This '67 Cougar had an unbelievable...
This '67 Cougar had an unbelievable red topcoat to it, even with the overcast skies.
Heading into the sixth event on the NMRA series roster, everyone-the promoters, the racers, the car-show attendees, and even the spectators-knew the NMRA had been on borrowed time. Escaping the rain that can ruin an event had been the NMRA's luck all season, but that luck nearly ended as the 28th Annual Nitto Tire NMRA Ford Expo at National Trail Raceway in Columbus, Ohio, got underway this past Labor Day weekend.
Rain fell Friday, canceling all race activities (the car show is held Saturday and Sunday only) and delaying Saturday morning's events as well. By the afternoon, though, the track was clean and dry, and the die-hard car-show attendees dried their rides and readied them for the show judges. Sunday was nice and dry, with plenty of sunshine for racers, show participants, and the spectators who returned to see the action.
The NMRA took over the Ford Expo event in 2005. A nostalgic show that has been going on for nearly 30 years, the Ford Expo now combines hot NMRA race action with the well-known event, giving attendees plenty of Ford race and show action. This year's event had several "mini-meets" within the main show, including the 11th Annual Y-Block Nationals & Shootout and the 4th Annual '57 Ford Gathering & Shootout, to name a few. Once again, we had photographer Paul Rosner head out to see what cool cars he could find. Check out the photos and coverage here, and we hope to see you at an '07 NMRA event soon.
 Some say the late '50s weren't...  Some say the late '50s weren't kind to the T-bird, but when built right, they still look cool. This '60 two-door had a nice stance and was super clean. |  Greg Moran of Frazeysburg,...  Greg Moran of Frazeysburg, Ohio, sprayed the Grabber Blue topcoat on his '70 Torino GT himself. The sano-clean GT sports the killer 429 SCJ with Shaker, a Top-Loader four-speed, a stock dual-point distributor, and a set of Hooker Super Comp headers. This is one mean-sounding big-block Torino, that's for sure. |  This '62 Falcon owned by Robert...  This '62 Falcon owned by Robert Hankinson of Baltimore, Ohio, has quite the little small-block under its rounded nose. A Cobra aluminum intake and a Holley 650 four-barrel handle the induction chores for the 289. |
 While early Torinos are becoming...  While early Torinos are becoming more difficult to find, its sister car-the Mercury Cyclone-and their variants are as rare as hens' teeth these days. This beautiful example is owned by Sam Lawson of Fredricksburg, Kentucky, and sports the venerable 390 FE big-block, a C6 automatic, and a 9-inch rear drivetrain combo. |  Another fine-looking Falcon,...  Another fine-looking Falcon, Marvin Scott's '64 Sprint coupe packs a late-model Ford Racing Performance Parts 5.0 roller-cam engine with GT-40 aluminum heads topped off by an Edelbrock intake and a Holley Avenger 670-cfm carb. The Falcon rides on upgraded suspension bits, including KYB shocks at all four corners, sway bars, and a Granada front-disc swap to help haul the Falcon down from speed. |  Remember the mini-meets we...  Remember the mini-meets we mentioned earlier? There was this great following from the Mercury Capri club at the Ford Expo. While many people think of the Capri as the Fox Mustang's sister, the German-based Capri was sold at Lincoln-Mercury dealers way back in the early '70s (1970-1977, to be exact), and there were some fine examples on display here. |