“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” Ever heard that saying? It’s the unofficial motto of the U.S. Post Office, in case you’ve been hiding under a rock. That very same sentiment applies to the hardcore rodders at this year’s Torque-Fest event in Dubuque, Iowa, April 29-30. The weather included not only rain, but a blustery mix of cold, fog, and hail — such was the case for the 7th Annual Torque-Fest and the hardy contestants.

A little cold, rain, fog, or hail couldn’t stop the 2016 Torque-Fest or the competitors. Photos by Alex Hawn.

Torque-Fest does not get canceled because of wet weather, and the stalwartly warriors prove it’s not necessary to cancel a show just because it’s not sunny and warm. Fair-weather racers need not apply. Organizer and Event Promoter John Wells assured us that the show goes on, and we found time to chat with him.

How long have you been doing Torque-Fest?

John Wells: Vintage Torque-Fest was started in 2010. We started this show at the Farley (Iowa) Speedway. With over 400 entries, we immediately outgrew that location. Our idea was to bring the jalopy showdown from the East Coast to the Midwest. Los Punk Rods of Kansas City stepped up and donated the initial seed money. With the Cheaters Car Club, and many other car clubs in the Midwest, we were able to have a great first year in Farley.

Event organizer and promoter John Wells doing his thing on the Tuff Mudder course.

The event itself has been moved several times over the last six years … where to?

JW: We moved to Maquoketa, Iowa, in 2011 and outgrew that location. In 2012, we moved to Dubuque, Iowa. We have plenty of room for camping, swap meet, vendors, hot rods, vintage motorcycles, customs, and racing.

Racing!  What kind of “racing”?

JW: The Dubuque fairgrounds has a 3/8-mile dirt track. Torque-Fest allows participants to take their rods out on the track. Typically we allow as many as eight cars at a time to run three laps at whatever speed they feel comfortable with. Needless to say, on wet dirt, there are times when the sideways action gives way to “whoa, that was too close to the inside railing!” Chain racing is a big part, too … two cars are chained together to race other pairs chained together.

Slippin’ and slidin’ around the 3/8-mile track at the Dubuque Fairgrounds. Up to eight vehicles at a time are allowed to make three laps.

Organizing this show takes a lot of time, and is probably demanding on your family. Are you are married? How long, and do you have children?

JW: I’ve been married close to 25 years to my wife, Kimberly. My two daughters, ages are 9 and 14, help run the show.

I understand spectator gate fee money goes to charity. What is your favorite charity?

JW: Gate proceeds go to Hannah’s Heart Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps children with congenital heart defects. The foundation was started after the first Vintage Torque-Fest  as a fundraiser to help my family with medical bills. My daughter Hannah had open heart surgery.

Gate proceeds also support adopted families.  Every year we help out a family monetarily who has a child suffering from a congenital heart defect. Of course, we have to pay for the show before we can give away funds to families in need. Oh, I’ve got to mention we raffled off a 1952 Ford Mainline. The car was donated by several car clubs in the Eastern Iowa region and it saved the show! Without the $10,000 the car raffle brought in, we would not have had any money to give to our adopted family this year.

During the art show and auction, we present the check to the adopted family. We invite everyone to show up and see the real reason we have this show. It’s pretty heart-warming.

Along those same lines, I’ve heard you do not charge entrants/participants a registration fee. How can you rent a fairgrounds on spectator fees alone?

JW: I have never understood why car shows charge spectators to get in to see cars when car owners have been charged to show their cars. Without cars/owners there would be no car show!  We have established a no entry fee for cars and motorcycle owners because those people help make our show known across the country. We hope that everyone understands we love to have them bring their rides to our event, but the most important thing to us is coming together as one big motor family.

The car show part of the Torque-Fest event is huge, running about 400 to 600 cars for the weekend. Many people come for other parts of the show which include live bands, a pin-up contest, an art show/auction, vendors, dirt-tracking, and mini-bike mud trials. Let me say that Grant Cushman and his group of friends have supported the show from the very beginning — always bringing mini bikes. Last year, after a lengthy discussion with the fairgrounds, we got permission to make a Tuff Mudder Mini Course so those bringing mini bikes can have a different kind of race on Saturday morning.

The first time the Tuff Mudder course for mini-bikes was used. Needless to say it was wetter than normal.

Of course, putting on a show like this is not cheap, and we are a grassroots show with a very small marketing budget. Since sponsorship is minimal we rely on spectators to support the show. This means weather is a huge factor in keeping the show afloat.

Weather? What weather?

JW: The weather at this year’s Torque-Fest wasn’t the greatest — cool for the end of April, and a bit wetter than other years.  In spite of the bad weather, 17 different bands played, although we had to change up the stages and move indoors due to the rain, cold, and wind. Spectators typically won’t show if the weather is not good.  And this year, Saturday morning’s forecast was a high of 47 and 100 percent chance of rain, which cut spectator count by over half of 2015.

You have an indoor show in conjunction with the outdoor portion of the event.  How many cars are in the indoor portion?

JW: We have two buildings at Vintage Torque-Fest to display special invitation cars and motorcycles.

Special Invitation?

JW: Another unique part of Torque-Fest features invited vehicles. Steve Day is our floor manager coordinating the indoor show of motorcycles and cars. Each of these cars/owners are personally invited by Steve or myself for the weekend. About 20 are featured vehicles, some are historic hot rods or customs, or have been featured in magazines. It’s a show within a show.

The show within a show features about 20 vehicles and motorcycles, historic or featured in magazines.

The show features an art auction, too?

JW: The indoor buildings house vendors from across the country and feature our original art show and auction that helps pay medical expenses. We are very appreciative of all the artists that help out each year. The art show and auction are the heart of the show. I am a huge low brow art nerd. One of the very first things I did when contemplating a show like this was to come up with a unique art show distinguishing itself from others.

The first year we had Ed Roth surfer helmets as canvases — I think we had about 25 helmets all painted up and donated. The second year was the Maltese Cross (racing cross or Ed Roth Surfer cross) as the canvas. The third year was a Rat Fink illustration. Other years we’ve had tiki panels and surfboards … this year it was vintage gas pumps.

We produce the panels ourselves and send them out to artists with instructions stating: “use your imagination and please send back a week before the show.” We’ve had contributions from Japan, Australia, The Netherlands, and 42 states. Each year, the quality gets better and all are auctioned.

The art auction helps the Hannah Wells Medical Trust, which is completely separate from Helping Hannahs Heart Foundation. The medical trust helps pay medical bills for our daughter.  Last year our insurance bills were over $21,000.  Not to get too political, but we’ve had recommendations we drop our current health insurance provider and go with the a government healthcare plan.  I simply do not trust that the government would give us the same quality care we get.

Our daughter must have at least two more open heart surgeries.  I am doing everything possible to make sure Hannah gets the best treatment.  That means getting a helping hand from the generous talented artists out there. We can’t thank them enough.

How many people does it take to run an event like Torque-Fest?

JW: There are many people who help make these shows. We’ve had over 100 volunteers at Vintage Torque-Fest. But there is no company, and no major sponsors, either. My wife and I do the majority of the work and spend hundreds of hours putting together these events. It is hard work but well worth it. Every year our show continues to grow from our first year to last year — close to 1,000 entries. Please note, we do not count motorcycles as entries to our event. We are very happy to have Knuckleheads and Panheads at our vintage flat track.

I’ve heard you do other shows/events. How many other events do you put on each summer? Do you have a company that helps you do this?

JW: Currently we do Iron Invasion in Woodstock, Illinois, located just outside Chicago, 70 miles south of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and 30 miles east of Rockford, Illinois. This year it’s on October 1. It is the largest traditional hot rod custom and vintage motorcycle show in the Chicago area. Last year, nearly 700 entries showed and that event also has vintage motocross motorcycle racing. We also do Retro Rewind in the winter in downtown Dubuque. It’s a small indoor show that helps break up the winter blues with a film festival included.

The dates for next year’s event have not been determined, but interested parties can keep tabs on the event at vintagetorquefest.com.