Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the meet continued to thrive, adding road racing and attracting notable figures like Carroll Shelby himself. The event's popularity grew, drawing participants from across the country and expanding its activities to include car shows and special events. Over the years, the Mid America Shelby Meet became a cornerstone event for Ford and Shelby enthusiasts, fostering new friendships and a vibrant community centered around a shared love for performance Ford vehicles.
This year’s 2024 event marked the 50th anniversary of the Mid America Ford & Shelby Nationals, showcasing the remarkable growth of this event. What started in 1974 as a simple picnic gathering has grown into a 5-day event, filled with great motorsports and automotive events.
Wednesday - For those who made it early on Wednesday, attendees could enjoy a Memorabilia & Mid Amercia Reunion at the Claremore Expo Center. While at the Expo Center, you could get your registration knocked out early to save some time on race day.
Thursday - If you have attended Mid-America in the past, you know Thursday & Friday revolve around Hallett Motor Racing Circuit. The two-day road racing event kicks off on Thursday with an open track event and parts swap from 9:30am - 5:00pm. The fun doesn’t stop there. Back at the Claremore Expo Center, food trucks, live music, and great people gathered for the Street Part and Cruise In from 6:00pm - Dark, rounding out the first official day of motorsports activities.
Friday - Friday is Day 2 of open track racing at Hallett, giving everyone from first time racers to 20 year veterans a place to learn and showcase their road racing abilities. A highlight of the Friday track day is the Vintage Exhibition and Late Model Exhibition where seasoned veterans duke it out in both Classic and Late Model class road races. Similar to Thursday night, attendees gathered for a Dessert Mixer Friday night at the Claremore Expo Center where they were treated to great food and guest speakers.
Saturday - Saturday was a day for cruising and drag racing. The Saturday cruise in Woolaroc Wildlife Preserve and Museum in Pawnee, OK kicked off at 8:00am, giving attendees a laid back drive to start their Saturday. At 3:00pm, Tulsa Raceway Park opened for drag racing registration and a swap meet. The swap meet went on until 10pm, while the Time Trials ran from 4:00pm to 7:00pm. An hour long dinner break allowed for the track to be prepped for eliminations in both the regular and Powder Puff classes. After eliminations, awards were presented at the Base of the Tower.
Sunday - To close out this amazing weekend, the Mid America Cars and Coffee was help from 8:00am to 1:30pm at the Claremore Expo Center. During this time, food trucks served up some amazing food, door prizes were given away, and a final swap meet took place for attendees to find some hard to find parts.
LMR & Shelby Mid America
While the Shelby Mid America team was celebrating their 50th Anniversary this year, we here at LMR were also celebrating a historical milestone, our 25th Anniversary. The history between Mid America and LMR dates back to 1989, 10 years before Shannon Guderian, owner of LMR, created Late Model Restoration.
Shannon has always been in the industry, even as a young teen, attending events and watching the Mustang progress over the years. When he was 17, he attended his first Mid America Shelby Meet, solidifying his passion for not only road racing, but Mustangs as a whole. Over the years, Shannon has instilled this road racing passion in our employees and has worked with the organizers to allow our employees to experience road racing first hand. Each year, a handful of employees make the 6 hour trip to Tulsa to push our cars to the limit, trying to beat our previous times while teaching first-time attendees how to road race.
This event is more than just a race day for us. It is a time for us to gather not only as employees, but as friends and mentors to experience our shared passion first hand. We can’t thank the Mid America team enough for putting on this event and keeping the Ford Motorsports passion alive. We would like to personally thank Jim Wicks, David Apgar, and Randy Roberts for their continued help throughout the years.
On-Track Photos:
