Another Record Breaking Year at the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals

It could be said that national car events are declining in popularity, but that's only the case if you're looking at stale event formats that have done the same thing at the same place for dozens of years. A fresh outlook on the national car event subject is the Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals, held at historic Beech Bend Raceway Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky. This event just finished its third year in operation, and it is without a doubt the fastest growing car event in our market. When the idea was first brought up by Chris Sondles, he had high hopes and a great team behind him. Since that first event, the Tri-Five Nationals has continued to grow, with participants from every state in our great country, as well as participants from 14 other countries! This year's total number of cars was 2,717, which is remarkable when you consider that we're talking about Chevrolet passenger cars built in 1955, 1956 and 1957. This three-year run is undoubtedly a popular platform to build upon, and anyone who argues that point has never seen the Tri-Five Nationals. The facility at Beech Bend Raceway Park is huge, offering space for a massive car show, swap meet, quarter mile drag racing and of course, vendors like Coker Tire. We have supported this event from day one, by sponsoring a special parking area for restored original cars. We also offer an award to our choice of the top car sporting our tires. And for 2017, we sponsored the Give-Away car (a 1957 Chevy gasser) with a set of Firestone bias ply front tires and Firestone Dragster cheater slicks. Along with Firestone tires on gassers, we spotted TONS of BF Goodrich bias ply tires, as this was the original brands and style available in the 1950's. We also saw our share of BF Goodrich Silvertown Radials, and American Classic Bias Look Radials while we made our rounds through the show field. By the time we reached the end of the event, we had selected Carl and Pat Tortorige's 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air four door hardtop as the "Coker Tire Choice Tri-Five" pick. This car was restored to perfection, and rolling on a set of our BF Goodrich 750-14 bias ply whitewall tires. Take a look at our favorite photos from the show and see the magnitude that only three years of a classic American car can bring into the collector vehicle hobby. [caption id="attachment_8717" align="alignleft" width="780"] Yes, that is the 2017 Tri-Five Nationals Give-Away car roasting the Firestone Dragster cheater slicks![/caption] [caption id="attachment_8720" align="alignleft" width="780"] This beauty is sitting pretty on a set of our American Classic bias look radial whitewall tires. Hard to beat the lines of a '57 Bel Air hardtop![/caption] [caption id="attachment_8735" align="alignleft" width="780"] It doesn't get much simpler than this 1955 Chevy 150 sedan, sporting a set of our Firestone bias ply blackwall tires.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8730" align="alignleft" width="780"] Corvettes are also a part of the crowd at the Tri-Five Nationals. This one has an incredible history and has been a gasser for a LONG time! It's rolling on period correct Firestone rubber.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8718" align="alignleft" width="780"] The racing action at the Tri-Five Nationals was insane! With nearly 200 cars doing battle, and a handful of exhibition cars, there was plenty of cool stuff to see, including wheelstanding gassers that brought the crowd to its feet.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8727" align="alignleft" width="780"] The crowd was diverse, with restored cars, survivors, gassers, pro touring cars, and more! With a total of 2,717 cars on hand, it was hard to see 'em all![/caption] [caption id="attachment_8726" align="alignleft" width="780"] Yes, this is a real thing! It's called the El Morocco, and it was a factory type conversion that gave Chevrolet convertibles, coupes and sedans a bit of Cadillac flavor. Only a handful of these cars existed and one of them was on display in the Coker Tire 60 year Celebration of the 1957 Chevy! The tires? Of course, they're Coker![/caption] [caption id="attachment_8722" align="alignleft" width="780"] Mustard & Custard is the nickname for this unique color combination offered in 1956. This Bel Air two-door sedan is an extremely rare piece, as it was special ordered with a 245 horsepower 265ci small block Chevy engine from a Corvette. This was a COPO car before the term was coined during the muscle car era.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8737" align="alignleft" width="780"] Carl and Pat Tortorige from Quincy, Illinois took home the Coker Tire Choice Tri Five award, and rightfully so! Their 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air four door hardtop just rolled out of the shop after a six-year restoration. The paint quality was second to none and the car was perfectly detailed. Of course, our favorite part was the BF Goodrich Silvertown bias ply 750-14 whitewall tires![/caption] [caption id="attachment_8738" align="alignleft" width="780"] Carl and Pat wave to the crowd of thousands during the awards ceremony at the 2017 Danchuk Tri-Five Nationals in Bowling Green, Kentucky.[/caption]