What was once described to me as the “Best Little Show in Texas” has grown into one of the largest traditional hot rod and kustom car shows in the country. 2014 makes the 13th Annual Lonestar Roundup in Austin, TX. For the 4th time I made the 1300 mile round trip from my home in central Kansas straight down I-35 to the Roundup, for the 2nd time I took my own ride. The show has grown considerably since my first trip, it’s quickly finding the limits of the Travis County Expo Grounds.
Over the years the show has added a building for vendors to go along with 2 outdoor rows, plus some of the best food vendors in Austin, there are plenty of ways for you to pick up some great art, clothes, parts, etc. The swap meet and mini bike races combine to take up more square footage than some shows that I hit, and the feature car area by itself would be worth the drive to Austin. Then there are 2 giant parking lots and a grassy area that completely fill up with cars from all over the country.
Friday starts for many with a Garage Crawl and although I couldn’t make it this year, I got reports that it was impressive. Even with a large group of people on the Crawl the show filled up fast on Friday. In fact the Friday car count was close to last year’s Saturday count, this year’s Saturday car count was estimated to be around 2000 cars by all unofficial accounts. The Spectator count would make most MLB stadiums jealous, this is one massive event and it shows no signs of stopping it growth.
After the show closes each day the old hang out was Congress Ave. however it’s become a big local hangout and combined with the car show crowd on Friday and Saturday Congress can be downright unmanageable. Lucky for attendees Austin has no shortage of great bars, restaurants, food trucks, and music venues that are not on Congress.
The Lonestar Roundup has done it again, another major event that had fantastic cars, great music, incredible vendors and an all together good time. If you are into traditional hot rods and kustoms, put the Lonestar Roundup on your schedule for next year. See all of the photos of this years event on royboyproductions.com/lonestar and get more info on the show at lonestarroundup.com
by Eastwood Street Team Contributor: Travis Scanlan – Royboy Productions