(Words and photos by Mike Brooks) – With the new year already in full swing, it’s only fitting that the indoor car show season gets going too. While Chad and Brian were on the West Coast for the Grand National Roadster Show, I held down the fort here in the Northeastern part of the country and headed to scenic Pittsburgh, PA for the 54th Annual Innovative Autoworks World of Wheels show. The show was held at the David L Lawrence Convention Center and featured all kinds of customs, hot rods, muscle cars, trucks, bikes, and more from the local area and all over the country. The place was packed with spectators as well! When we arrived for Saturdays events just before noon, the had to be at least 100 people outside waiting to get in. There was still a huge line of people waiting to get their hot rod fix and shake off the winter blues when we left after 7 p.m.

The energy inside the place was insane! Once inside, the realization that the wait was worth it was instant. Spectators had all the custom iron they could handle as well as opportunites to meet and greet celebrities like Farmtruck and AZN from the Street Outlaws show. Of course, one of the shows staples over the last several years was the display of cars from 2014 Drag Week unlimited class champion Jeff Lutz. Jeff, Jeff Jr. and crew are local to the Pittsburgh area with the shop located nearby. I took the chance to spend a few minutes with Jeff and asked what his plans for DW in 2015. His lips were sealed. “I can’t say anything about my plans yet”, said Lutz with a sly smirk on his face. Something tells me has a trick or two to pull out of his sleeve.  Another popular display was the Chop Shop display of the legendary Gene Winfield. He was busy slicing and dicing a custom rod using all the old school techniques that made him famous while dozens of onlookers admired. It was a great opportunity to see this artist go to work live in person. Things like this just scratched the surface of all the things there were to see and do at this great event. The hundreds of photos I took didn’t even cover all the great stuff that was there. Thanks to show organizers and convention center staff, I was also able to get access to the catwalks high above the shows floor for some overhead shots that really show the huge amount of displays, vendors, and spectators at this awesome event. I had an absolute riot at this years show and can’t wait to see what comes next!”