The Detroit AutoRama is set to happen on Feb. 26-28 at Detroit’s Cobo Hall. The show is one of the premier indoor car shows in the country and is home to the much coveted Ridler Award. The Ridler is the biggest honor that can be given to a custom car and the field of contestants is normally stacked with incredible cars that represent the best work from the best hot rod and custom shops in the country. Outside of the Ridler contestants there are hundreds of awesome cars ranging from mild to wild. It’s a bucket list event.
The history of the show is directly linked with the history of hot rodding in Michigan. In the early 1950s, hot rod clubs in the state banded together in the hopes of raising enough money to built a real, dedicated drag strip. It was the same movement that was happening all over the country, when hot rodders felt that their activities had outgrown the runways and industrial venues that served as the first strips in the country.
Naturally, the guys came up with the idea to host a car show. They’d charge admission and use the money to built their strip. For just over a buck a piece to get in, they opened the doors to the University of Detroit gym which was chocked full of cars, and collected the green. The show moved to Cobo Hall in 1961 and has been there ever since.
According to a story on DetNews.com, event organizers are expecting 900 cars total at the show. Admission is slightly up from $1.25 to $15.00, but with that much cool stuff on hand, we’d say the price is fair. Plus, it is an awesome excuse to escape the winter doldrums and gawk at hot rods.
Click Here to see event information from the Michigan Hot Rod Association.
Source — DetNews.com — AutoRama rises high from humble beginnings
