The 2024 Carlisle Ford Nationals (May 31st to June 2nd) turned out to be an extraordinary year for the event. For those unfamiliar, Carlisle Events has been hosting events at the Carlisle, PA Fairgrounds for fifty years [this year]. The first Carlisle Ford Nationals took place in 1995, the 40th anniversary of the Ford Thunderbird. If you’ve never been to the Ford Nationals, it should certainly be on your to-do list in the coming years.  The setting and countryside around Carlisle is beautiful. It is nestled in the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region, and the ride to Carlisle, from any direction, is very scenic. You’ll drive through the mountains of the Valley and Ridge and open dairy land.  Carlisle lies near the intersection of Interstate 81 and Interstate 76. Making it very accessible.  It is approximately 3.25 hours from New York city, about 2 hours from Washington, D.C. So, for my family, it was about an 8.5-hour drive from Sumter, SC.  In all my years of involvement in the Mustang and Ford community, I’ve only made it to one previous Ford Nationals, in 2018. And to be honest, I wish I’d many more times throughout the years. 

The event space, at Carlisle Fairgrounds, is tailor-made for large car shows. Carlisle Events has 82-acres of property to work with, including special indoor display buildings and large grandstand for special features, such as unveilings of new cars.  The 2024 Carlisle Ford Nationals offered over 230 classes for the show field. There were also 55 car clubs represented this year. I think this is what is most appealing to me about this event. You can step outside your comfort zone, mine being Ford Mustangs, and have the opportunity to see some of the most well-kept Ford-produced vehicles in the US. My dad had a good friend that was into Ford Torinos, and I’ve always had sweet spot for those. This year, at the 2024 Carlisle Ford Nationals, I was able to take in two full rows of some the most well preserved Torinos, of each year model, I’ve ever seen in one place. And that’s one of the many models represented on the show field. Another highlight, in 2024, was a special row holding the “Mustang 60th Anniversary Timeline Display,” with a Mustang from each year represented. There were also quite a few Mustang SVO cars on hand, marking the 40th anniversary of the SVO. 

Carlisle Events has the space, and manpower, to separate, and park, all models of cars separately. The Official Event Guide had a great map showing you exactly where to find the car or truck (yes I said trucks!) you are looking for easily. The map also shows where the larger car club tents are located. It is a big show field. If you took time to look at all cars, and I mean really look, it would take the full two days. 

Gates opened at 7:00am each day and the weather could not have been more perfect, with sunny blue skies, puffy white clouds, and temperatures in the mid-70s, and low humidity, all throughout the event. The Ford Nationals is more than just a car show. There are autocross track activities, hosted by Gateway Classic Mustang, where you could take a ride on the back course in a very fast Mustang driven by a professional driver. Or, you could take a ride in the back of the Virginia Giant, a real Monster Truck. You can’t miss the Manufacture’s Midway, where you get to talk to the folks at Ford Performance, and many other of the industry’s leading aftermarket providers. There were also many special guests present, including RTR Vehicles with Vaughn Gittin, Jr., Saleen with Steve Saleen, Shelby American with Gary Patterson and Tracey Smith, Ford Motor Company with John Clor, Carol Widmann and Joe Bellino (Ford Mustang’s new Brand Manager), just to name a few. There were many stage walk-arounds at the grandstands, with Roush, Saleen, Ford Motor Company, RTR, Shelby American, and many others. 

If that isn’t enough, and some think this is the best part of the Ford Nationals, there is a huge Ford automotive flea market (swap meet). I’ve never seen so many individual sellers and vendors of used parts and memorabilia in all my travels. If you need it for a Ford project, you will probably find it at this swap meet. 

And if that isn’t quite enough, several clubs held after hours events, including Retro Stang’s Cruise In at Parsons Interstate Ford, in Shippensburg, and Foxy Events/Chocolate-Fox’s Kick-Off Party at Boneshine Brew Works, in Harrisburg, PA.

This year, the 2024 Carlisle Ford Nationals became the largest car show ever held at the Carlisle Fairgrounds, with 3,572 cars on the show field, and more than 60,000 guests. Plans are already underway for the 2025 Ford Nationals, featuring a Ford GT Anniversary Reunion, Shelby GT350 60th Anniversary, a Motorsports Capri Reunion, the 70th Anniversary of the Ford Thunderbird, the Ford Galaxie Nations, and a planned national SVO Reunion. Information on 2025’s event can be found at CarlisleEvents.com. If you’ve never been to Carlisle, and it’s on your bucket list of Ford shows, start making plans now!