Goodguys Rod & Custom Association is cruising into Des Moines for the 34th Speedway Motors Heartland Nationals—the biggest hot rod party of the summer, stated organizers of the event in a press release. The event takes place July 4-6 and will fill the Iowa State Fairgrounds with vintage hot rods, classic trucks and specialty cars alongside live entertainment, vendors, autocross racing and more.
Organizers invite classic vehicles 1999 and older to take part on Friday and Saturday, while late model American-made and powered show cars of all years are welcome for Meguiar’s All American Sunday.
Saturday Special Parking Areas offer the opportunity for registered participants and their vehicles to compete for the top awards of the show, including Goodguys’ “Top 12 of the Year” finalist awards presented by BASF for Muscle Cars, Trucks and Custom cars. Andy Leach, of Cal Automotive Creations, will be on hand to pick his top 10 Builders Choice selections and the Goodguys crew will be handing out over 75 specialty awards through the weekend.
Additionally, there will be over 100 vendor and manufacturer exhibits, a huge swap meet, Cars 4 Sale Corral and the Goodgals Arts & Crafts Gallery.
Racing Action, the Nitro Thunderfest & Burnout Competition
Hot rods will cruise the fairgrounds all day, and then the Twilight Cruise on historic Grand Avenue on Saturday evening will be followed by Goodguys Saturday Night Fireworks Extravaganza. The event wraps up with a parade of award-winning cars and trucks at the Awards Ceremony at 2:22 p.m. on Sunday.