2012 ALL PETTY'S GARAGE MARKS USED ... - Carlisle Events

SPECIAL GUESTS SPECIAL GUESTS
The concept of television has existed for well over 100
years in one form or another. What has remained
constant through the years is that a hit TV program can
do more to carry on the legend of its stars, cars and characters
than anyone could have ever imagined. A prime
example of a TV program far outliving its expectations is
Dukes of Hazzard.
It’s because of the demand, popularity and loveable
nature of the show that the automotive world
and mainstream society embrace stars from Dukes at
events like the Carlisle Chrysler Nationals. That is why
this weekend’s guests, Ben Jones and Catherine Bach,
join previous guests James Best (Sheriff Roscoe P. Coltrane),
John Schneider (Bo Duke), Byron Cherry (Coy
Duke) and the late Christopher Mayer (Vance Duke).
The drawing power for the Dukes is such that in
2011, during a year littered with poor weather at all
10 Carlisle-based shows, John Schneider’s visit saw the
biggest one-day attendance spike in the history of the
event. So why do the Dukes keep coming to Carlisle
and why do people keep coming to see them?
“Sometimes the phenomenon amazes us,” noted
Dorothy Best, wife of James Best. With both being
here in 2010, she continued, “I was told we’d see a big
turnout at Carlisle but we were truly surprised at everyone
that showed up.” Best concluded by noting, “I
don’t know if there is a defi nitive answer as to why the
show has been so successful over time, but it and fans
like those at Carlisle a few years ago have been very
good to us.”
From a Carlisle standpoint, event manager Ed Buczeskie
has been responsible for booking fi ve of the six
Dukes stars. He continues to do so for a myriad of reasons,
outlined in a recent conversation:
Michael Garland – Why do you book Dukes’ stars?
EB – Like many Mopar fans I literally grew up on
the Dukes. Watching that Charger every Friday night
was partly responsible for my passion for Mopars. It
brought the Charger into the public’s eye and it has
stood the test of time.
RICHARD PETTY
PRESENTED BY THE
NORTHEAST HEMI OWNERS ASSOCIATION
Meet this NASCAR Legend and
seven-time Winston Cup Champion!
Due to the Daytona NASCAR race on Saturday night of the
Carlisle Chrysler Nationals, Petty is only able to appear on
Sunday and is scheduled to sign autographs from 11 a.m. to
1 p.m. An autograph and/or photo opportunity will be free
with a paid admission to the event, but due to anticipated
high demand, a limited number will be possible. Carlisle
Events and representatives from Petty’s Garage will assure
that as many people as possible can meet “The King.”
MG – What do you think is the draw?
EB – A whole generation was raised on the Dukes.
It’s not just Mopar people who like it, either. The show
crosses brands and is enjoyed by many non-car enthusiasts
as well. It was a wholesome show and it was just
fun to watch … and still is today.
MG – How do you go about landing the guests?
EB – Believe it or not, every Dukes cast member at
the show in the last fi ve years was presented to me in
some fashion; either by an agent, mutual friend or directly.
The Dukes of Hazzard celebrities are always popular
at the show and as the word spreads among the
cast, each of them eventually fi nd themselves here.
MG – What are your thoughts for next year?
EB – Ideas range from Tom Wopat to “The Hazzard
County Cops” to a full Dukes Reunion with all of the remaining
cast members. It’s all a matter of budget and
not wanting to cause Dukes overload for our guests.
CATHERINE BACH •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Catherine Bach is famously known
for her role on the long running CBS
program the Dukes of Hazzard, due in
part to her eye catching looks, country
girl charm and namesake Daisy
Duke Shorts. Bach has appeared in
multiple fi lms and TV programs, beginning
with 1974’s The Midnight Man alongside Hollywood
icon Burt Lancaster. Other credits include The
Love Boat, Cannon Ball Run II, African Skies and most
recently Chapman. Bach has also lent her name to a
clothing line, CB by Catherine Bach. Apparel includes
jeans, skirts, shirts and the famed Daisy Dukes.
BEN JONES ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Ben Jones appeared in 142 episodes over the
course of the run of Dukes as Cooter Davenport – Hazard
County mechanic and friend of the Duke family.
Jones’ acting career has spanned fi ve decades, but
took a political detour following the end of his run on
the Dukes of Hazzard. From 1989-93
Jones served as a member of the
U.S. House of Representatives from
Georgia’s 4th District. Most recently,
Jones appeared in an episode of the
TV show Surface. Jones is also the
founder of the original Duke Fest and is a musician,
having appeared on the stage of the famed Grand Ole
Opry.
THE RAMCHARGERS ••••••••••••••••••••••••••
2012 is another big year for The RAMCHARGERS as
they are not only our special guests this weekend but
they are also being inducted into the inaugural Mopar
Collector’s Guide Mopar Hall of Fame. Members of The
RAMCHARGERS will make appearances in the MOPAR
and Mancini Racing booths on the Midway this weekend.
You can also sit in on a panel discussion with original
members of the RAMCHARGERS (see Schedule for
details). RAMCHARGERS members scheduled to appear
include: Tom Hoover, Tom Coddington, Mike Buckel, Al
Adam, John Wehrly, Dave Rockwell, Barns Danials, Pete
McNicholl, Dick Skoglund and Troy Simonsen.
HERB MCCANDLESS ••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Known as Mr. Mopar or Mr.
4-speed, Herb McCandless has been
a drag racing legend and automotive
performance wizard for over 40
years. Elected to the NHRA Southeast
Division Hall of Fame in 1988,
McCandless won the U.S. Nationals
in 1970 driving the No. 24 Sox and Martin Pro Stock car.
McCandless also gained notoriety for his strip work in
his Pro Stock Cuda. McCandless became involved in
Chrysler’s race program in 1965 and raced Hemi cars
from 1965-1974. In 1974, he started McCandless Performance,
one of the largest Chrysler Direct Connection
and Mopar Performance dealers. A Hemi hero of
drag racing, McCandless won championships in Darts,
Dusters and Barracudas.
LOU SANTIAGO ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Lou is the host of Velocity’s Car Fix where he and his
co-host modify vehicles with high-end performance
and aftermarket parts. Lou was previously the host of
Discovery’s Ultimate Car Build Off and Spike TV’s Muscle
Car. His time spent on Muscle Car only proved to
the world that his love for his art was limitless. Now,
Lou has a new home and it is called GarageInsiderTV.
com. He will be building some really cool stuff and
showing the masses once again that you too can be a
car builder extraordinaire.
DAVID SNYDER •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Celebrated automotive artist David Snyder is in
Building T with a display of his automotive art featuring
vehicles produced by Chrysler. Stop by and see
fi rst-hand his artistic ability as he is working on new
paintings throughout the weekend. Snyder is also
available to personalize his new book The Automotive
Art of David Snyder.
BILL STILES •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Bill Stiles is known not only as
one of the pioneer drivers of Super
Stock and Pro Stock racing but also
as an expert performance and racing
mechanic. As a driver, Stiles is
most widely known for racing one
of the original factory SS/BA Hemipowered
Plymouth Barracudas. As a mechanic, Stiles
geared Jere Stahl and Dave Strickler to many victories
on the quarter mile. For the ’70 season, Bill moved to
Pro Stock with a Duster that he ran until 1973. Today, he
is known as an expert in preparing magneto ignition
systems for racing applications out of his shop Stiles
Performance in York, PA. Bill Stiles is here with the Barracuda
all weekend in the Mopar Booth on the Midway
to meet with fans and to talk racing and Mopars.
DAN WOODS ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Dan Woods is best known in the automotive world
as the host of Speed Channel’s Chop Cut Rebuild and
Street Tuner Challenge. Before he began hosting car
programs on Speed, he became famous world-wide
for his role as Mr. Raditch on the Emmy Award winning
Degrassi television series. Dan will be here this weekend
making appearances in the Legendary Auto Interiors
booth in spaces N52-67. See schedule for times.
SAM AUXIER, JR. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
We are pleased to have Sam Auxier, Jr. – known for
“interviewing the greatest names in racing” – join us
again. Sam plans to broadcast Thursday, Friday and
Saturday from Building T. Sam is a 2000 Super Car Hall
of Famer and a 2002 inductee to the Drag Times Hall
of Fame. Come out and meet this drag racing legend.
RICH NEDBAL •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Richard was the founder of Mopar
Engines West and now runs FAST
Man EFI. He has published numerous
articles in Mopar publications
and written a successful book about
how to build high performance Gen
2 HEMIs. In the USAF Richard was an
electronics instructor. In 1970 he landed a job doing
EFI research at Carnegie Mellon Institute. He was part
of a team, designing one of the fi rst microprocessor
based sequential EFI systems. After the EFI research
ended in 1976, Richard moved to California’s Silicon
Valley where he became an engineering manager
for a semiconductor company, all while building Hemis
in his spare time and getting ready to reenter the
drag racing scene. After designing semiconductors
and running two software companies, Richard was
lucky enough to be able to retire at age 55 and spend
more time in the shop, where he founded Mopar Engines
West. At MEW Rich was building all variations of
Mopar engines from Slant-6s to all out blown Hemis.
After selling MEW, Richard started another business
called Fast Man EFI, where he sells, trains and supports
the EFI market. In 2010 Richard wrote the book, “How
to Build Max-Performance HEMI Engines”.
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