Iron Invasion - Chicagoland show Oct. 2012

Yeah, Doc is not cool, but his wife makes a killer potato casserole!

I hope that's dry enough for everyone!

 

I want to thank the Twisted Pistons Car Club for choosing my car for their "Best Engine" award. It is truly an honor. You can see the plaque being made in this thread:
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=8235709

 

I posted them in this thread >>> http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=741615

 

Josh that's a great photo of the award and the "recipient". Enjoy you deserve it.

Malarky its all good, cant wait to see you and your "tin Injun" again. Uh, Mercury was like the Cherokee god of corn or moccasins or somethin' right?

 

Wow, can't wait to see me? Why does that make me nervous? It's definitely not you size that makes me nervous

Wasn't he the god of travel or something? Oh well, beats the hell out of me. And I hope that's the only thing that beats the hell out of me...lol!

 

Excellent show! We had a great time. A good kick -off for a Pile-Up replacement...great job guys! We enjoyed the local town square, eateries and fun people. Hopefully we can bring a few more from old guys from Detroit with us next year AND a car or two. Hats off to all the volunteers...smiling, helpful and having a great time. Can't wait till next year!

 

This was a great show! I was glad to meet John at the gate when we pulled in. I shook his hand and thanked him for putting on the show. No words could greater explain the turn out, or the events. Can't wait until next year!

 

This show was awesome! I have been looking forward to it all year and I was not let down. It can be 10 degrees with snow next year and we will still be there. Great job To John and his crew

 

Awesome show guys! Thanks!

 

Took this shot from the bleachers with my trusty 3 megapixel camera.

 

It was great to meet you and again....hats off to an awesome Hot Rod. We couldn't imagine our trophy going anywhere else. BTY those are not our wives. LOL

 

Great job on the show. It was a little odd in the absence of the Pileup for us, but I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be in early October than the new Iron Invasion. Well done John and Co, well done. We all had a great time!

 

Had a blast!!!!!

 

Great job, John! I had to leave early for a family emergency, but I had a great time while I was there. I'm looking forward to next year!

 

Truly great show...... Lookn forward to next year....

 

Great time John. props to you and the militia. plus all the volunteers. cold schmold, its October..and thats alright by me...great backdrop to the event. even tho my gal froze her t*ts off in the pinup contest.
Good to see y'all and the new friends that I made. Convenience is the stores nearby for Friday late nite beer runs (and sack breakfast when waking up in your backseat ).

 

Great show well worth the freezing cold ride down. Want to thank the Twisted Pistons again for choosing my car for their Best Car award. There was alot of really nice cars at the show and i was truely shocked mine was choosen really appreciate it thanks again. Jeff

 

Had fun,got some deals,made friends,saw great cars!!!! ALL GOOD!!

 

It was a great show.. glad i got to be a part of it.. thanks! I can't wait till next year!

 

First time posting just wanted to say the show was great. And to the guy behind me on route 47, hope i did not get trans fluid all over the front of your car. A plug in my trans cracked and poured fluid all over the place. Cant wait until next year

 

...read all the posts on the Iron Invasion show, seems like everyone had a good time.

The Tin Butchers would like to thank the indoor and outdoor vendors, the swapmeet vendors, and all the car entries for showing up and supporting this event; without you guys there's no show.
All the "crew" helping to put on this show deserve a pat on the back.
Thanks to John for getting this whole deal going in the first place.
Had a great time!

 

IRON INVASION IS A SUCCESS!
Why? - Cause of the people involved.....

First - Thanks to the Good Lord Above for all the blessings - too many to count - the friends and those that we cherish in this community are incredible and I know that without some guidance from somewhere else...we simply would not be able to have such tremendous support.

Gotta give some huge thanks to Tin Militia - they were ALL going 90 to nothing for 3 days straight....There is so much that goes on behind the scenes that Mitch Huffington laid out - we are forever in his debt. He and his wife, Jenni, have taken this on as a major undertaking, and we are very happy that they are able to have such a positive influence on the show.

Andy Long and his wife , Jessica, were there the entire time helping out - and thanks for helping sell the shirts outside - we simply did not have the manpower to do it and you help make the event shirts roll on out the door. We appreciate it.

Marquardt- the big guy in Tin Militia that looks kind of intimidating - was running non-stop as well, and when we needed help getting the traffic out of the event - Mike was already on hand trying to get it all lined up. It is really difficult to get 3,000 cars out of one exit when they all want to leave at the same time.
Next year we will hire the local sheriff to start exiting cars at 1pm instead of 3pm. We just did not think people would leave so early....

The swap meet looked like it had the right vibe - and that is because the Tin Butchers were in charge! They were not letting in the Beanie Baby or tupperware sales - those people can set up anywhere - we want car parts ONLY. Does that make for a smaller swap? YES. But we would rather have 25 swap meet guys selling the right stuff than 100 selling new Hot Wheels and lawnmower parts. Remember that the first Torque Fest only had 8 swap meet guys. This past year we had over 100 spots sold and I suspect we will have even more in 2013 when we move to Dubuque.

The Half Fast crew were in the mix as well getting the word out as well as taking care of the motorcycles that showed up....since it was so cold - there were only a handful that actually made the trip. But next year it may be 80 degrees and we are overwhelmed with cycles.... ya just never know.

Robies Grading made sure that the stunt show aspect of the show was covered - coming out and getting the dirt groomed so no spectators wound up with a smashed face from a flying rock. Rob also helped to get the burnout plate in place. Not only is Rob a great guy - he is also a sponsor of the show. We hope that next year there will be more people to help with the entertainment of the crowds - cause ultimately it is YOU who we need to go out there and mix it up a bit. Also - next year we will add a bit of mud at one end of the dirt so we can get even more action in.

Locally, there was Mike V. and his wife Dawn, who helped out with all the paperwork, permits, municipality fees, and county bureaucracy....I have to say thanks for responding to my many calls of panic. Putting on a show in IL is WAY different then doing one in IA. And then at the show - Mike V. was great and his wife never complained about standing out in the cold... you are both lifesavers!

Rocky Hodges and Robin from Mecum were not only significant in getting the Chrisman Brothers coupe onsite - they also helped with tying up all of the loose ends that were unraveling all day long on Friday and Saturday. Rocky is my boss at Mecum and I look up to him quite a bit. One of these days I will be able to have that cool confidence that he does and not lose my temper....

Doug and Sherry (Justabeater on the HAMB) were in position from early morning to late at night....I am very thankful to have people like you helping out and are willing to go the distance. Obviously I listen to Doug since he is the one that told me about a little town called Maquoketa. Thanks Doug - we appreciate your suggestions and hope that you keep them coming.

Ol Skool Rodz and Car Kulture Deluxe were a sponsor of the show as well, and Alan Mayes came to the event to hang out. He is a super nice guy and we appreciate the support he has shown throughout the year to help get the word out about the event.

Harley Davidson was really nice for sending out koozies for the beer and we hope to have a long lasting relationship with them in the future.

The Woodstock Fire Department was super cool to come out and check the show out - and while they were there provide their services free of charge. This is typically a huge expense and we do not take their contribution lightly - it was a huge savings for the foundation.

The Merlin Award - sponsored by Victory Performance Parts - was given to the Edsel you see in the image above - super cool ride and we hope that next year even more people enter.

Of course a first time event does not just get 686 cars....there is a path that has been laid down by a group of individuals that have put in 10 amazing years - The Chrome Czars. Without their efforts over the past decade we simply would not be able to have this event turnout the way it did. Your continued support is humbling and we do not take it for granted. This applies to ALL the car clubs that came out to support this cause. Thank you and know that the gate proceeds this year covered the cost of the show...
this is great for a first time event. We hope that we can make an impact on families with children with congenital heart defects in the future. With your continued help we can make a difference in people's lives - people we know in this hot rod community.

Also - another big thanks to Keven Carter for formulating the initial concept, name, and artwork that were used for Iron Invasion - his mind is in tune to the history of hot rodding and it is easily seen in his work. Car-N-Art.com to see his work.....

And lastly - the family and friends. Our pals the Barbers came out from Iowa to help sell product - and we needed the help. Even their kids got in on the act selling coffee and candy! And the family that puts up with late night phone calls, meetings that take place out of town, and the overall chaos that takes over for the entire month before the show - Thank you.

Thanks to all the vendors, pin up girls, bands, car/cycle owners, and spectators that made Iron Invasion an event that will be a must attend for years to come.

Seeya May 3-5 - Dubuque IA
The Wells Family
http://www.vintagetorquefest.com/

 

Cool....so...when and where is "next years"?!

 

we are in contract negotiations with Woodstock....
seems everyone liked the grounds.
So we are trying to see if they will have us back.

 

Was my pick ass bad car there too!

 

I talked to 3 deputy sheriffs late Saturday afternoon, and asked them what they thought of the show overall, and how it was going. All 3 said things were going great, no problems, but all 3 said they were suprised with the amount of cars and people. I mentioned that there probably would have been even more cars and people if the day would have been a little warmer. They said I was probably right. They also said that as far as they were concerned, it was a very nice event, and would like to see the show return next year.

 

Just thought we would tell everyone it is official that the Iron Invasion will return to Woodstock IL Oct 11-12, 2013
Show will start in the afternoon of Friday the 11th most likely....
we will keep everyone updated.
Thanks for all the support.

 

good news!

 

it's good to see you were able to move it back a week to the second saturday in october, the same weekend as the pileup in the past. no more confliction with the newport hillclimb means maybe we'll see more people from downstate.