DAYTONA BEACH — As Art and JoAnn Soucie unloaded cold drinks from the trunk of their bright orange Dodge sports car, it was like settling into a home-away-from-home on Friday at the 50th annual fall Turkey Run in the infield at Daytona International Speedway.
“We’re here every year,” said Art, a retired freight driver from Palm Coast. “This has been our same spot for 20 years, for 22 years, to be honest.”
The Soucies were among the throng of classic-car enthusiasts that arrived early Friday for the golden anniversary edition of the annual fall event, a four-wheeled holiday weekend feast that is expected to draw more than 150,000 lovers of carburetors and chrome through Sunday’s closing day.
For Art Soucie, it’s a chance to show off his 2022 Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, a factory-built street-legal drag edition powered by a 6.2-liter, fuel-injected supercharged hemi engine that delivers a speed-limit obliterating 810 horsepower.
If you’re interested, he’s willing to sell, for an asking price of $189,900. For that investment, the driving experience is unmatched, he said.
“To me, it’s the ultimate, the feeling you get; it’s better than drugs or alcohol, as far as I’m concerned,” he said, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “Plus, it’s a chick magnet, too. Don’t tell my wife that.”
It’s more than the horsepower and custom paint jobs that have inspired the couple to return annually with such devotion, he said.
“The camaraderie is absolutely impressive,” Soucie said. “Everyone is friends. I’ve never seen any problems here in over 20 years. If you’re not a car person when you come here, you’ll be one when you leave. I’ve met so many friends here.”
Each custom car comes with a story
Throughout the Speedway’s massive infield, there were thousands of classic and custom vehicles, each accompanied by an owner with a story to tell.
For Jon Kessler, his “Gone Postal” street rod was once merely a 1975 U.S. Post Office mail truck that he transformed into a funky street rod equipped with a small-block 350-cubic inch engine, oversized tires and the rear suspension of a 1986 Chevy Silverado pick-up truck.
For style points, the air intake is housed in a brightly painted white mailbox adorned with “Gone Postal” in black lettering.
More:Daytona’s Turkey Run offers feast for classic-car fans
Kessler and his wife, Ariel, traveled from their home in Summersville, West Virginia, to spend a week in Daytona Beach timed to the Turkey Run as well as the couple’s fourth wedding anniversary. In all, they have attended about a decade’s worth of Turkey Runs, starting when they both lived in Brevard County.
“We started the tradition down here, and now we’ve just kept it going,” said Kessler, who owns a metal cutting business in West Virginia.
Accessories, celebrities and famous cars also in the mix
Over 5,000 collector cars are showcased at the event’s car show in the eastern portion of the Speedway infield. In addition, another 1,500 collectible vehicles are displayed for sale or trade in the Car Corral.
Beyond all that, the event offers a sensory overload powered by the scents of exhaust fumes, grilled sausages and cigars accompanied by vintage rock ‘n’ roll soundtrack (think Chuck Berry and the Beach Boys) punctuated by rumbling tailpipes.
In addition, more than 2,000 vendors are selling every imaginable classic-car part or accessory in the event’s daily swap meet, everything from crankshafts to towlines.
The latter is a specialty of “Mr. Strapman,” a family-owned vendor of tow lines and related accessories that has traveled from St. Paul, Minnesota to the Turkey Run for more than 35 years.
“This is one of our best events,” said Netti “Mrs. Strapman” Johnson, who owns the business with her husband, Dick. Although occasional raindrops briefly slowed customer traffic on Friday, the weekend outlook was bright, she said.
“We have a lot of loyal customers who come looking for us.”
The event also features meet-and-greets with Joe and Mandi Martin, of MotorTrend TV’s “Iron Resurrection,” on Saturday, as well as opportunities throughout the weekend to meet Chad Hiltz and Jolene Macintyre, hosts of Discovery’s “Bad Chad Customs” custom-car show.
On Friday, many Turkey Run visitors also were eager for a glimpse of the classic Batmobile and Batbike from the campy 1960s TV series starring Adam West.
The iconic vehicle, one of seven Batmobiles built on 1960s Ford Galaxie frames, was a major attraction for Melanie and Nick Flury, of Forsyth, Georgia. The couple arrived with their two young sons, Wyatt, 4, and Walker, 2, dressed as Batman and Robin, for pictures next to the famous car.
“Those were their costumes for Halloween,” Melanie said, “so when we saw that the car would be here, we knew they had to wear the costumes.”
If you go
The Turkey Roll continues through the weekend from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday; and 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday.
Admission at the gate is $20 on Saturday; $15 on Sunday. Ages 11 and younger are free. Visit turkeyrun.com for details.
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