Checking out the Twisted Pistons Car Show

 Every year Menasha puts on a car show for help fund their scholarship program. Twisted Piston Car Show is usually the third Thursday in August. We have gone several times but apparently I never wrote about it and I only discovered that when I went to link a post about the car show to a post about Marigold Mile and found there was none.

Twisted Piston car show is held downtown Menasha on usually the third Thursday of August from 2-10 PM. You can find plenty of parking on nearby side streets on either side of the bridge. 

The entire downtown is lined with old cars, specialty cars, and even motorcycles on both sides of the street. As the hubby would say it is Chevy Heavy which make my Ford guy cry a little. Me personally, I just like looking at all the cool cars.

Due to time constraints this year, we literally had about 30 minutes to check out the car show before the hubby had to go do a game somewhere. 30 minutes is truly not enough time to appreciate the car show and take it all in. Since we've gone several times, we could hurry along.

Even in our haste, we were able to check out all the cars we wanted. I did feel rushed at times (don't tell the hubby).

I do always have a few favorites that draw my attention

Old Trucks

Super Old Cars

And Convertibles

The hubby likes his Mustangs

The old fire truck was out this year too.

If you get tired of looking at cars, there are food trucks to fill your belly and live music to keep you entertained. It just a fun summer block party of sorts.

If you never have been or been numerous times, go check it out (again). There's always something new to see. 

Checking out the Grignon Mansion Car Show

 Since our summer did not go as planned, I tried to make the most of it by trying to find things to do around the area. I saw a Facebook post about a car show at the Grignon Mansion. I knew that it would be something the hubby would like. So I put it on the calendar. 

The Grignon Mansion was a wedding gift to Charles Grignon's wife in 1837. The home became known as the Mansion in the Woods to weary travelers. I have only toured the mansion at Christmas time and the hubby never has. We thought about going on a tour but opted against it. We will save that for another day.

The Grignon Mansion is located along the Fox River in Kaukauna. It sits next to a park and has plenty of open space to host a car show. Parking was mainly street parking unless you were lucky enough to snag a spot in the small lot. As we drove down the hill to the mansion, we saw cars parked several blocks away and decided if we couldn't find a close spot, we would not stop. We got lucky and spot was open less than a block away.

Like most car shows in the area, there were a lot of Chevies and not many Fords. The hubby is a big Ford guy. I just like looking at all the cars... makes and models don't really matter to me. I really prefer the old cars like Model Ts and that era. The hubby gravitates to the 50s and 60s cars. There was a good mix of them all. 

I also like unique looking cars like this little VW. I joked the hubby won't get into it.

Besides house tours ($8/person), you could take a free horse drawn wagon ride around the field. I didn't even bring this up to the hubby since the line was long and it probably wasn't his thing. 

Food and drink was also available. 

It was actually a very nice car show. We might have to add this to list to visit every year. It is free to attend and there were plenty of people checking out the cars. If you like old cars, this is definitely a good show to check out. 

902. Go to the Milwaukee Auto Show

 Growing up I remember seeing ads on TV for the Milwaukee Auto Show and what celebrities would be there. My brother went one year and brought me home a Gabrielle Carteris autograph. I still have that somewhere. So when I wrote the original bucket list back in 2002, the Milwaukee Auto Show went on the list.

When the hubby told me he had a softball tournament in Rhinelander, I was like I need an adventure. I checked to see if the Auto Show or Sports Show as both were on the bucket list. The Auto Show was going on and I was like Stacy I may need to borrow your son. I figured I had a chance to go to the auto show I better take it.

The Milwaukee Auto Show is at the Wisconsin Center (former Midwest Express Center) in downtown. It runs February 25- March 5, 2023. Ticket prices are $15 at the door or $14 online. Kids 12 and under are free. Stacy got our tickets ahead of time so they were only $12. I'd call that pretty cheap entertainment.

The first floor feature the higher end cars -- BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Lincoln, Cadillac, Porsche, and Lexus. There were no real high cars like Maserati or Alfa Romero. 

There was collector cars as well. 

Some race cars and Electric Vehicles too.

There was not much up on the second floor except for a few cars including a DeLorean . 

I was beginning to get worried that there were no traditional brands at the auto show until we got to the 3rd floor. The 3rd floor was were all the real cars were -- Ford, Chevy, Jeep, Subaru, Toyota. Brands I could actually afford if we were looking at a new vehicle

There were a lot of cars. Each brand had it's own section of the floor. There were sales people walking around. Toyota actually had a stage with games and Q and A sessions -- Very interactive. Most of the cars you could sit in and get a feel for them. 

Toyota showcased the Brewers Rav4.

There was even a small scooter/motorcycle section.

Subaru had an adopt a pet area where you could play with some puppies.

Feeding America was there with a mini golf courses. For a $2 donation you could play $18 holes of mini golf. I initially thought it was $12. Stacy, Hanna, and I played. We didn't keep score but it was fun. I got 2 holes in one. 

I figured the hubby wanted me to check out some Fords, especially a Bronco. I'm not a huge fan of the Bronco but once I sat in it, I could definitely see myself driving it. The extra "oh Shit' bar on the by the passenger's leg is an interesting feature.

As we were leaving Stacy asked if it was all I hoped for. I was like it's an auto show. We just got new cars so we are not looking right now but I can see if you were looking for a new car, how the auto show would be very beneficial. It is also fun to look at cars without the pressure of buying. Overall it was a fun adventure -- something different. 

Maybe one year I will get to the Chicago auto show or the hubby will want to go to the Milwaukee Auto Show with me.