You will get to see old-time drag racing, a huge car show and a swap meet. It’s like a three-ring circus of hot rodding and tire smoke.
“We had 480 drag cars and show cars last year,” explained organizer Ed Crowder, “and I’m expecting more this year. There’s a lot of folks who haven’t been able to get out to shows and races and they’re raring to go. We also had over 1,500 spectators (last year).
“There are classes for Sportsman, Modified, Nostalgia and Grandpa, which is for drivers over 50-years-old,” Crowder said. “Plus, new this year is the Modified class for manual transmissions only. The fans love the racing the way it started so many years ago.”
Don’t think for a minute the drag racing is for only a trophy and nostalgia: the Buckeye Super Stock Eliminator will take home $1,000, and Old-Time Drags eliminators (for cars built before 1987) will pocket $350.
For the car show there will be Lowes goodie buckets and trophies awarded for the top 50 cars and trucks. There will also be a special display of 10 vintage drag race cars that all competed at Kil-Kare.
“The most famous of the show cars is the Jerry Ault Corvette that won more races at Kil-Kare than any other car,” Crowder said. “The car is fully restored and now owned by Rex Turner from Richmond, Kentucky.”
Some of the others include Fred Hurt’s Opel A gasser, Harold Liter’s Super Stock Barracuda, Malcolm Berry’s Studebaker wagon and the Karns-Lopez modified Corvette.
Grand marshal for the event is Dave Cottrell Jr., and the 2020 Geezer of the Year Award will be presented to Dave Cottrell Sr. Twenty-three other people will be inducted into the Kil-Kare Hall of Fame in the afternoon.
The gates will open at 8 a.m., timed runs on the drag strip will begin at 10 a.m. and eliminations will start at 2:30 p.m. It costs $25 to drag race, $20 to show a car or set up a swap table, and spectators are $15.
Masks are encouraged, and the rain date is Sunday, Aug. 23.
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