Friday First Look! 30th Speedway Motors Heartland Nationals Presented by BASF
We lit the wick on the Fourth of July weekend today in Des Moines as we kicked off the 30th Speedway Motors Heartland Nationals presented by BASF. It was a sun-filled, fun-filled Friday that brought the Iowa State Fairgrounds to life with cool cars, trick trucks, and thousands of hot rodders ready to let the good times roll!
We got an early start on the weekend on Thursday with a fun poker run around Des Moines that took us to some cool shops like Ace Body & Motor, Carnock Creations, and Karl Kustoms. Then there was an evening full of bench racing and catching up in the parking lot of the West Des Moines Marriott hotel.
The fairgrounds facility quickly filled up this morning as thousands of hot rods, cool cruisers, classic trucks, and other fine vintage rides. It was one of the best Fridays in recent memory – great weather, fun people, cool cars, and more. Goodguys CPP AutoCross Series racers were tearing around the track in anticipation of Saturday’s Duel in Des Moines Shootout presented by Optima Batteries, while deals were being struck in the swap meet and plenty of cruising was being done down Grand Avenue.
It’s looking to be an incredible Independence Day weekend here in Des Moines, with a lot more showin’ and shinin’ on tap, non-stop cruising, and activities ranging from a smokin’ Burnout Competition and live music, to several rounds of Nitro Thunderfest exhibitions. We’ll cap off Saturday night with our annual Fireworks Extravaganza before rolling into an action-packed finale on July 4 with Meguiar’s All American Sunday and our awards ceremony. If you’re anywhere near Iowa, you should come join us!
Photos by Damon Lee, Jason Lubken & Terry Lysak
