Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween. Today there are no tricks and I hope you will all see this as a treat. With our show season now officially over it's time for me to go back to the shows from throughout the year and post the photographs of cars that I didn't when I fist hit on that show. If that makes sense. That means for the next few weeks I'll be posting from the 6th Cruisin' To a Cure For ALS show held in Lawrenceburg. The show brought in well over 1000 vehicles. Among them was a sweet looking Ford Maverick (I had a very similar green one of these back in high school). Also a Chevy Greenbriar, a Honda, a Ford Torino GT, a 1966 Corvair, and a 1971 Monte Carlo.
 

Mid-Century Chevy Cars Were At the Pumpkin Run

Following the end of World War II it took the automobile industry a few years to re-tool and start rolling out newly designed cars. But by the 1950s new styles were flooding the streets. Chevy was no different and were offering three styles, the entry level 150, the mid-level 210 (seen here), and of course the most iconic, the Bel Air. The so called Tri-5 Chevys are a staple at most every car event and these were not rare at the 46th Annual Pumpkin Run Nationals.

The Blue Oval Was At the Pumpkin Run

Each year the Pumpkin Run Nationals hosted by the Fastiques Rod and Custom Car Club sections set aside for Chevy and other GM cars, all things MoPar, and, of course, for the Blue Oval. I believe that Ford County, as it is called, was the very first and so it's appropriate for this 46th edition to see so many cars sporting old Henry's name. Among them was a 1967 Galaxie XL, a pre-War coupe, two Customlines, a Victoria, and a Model T race car.

                                             

Willys Was On Hand For the Pumpkin Run

In 1908 John Willys bought a division of the Standard Wheel Company called Overland Automotive. He redubbed it Willys-Overland and by 1912 it was second only to Ford as the largest manufacturer of automobiles. He overextended by buying up several other auto brands and then the Depression hit Willys hard. To survive they sold off a lot of worthy assets. But World War II saved the company when the government chose their design of a General Purpose vehicle for the military. After the war the nicknamed Jeep was turned into a civilian vehicle and the rest, as they say, is history. But Willys made more than just Jeeps. In the 1950s they had a mild success with a compact passenger car called the Aero and many of those have been gleefully turned into hotrods.

A number of Willys vehicles, including a Jeep station wagon or two and an Aero along with a pick up truck and some Jeeps were on hand for the 46th Pumpkin Run Nationals. Here are a few of them

There Were Plenty of Trucks At the Pumpkin Run

There has been a growing interest in restoring, collecting and preserving old trucks over the past decade or so and it absolutely showed at the 46th Pumpkin Run Nationals hosted by the Fastiques Rod and Custom Car Club. And there were more than just your typical Chevy and Ford, though there were plenty of those on hand. There were offerings from International Harvester and GMC, including a Jimmy utility vehicle. There was even a Chevy cargo van.

Pontiacs Were On the Pumpkin Run Prowl

With well over 2000 vehicles on hand, all from 1974 or before, it is little wonder that the 46th edition of the Pumpkin Run Nationals sponsored by the Fastiques Rod and Custom Car Club saw a good selection of Pontiacs. Among them was a 1967 Bonneville convertible, a 1956 Star Chief, a 1962 Catalina, a Tempest convertible, a GTO, and a Grand Prix.

Charities Benefit From the Pumpkin Run Nationals

For 46 years now the Fastiques Rod and Custom Car Club has been sponsoring the Pumpkin Run Nationals in Owensville, filling the Clermont County Fair Grounds with old cars and trucks of every stripe. And while many see the purpose of this huge event that regularly draws over 2000 vehicles as a way to show off their own classic gems or to just come in and see them all, the real reason behind it is to raise money for charity. The primary charity has been the Shriner's Children's Hospital for which they have raised well in excess of one million dollars over the years. There are other organizations, such as the Earth Angels Foundation, that receives donations as well. Plus, various school and social groups run the various food stands to help support their own financial needs. All of these cars help a lot of people.

This past event saw some brilliant vehicles roll onto the fair grounds to help these charities. Among them was a 1965 Rambler American convertible, an AMC Javelin, a 1969 AMX, a kit car that nobody knew the name of but it wore a fiberglass body on a reinforced Volkswagen frame and had a Chevy small block engine, a Kelmark GT kit car, a hard top Rambler American, and a Ford Maverick.

Vettes Ran With the Pumpkins

The 46th Annual Pumpkin Run Nationals sponsored by the Fastiques saw well in excess of 2000 cars roll into the Clermont County Fairgrounds. Among them were, as could be expected, a fair number of Chevy Corvettes. Here are a few of them.