We're starting this story...
We're starting this story at the end, as Doug Wickline's blown 351-powered '55 Ford F-100 cruises its way through the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus as part of the Sunday parade of award winners.
Columbus is conveniently situated halfway between the Mississippi River and the Atlantic Ocean, and less than 300 miles from more than a dozen states. It is the capital of Ohio and for three days every July, the capital of the hot rod universe. The phenomenon occurs when the Goodguys PPG Nationals rolls into the Ohio Expo Center.
This is one of the best Goodguys shows of the season, and draws a huge number of participants-something like 6,000 rods, customs, classics, muscle cars, and trucks to be not exact. The PPG Nats is a magnet for elite-level show vehicles from the best builders. It also draws a huge number of grassroots, low- to mid-buck, owner-built rides. And with approximately 100 awards handed out on Sunday afternoon, the little guy has as good a chance of winning a prize as the big boys do. And for all those participants who couldn't care less about winning something and just want to show off their trucks and appreciate other peoples' rides-it's a guaranteed great time.
CCT was there for all our typical reasons-to fill our bellies with fairground food, wander through the massive assemblage of aftermarket vendors, sit through a tech seminar or two, dig for treasure at the swap meet, watch the competition at the autocross sponsored by Air Ride Technologies (now called RideTech), and photograph as many custom and classic trucks as we could, so you can see them too.
 Jim Smith from Street Customs...  Jim Smith from Street Customs was in Columbus to show off Richard Childress' '65 Chevy C10, which won the Hot Hauler prize. |  It's rebuilt from top to bottom,...  It's rebuilt from top to bottom, and is powered by a GM Ram Jet 502 tied to a Tremec TKO 600 five-speed. The black and red paint was inspired by Dale Earnhardt's #3. |  Bill Baron kept the hood wide...  Bill Baron kept the hood wide open on his mirror-finish '40 Ford to reveal the dressed-up 350. At the other end, Bill bolted up a Jag rearend. The interior is finished in neo-traditional style. |
 C-notches in the rear and...  C-notches in the rear and dropped spindles slam Roger Gaynor's '57 Chevy Stepside. |  The exterior was shaved of...  The exterior was shaved of brightwork, but the five-spokes in the fenderwells and the blown 496 under the hood provide plenty of shine to complement the tangerine finish. |  A contemporary treatment was...  A contemporary treatment was what Jim and Ann McGrew chose for their '69 Chevy CST project. The LT4 engine is tied to a 4L60 transmission. |