photos by: the author
GM EFI Magazine Visits the 2017 Hot Rod Super Nationals
Some may not know this but GM EFI Magazine is based in Northeast Ohio, an area where muscle cars, hot rods and the occasional import roams the streets during the summer months. Being in a part of the country that’s demographically more blue collared and relatively old-school, it’s the perfect place to get some of that Midwestern flavor.
There are of course, plenty of car shows and events to attend, but one in particular has been essentially revived; the Hot Rod Super Nationals. Located just outside of Youngstown, Ohio at the nearby Canfield Fairgrounds, the Hot Rod Super Nationals could very well be the largest locally and independently operated automotive event in all of Ohio.
It has undergone new ownership over the course of the last year, and with it, came a completely different way of running the event. This year brought the discontinuation of musical acts, which lowered costs substantially.
A mere $25 got you into the event with you, your car and a passenger for the entire weekend. Alcohol was eliminated this year, which with the help of the new Kids Town, provided a much more family friendly environment and ultimately attracted a more car-specific crowd.
Kids Town was filled with movie cars, monster truck rides and bouncey castles for the little ones. A high performance swap meet was a great attraction for us older guys and there was dyno completion and a burnout contest.
This year, the three-day event was limited to just two, as the thunderstorms on Friday completely squashed the turnout, however, the Car Gods were on our side Saturday and Sunday, as the clear blue skies resulted in record-setting turnouts.
The venue packed in over 50,000 spectators and event participants alike, and brought out all of the local car clubs, several great vendors, including Summit Racing, Mongosse Motorsports and many others. Of course, we had our own display as well, with Timeless Muscle and GM EFI Magazine project vehicles on hand for show-goes to take in.
Due to the weather, the kickoff party and Friday’s afterparty were canceled, but like the event itself, the afterparty on both Saturday and Sunday was simply amazing. The event organizers initially had planned on having 600 spaces preordered, but the overflow made that number insignificant, as over 2.000 cars had filled up the Southern Park Mall parking lot and surrounding areas.
With bigger plans and more vendors eager to line up for 2018, we have a feeling that it will be an even bigger event next year. See you there!
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of GMEFI Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the brand’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next modifications for his own cars.
