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No matter where Holley takes LS Fest, there can be only one home for our ode to modern GM power, and that's where it all started: Beech Bend Raceway Park in Bowling Green, Kentucky. We started LS Fest here, and even with shows in Las Vegas and Texas, you can't replace the feeling of being next to the Barren River, with the Kentucky Rumbler roller coaster in the background and the small-town feel that Beech Bend provides. Even with the crowds that LS Fest East brings in, you can tell the difference. We're excited for another year of action and fun in the sun in Western Kentucky and we're looking forward to seeing all of you!
LS Fest East's Grand Champion Competition is separated into three main classes:
Note: For the purpose of competition, the Chevrolet El Camino, GMC Sprint and Caballero, and any other coupe-utility style vehicle will be considered a car for competition.
Grand Champion competitors will compete in all three main events of competition - that's drag racing, autocross, and the 3S challenge - wearing the same set of DOT-approved tires throughout the whole event. Tires must have at least a 200 treadwear rating, and modifications and replacements are grounds for disqualification (except in cases of catastrophic failure). Vehicles will be checked to ensure that they are safe to compete. Competition is historically fierce, so bring your A-game!
Two lanes of blacktop at the end of Beech Bend Road are waiting for racers of all types to come out and make their hits. The crew at Beech Bend Raceway will have the track ready for a full weekend of action down the 1320, so you'd better bring everything you've got if you want to leave LS Fest East with a little something to take home with you! Part of the Grand Champion competition.
Drag Racing classes include:
Autocross is a handling torture test for your vehicle. It will highlight the acceleration, handling and braking of your ride in a marked-out course that will keep your eyes, hands and feet busy from start to finish. A mix of sweepers, hairpins, chicanes, and a slalom section will demand your attention from start to finish. LS Fest East has two Autocross sections: one inside Beech Bend's 3/8-mile oval course, and a second course at NCM Motorsports Park's skidpad. Part of the Grand Champion Competition.
Note: Vehicles that have two drivers in the same vehicle can register for Fun Runs. Double-driver vehicles are NOT eligible for Competition or Awards for either driver.
When you have a quality road course in town and an event like LS Fest East, it only makes sense to put the asphalt to use! The Road Course Challenge will be run on Friday and Saturday of LS Fest East and will consist of high-speed on-track racing that will test driver's skills and vehicle handling characteristics. Expect run groups of 12-15 vehicles on-track, though final car counts and run session counts will be at the discretion of the Race Director.
Speed, Steer, Stop. That's what makes the 3S Challenge what it is. Consider it the concentrated version of autocross: drivers square off in a down-and-back style race, side-by-side. After a drag-style launch, they streak to a hairpin corner, then exit to a chicane and a slalom before coming to a halt in a stop box. It isn't enough to have huge power or brakes the size of a Cavalier's wheels. Balance is the name of the game. The suspension balance needs to be solid and the driver needs to understand how to work every aspect of their vehicle in a smooth, linear manner to make it work. And just to make sure that your skill is unmatched, you have to compete a run in both the left and right lanes for a counted run. And both runs must be clean...no cones! Part of the Grand Champion Competition. Registration limited to the first 225 vehicles.
Track X is a fun-run style event that is limited to Grand Champion and Autocross participants. LS Fest East's Track X will utilize NCM Motorsports Park's 1.1-mile East Course, a fast and technical layout that features the infamous "Sinkhole" corner, to test and hone your driving skills and for you to get comfortable behind the wheel on a road course. Track X is NOT a competitive event and laps will not be timed. Participants must use DOT-approved street tires and the vehicles must be driven to NCM Motorsports Park under their own power...support vehicles and trailers are not allowed. Any tools or equipment needed must be carried in the vehicle to Track X. Helmet use is required. Helmets must be SA2015 or newer and must be furnished by the driver. DOT-approved motorcycle helmets are not allowed. Vehicles must pass a basic safety inspection before being allowed onto the track.
Rear-wheel-drive drift cars and late-model GM powertrains are simply a natural combination. Great power, excellent torque, and a small, compact design means that everything from Nissans and BMWs to Corvettes and Camaros can hang the tail out with the needle of the tach sweeping quickly towards the redline. The LS Fest Drift Challenge is a one-of-a-kind drift event that will pit forty highly competitive drift teams together in a throwdown that the crowd loves! If you are interested in competing, be sure to register early to secure your place in this year's competition!
If you think you're going to pull into the center of Beech Bend's oval track, do a standstill burnout, and impress anybody, think again. LS Fest East has high standards for you to reach to. We've see all manner of burnout mischief over the years, and last year, Roman Atwood took "Demo Matt" Carriker's Impala lowrider and proceeded to put on a show that involved an angry engine, a boat-load of tire smoke, and the sight of a '64 Impala bouncing on hydraulics, all at the same time. We've seen inflatable waving-arm displays pop out of trucks. We've seen cars that send brand-new tires straight to Valhalla in less than a minute while letting the western half of Kentucky know who has the most power on the property. If you think you've got what it takes to match that kind of talent, then be sure to check the box on your registration form indicating that you want to come party in the pit in front of a crowd of automotive deviants. If you are selected, we'll give you sixty seconds and a large area of the oval track to party in. The rest of the show is up to you. Better make it good!
Last year we brought off-road action to LS Fest East and participants made it known that we made the right call! Want to play in the dirt? We'll have two different-style courses that you can try out. One will be a short course that is great for Ultra 4/Pro 2 style vehicles to air out on, and the other is a slower, technical obstacle course that's great for testing your articulation out on...or, if you want to put up an RTI number, we'll have a flex ramp to prove how twisted-up your rig can get! Try both! If it's got an LS or Gen-V LT engine and you're good with getting it dirty, we'll allow it. Ask the Hooptie X Challenge drivers that are brought in by the Gambler 500 crew...if you think that you're unafraid of a small dirt jump, let them show you how far a cheap beater can really fly!
Beech Bend's green fields are a great place to park up and show off your ride if you're about relaxing in the Kentucky sunshine! For 2023, Holley is curating a celebrity panel composed of industry professionals, influencers, and content creators who will be responsible for assigning car show awards. Each individual will be assigned a class specific to their focus, and the Holley crew will be picking their favorites as well.
In addition to the above classes and the 2023 LS Fest East Best of Show pick, there will be special classes that will be announced on-site, including Best Paint, Best Engineered, Best Engine, Sponsor's Pick, and Holley President's Pick. Be sure to take a walk through the Car Show and look everything over for yourself!
It's very easy to claim a horsepower number. It isn't easy to back up that claim, and Holley, along with HP Tuners and our friends at BangShift.com, love nothing more than to see people throw down the gauntlet and actually show the world just what kind of grunt is being made at the tire. So long as there is an LS or Gen-V LT engine somewhere in that machine that's spinning the wheels, we welcome registered participants (except Off-Road Experience) to come down and sign up for a free dyno pull on our chassis dyno. Sign-up is on a first-come, first served basis, and the top three power figures for naturally-aspirated combinations and those rocking a power adder will receive an award.
The gorgeous roads of Warren County, Kentucky are calling. What better way to get a break from the action at Beech Bend than to take part in the Countryside Cruise? Head out and enjoy beautiful, winding roads, see the sights, try some of the local cuisine, and go put some miles on that beautiful machine. Holley will once again be offering up their digital scavenger hunt for the Countryside Cruise. Participants will have a map and a checklist of items that must be photographed as the driver and photographer drive our pre-planned route. Find all of the items (and have the pictures to prove it) and you will be entered into a drawing for a $500 Holley Product Certificate!
So there isn't an LS or LT engine in sight for this competition. It's our show, and we make the rules. So if we say that anyone 18 years old or older who has a helmet, long pants, and a plastic ride-on Power Wheels-style car that has had its electric motors and battery packs removed has the opportunity to battle it out with other delinquents down our hill while fans "encourage" them along with water balloons, we are going to do it! We will be running heat races of six vehicle using a LeMans-style start (that's running across the track to your chariot at the word "go") and from that point on, it's fair game until the end. Bumping, nudging, or kamikaze impact incidents are all fair game between the start and finish line. Once all of the heat races are run, there will be a Main Event race, then we will run a "Free For All" race with every participant possible.
We also encourage a bit of fun with the Power Wheels event...it is more than just adults trying to keep a kid's toy in one piece. We will have prizes for the heat race winners and the Main Event winner, and we will also have prizes for Best of Show for the best decorated ride, and Best Costume/Theme award...could be for the Power Wheels, could be for the driver, could be for both. If you need a break from the serious for a moment, you won't want to miss this! Limited spots are available, so register today!
