The Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals Blasts into Bowling Green

More than 2,500 Classic Chevrolets Roll Into the 7^th Annual Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals

By Tommy Lee Byrd – Photography by the Author

David Laird took matters into his own hands by creating a ’57 Chevy 150 convertible, a model that never existed in factory form. The vibrant green paint grabs your attention while the Roadster Shop chassis offers a great stance and an LS3 provides the power.

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This ’55 Chevy 150 sports a psychedelic paintjob and tons of period-correct parts for a ’60s gasser. Jenny Moses owns the wild Tri-Five, which features a high-winding small-block, backed by a five-speed manual transmission.

The final act of the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals is calling out the winner of the giveaway car. Woody’s Hot Rodz knocked this one out of the park, with a cool ’60s theme that features Impala bucket seats and console and an LS engine dressed as a 409. Tim Boisture of Sacramento, KY, is the new owner of this fine ’55!As summer winds down and the kids prepare to go back to school, car show season intensifies in the Mid-South. The NSRA Street Rod Nationals kicks off August, and the following weekend is the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals held at historic Beech Bend Raceway Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky. 2022 marked the seventh rendition of this incredible event, a car show and drag race, that brought more than 2,500 classic Chevrolets into town. The idea of focusing strictly on ’55, ’56, and ’57 Chevrolets allows like-minded enthusiasts to converge each year for the world’s premier Tri-Five event.

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Sometimes, the right stance and tire and wheel combination overrides shiny paint and custom bodywork. This ’55 Chevy Bel Air is proof of that concept, with an excellent stance, staggered wheels, and an LS engine swapped in place of the old 265.

Russell Trzebiatowski owns this incredible ’56 Bel Air convertible, which features C5 Corvette suspension, an LSA supercharger, and 4L80E overdrive transmission. The paint- and brightwork are flawless on this top-down cruiser.

There are classes for all manner of drag racers, from street cars to gassers and everything in-between. This ’57 Bel Air made quite a few passes down the historic quarter-mile dragstrip and looked great doing it.

The Beech Bend Raceway Park facility offers plenty of parking for car show participants, drag racers, and spectators, and it’s easy to find shade on the beautiful property. This year’s weather was warm and sunny, encouraging a huge crowd throughout the three days of activities. The event kicked off on Thursday and featured a special drag racing program after the sun went down. Friday and Saturday had packed schedules, with drag racing exhibitions, regular drag racing classes, as well as access to dozens of vendors and a huge swap meet. Thursday’s car show area featured a special section that paid tribute to prior Lokar Top 25 winners. Then, Friday featured a special area where cars would be judged for this year’s Top 25. After those cars were selected, they parked in another special parking area, where the Top 25 would be narrowed down to the Top 5 and finally down to the Tri-Five of the Year. The excitement surrounding this event’s award program keeps folks coming back year after year.

Part of the “wow” factor of the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals is the exhibition racers who put on a show for the thousands of fans in the covered grandstands. Boyd Howe is in the near lane while Mike Bilina adds a little extra style to his wheelstand.

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Some might think the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals is repetitive, due to the three-year-only criteria, but cars like this super-fun ’55 Chevy 210 prove otherwise. The aged paint is flaking, but this car has tons of personality thanks to the old-school visor and U-Haul storage container up top.

Bruce Ricks brought his Steve Cook–built ’55 Chevy out of hibernation, and it looked right at home on the show field. With an Art Morrison chassis, Baer brakes, and Boyd Coddington wheels, this car stands the test of time and landed a Lokar Top 25 award.

Whether you like restored stockers, sky-high gassers, Pro Touring builds, or anything in between, the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals has it all. Take a look at our highlights, including the coveted Tri-Five of the Year award winner, and lots of great Tri-Fives that grabbed our attention on the show field and the dragstrip.

Tri-Five Nationals

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