POMONA, Calif. – With a three-day festival of speed celebrating the American hot rod, the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum’s California Hot Rod Reunion, which takes places this weekend at Auto Club Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif., is a destination event for car culture lovers worldwide.
The family-friendly event returns to Bakersfield for a 28th year and has something for all fans, including quarter-mile nostalgia drag racing; a huge vendor area with the latest in speed parts and specialty equipment; a swap meet with vintage parts and memorabilia; hot rods, customs & muscle cars of all descriptions on display, and the famous Cacklefest on Saturday night. In all, the memorable weekend is filled with highlights that embody the California hot rod culture.
The California Hot Rod Reunion is also the final event on the NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Series circuit, which starts the year at the famed March Meet and finishes with the annual stop at this highly-anticipated race. Fans can see all the top names in nostalgia racing, including Top Fuel standout Mendy Fry, who has already clinched her second straight championship on the strength of four consecutive wins. She’ll try to add another in the loaded 14-car field that will includes three generations of drivers and four new Nostalgia Top Fuel dragsters.
In Nostalgia Funny Car, the championship will be decided this weekend in Bakersfield. Veteran Jeff Arend is the current points leader, but defending world champ Bobby Cottrell and Dan Horan are both within striking distance, setting up a marquee battle this weekend. Adding to the nitro-fueled excitement will be the title race in A/Fuel, where Kin Bates will look to reclaim his throne against young standout Drew Austin, who claimed his first championship in the class a year ago.
Overall, racers in 17 different categories will be competing for coveted Hot Rod Reunion trophies and for the Heritage Series Championship Wally trophies during the weekend.
The weekend also celebrates those who have dedicated their lives to the sport. The 2019 California Hot Rod Reunion presented by Automobile Club of Southern California Grand Marshal will be the vaunted King of the Northwest, Top Fuel great Jerry Ruth. Other honorees are Harry Burkholder, Mike Cook, Bill Dunlap, Phil Mandella and Gary Southern. The Honoree Reception takes place at the DoubleTree Hotel at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, and admission is free.
The popular exhibition push starts of classic dragsters also returns, and it’s all capped off by the famous Cacklefest on Saturday evening. Dozens of cars take to the track in a mass ignition of flame spewing, nitro burning dragsters. These classic ‘diggers’ are push-started and pass in front of the grandstands before taking their place on the track. The memorable display of historic nitro-burning machines is sure to thrill, and fans can join the drivers and crews up close on the track at the conclusion of the Cacklefest – a major highlight of the Reunion.
The Hot Rod Reunions are produced by the NHRA Motorsports Museum and benefit the facility located in Pomona, Calif. The 28th Annual California Hot Rod Reunion is proudly sponsored by Automobile Club of Southern California; Good Vibrations Motorsports; Racepak Data Systems; and Dynamat, who support the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum’s ongoing programs and events. The NHRA Motorsports Museum is a 501c (3) non-profit institution. The Museum’s mission is to celebrate the impact of motorsports on American culture.
The 28th annual California Hot Rod Reunion presented by Automobile Club of Southern California opens at 8 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 25, with Nostalgia Funny Car and Top Fuel dragster qualifying sessions taking place at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The third and final qualifying session takes place at 12 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26, with the first round of eliminations slated for 3 p.m. The static and push start Cacklefest parade and presentation follows at 6 p.m. Eliminations conclude on Sunday, Oct. 27.