampling of rides that attended the Mario Knapp Show.

Logan Elm FFA Car Show:

Originally scheduled for September 29, the Logan Elm FFA rescheduled its 1st annual car show to October 6th because of rain.

The show at the Logan Elm High School in Circleville, Ohio registered 54 vehicles on Sunday.

Registration was $15 and included one door prize ticket. There was also a 50/50 raffle and Chinese Auction.

The FFA offered food and refreshments for purchase. Frozen custard was also available from Whit's

There were awards for the "Top 20" cars and trucks, "Top 5" tractors, and "Top 5" bikes. There were seven "Special Category" awards. These included Best Alumni, People's Choice, Mr. FFA's Pick, Advisors Pick, Equine Team Pick, FFA Members Pick, and Officers Overall Pick. All the awards were handmade by the Logan Elm mechanics class.

As expected for a first-time show, not everything went smoothly. The awards presentation was about 30 minutes late and a bit disorganized. Only the car number was called for the Top Awards -- no year, make, model, and owner's name. Things did improve with the Special Category Awards where the year, make, model, and owner were announced.

Here were the Special Category winners:

Overall for a first-time show, I'd rate it a solid B. Next year's show should be even better now that FFA has some experience hosting a car show.

Auto Smarts Cruise and Ride at Moose Lodge 1427:

The Auto Smarts Radio Cruise and Ride Team hosted its last show of the season at the Moose Lodge 1427 on Sunday.

This final show registered 56 cars.

Dan Varner's 1991 Dodge Ram pickup received Boots' Pick.

Dale Pearce was "two-for-two" this weekend with Best Truck Awards for his 1950 Chevy 3600 pickup.

As a past Best of Show winner, Bryan Mauger's 1970 Monte Carlo received an Award of Excellence.

The final Auto Smarts Best of Show for 2024 went to Jeff Irwin and his 1963 Corvette Grand Sport Race Car.

Here are more cars from the Auto Smart show:

Sunbury Lions Country Cruise-in:

Here's another show that was originally scheduled for September 29th but was postponed a week thanks to the weather.

It has been two years since the Sunbury Lions Club hosted its Country Cruise-in at the Walnut Grill in Sunbury, Ohio.

The return of the show on Sunday registered 163 cars. The show area was roped off. If a car was parked inside the roped-off area but didn't register, it was asked to park outside the area.

Live entertainment was provided by the Limestone Project who played easy rock from the 60s to the present. There were raffle prizes and a 50/50 drawing.

The Lions Club presented awards to the "Favorite" 50 and a Best of Show.

The Best of Show award went to Tim Raines and his 1951 Ford Pickup.

Here are a few more cars that attended the Country Cruise-In:

Crossroads Events Car Shows at Chubby Hawaiian and West Church Social:

Frank Russell and the Crossroads Events team hosted shows in Baltimore and Newark, Ohio this past weekend.

The team was at the Chubby Hawaiian Grill in Baltimore on Saturday.

The Best Veteran Owned award went to Steve Beals with a 1939 Chevrolet 2-door sedan custom.

The 1966 Ford Fairlane belonging to Jess Bickel was picked Best in Show.

Sunday's show at West Church Social in Newark saw Steve Schaefer and his 2020 Dodge Challenger Scat Pack receive the Veteran Owned Award.

The Best in Show Award went to Peg Benner with a 1968 Chevy Camaro.

The Crossroads Events team's next show will be this coming Sunday at the Wings & Rings in Lewis Center, Ohio.

Hocking Hills Church Car Show and Silent Auction:

The Hocking Hills Church in Logan, Ohio hosted a car show and silent auction on Saturday.

The show registered 61 cars. There were 15 awards for cars 1990 and newer and 15 awards for cars 1989 and older. There was also a Pastor's Choice and Best in Show.

The Best in Show award went to Tim Decker's 2023 Corvette Stingray.

Car-Tober Fest Car Show 2024:

The Lancaster Car Scene (LCS) hosted its final car show of the season on Sunday at Performance GMC- Cadillac in Carroll, Ohio.

The October/Halloween-themed show had 89 cars in attendance.

The Old Goats Car Club received the Battle of the Clubs Award for the most members in attendance.

No surprise, Chad Herrick's 2018 Dodge Charger Daytona 392 received the Best Display Award. As many of you know, Chad goes all out decorating his car this time of year. It looks like he has added a few new wrinkles to the display.

Rod Scott's 1958 Dodge Sweptside pickup was selected Best of Show.

Other Area Shows:

• On Sunday, the Westerville Special Olympics Car Show at Roush Honda had around 40 cars in attendance.

• I received word that there were around 100 cars in attendance on Saturday at The Ohio Autism Show at the Hartford Fairgrounds in Croton, Ohio.
• Some Central Ohio cruisers made the trip down to Owensville, Ohio for the Pumpkin Run Nationals this weekend. If you have a Facebook account and would like to see the cars that attended the event, check out Jeff Shanke's Facebook page.

Here are the folks who contributed content to this week's News and Notes.

• Jeff Shankle
• Dale Pearce
• Doug Glassburn
• Bryan Mauger
• Chad Herrick
• Jim Sradeja
• Frank Russell

I can't say enough how much I appreciate the help the Central Ohio car community provides in putting together these reports each week. I couldn't do it without the community's help.

Stay safe out there. I hope to see you at a future car show or cruise-in.