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For the most comprehensive list of future events in Central Ohio, check out the "Save the Dates for 2023" page. There's also a quick link in the menu at the top of the page.

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NEWS AND NOTES

Der Dutchman Cruise-In:

Perfect weather this past Thursday resulted in 322 cars turning out for the Der Dutchman weekly cruise-in in Plain City, Ohio.

Per usual, there was a great variety of fantastic rides. Here is a small sampling.

*Click or tap on a photo to enlarge it and enter slideshow mode*

Creative Automotive/Advanced Auto Parts Monthly Car Show:

The Creative Automotive/Advanced Auto Parts monthly car show was a little shorter this month thanks to rain that started about an hour into the show. The event still managed to raise $70 for the local food pantries.

This month's Manager's Picks were:

Spring Fling All Corvette Show:

Despite morning drizzle, the Chosen Few Corvette Club still managed to have over 200 cars attend its Spring Fling All Corvette Show at Quaker Steak and Lube in Columbus, Ohio.

Bling Amobi Breezy's Corvette received the Manager's Choice Award. The Longest Distance Traveled award went to a Corvette owner from Austin Texas.

Carroll Lions Car Show:

With the help of the C-Town Cruisers, the Carroll Lions Club held its car show in downtown Carroll, Ohio on Saturday. The show had over 40 cars in attendance.

The Best of Show honors went to Brianna and Dylan Elsmore and their 1972 Dodge Dart Swinger.

Conkey Classic Car Show:

The third annual Conkey Classic Car Show took place on Saturday at the Franklin County Fairgrounds in Hilliard, Ohio. The event registered 37 cars. The Best of Show award went to Mike Mathews and his 1947 Ford Special Deluxe.

Yabo's Tacos Weekly Car Meet:

Yabo's Tacos in Powell, Ohio had about 25 cars show up Saturday evening for its weekly car meet. The mix of cars included classics, muscle, and imports.

One car owner having an issue with his car's AC unit created the most excitement during the evening when he ran up and over a set of ramps he just happen to have in his car. Another car owner came to the rescue with a car jack. I can't say I've ever seen that happen before at a car event.

Lewis Center Wings and Rings Car, Truck, & Bike Show:

Frank Russell and the Crossroads Event team hosted the only judged show on Sunday at the Wings and Rings Restaurant in Lewis Center, Ohio.

The show registered 35 cars. Mark Lester's 1967 Camaro took the Best Car Award. The Best of Show honors went to Dave Bratton with a 1937 Ford convertible.

Here are a few more cars from the show you might recognize:

2018 Dodge Charger Daytona 392 - Owner: Chad Herrick

Due to the rain Saturday morning, the Columbus Cars & Coffee Meet at Esoteric Fine Auto Detailing in New Albany, Ohio has been rescheduled for this coming Saturday (May 20).

A big thanks to Dale Pearce, Bling Amobi Breezy, Dave Bratton, Anthony Musick, Jeff Shankle, and Katie Marie for their contributions to this week's report.

Central Ohio Forecast

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Central Ohio Car Events for November 2021

Kim Hawksworth11/01/202102/15/2023

1954 Chevrolet Corvette
Owners: Steve Kidwell & Nancy

This is it, folks. The final listing of car events for this season. Just like March, I'm listing ALL the events for the entire month of November. I'll be posting my final thoughts on 2021 towards the end of the month so stay tuned for that.

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

NEWS AND NOTES:

Rain on Friday and Saturday postponed or canceled a number of events. Those events that did go on rain or shine had very low turnouts as you can imagine.

One of those events, The Spooktacular Halloween Show at the Point on Main Restaurant in Columbus, Ohio registered around 20 cars on Saturday. With decent weather, that show would have been pushing 100 cars or more. The Best of Show Award went to John Van Paepeghem, Jr with a 1965 Ford Falcon Convertible (that's John in the black ball cap and hoody).

American Legion Southway Post 144 Trunk or Treat Meet:

The rain finally cleared out for Sunday's American Legion Southway Post 144 Trunk or Treat Meet hosted by Shaun "Big Dawg" Sanders and the C-Town Cruisers.

A car show enthusiasts enjoying the dry weather

The show registered 60 cars. Awards were presented to the "Top 30" cars. There were special awards for Best Costume, Best Dressed Vehicle, and Best of Show.

Best Costume went to Karson Musick dressed as a character from Paw Patrol.

Kenny G and his 2016 Dodge Challenger Hellcat received the Best Dressed Vehicle Award.

And finally, Best of Show went to Phil Monroe with a 1971 Dodge Challenger RT.

All in All, it turned out to be a fun afternoon of trunking or treating at the American Legion Southway Post. Check out the show's PHOTO PAGE for more cars and scenes from the show.

A big shout-out goes to Dale Pearce for his help putting together this report.

If you'd like to be notified by email when a new posting appears, click the Subscribe link at the top of the page. This is a non-profit website. Rest assured your email address will NEVER be sold to marketers. There's no risk of more spam mail in your inbox if you subscribe.

Central Ohio Car Events for October 25 -31, 2021 2

Kim Hawksworth10/25/202102/15/20232 Comments

1969 Chevrolet COPO Camaro
Owner: Jeff Spradlin

It's a surprisingly full lineup for the last week of October. There are a ton of Trunk or Treat events this week. I tried to include only those that focused on classic, muscle, and performance cars.

Marysville Muscle and Honda Motorsports Bike Night will be joining forces at the Honda Motorsports lot on Friday evening in Marysville, Ohio . There will be a costume contest, 50/50 raffle and Geezers BQ on site. The combined meet is schedules from 5 PM to 7 PM.

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

NEWS AND NOTES:

Not much to report this week. For the first time since April, I did not attend a car show or cruise-in. If the weather cooperates, I should have big report next week.

On a somber note, Terry McReynolds passed away on Monday, October 18th. Terry was the Pace Truck Driver at Columbus Motor Speedway for more than 20 years. Recently, Terry was an integral part of the Pepsi's Auto Smarts Radio Cruise and Ride team. If you participated in one of Boots's shows this year, you most likely interacted with Terry at the registration trailer. May he R.I.P.

Central Ohio Car Events for October 4 – 10, 2021 2

Kim Hawksworth10/04/202102/15/20232 Comments

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.

Central Ohio Car Events for September 7 – 12, 2021

Kim Hawksworth09/07/202102/15/2023

1959 Chevy Corvette
Owner: Jerry Galbreath

Here is this week's line-up. Several Patriot Day car shows commemorating 9/11 will take place on Saturday. The Street Elite Corvette Club will host its annual open car show in Sunbury also on Saturday. Motts Military Show and the All Corvette Gathering in Lancaster highlight the schedule for Sunday.

NEWS AND NOTES:

WARNING: Because of the holiday weekend, this week's report is a long one. If you want to jump to the list of events and skip the report, click here.

Der Dutchman:

With weather conditions being close to ideal this past Thursday, attendance at the Der Dutchman cruise-in in Plain City, Ohio jumped back up to more than 300 cars. The weather forecast looks good for this coming Thursday so expect another big cruise-in.

Zucchinifest Car and Motorcycle Show:

On Friday evening the Zucchinifest Car and Motorcycle Show at Fortress Obetz in Obetz, Ohio registered more than 180 cars.

Best of Show went to a 1940 Woody Wagon with a Corvette engine. Our good friend, Dale Pearce, and his 1950 Chevy 3100 pickup received the Mayor's Choice award. Good thing Dale has a truck or it could have been a challenge getting that trophy home.

Richwood Bank Coffee and Cars Cruise-in:

Twenty-one cars spent a relaxing Saturday morning at the Richwood Bank in Delaware, Ohio. I left before the raffle drawing to make the drive over to Mechanicsburg.

The Flywheels Hot Rod Club of Marion hosted a car show at the Prospect Community Park in Prospect, Ohio on Saturday afternoon. The Club expected to register around 50 cars and ended up registering 174 vehicles. Talk about exceeding expectations!

The Prospect Lions Club and several food vendors provided refreshments. There were commercial and craft booths scattered around the park. I'm told the park was a great location for a car show. Clean restrooms and plenty of trees to provide shade.

The Flywheels Hot Rod Club plans to make this an annual event. To see more photos from the Flywheel show, click here.

Mechanicsburg First Responders Car Show:

Ohio State's football home opener has generally been the first Saturday of September so I've never been able to attend the Mechanicsburg First Responders Car Show until this year.

The show is held on Main Street (Route 29) north of Route 4 all the way to the Route 29/559 junction. Main Street south of Route 4 is used for overflow parking. And this year the show needed every bit of overflow parking as it registered well over 200 cars.

I arrived in Mechanicsburg around 11:40 AM (registration opened at 11 AM) and I had to park at the very end of Main Street right at the Rt 29/559 junction. It was just about a quarter-mile walk from my car to the fire station to register. My advice is to arrive early if you want to park anywhere close to the action.

I didn't see a lot in the way of food vendors. Although to be honest I wasn't looking for any. I know there was food available at the fire station and there were a couple of refreshment stands. I know this because I bought ice tea at one.

The awards were a combination of custom-made and traditional trophies. There were a good number of special awards like Mayor's Choice, Most Original, Farthest Traveled, Best Engine, etc, along with "Top 45" trophies, a Runner-up Best of Show, and a Best of Show.

Runner-up Best of Show went to Sam Parks and his 1948 Chevrolet Pickup. The orange 1946 Ford Coupe belonging to Robert Kirst from Mansfield, Ohio took the Best of Show honors.

If you'd like to see more cars from the Mechanicsburg show, click here.

Auto Smarts Cruise and Ride at Ten Pin Alley:

Dan "Boots" Longenette and Pepsi's Auto Smarts Radio Cruise and Ride team were in Hilliard, Ohio Saturday at the Ten Pin Alley bowling establishment.

The show registered 82 vehicles. Dale Pearce and his 1950 Chevy 3100 pickup took The Best Truck Award. Best of Show went to Aaron Denney and his 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass 442.

The Italian Gathering:

On my way to the Dublin A.M. Rotary Classic Car Show on Sunday, I stopped by Wendy's International Headquarters in Dublin, Ohio to take some photos from the Italian Gathering. Boy, could you smell the money!

The event is organized by Evans Automotive and proceeds go to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and Wendy's Wonderful Kids.

This is the first year that owners of the British manufactured McLaren could participate in the Italian Gathering. Personally, I think the organizers should relabel it the Exotic Gathering and allow the Porsches, Jaguars, and any other high-end foreign-manufactured cars to participate. I bet it would be a huge event.

Click here to see more photos from the Italian Gathering.

Dublin A.M. Rotary Classic Car Show:

After a year off because of Covid, the Rotary Club of Dublin A.M. held their second annual classic car show on Sunday in the public parking lots off Bridge Park Avenue in Dublin, Ohio.

This year the show registered 103 cars. The DJ again was Jason Nester, who in my opinion is one of the top two or three DJs in the area. Elvis was also in the parking lot along with the Poodle girls. The biggest complaint I heard was the lack of food vendors. If you wanted something to eat or drink the only choices were the restaurants adjacent to the parking lots.

The Dublin A.M. Rotary presented 30 "Favorite" trophies and a Best of Show. The Best of Show Award went to Mark Richmond with a 1967 Volkswagon Karmann Ghia Coupe.

Click this link for more photos from the Dublin A.M. Rotary Classic Car Show.

American Legion Southway Post 144 Labor Day Car Meet:

Big Dawg and the C-Town Cruisers were in south Columbus, Ohio on Monday hosting the Labor Day Car Meet at the American Legion Southway Post 144.

The American Legion Southway Post 144 is one of my favorite venues for a car show. It sits back off of South High Street. There's a long driveway to a big parking lot. You can park on the blacktop or you can park in the grass. There's plenty of shaded areas to escape the sun. What's really nice is the members of Post 144 appreciate the C-Town Cruisers hosting car shows at their establishment.

Getting back to the show, 90 cars registered Monday with another 10-20 cars showing up but not registering. Big Dawg presented trophies to the "Top 40" cars along with a Best Truck Award, a Best Rat Rod/Most Potential Award, a Most Patriotic Award, a Club Participation Award, the Larry Bickers Memorial Award, and a Best of Cruise.

The Larry Bickers Memorial Award went to Mike and Sandy Gibson and their 1947 Buick Super Convertible. The 1957 Chevy Bel Air belonging to Tom and Lynn Verfaillie took the Best of Cruise honors.

To see more photos from the show, click the link below.

American Legion Southway Post 144 Labor Day Car Meet photos

I received a few photos from Monday's West Jefferson Ox Roast Car Show that was held in Garrett Park in West Jefferson, Ohio. It looks like the event registered around 140 cars. According to the flyer, there were trophies for the "Favorite" 35 and a Best of Show. If anyone knows who took the Best of Show Award or has information on any other shows in the area this past weekend, please feel free to post in the comments.

That's it for this week. I think I set a record with 520 photos taken over the three-day weekend. Whew!

I want to thank Dale Pearce, Cathy, and Mark Krist, Jeff Shankle, and Bryan Lewis for their help making this report.

Central Ohio Car Events for June 14 – 20, 2021 2

Kim Hawksworth06/14/202102/15/20232 Comments

1936 Chevy Master Deluxe Coupe
Owner: Emma Pond

Just when you thought the Central Ohio car event schedule couldn't get any busier, it does just that. If you can't find a show or cruise-in close to home this weekend, you may need to seek the help of a professional. Let's hope the weather cooperates for all these events.

NEWS AND NOTES:

I received confirmation last week from two readers that the Vintage Auto Club of Delaware has officially disbanded. I've removed First Friday at Freddy's from the list of ongoing events since it's no longer an organized event.

The Vintage Auto Club organized and hosted the Blast from the Past Car Show in downtown Delaware, Ohio from 1994 through 2016. They were instrumental in making the show one of the largest car events in Central Ohio.

With the threat of rain along with hot and humid temperatures, the Thursday evening cruise-in at Der Dutchman in Plain City, Ohio only registered 85 cars. I've got to admit, the pre-2018 attendance figure on Thursday was rather refreshing. The place can get a little crazy when 300 plus cars show up.

The Creative Automotive/Advanced Auto Parts Show in Marysville on Friday evening raised more than $150 for the Marysville Food Pantry. Here are this month's award-winning cars:

1969 Corvette Stingray
Owner: Joe Prince

The 1970 silver and black Buick GS belonging to Jeff Fortner won Best of Show honors Saturday at the Upine Biker Bash, Car Show, and Cruise-In at Farrows Harley Davidson in Sunbury, Ohio. Rhett Ricart, CEO of the Ricart Automotive Group, was there with his 1939 Cadillac and LS3.

The big winner this weekend was Sam Parks' 1948 Chevrolet pickup. It won Best of Show honors on Saturday at the Hilliard Historical Society Car Show and turned around and took the same award on Sunday at the Empty Pockets Cruisers Spring into Summer Show. Sam has been all over Central Ohio with his truck this season. It's a spectacular vehicle.