With the sun shining and car owners anxious to get in and set up, this year's Southern Showdown outside Louisville, Kentucky, began as many others do: with an impressive lineup! The road into the show would be enough to satisfy even choosy showgoers with rides new and old, local and from afar. Cars from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Tennessee were among the competitors that kept heads turning throughout the day. All riders from OG to full-custom, hoppers and cruisers to bikes, showed off the diversity of lowriders in the Midwest during this mid-July gathering.
Rollerz Only C.C. showed Kentucky some of their Midwest best with a '63 Chevy Impala from Chicago and a '59 Impala from Minnesota. Both of these rides were crowd favorites and got people talking about how these clean classics inspire them. Westside Lowriders showed up in force with four rides, including Randy's '77 Chevy Monte Carlo sporting a fine setup with hard-lines by fellow club member Chad AKA "Mr. Hardlines." Beto and Leo came up to enjoy the weekend from Tennessee, bringing with them a magnificent red '61 Impala convertible. Next year, maybe we'll get to see the '51 that they're working on.
Locally, Kentucky proved why they have the home court advantage with the Southern Showdown, bringing out some of the proud rides from the area. Uce C.C.-Louisville had a lot to be proud of with Sean's "Voodoo Lounge." Home from Denver, Colorado, and ready for the rest of the summer, this Cadillac was rolling in style and impressed onlookers with the custom paint and fusion of new and old in the interior.
Jeff of Louisville Luxurious provided the canvas with his Olds Cutlass for Josh "Pinhead Red" Culver's first full paint job, in addition to the striping work that he's known for. The result was the perfect combination of grays, whites and blacks to keep the eyes busy. Uce-Lexington brought out "All Smiles" and several other clean rides, including Keenan's big-body with simplicity and enough class to make any lowrider enthusiast drool.
The indoor/outdoor show grounds hosted quite an event that will keep lowriders from the Midwest talking. The hydraulics competition took place under the pavilion and got the crowd going with two hours of non-stop hopping and dancing. There were many competitors. Bryan from CCE worked his '88 Mazda to 83 inches and Bruce worked the crowd with his Olds Delta 88 hitting 52 inches. Jimmy from Show and Go in Detroit represented Majestics with Tommy's gold Monte Carlo and gave quite a show during its competition debut.
Westside Lowriders had Angie pushing "Pinky" to 70 inches from the switchbox as the women in the crowd looked at each other and toward the pit in approval and applause! Rob from RNL in Indiana hit an amazing 96 inches with his '90 Toyota, bringing everyone to their feet, but nothing got the crowd going like father and son together on the switchbox.
At the end of the day, everyone left reminded of why they make the trip and with the knowledge that they'll return again next year for another great show in Kentucky. We hope to see you at the 2008 Southern Showdown.
 Bruce and his Olds Delta were...  Bruce and his Olds Delta were impressive. |  Westside Lowriders brought...  Westside Lowriders brought this '63 down for the show. |  Luxurious from Indianapolis...  Luxurious from Indianapolis and Louisville were catching up at the show. |
 Rob's rides always please...  Rob's rides always please the crowd. |  Luis of Por Vida C.C. shows...  Luis of Por Vida C.C. shows off his tattoo before the show. |  These local ladies came down...  These local ladies came down to enjoy the show and spread some Southern hospitality. |
 A nice interior in Amon's...  A nice interior in Amon's Ford Galaxie. |  "Panty Dropper" was ready...  "Panty Dropper" was ready to show it all. |  This '61 ragtop from Tennessee...  This '61 ragtop from Tennessee belongs to the Millan brothers. |