In April 1977, Jimmy Carter was in the White House and the ?Star Wars? phenomenon was still just a quiet buzz among Hollywood insiders when the Hornets Nest Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America held a small car show and swap meet on the infield of what was then known as Charlotte Motor Speedway.
That ?Charlotte ?77? event, for which the club filled 300 vendor spaces, laid the groundwork for what 30 years later has become the world?s largest automotive extravaganza? the Food Lion AutoFair at Lowe?s Motor Speedway, which takes place April 12-15.
?That first show at the speedway was only a one-day event, ? said Mel Carson, executive director of the Hornets Nest Region. ?We had put on a swap meet at another location in Charlotte, but outgrew it by 1977. Dennis Carpenter, who has a Ford restoration parts business near the speedway and was an early member of the club, put together the deal to move us to the track. ?
Today, members of the Hornets Nest Region work closely with the staff of Lowe?s Motor Speedway in hosting the four-day mega-show. The event attracts more than 160,000 people who wear out their walking shoes visiting parts vendors in 10,000 flea market spaces and dreaming about the 1,700 collectible automobiles for sale in the car corral.
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