Carlisle Chrysler Nationals Sets Multiple Records in Pennsylvania
This year’s event named its first-ever female burnout champ, and had a record-setting 2,752 Mopar show cars.
The 2018 Carlisle Chrysler Nationals raised the bar and set the standard for future Chrysler events at the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds. Held July 13-15, the event welcomed guests rolling in from around the world.
This year’s event featured a record-setting 2,752 show cars spanning Mopar production history. There was also a star-studded guest list that including driver Bob Riggle, the Ramchargers and Golden Commandos race teams, Herb McCandless, Velocity Channel’s Dave Rea, Miss Hurst Golden Shifter Linda Vaughn and many more.
Carlisle Chrysler Nationals’ ’50 Years’ Display
Special car displays also offered a “wow” factor to the show, offering the best of the best via the general invitational display. The “50 Years of” display had the Dodge Super Bee and Plymouth Road Runner, as well some of the best 340 engine based cars anyone has ever seen. The Carlisle Expo Center hosted the Second Annual Hurst Nationals just two blocks west of the fairgrounds. It’s basically a “show within the show” that offered 100 or so Hurst-prepared and Hurst-equipped rides plus memorabilia, displays, guests and more.
Along with the guests and cool cars, there were seminars-a-plenty. Carlisle Chrysler Nationals had more than a half dozen sessions focused on everything from how to get your ride featured in a magazine to value trends of the Super Bee and Road Runner, restoration techniques and some great first-hand stories from the Ramchargers, Golden Commandos, McCandless, etc.
Burnout Contest
The sights and sounds of the event were palpable too, with engine revs, horn honks and tires squealing all weekend. Some of the best moments came from the wildly popular thrill ride program, while the Saturday afternoon’s burnout champion Kelly Wilson (pictured above) won a signed hat by NASCAR legend Richard Petty himself. Wilson is by far the first female ever to win the contest.
Guests were also treated with a special parade lap with Vaughn atop the famed Hurst Shifter car. Crowds gathered to watch this living legend parade by before taking a break for the annual celebrity lunch.
Prepare yourself for next year’s Chrysler Nationals by taking a look here. For more information on Carlisle Events, click here. Take a look at the gallery below for more Mopar madness.
