Shelby’s Hot Rod Roundup ” Beatersville Car & Bike Show ” 2013 Pick

Jody Smith’s Model A Ford our Beatersville Pick 2013

Jody & Heather Smith
Grand Haven, Michigan
Ford 5 Window Model A Coupe

The Beatersville Car & Bike Show is always on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend,but instead of the weather being hot and humid for the end of May in Louisville it’s very cool, a nice change for this show and I have a feeling the car count will be up this year.Beatersville is held in a very….I would say eclectic part of Louisville called the Highlands,it’s older buildings and shops nearby the Phoenix Hill Tavern where Beatersville is held just brings a really Kool feel to the event and I think represents the spectating crowd along with its participants really well.Shawn Blandford & Travis Coomer and their entire crew put on a great event since the first Beatersville in 2006,since that time the event has grown to over 500 Hot Rods and Chopper Bikes.Shawn does a great job working with the Phoenix Hill Tavern,Phoenix Hill Neighborhood Association along with local officials,this whole area was developed by German Immigrants in 1850,a community with diverse mix of business,Industry and Residence which provides a killer back drop for this Old School Hot Rod Event.
Again this year my son Cody and I set out for Louisville early to get a prime spot for our Shelby’s Speed & Kustom booth along with our Shelby’s Way…Bringing Awareness to Suicide Prevention,with the vendors booth all set up things started out pretty slow because of the early morning cold weather and threat of rain,but it didn’t take long…by 10:30am the parking lots along with all the street closers to fill up.This is by far our favorite event of the year…lots of Pinup models posing for pictures trying to collect votes for Miss Beatersville,great music coming from the Tavern not to mention some of the most supportive folks around of our Shop and Non Profit message Shelby’s Way.Cody and I where so busy sharing our Suicide and Mental Health message with folks who stopped by the booth to buy our latest Shelby’s Speed & Kustom Swag that the day was passing by…it was now 2:30 and we had not made our Shelby’s Hot Rod Roundup Pick.
In the last few years Cody hasn’t went out in any of these events to pick a Roundup winner……so this was as good as anytime for him to get started,I stayed back to run the booth and share conversation with all these great people.Well look here,Cody comes back with a huge grin and the camera after a couple of hours to show me his picks and try to make a decision,Cody had pretty much made his mind up on this sweet little 5 window Model A Coupe.I head over to the opposite side of the parking lot to take a look at this little Coupe and also share in some conversation,as everybody knows we take pics of the car,but our real purpose is to create a personal story of the owner/ builder letting him share his family,time,tragedies and special moments in his or her life,giving all our readers the perspective of others life’s and that we are all the same,we all have ups and downs…that’s how we grow and learn none of us are immune from hurt,death and sorrow.I believe hitting walls and getting scars make us who we are and with the loss of our son Shelby has brought me where I am today traveling to Hot Rod Events and the Drag Strip sharing Suicide Awareness and my thoughts on how we can prevent these deaths.
Now I am pretty mad at myself because I decided this year that if these folks were busy and we had no time to develop a story,that I would later contact by phone and email….well this idea stinks because this story along with another has been very hard to get,so the brief conversation that Jody and I had after presenting him with our V8 award,Tshirt and goodies is all I have ( For that I am Sorry).

During Shawn’s award ceremony where him and all his crew from Beatersville present all their picks with some really Kool painted and pinstripped Louisville Slugger base ball bats they also allow time for some neat one off awards like mine for different reasons or causes.After explaining to the crowd what our award was about and presenting it to Jody we returned to his table where his wife Heather was sitting,he explain to me how odd this was because just a few weeks ago a work mate of his had killed himself… so Jody himself was effected by Suicide.Jody and Heather are no stranger to Beatersville they have been coming and supporting this event for years,shoot just back in 2012 he brought this just really sweet Chevy Kustom a beautiful bright blue with white scallops the Car really stood out and Won Beater of the year.The Model A was built for his wife Heather and she is quick to point out how proud she is of Jody and the car he built for her.
Now I have no idea why I thought my new interview plan of each pick was such a great idea,but it wasn’t and I missed out on hearing a great story from Jody and Heather. I wish you guys the best and many years of happiness together,keep building those really Kool Hot Rods with each other,most people really don’t get this love for Hot Rodding and the great community that surrounds it,but both of you understand this passion,sharing this with each other for life.The Love of Family and Friends is what this life is all about,Fellowship with each other and Compassion for one another….God Bless you both and we will see ya soon.