AUSTINTOWN — Austintown businessmen Mark Cole and Jerry Dixey have joined to bring the 2022 Syracuse Nationals Road Tour to Quaker Steak and Lube in Austintown on July 10.

The event will feature 30 street rods and street machines that will come from all over the United States.

These tours are nothing new for Dixey, who has been doing the events for the past 25 years. The first was in 1996, when Street Rodder magazine had Dixey drive a custom-built 1934 Ford coupe across the country, ending up in Las Vegas, where the car was raffled.

The “Road Tour” became an annual event for the magazine, featuring a custom-built machine in which Dixey toured the nation. The tour saw him attending other events along the way.

“I attended 110 consecutive National Street Rod Association events in just 10 years, each year with a different car,” Dixey said.

After 10 years, Dixey said the tours took a new turn as the magazine’s readers were invited to be part of an 8-week cruise around the nation. Readers paid to secure a spot on the tour, then have to drive or ship their vehicle to the starting point.

Street Rodder magazine folded in 2019, ending the tours. Coupled to that was the pandemic in 2020 that canceled a lot of events, including the cruising scene.

NEW ROUTE

In 2021, Dixey decided to bring back the cruises.

Last year, he was able to host two. So far this year, he is preparing for the Speedway Motors Tour in June that will go from Lincoln, Neb., to St. Paul, Minn.

The closer-to-home tour, in July, will run from Columbus to Syracuse, N.Y. to the New York State Fairgrounds. At this location, the largest group of special interest cars come together annually for the Syracuse Nationals, a car enthusiasts’ event that features as many as 7,000 vehicles, according to Dixey.

“I am working on a 1957 Chevrolet station wagon,” Dixey said. “I hope to have it done in time for the cruise to New York.”

In the meantime, Dixey, along with Cole, have scheduled a stop in the Valley for the Syracuse Tour.

The tour will begin July 10 in the Polaris Park area, north of Columbus. The tour will go through Amish country on the way to the first stop at Quaker Steak and Lube in Austintown that evening. Sunday evening is a cruise night for Quaker Steak and Lube and the tour vehicles will take center stage.

Cruisers will stay at the Austintown Hampton Inn and enjoy breakfast July 11 before visiting some private car collections in the area during the day, and a private party that evening. Prior to the private tours, the caravan of 30 special interest vehicles will stop by the office of Mark Cole Insurance and Financial Services, 25 Idlewood Road in Austintown, for a photo opportunity. All 30 vehicles will line up in the parking lot for the photos before heading out to visit the private collections.

After the stop at Cole’s office, the caravan will head to Ohio Van and Truck Supply and Classic Automobilia, 3667 Mahoning Ave., to check out the collection of auto-related items Dixey has accumulated over the years.

EVENT SPONSOR

Cole will join the tour locally because he is the one who stepped up as a sponsor for the event. His agency tops a five-state area for the collector car insurance market. Locally, Cole is a common site at cruises and events for the specialty car owner, and since he is involved with the Medicare insurance market, it seemed a good fit.

“He dominates the custom car market,” Dixey said. “We are pleased he stepped forward to sponsor this tour. And it is a good fit since 65 through 80 is the average age of my (tour) participants.”

“I feel honored to bring this tour to the Valley,” Cole said.

Dixey added it couldn’t have happened without Cole’s sponsorship.

For the public, the best place to view the 30 vehicles on this year’s Syracuse Nationals Tour will be at Quaker Steak and Lube on July 10 when they all arrive.

On July 12, the tour will depart from Austintown and head to New York with a scheduled stop at the I Love Lucy Museum in Jamestown, N.Y., which was actress Lucille Ball’s hometown. From the museum, the tour heads to Niagara Falls before stopping for the night.

On July 13, the tour will end at the Syracuse Nationals headquarters hotel, the Ramada Inn in Liverpool, N.Y. The tour will remain there and enjoy the Syracuse Nationals the rest of the week before breaking up and heading home.

For more information on the tour, visit Jerry Dixey’s Roadtourians Facebook page. For information on the national event, visit www.syracusenationals.com.