As I'm the new guy and hadn't been to the NSRA Street Rod Nationals before, it's natural that I should get the job of reporting on the event, though I have to say I'm struggling to accept attending events without a car of my own. With that said, deadlines mean airplanes are a sight quicker than cross-country road trips. Plus the only car I have on the road apart from my daily is the '49 Chevy, and that's too new for Louisville. Of course, we magazine types all look dead cool cruising the fairgrounds in our golf carts. Yeah, right!
So, with literally thousands of rods to get 'round, it's a good thing we do have a golf cart. And with all that heat and humidity-wow-the vendors building sure looks inviting with its A/C. Then you start checking out the rods and kinda forget the humidity. OK, that's a lie, but only a small one. There were some great rods out there and four days suddenly didn't seem like anywhere near long enough to see them all properly and check out all the vendor booths. So, early starts and late finishes were the norm.
Not counting the tires or radiator hose, the newest piece on John and Susie Cooper's ex-sport coupe dates from 1962.
It quickly became apparent that many of the nicest cars in attendance were painted black, plus we collectively made a conscious effort to search out non-Fords, and non-'32s in particular, as this year seems to have reached saturation point with the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the '32. However, it can't be denied that Fords are the predominant marque, and, as such, you'll see some in our coverage.
I mentioned big luxury rods in my editorial last month, but boy were there a lot of them at Louisville. And four-doors-more than I thought still existed! But what I found neat was the number of rods that have obviously been built for a few years and were still in use. Sure, they often didn't have the latest trendy wheels or sit as low, but there's something cool about driving the wheels off a car you built yourself and enjoying it. These ain't no trailer queens, but honest to goodness drivers. And there were plenty of 'em in Louisville.
Just as there were plenty of vendors. The Kentucky Exposition Center is one big building and it was overflowing with vendors! It was the perfect place to compare products from different manufacturers in person, which I'm sure is what many people did before purchasing what was right for them.
So whether you wanted to check out new products, compare existing ones, visit Women's World or tech seminars, drool over stunning cars-many magazine feature cars and national award-winning rods were on display in the Builders' Showcase in the lobby of the Exposition Center as well as those outside-or just kick back with your car club and enjoy the festivities, there was room for it all.
There's pretty much no bad way to build a '36 three-window, but this is our favorite. | 
A sign on the Cad motor in Drew Strunk's '32 five-window read, "25 hour trip to Kansas for body, 3 years planning, 1 Caddy engine, 8 SW '40s gauges, 3 months sleepless nights, 16 bent or broken pushrods, here at the '07 Nats ... priceless." |
The '46 Olds grille is prime kustom fodder, but here's the complete car, and don't it look neat? Michael Beilman slammed it, added wide whites on chrome reverses, and dropped a serious big-block between the battleship gray fenders. | 
Yeah, we know it's not a fresh car out, but Paul Brewer's '60s-style '34 pickup warrants close inspection. |
The Broke Bunch Car Club seems to like '48 Plymouths, with this fine pair displayed together. |  |
We really dug the Plymouth grille on Steve Hager's '46 Ford convertible. It looked exactly like it belonged there and really changed the look of this understated kustom. | 
As stated in the text, we were on somewhat of a mission to find non-Fords and non-'32s in particular-a chore helped no end by quality rods such as MJ Hionis' '37 Chrysler Airflow. |
The black, orange, and cream color combo continues into the interior of Jeff Waldeier's heavily whacked and channeled A coupe, with orange piping, paint detailing, and 'flake steering wheel. | 
What's this? Good question, and one that Jeremy Bach must have answered hundreds of times over the weekend. |
Despite the obvious lack of fenders and running boards on Eric Hill's '34 pickup, the only deviation from stock sheetmetal is the louvered tailgate. | 
The LaVoy brothers out of Monroe, MI, own this pair of Fords, though that's the only similarity. |
Louisville local Bruce Borne brought along his chopped 'n' channeled '30 A sedan, the zoomie-headed Hemi and slicks announcing that this was no pampered street rod. | 
Don't call Kirk Brown's B Line Special a rat rod, because it's way more than that, featuring super trick air suspension at both ends, coupled to a traditional split 'bones 'n' I-beam front and vintage Winters stock car quick-change rear. |
The swap meet was pretty healthy, with obscure parts to complete cars. This '34 five-window caught our eye, with a chopped body on a factory frame, 454 big-block and TH400. |  |
It's hard to ignore anything with a Hemi and shorty pipes, but even more so when it's as nice as Chris Vannarsdall's '30 A pickup. | 
With its shorty grille shell and those headers, there's a subliminal "American Graffiti" thing going on here, even down to the six twos, though admittedly there are a couple o' carbs too many. |
Three-windows are supposed to be the Holy Grail when it comes to '36s, but this five-window works just fine for us. | 
Jim Ragle piloted his not-quite-tribal, not-quite-traditional flamed '48 Chevy from Cincinnati, OH. It wears suede purple and way less stainless trim than when it left the factory 60 years ago. |
The '26 T body is narrowed, though the cartoonish proportions are com-pounded with the use of a big ol' quick-change out back and those huge headlights up front | 
There were an awful lot of killer black rods at Louisville, including Barry Boon's Flathead V-12-powered Model A phaeton. |
Locals Larry and Sara Sneed brought out their '39 Ford four-door convertible, exuding a subtle kustom vibe thanks to a chopped top, whitewalls, and 'caps, not to mention a healthy altitude readjustment. |  |
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