By Nick Licata – Images by the Author
When car show promoters dive into the second time running a highly successful inaugural event it’s typically done better, having learned valuable lessons from the first year. Well, when car show promoters Bobby Alloway and Gary Case made plans for round two of the Triple Crown of Rodding presented by PPG held at the Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tennessee, September 6–7, 2024, they gathered extensive feedback from attendees, vendors, and participants, and used that information to ensure their second event would run smoother, better, and hopefully much bigger than the first.
There was no doubt that the second Triple Crown event would be much larger than the first, as early vender and participant registration was up substantially from the previous year. Case and Alloway realized they had their hands full and would need to accommodate more cars, more vendors, and way more people. Early preparation ensured Triple Crown troops were ready to pull off another successful event; and they did exactly that.
The two-day event was open to all hot rods, street rods, street machines, classics, and customs up to 1972, and American-made trucks up to 1998. The 2024 Triple Crown brought in a car count of approximately 3,200—up nearly double from the 1,700 registered the previous year—and by all accounts the crowd attendance was up threefold from last year with over 20,000 people passing through the gates, proving that once word gets around about a well-run car show it’s sure to attract hard-core enthusiasts as well as the casual fan of “cool old cars.”
Some minor changes made to the layout of the event helped guarantee vendors, participants, and showgoers enjoyed an excellent car show experience. And once again many heavy hitters in the hot rod industry, including Chip Foose, Phil and Jeremy Gerber (Roadster Shop), Kyle Tucker (Detroit Speed), Jonathan Goolsby, Mike and Jim Ring (Ringbrothers), Dave Kindig, Troy Trepanier, Alan Johnson, Jimmy and Will Posy (Big Oak Garage), and many others were on hand either showing their latest automotive creations or participating in the Celebrity Meet & Greet (3:00-4:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday), offering fans the opportunity to meet their favorite hot rod builders and television personalities.
This year’s event unveiled a new interactive feature called “Share the Ride,” giving attendees the chance to jump into the passenger seat of a high-performance truck or muscle car driven by a professional driver. Those brave enough to strap in enjoyed an exhilarating, high-speed ride as they navigated an autocross course, which included a high-banked section of the Nashville Superspeedway. The huge smiles on the faces of those stepping out of the cars were impossible to miss.
Just as last year, there were over 40 stunning-looking awards created by various aftermarket companies being given out in recognition of the best hot rod and truck builds. The awesome Triple Crown of Rodding trophies, along with a Gibson Les Paul SG II guitar went to the Best Street Rod, Best Street Machine, and Best Street Cruiser. On the truck side, the Triple Crown awards and guitars went to: Best Truck up to 72, Best Truck 73-87, and Best Truck 88-98.
The event also included a 50/50 raffle with half the prize money going to one lucky winner and the other half going to the Gary Sinise Foundation, which honors America’s defenders, veterans, first responders, and their families. In a separate raffle a 2023 Chevy Silverado pickup and a BluePrint LS engine were up for grabs. In an unrehearsed moment, Chip Foose joined hosts Kevin Oeste, Tim Strange, and our own Brian Brennan on stage for an impromptu auction offering the highest bidder the opportunity to have Foose do a drawing of his or her car on site. This immediately got the hands up for a wild round of bidding. This act sparked a wave of generosity, with other companies and hot rodders donating to the Gary Sinise Foundation. As of this writing, the event has raised nearly $70,000, showcasing the hot rod community’s philanthropic spirit in supporting disabled veterans and those in need.
As is the case with most any classic car show, there’s never a shortage of fantastic Chevy muscle cars on hand, so All Chevy Performance was there to share with our readers images of the best Chevy muscle cars and hot rods we saw at the event, while at the same time supporting the best outdoor classic car show in the country.
The Triple Crown of Rodding’s sophomore year was successful beyond most everyone’s expectations as Gary Case and Bobby Alloway know cars, know people, and certainly know what it takes to put on an outstanding car show.
To learn more about the 2025 Triple Crown of Rodding, go to triplecrownofrodding.com.
We’ll see you there.
ACP
