The 2009 Annual Carlisle All-Ford Ford Nationals - Ford Fantasyland

Joe Bailer's '06 GT was one of many fine S197 Mustangs on display. Joe's GT features a Cervini's C-500 body kit, a Saleen blower, black center Bullitt wheels, and more.

Ford's Maverick was a big seller early on (just like the Mustang II), but as the model years ticked by the Mav's lightweight and slender looks were somewhat hindered by bigger bumpers and other changes, making the earlier "small bumper" cars more desirable.

Nonetheless, Ed Vogel took his '77 Maverick to the next level with a bunch of tasteful custom touches like body colored bumpers, custom backup lights, and Cougar taillights. Ed's Maverick took a Second Place award in '70-'77 Mavericks.

We don't often see too many Mustang IIs at general Mustang shows, but these rabid owners certainly pull together for the Carlisle All-Ford display every year with a great showing of stock and modified IIs. One of our favorites was Timothy Stetser's nicely modified '76 Cobra II. Show attendees must have agreed, as Timothy's II took home a Second Place award in the '74-'78 Mustang II class.

Of course with an event name like All-Ford, Carlisle isn't just about Mustangs. No doubt there's a huge Mustang display, but if your interest lies in other Ford vehicles there's still plenty to see; like Denny Rogers' immaculate '50 F-1 pickup, which took First Place in the pre-'80 stock truck class.

While we were still perusing the truck display area (and seeing everything from F-350 diesels on 44s to slammed Rangers) we spotted a rare ride indeed, the '79 F-150 "Indianapolis Official Truck" package. While it seems everyone knows about the '79 Mustang Indy pace car, few remember that the F-150 was there in a special graphics package as well. This one belongs to Brian and Lisa Sams.

Another group that makes Carlisle's All-Ford show a mini-meet of sorts are the Lincoln folks. From the performance-oriented Mark VII and mod motored Mark VIII to beefed up Town Cars and even a new MKS or two, these owners band together for a great time every year at Carlisle.

Every time we see a sweet looking Fox Mustang it just gives us more drive and determination to get off our butts and do something with our resident '90 LX hatch. Brandon Gibson's '90 LX notch certainly had it going on with killer paint, big-n-littles, a rockin' small-block, and the coveted black interior; nicely done Brandon.

As we noted in the opening text, Ford has been doing more and more with the Carlisle Event folks each year and for the second year in a row Ford had its testdrive display and new model demo stage set up by Gate 1. Kiosks allowed people to sign up for more information and get a free T-shirt, while Ford representatives talked up the crowds with specs and tidbits about the new Fords on display.

Right next to the Ford Drive One Tour at Gate 1 is the Carlisle Building G, an old John Deere dealership. Every year a specialty event or display is held in this area (CJ, Mach 1, and Boss reunions of past come to mind). This year the Carlisle folks had an invitational display of Ford GT supercars, including concept and development vehicles, the Falken Tire racing GT, a one-of-a-kind Sonic Blue with Centennial White stripes, and a display with Camilo Pardo, the GT's designer.

While there are plenty of vendors selling new parts for just about every Ford model on the show grounds, it's the thrill of the hunt that brings many people here to find that elusive rare option or non-reproduced part for their project.

Similar to the on-site installation setup Ford Racing had at the Mustang 45th anniversary show, the FRPP guys had techs from Fred Beans Ford spinning the wrenches for anyone looking to get some of FRPP's hottest parts installed. Also like the 45th show, the FRPP M-5230-S mufflers were flying off the shelves. You S197 guys need to hear these babies!

Carlisle's famous Building T is where the main invitational Fords are displayed every year. You'll find everything from late-model Mustangs to rare fullsize Fords, police cars, prototypes, and more. This year we noticed a nostalgia racing theme in Building T with Sam Auxier Jr's '69 Super Stock Mustang (that's Sam seated at the table for autographs) and "Fast Eddie" Schartman's '70 Maverick next to it.

Over the years Ford's SVT group has built some great cars, all of which have a devout following. From the '93 Cobra and first gen Lightning to the latest GT500, SVT owners had the option of displaying their ride in a special SVT parking area. We wandered around for more than half an hour checking out our favorite SVT models from the past 15 years.

Under the famous Carlisle grandstands is a section of indoor vendor spaces that many show attendees miss out on (unless running for shelter from the Friday rains). That's a shame, as we've seen all sorts of cool items over the years; from original race programs to die-cast cars and apparel. This year we took a quick trip through and stumbled across these awesome neon signs and clocks from Auto Etc. Neon (www.autoetcneon.com; (956) 425-7487).

Besides the popular vote awards, the Carlisle Events people hold a celebrity luncheon where people within the hobby, Ford representatives, historic car owners, and us media types all get a chance to bestow a celebrity pick award to any car in the general display area.

After careful consideration and walking back and forth between three possible winners, we finally chose Ron Larsen's stunning '86 SVO Mustang. While stock appearing, the SVO has been tweaked in several areas, including under the hood and a full suspension upgrade for weekend autocrossing. Ron must have been pretty happy come Sunday; besides our celebrity pick he also took home First Place in the '84-'86 SVO class too.