Timing Tower

47th ANNUAL WESTERN STREET ROD NATIONALS, April 26-28, 2024, Bakersfield, CA

admin — Tue, 23 Apr 2024 04:13:56 +0000

FRIDAY – UPDATE The 47th Annual Western Street Rod Nationals opened on Friday, April 26, 2024 in the Kern County Fairgrounds. And the weather forecasters were wrong – predictions of rain and wind did not materialize in Bakersfield. The day was sunny, with a few clouds, and the temperature was around 70° Couldn’t ask for anything better. The event registration on Friday was about the same as it was last year on Friday – about 1,000 cars. Saturday is, however, the big day and, no doubt, tomorrow the fairgrounds will be full again. Below are a few of the cars we saw today: The entertainment started around 6:00 pm with Orphan Jon and the Abandoned performing live. Although the band was excellent – the main attraction was the cars and trucks. The cars will keep on coming tomorrow. We’ll be back at the fairgrounds tomorrow and will post again tomorrow night. Take a look again to see more of the fine cars and trucks that will be at the show. ————————————————————————————————————— The 47th Annual Western Street Rod Nationals will be held in the Kern County Fairgrounds, Bakersfield, CA on April 26-28, 2024. Registration for the show will take place at the Doubletree Hotel, 3100 Camino Del Rio Court, Bakersfield beginning on Thursday, April 25 from 12 noon to 6:00 pm, Friday the 26th from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturday the 27th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Throughout the week-end there will be comercial exhibitors, a swap meet, Women’s World, kids games, live entertainment and cruising on Friday and Saturday, The Streets of Rods will be held on Saturday and on Sunday there will be an all denomination Church Service. Also on Sunday the award winners will gather in the Circle of Winners on Sunday before the awards ceremony. Nick Donovan’s Rockin Road Show will provide music all week-end as well as drawing numbers for prize giveaway.. Timingtower.com will be there for the week-end and will post on Friday and Saturday evenings with a full article and photos posted on Monday evening.

The post 47th ANNUAL WESTERN STREET ROD NATIONALS, April 26-28, 2024, Bakersfield, CA appeared first on Timing Tower.

DR. GEORGE CHARITY CAR SHOW, INDIAN WELLS CA, FEBRUARY 10, 2024

admin — Sat, 10 Feb 2024 05:38:00 +0000

The 21st Annual Dr. George CHARITY CAR SHOW was held on February 10, 2024 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, Indian Wells, CA. There were 1,100 pre-registered vehicles and many vendors in the Tennis Garden. At 9:00 a.m. the gates opened to allow spectator entrance and thousands of people were added to the Tennis Garden. After all the rain during the month of February, nice weather for the week-end seemed iffy, but on Saturday the sky was blue and the sun was shining. As always, the Dr. George Show attracts some of the very best and most unique vehicles. The show kicked off with singing of the National Anthem and presentation of the colors by Marines from the Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Command and Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms. After that the music started and was provided by the Flash Back Boyz. Bob Beck was on hand to serve as announcer and kept everyone posted about the day’s happenings, including the annual pedal car races. The cars were lined up for review prior to the racing. But once the racers took to the track the racing was non-stop. The racers were very focused on the job at hand. Once the pushers got the cars started it was up to the drivers to finish the job. While they couldn’t all win, they all had fun. All the racers took home a trophy, but the winner got the big one. The pedal car races have become an annual event and a good fundraiser. Once the races are over the kids surrender their race cars which are then auctioned off. Renowned pinstriper Von Hot Rod served as auctioneer. Not all the pedal car action was on the track, however. Ale brought her own pedal cars – maybe she’s getting in shape for next year’s pedal car races. While Ale liked her fire engine, she was partial to her lowrider. She no doubt got that preference from her uncle Alexis Avila who took home the Best of Show Lowrider trophy. One very notable car at the show was the 1936 Ford Roadster owned and built by Danny Hale. Danny worked as a body and fender man throughout his career and he is very good at it. This remarkable car started as a coupe and was a roadster by the time Danny was done. To accomplish this transformation and keep the body proportions, Danny shortened the frame. This car was a contender for America’s Most Beautiful Roadster at the Grand National Roadster Show in 2023. Below is a photo of Danny with his Best of Show trophy. Well Done! Two AA/FD Nostalgia Top Fuel Dragsters were on hand and fired up twice creating a crowd pleasing cackle fest. Throughout the day, raffle tickets were being sold and there were silent auctions. All of the funds raised by the show and it’s many activities go to benefit the Desert Cancer Foundation. The show takes its name from Dr. Sebastian George, co-founder of the Desert Cancer Foundation. Dr. George was a local oncologist and was known for helping those battling cancer, even if they were unable to pay. There was plenty of time to walk around the Tennis Garden and see all the cars and trucks on display – and there were some nice ones. There were also cars with a story. This 1956 Ford pick-up shown below belongs to Don Freymiller. Don’s son built this truck for him for his 80th birthday. What a gift and it took home a trophy. Don is very fortunate to have such a caring son and such an outstanding pickup. Some cars, like Todd Frazier’s 1955 Chevrolet, 2-door post, is painted to remind him of his career in the Navy. The light gray is the color of the hull of the troop transport ship he served on, the dark gray is the color of the deck of the ship and the red stripe is the color of the Captain’s gig (a 30′ power launch for the Captain’s use). A great car and a trophy winner. And one car served as a memorial to Nick Nigosian, a member of the Palm Springs Cruisin’ Association and a friend of the owner of this car. And more of the nice vehicles at the show: Below are the trophy winners at the Dr. George Show 2024. BEST OF SHOW – 1936 FORD ROADSTER BEST OF SHOW LOWRIDER BEST OF SHOW – SPECIAL INTEREST The three cars shown above took home “Best of Show” trophies. But there were many more trophy winners. Below are photos of the award winners. This show was another great show put on by the Palm Springs Cruisin’ Association. Next year the show will be held on February 8, 2025. Put the date on the calendar and watch for the pre-registration announcement. This show is so popular entrance is by pre-registration only. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ FRIDAY, FEB. 9, 2024 The 21st Annual Dr. George Charity Car Show sponsored by the Palm Springs Cruisin’ Association takes place on Saturday, February 10, 2024 in the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, CA. The Tennis Garden has room to show 1100 cars and the Dr. George Show fills the Tennis Garden every year. This show is so popular attendance is sold out by pre-registration only. Today (Friday) provided a hint of what tomorrow will hold. On Friday attendees can obtain reserved parking by going to the Tennis Garden, obtaining a stake with a name tag on it from the registration desk, and pounding the stake into an available parking spot. This system makes parking on Saturday morning easy. It also provides a chance to see some of the cars that will be in the show on Saturday. Below are a few of these cars. Tomorrow will bring, not only a lot more cars, but also […]

The post DR. GEORGE CHARITY CAR SHOW, INDIAN WELLS CA, FEBRUARY 10, 2024 appeared first on Timing Tower.

THE 74th GRAND NATIONAL ROADSTER SHOW, FAIRPLEX IN POMONA, FEB. 2-4, 2024

admin — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 04:43:12 +0000

The 74th Grand National Roadster (GNRS) Show opened at noon Friday, Feb. 2, 2024 and the winners were announced on Sunday night. AMERICA’S MOST BEAUTIFUL ROADSTER Beth Meyers’ 1932 Ford Phaeton took home the trophy for America’s Most Beautiful Roadster 2024. The winning roadster was built by Roy Brizio Street Rods. THE AL SLONAKER MEMORIAL AWARD WINNER David Rush’s 1959 Chevrolet Impala “Bespoke” is the winner of the Al Slonaker Memorial Award for 2024. “Bespoke” was built by Steve Cook Creations and has a 518 ci LS3 engine built by Don Hardy. Below are the contenders for America’s Most Beautiful Roadster and the Slonaker Memorial Award. Following the photos of the contenders is compete coverage of the show. This year there were nine contenders for the title of America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) – 8 Fords, 1 Chevrolet; 8 ’32’s and 1 ’34. DUECES RULED THIS YEAR! Four of this year’s contenders were owner-built – James Butler’s 1932 Ford; Bob Mansonen’s 1932 Ford; Ken Thurm’s 1932 Ford; and, Ramin Younessi’s 1934 Ford. This 1932 Ford Phaeton belongs to Ken Reister of Littleton, CO. A 1932 Ford Phaeton belonging to Beth Meyers from Skippak, PA. Mekenzie Murphy of Loveland, OH owns this 1932 Ford Roadster. This 1932 Ford Roadster belongs to Bob Mansonen of Auburn, CA. A 1934 Ford Roadster owned by Ramin Younessi from Fort Collins, CO. A 1932 Ford Roadster owned by Ken Thurm of Orange, CA. A 1932 Ford Roadster Pickup owned by Gary Holyoak of Cedar City, UT. James Butler of Prescott, AZ owns this 1932 Ford Roadster. Dale Short of Henderson, CO owns this 1932 Chevrolet Roadster. The eleven contenders for the Al Slonaker Memorial Award are shown below. Clifford Mattis from Vacaville, CA owns this 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible. This 1961 Ford Unibody Pickup is owned by John Lamb from Seneca, IL. Ed Ganzinotti owns this 1956 Ford F-100 pickup. Ryan Vicklund of Anderson, CA owns this 1967 Chevrolet C10 pickup. Rod Pearce of Granite Bay, CA owns this 1957 Chevrolet convertible. This 1972 Chevrolet C10 pickup is owned by Mark DeAtley from Phoenix, AZ. Arno Aldhoch of Chatsworth, CA owns this 1968 Dodge Charger. David Rush from Oklahoma City, OK owns this 1959 Chevrolet Impala. This 1934 Pickup built by Pete and Jakes is owned by Bill Paul of Bucyrus, KS. Ed Ganzinotti owns this 1969 Dodge Charger. Steve Rajcic of LaHabra, CA owns this 1931 Ford Victoria. It was partly sunny throughout the week-end and a number of cars showed up for the drive-in. As usual there were some very interesting cars in The Suede Palace. The GNRS was host to some long lost cars such as the Cop Shop Coupe, a 1934 Ford built by Tom Prufer, unseen for 15 years. The Uncertain T disappeared in the mid-70’s and stayed under cover for nearly 50 years. It was originally built by Steve Scott and is now owned by Galpin’s Beau Boeckmann. This car was displayed in it’s barn-find state before it is restored. These two vehicles represent 50’s and 60’s style hot rods that graced the pages of magazines such as Rod and Custom. Pete and Jake’s Hot Rod Parts brought the original California Kid ’34 Ford coupe built by Pete Chapouris and Jake’s original ’34 Ford Coupe built by Jim Jacobs. Both cars were built in the early ’70’s and were featured in Rod and Custom magazine. This year Pete and Jake’s celebrated it’s 50th year in business. The theme of the GNRS this year was Street Machines Then and Now. There were several buildings featuring a variety of unique cars and motorcycles such as the Renteria Bros. Pro-Mod dragster. There were 20 Lincoln Zephyrs and they varied from completely stock to radically customised. The red Zephyr below was brought to the GNRS by the Peterson Automotive Museum. As in past years, over 30 artists participated in the Pinstripers’ Gathering. A Pinstripers’ Auction was held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday where the art created by these talented individuals went up for auction. The proceeds from their work generated $56,000 for the charity Teen Challenge of Southern California. Even though the forecasters threatened rain for the week-end, many people came to the Fairplex and were rewarded with a great show. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Grand National Roadster Show (GNRS) will be held February 2-4, 2024 at the Fairplex in Pomona, CA. The GNRS has announced the inductees into the Hall of Fame. The photo below shows the 2023 Slonaker Award winner. HERE’S THE LATEST INFO ON THE UPCOMING GRAND NATIONAL ROADSTER SHOW. timingtower.com WILL BE AT THE GNRS THROUGHOUT THE WEEK-END AND WILL HAVE FREQUENT UPDATES, INCLUDING PHOTOS OF AMERICA’S MOST BEAUTIFUL ROADSTER ON SUNDAY NIGHT. WHAT: Hundreds of the country’s finest hot rods, customs, lowriders, muscle cars, trucks and motorcycles will take center stage at the 74th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Grand National Roadster Show, presented by Meguiar’s. More than 500 hot rods will fill the Fairplex buildings, while another 500-800 vehicles will join the event each day for the annual Grand Daddy Drive-In. The legendary show will be highlighted by the debut of dozens of incredible custom cars competing for two of the industry’s most coveted and competitive awards: America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) and the Al Slonaker Memorial Award. And you don’t want to miss the high-horsepower salute to “Street Machines: Then & Now” in the feature building. WHEN: Feb. 2-4. The Grand National Roadster Show opens to the public Friday, Feb. 2, from noon-8 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 3, from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 4, from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. WHERE: Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W McKinley Ave. Pomona, CA 91768 WHAT TO EXPECT: America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) Award Contenders: Nine roadsters will compete for one of the most coveted awards in hot-rodding history, […]

The post THE 74th GRAND NATIONAL ROADSTER SHOW, FAIRPLEX IN POMONA, FEB. 2-4, 2024 appeared first on Timing Tower.

DESERT CLASSIC CAR ASSOCIATION FAMOUS PLANES, CARS AND CHILI COOK-OFF

admin — Sun, 29 Oct 2023 04:09:52 +0000

The Desert Classic Car Association held its annual Famous Planes, Cars and Chili Cook-off on October 28, 2023 at the Palm Springs Air Museum. This is a charity show for the benefit of the Palm Springs Air Museum. The show was held in and around the hangers of the Museum and the entry fee to the event included admission to the Museum. To make things even more fun a P51 Mustang and a T-6 Texan were in the air and providing rides for those who wished to book a flight. P51 T-6 Although the C47 Skytrain was sitting on the tarmac, it was having some mechanical problems and was grounded. C47 There were a lot of outstanding cars on display including this 1940 Ford pick-up shown below. This is one nice Oldsmobile 442. And, of course, every car show must have a fire truck. This is a panorama showing some of the cars at the show. There were some unique specialty cars like this Vanderhall Speedster on display. This Pulse Autocycle was another unique vehicle. This vehicle designed by Jim Bede is number 288 of 360 such vehicles made between 1985-1990. It is powered by a Honda Goldwing 1100 motorcycle engine. The Pulse originally lacked a tail structure and this vehicle has been customized to include a tail. Mr. M&M arrived in style in an outstanding 1957 Chevrolet and brought Halloween treats with him. One noteworthy airplane on display is a reproduction of the Boeing-built B-17 Flying Fortress known as the Memphis Belle. While the original plane is in the National Museum of the United States Air Force, the B-17 in the Palm Springs Air Museum was created for the 1990 movie “The Memphis Belle”. After successfully completing 25 missions during World War II, the plane and its crew returned to the U.S. and were used to promote the sale of war bonds, The reproduction sports the nose art of the original Memphis Belle which was so-named to honor the fiance’ of Captain Bob Morgan. Also depicted on the fuselage are 25 bombs representing the 25 missions flown by the Memphis Belle. The yellow stars above the bombs represent the missions on which the Memphis Belle was the lead plane of the bombing wing. The eight swastikas painted below the bombs represent the Nazi planes the Memphis Belle shot down. Throughout the day attendees were allowed to visit all of the museum’s planes including it’s new addition – an F-117 stealth fighter. Although the Air Force retired the F-117, part of the fleet is currently maintained in airworthy condition. Not all of the planes were housed inside the hangers, there were a number of planes outside. At 11:00 am the chili cook-off started. There were six stations offering samples of chili. Each station had chili from a different recipe. Tickets for the cook-off were $1 each or 6 for $5. With one ticket you could get a taste of one type of chili or a soft drink. Hard to pick a winner of the cook-off since all of the stations were offering very tasty chili. Just prior to the award ceremony, the colors were presented and the national anthem was sung. This overview photo was taken by the Riverside County Sheriff’s office personnel which were on-hand to showcase some of the equipment used by the deputies in their high-tech mobile command center. Spending the day at the Palm Springs Air Museum looking at some fine cars and planes was the perfect way to spend a perfect day in the desert. This was great event and we plan to be back again next year.

The post DESERT CLASSIC CAR ASSOCIATION FAMOUS PLANES, CARS AND CHILI COOK-OFF appeared first on Timing Tower.