Weekend Rewind! Goodguys 34th Speedway Motors Heartland Nationals
Goodguys brought the sizzle and hot rodders brought the spark to a spectacular summer holiday weekend in Iowa as we celebrated automotive freedom at the 34th Speedway Motors Heartland Nationals at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines! This is one of our favorite event weekends of the year and enthusiasts from around the region and across the country came together once again to deliver some figurative fireworks in the form of vibrant cars and trucks, fun friendships, and the Goodguys Good Times that come when you bring them together!
Every good holiday celebration deserves a pre-party, and the early festivities for this one began with a fun Thursday Poker Run visiting shops and stops around the Des Moines area. By Thursday evening, the festivities had moved to the West Des Moines Marriott host hotel, where hundreds of people gathered to share stories, catch up, enjoy a few beverages, and get excited for the weekend that is the Heartland Nationals.
The Friday fun was off the charts at the fairgrounds, with lots of cruising and sunshine, plus fun Fourth of July activities like an apple pie baking contest, watermelon eating competition, and even a pinup girl contest. The fun spilled over into Saturday, when the fairgrounds was jam packed with even more cool old iron. Despite persistent showers that came and went throughout the middle of the day, participants and spectators alike had big smiles on their faces as the good times continued to flow.
During breaks in the rain, Andy Leach from CAL Automotive Creations was able to make his rounds in the Builder’s Choice area to select a Top 10 lineup for the event. From early street rods to mid-’60s muscle, his selections showcased a variety of style and the craftsmanship, attention to detail, and high quality expected from today’s top builds.
Those same qualities could be found in the finalist selections for all six of our regional Goodguys Top 12 Awards presented by BASF. This included Dennis Albaugh’s ’67 Yenko Camaro as the Snap-on Muscle Car of the Year finalist, John Vanderhulle’s ’69 Camaro as the Griot’s Garage Muscle Machine of the Year finalist, Curt Wittman’s ’55 Chevy Cameo as the LMC Truck of the Year Early finalist, Jim Rezac’s ’65 GMC as the Dakota Digital Truck of the Year Late finalist, Jimmy Hervatin’s ’52 Ford F1 as the Scott’s Hotrods ’N Customs Custom of the Year finalist, and Buck and Rose Wright’s ’58 Corvette as the Vintage Air Custom Rod of the Year finalist. The Goodguys media team selected Pete and Lavon Weber’s Deuce roadster as the Goodguys Feature Pick.
The action on the Goodguys AutoCross track was hot and fast all weekend, too, even with rain on Saturday delaying the start of the Optima Batteries Duel in Des Moines shootout. Josh Leisinger and Robby Unser duked it out at the top of the Speedtech Performance PRO-X class, with Leisinger ultimately taking both the class and shootout wins. The Summit Racing PRO class was split, with Tyler Gibson earning the class win and Kurt Chenoweth securing the shootout victory, while Andrew Chenoweth claiming double wins in the Forgeline Street Machine class. The remaining classes all saw double class-and-shootout wins, too, including Tony Kuatek in the Sports Car class, Jesse Voss in the No Limit Engineering Truck class, Whitney Voss in the Challenger class, and Mark Golovin in the All American Sunday class.
As one of the biggest events on the Goodguys calendar, the Heartland Nationals is packed not only with cars and trucks, but also with activities. There was a huge indoor Swap Meet and Cars 4 Sale Corral, a large Goodgals Gallery, radio-controlled car demonstrations from the Central Iowa RC Addicts, valve cover races, the AutoWorld Family Zone, monster truck rides and demos, multiple Summit Racing Nitro Thunderfest exhibitions, a huge Burnout Competition, live music, and of course, our traditional Saturday night Fireworks Extravaganza to celebrate our nation’s independence.
Weekends like this one remind us why the Heartland Nationals is an annual favorite on the calendar and such a longstanding Goodguys tradition. The event blends all-American flavor, down-home fun, a fantastic fairground, patriotic spirit, and a celebratory attitude, plus the cool cars and trucks provided by enthusiasts like you. Thanks for making it another delightful year in Des Moines! Let’s keep the summer Good Times vibe alive and get ready for another great weekend ahead as the 27th Summit Racing Nationals presented by PPG rolls into Columbus, Ohio this weekend!
Photos by Damon Lee and Terry Lysak
