Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Charlotte Autofair at the Speedway

Richard Petty will be on site to meet and greet his many fans. Here's what the official website has to say:

Seven-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Richard Petty will greet fans on Saturday, Aug. 28, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the Carolina Carports vendor space in the Manufacturers' Midway during the Food Lion AutoFair. 

We'll be there too! And we'll have "Service Fit For A King" on display, both framed, unframed and as a Gallery Edition Giclée Canvas ... might be a good time to get it autographed by the King himself.

Service Fit For A King

We'll be showing Michael's work along side the classic car invitational display. Looks like we'll be in pretty good company. Scheduled for the weekend's activities:  the world's only collection of street legal bumper cars, a 70th anniversary display of 1940 Fords, custom vans and recent The Tonight Show guest 92-year-old Rachel Veitch.

The Food Lion Autofair runs August 26-29th at the Charlotte Motorspeedway. Hope to see you there. — Linda

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

The Mopar Nationals at the National Trail Raceway in Hebron, Ohio

It was HOT at the Mopar Nationals this year. And I don't just mean all those Dodges and Plymouths! Don't get me wrong, there were some pretty amazing cars on site, including a nice collection of Vipers. But I'm pretty sure the temperatures reached over 105 degrees. Let's just say, it was a toasty automotive event.

VIEW FROM OUR TENT AT THE MOPAR NATIONALS IN HEBRON, OHIO

We were in our new location (L4-5) this year., which worked out perfectly for us. Instead of looking across the aisle at tools, we had a great view of a couple of Petty wing cars and a smaller view of the beginning of the staging lanes for the drag strip. So, for once, I got so see a lot of cars. Usually, Michael goes out exploring, admiring, photographing and shopping, while I "man the booth."

We also had a chance to meet up with some friends (old and new) as well as visit with Mopar Enthusiast  Editor Geoff Stunkard, who we'd seen last at the Wellborn Muscle Car Museum during the Wing Car Reunion in October 2009. He's going to be including a bit about "They Came With The Farm Too" in this year's November issue. Thanks Geoff!

If you're a fan of the Amos Automotive magazine line up, you've probably seen a copy of Muscle Car Enthusiast February 2008. If you haven't, it's worth looking out for. You may even want to contact the magazine and see about a back issue. It's a favorite issue of mine, because it featured "Opens At Eight" on the cover and they ran a supporting article about Michael in the magazine ... very cool!

MUSCLE CAR ENTHUSIAST CHALLENGER COVER

It's been a busy August for us, with the end not in sight yet. We are off to North Carolina to exhibit Michael's paintings at the Autofair. We'll be set up along side some pretty rare rides in the invitational automobile exhibit. If you have one more car show in you this year, stop on by and check out the cars and Michael's art! See you there. — Linda

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Bothwell Car Show and Swap Meet Sponsored by Old Autos

I think I've mentioned before, that we might be considered a gear head family. This past weekend definitely speaks to that truth! Instead of taking it easy, hanging out on the home front, on one of the only non-working weekends we have this summer, we packed up the kids and headed for the annual Bothwell Car Show and Swap Meet in Bothwell, Ontario. It's brought to us by the folks at Old Autos.


About a 3 hour drive from our home, I have to say, it was a lot of fun. The swap meet held some great buys; Michael lucked out and found a spare wheel for our 1971 Pontiac Firebird Formula (apparently we didn't have one). I found some nifty collectible elephants for my mom's 74th birthday. Our daughter discovered auto related signage for her bedroom door (85 mph speed limit), and our son wheeled a sweet deal on a couple of 'dubbed out', hot rod 1:18 scale vehicles. And, the kettle corn was some of the best we've had. Overall a great success. My only complaint ... we didn't win the 50/50. The lady who did, took home over $17,000. That's NOT a typo. It's one of the biggest pots around and people travel from far and wide just for the chance to take it home.

All was not lost though, on the way home, we stayed in London at the Best Western Lamplighter ... if you're ever in the area, I highly recommend it ... they really know how to treat their guests.

But, back to the event. The swap meet covers 2 days (Friday and Saturday), with a car show all day Saturday. I caught Michael checking out some pretty nice rides, including an Olds the same color green as the one in his newest painting, "Four-Barrel Four-Speeds with Dual Exhaust". And, I have a feeling he might have been getting come inspiration for the next one?!?!?

Checking out the Oldsmobile Cutlass.
Do we see a Sting Ray in the next painting?
We even ran into a couple of clients, showing off their cars at the event. See you in Kitchener at Moparfest in a couple of weeks! Speaking of Moparfest, if you go on the West Jet Festivals webpage, you can vote for Moparfest as your favorite Canadian festival ... very neat.

We're gearing up for our next event, the Mopar Nationals at the National Trails Raceway just outside Columbus, Ohio. I'm looking forward to seeing some more familiar faces and showing off some of Michael's work. If you're in the area, stop by and see us at C9-10 on the Manufacturers Midway. Safe driving. Take care. — Linda