This year marked the 38th annual Mid America Ford and Shelby Nationals event in Tulsa, Oklahoma. So it was about bloody time we finally got around to attending. What we experienced over a few hot, humid days in middle of June was likely one of the biggest, best organized, and most enthusiastic gatherings of the Ford and Shelby faithful on the 2012 calendar.
Given the event's historically strong Shelby influence, it is perhaps no surprise that Mid-America features road-course hot-lapping sessions rather prominently on its schedule. Hallett Motor Racing Circuit--a challenging, but blessedly forgiving, 1.8-mile, 10-turn race course a few miles west of Tulsa--is the primary venue for at least a couple of the event's five days. On-site at Hallett, there was even a Team Mustang driver's school to familiarize newbies with the track.
Since Hallett was virgin territory to me, I took the opportunity to get some on-track pointers from Scott Hoag of MRT, in one of the '13 Boss 302s that Ford had on hand. Rough duty--at least for Scott. Both Ford and Shelby American are major sponsors of, and participants in, the whole event. And their representation is far from static--both companies' products were out there vaporizing tire molecules at every opportunity.
And it's not all turn and burn. Mid-America's schedule also includes a full day of competition on the super-sticky quarter-mile strip at Tulsa Raceway Park, along with a scenic Friday evening, 10-mile cruise downtown to take over a few blocks of Tulsa's quaint Brady Arts District, plus a huge Saturday evening banquet at the host Marriott hotel (this year featured Henry Ford III as keynote speaker), parts swap meets at these various venues, and finally an all-Ford Sunday car show sponsored by Classic Design Concepts. In other words, the Mid-America Ford and Shelby Nationals pretty much has something for Stangthusiasts of every, uh, stripe, so if you can find the time next year...
Horse Sense: If any of this piques your interest, keep an eye on www.midamericafordteamshelby.com. To have run now for 38 consecutive years, you know these guys are doing something right.
Scenes like this are not unusual...
Scenes like this are not unusual at the Mid-America Ford and Shelby Nationals, as here a field lines up for Friday's late-model exhibition race at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit. Hot-lapping is a staple at Mid-America, with sessions broken down into various classes so that everyone from absolute beginners to Ricky Stenhouse Jr. wannabes can join comfortably in the action. But wait, there's more...
This is a thoroughly immersive...
This is a thoroughly immersive event, as demonstrated by this shot taken in the lobby of the host Marriott Southern Hills hotel. Yes, the hotel lobby becomes a showroom. The hotel's generous parking acreage was also site of Sunday's wrap-up car show (which we missed due to scheduling conflicts).
Show attendees were never...
Show attendees were never stationary for long. The road course saw everything from mildly prepped classics like this Fox Saleen (complete with bra to avoid track rash) to dedicated race cars and everything in between.
And we mean everything. A...
And we mean everything. A road course was likely the last place we ever expected to see an off-road-specialized F-150 Raptor, but this one ripped around Hallett at full steam for a couple days before heading to Tulsa Raceway Park to tear up the quarter-mile with equal enthusiasm on Saturday. And yes, it was likely at the car show, too.
Another truly odd sight was...
Another truly odd sight was this Richard Petty '69 Torino Cobra stock car that was naturally right at home on the curves of Hallett, but also came out to make pass after pass down the quarter-mile.
On Friday evening, those who...
On Friday evening, those who were so inclined joined up in a police-escorted cruise to fill up a few cordoned off blocks of Tulsa's Brady Arts District, a scenic area chock full of interesting pubs and eateries.
Vendors were set up at the...
Vendors were set up at the road course, drag strip, and car show. Among the many suppliers set up on vendors' row at Hallett was longtime handling-meister, Kenny Brown, with his new GT4-RS on display and on track. It's great to see Kenny back in the game after health issues had him sidelined for so long.
We were able to grab some...
We were able to grab some laps in this Gotta Have It Green Boss that Ford had on hand, reminding me once again what staggeringly forgiving track monsters these things are, whether in "regular" or Laguna Seca guise. Where's the lottery when you need it?
We stumbled into one of those...
We stumbled into one of those eateries only to discover that representatives of the Mustang Brewing Company (who knew?) had wisely chosen to set up shop at a nearby table. They subsequently sold scads of both their primary product and company merchandise including Mustang-branded T-shirts and glasses to a highly receptive crowd.
Shelby American brought along...
Shelby American brought along its potent but nicely understated 1,000hp car. It remained on static display, but the company's GT350 demonstrator tore up the tracks giving demo rides almost non-stop, with Shelby's Director of Fun, Gary Patterson, at the wheel.
Ford also brought along this...
Ford also brought along this pair of '13 GT500s, and between the road course, dragstrip, and cruise event, they hardly sat still all weekend.
How's this for a well-attended...
How's this for a well-attended banquet? Over 700 of us packed into the Marriott's ballroom for some fine gnoshing, a few entertaining speakers, and a heck of a selection of sponsor-supplied door prizes.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet...
Ladies and gentlemen, meet Henry Ford III, who came out to the event to rack up some on-track GT500 and Boss 302 seat time at both Hallett and the quarter-mile before his appearance as keynote speaker at the event banquet. The personable Mr. Ford is an enthusiast and truly one of us--his weekend toy is an '08 GT500KR.
The event's official pace...
The event's official pace car at Hallett was MRT's TKO Mustang. The TKO won an Outstanding Design award at the 2011 SEMA show, and its ProCharger-blown 3.7-liter V-6, coilover suspension, and Baer brakes were well up to the task of pacing the field.
Henry's weekend at Mid-America...
Henry's weekend at Mid-America also included strapping into the shotgun seat of one of Hodge Ford's Cobra Jets for a quick trip down the strip, after which he signed autographs, posed for photos with fans of the cars that bear his family name, and made some quarter-mile passes of his own in company demonstrators.
Summary? If it's an interesting Ford, you'll likely find it at Mid-America.