Hyped as the Texas-size car and truck show, the fourth annual Texas Showdown invaded the Sam Houston Race Park in early June, bringing together a huge number of vendors, show vehicles, and spectators.
The Texas weather had not been good to the first few shows of the year. Heavy rains and the possibility of hail caused cancellations, postponements, and a smaller-than-normal turnout at the events. When we rolled in early Saturday morning, what we found was clear skies and plenty of hot weather.
This year the show space was increased to provide spectators with a larger walk space around the display vehicles, as the show area tends to get extremely crowded at times. The nice thing about this show is that you can register either day to be judged for your class. Sunday always tends to bring a larger crowd of both registered vehicles and spectators, so if you went both days, it was like attending two separate shows. Both days produced a large number of quality rides and promoter Darryl Tracy certainly had enough activities planned to keep everyone busy.
Saturday's show activities kicked off with the start of the USACI sound-off competition, along with a BMX bicycle stunt show, a hot-dog eating contest, and several of Houston's best live bands, who performed on the show's main stage. Sunday's events featured the ever-popular burnout contest, a beer chugging contest, and the famous wet T-shirt contest, with the award ceremony and trophy presentation following.
The final numbers tallied right in at 500 registered vehicles and approximately 12,000 folks through the gates over the two days. This certainly would fit this show into the "Texas-sized" category. The show is on for next year. You can check out the official website at www.texasshowdown.com for dates and registration info.