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1985 ASC McLaren Meet Capri - Owner: Rusty Gregg

Along with the usual weekday cruise-ins and bike nights, this weekend is absolutely packed with car shows, cruise-ins, and motorcycle events across Central Ohio. Highlights include the 46th Annual Poor Man’s Nationals on Sunday, along with Heels and Wheels, Battle of the Brands, and the Blackwing Summer Blast on Saturday, to name just a few. Whether you’re into classics, muscle cars, exotics, motorcycles, or modern performance vehicles, there are plenty of opportunities to get out and enjoy the hobby all week long.


Monday (July 20th):

Tuesday (July 21st):

Wednesday (July 22nd):

Thursday (July 23rd):

Friday (July 24th):

Saturday (July 25th):

Sunday (July 26th):


Be sure to check out the Save the Dates for 2026 page for the most comprehensive, best-organized list of upcoming Central Ohio car shows, cruise-ins, meet-ups, and bike events you’ll find anywhere online.

Don’t miss a single event — bookmark it and stay in the loop all season long.


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NEWS AND NOTES

The big news this week was the cancellation of ALL Friday activities at the Arthritis Foundation Charity Auto Show in Dublin due to an air quality alert from the Canadian wildfires, combined with a dangerously high heat index. I never imagined smoke from wildfires in Canada would be the reason a car show in Central Ohio had to be canceled. Unfortunately, the Arthritis Foundation Charity Auto Show wasn’t alone, as several other events across Central Ohio were also called off.

Der Dutchman Cruise-In:

It was hot Thursday evening. How hot was it, you ask? It was so hot that in the 14 years I’ve been attending the Der Dutchman Cruise-In, Thursday was the first time I’d ever seen Wayne trade his trademark jeans and boots for shorts and tennis shoes.

Still, 182 vehicles ignored the sweltering conditions to attend the cruise-in—a testament to just how popular the Thursday night event has become. Not surprisingly, the parking spots beneath the trees along SR-42 were some of the most coveted real estate of the evening.

Here are some of the HOT cars—literally—from Thursday’s cruise-in.

Columbus Cars & Coffee at 3 Easton Oval:

The corporate version of Columbus Cars & Coffee continued its Season 18 schedule on Saturday at 3 Easton Oval in Columbus.

The event drew more than 130 vehicles during the two-hour gathering, with attendance down slightly, likely due to the number of other automotive events taking place around Central Ohio that day. Despite the lower turnout, spectator attendance was as strong as ever.

A DJ kept the music playing while Good Cafe Easton was on hand serving coffee and breakfast pastries. As always, the event had a distinctly European flavor, with Porsches, Ferraris, Audis, and a host of Japanese manufacturers making up the bulk of the vehicles in attendance. Fewer than a handful of classic American cars were on display.

My favorite car was the blacked out McLaren equipped with a child safety seat—proof that even exotic car owners have family duties.

Here’s a video slideshow highlighting many of the cars from the morning.

Plumwood C.C.CU. Car Show:

The Plumwood C.C.C.U. (Church of Christ in Christian Union) hosted its 17th Annual Car Show in memory of Charles Brewer in London, Ohio, on Saturday. This year’s show drew 37 vehicles. Like pretty much every Central Ohio car show on Saturday, participants experienced at least a little rain.

Tom and Betty Lawrence were there with their 2008 Volkswagen Beetle and took home the People’s Choice Award.

Here are the photos Tom took at the show.

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NEWS AND NOTES

Der Dutchman Cruise-In:

Despite zero rain, attendance dipped slightly at Thursday evening’s cruise-in, with 170 cars in attendance. Mid-summer vacations and a touch of car show fatigue are starting to show—something that typically happens around this time of year.

Arthritis Foundation Charity Auto Show:

The Arthritis Foundation hosted its 42nd Annual Charity Auto Show this past weekend at the Metro Center in Dublin, Ohio.

Festivities began Thursday with a scenic tour, as 45 participants took the back roads through the Ohio countryside to Indian Lake. There, the group visited what is believed to be the largest private collection of classic wooden boats in the country.

The drive continued around the lake to the Tilton Hilton, a rustic spot famous for its quirky interior and hearty half-pound burgers. The day wrapped up with high-speed fun at K1 Speed in Hilliard, where 40 attendees hit the kart track, followed by evening drinks at the Roosevelt Room in Dublin.

Big thanks to Dave Bratton for providing the great photos and detailed description of the tour. His contribution helped capture the spirit of the drive and the unique stops along the way.

Arthritis Foundation Charity Auto Show Friday Cruise-In:

Intermittent light showers throughout the day dampened Friday’s Cruise-in at the Arthritis Foundation Charity Auto Show. Fortunately, the rain cleared by 5 PM—just in time for the opening set from The British Invasion band.

Friday’s Cruise-in drew approximately 250 cars. This video slideshow, featuring photos taken by Jeff Shankle and me, highlights some of the beautiful rides that were on display.

They started handing out the 100 six-foot trophies around 7:30 PM. Here are some local winners I was able to catch on camera.

Dale Pearce found out just how handy a convertible can be when it came time to haul home his six-foot trophy.

READ THE REST OF NEWS AND NOTES

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The big event this week will be the Performance Charity Car Show in Downtown Delaware, Ohio on Saturday. Originally scheduled for July, the show was postponed due to weather.

I contacted the Dairy Queen in South Bloomfield, the Sonic Drive-In in Heath and the Rusty Lug Nutz group out of Pickerington. All three told me they will continue their weekly cruise-ins as long as the weather is good and cars continue to show up. All predicted they would likely finish by the end of October.

CLICK HERE to skip the News and Notes section and go directly to the list of events.

NEWS AND NOTES:

Der Dutchman:

The last cruise-in of the season at the Der Dutchman Restaurant in Plain City, Ohio set a new attendance record on Thursday. The cruise-in registered 439 cars! This broke the previous attendance record of 401 cars set back on August 20, 2020. The photo below will give you a sense of just how packed the place was Thursday evening.

CLICK HERE to see more photos from the final 2021 Der Dutchman Cruise-In.

Downtown Delaware First Friday:

Approximately 25-30 cars turned out for the final downtown Delaware, Ohio First Friday event of 2021. Ghostbusters appeared to be the unofficial theme of the evening.

Tolles Car and Craft Show:

The Tolles Career & Technical Center in Plain City, Ohio held their 4th Annual Car and Craft Show on Saturday.

The show registered 111 cars. Instead of dash plaques, the first 100 cars to register received a unique etched wooden plaque commemorating participation in the show.

The show presented a total of 23 awards. There were no "Favorites". Instead, each car was entered into one of 19 classes. Trophies were presented to each class winner. There was also a People's Choice award, a Best of Show award, and two special awards.

Clement Thun's 1947 Chevrolet Fleetline Aerosedan was selected Best of Show.

To see more cars from the Tolles Car and Craft Show and the rest of the class winners , CLICK HERE.

Toy Barn Fall Car Show:

I registered to participate in the Toy Barn Car Show on Sunday but decided to go as a spectator due to the weather. I counted close to 70 cars and a decent number of spectators when I was there around 10 AM. Although this was a far cry from the number of cars and the crowd at the spring show back in May.

To see more from the soggy Toy Barn Fall Show, check out its PHOTO PAGE.

Other Area Car Shows:

  • The 8th Annual Mario Knapp Memorial Car Show held at Quaker Steak and Lube on Lyra Drive in Columbus, Ohio registered over 150 cars on Saturday.
  • Sixty-Five cars turned out for the 4th Annual BGMC Car Show at the New Beginnings Church in Columbus, Ohio
  • More than 160 cars participated in the Steve Austin's Auto Group Car and Truck Show in Bellefontaine, Ohio on Saturday. I received a report that the music was loud enough to cause hearing damage.
  • Rick Levine's 1970 Oldsmobile 442 convertible took Best of Show honors at the Community Christian Church Fall Craft, Vendor and Car Show.

If you have information about any other area shows that took place this past weekend, please feel free to post in the Comment Section.

I want to thank Dave Bratton, Cathy and Mark Krist, and Dale Pearce for their help making this week's report.


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