Hot rodding wasn’t born in high-end professional shops. It sprang from the garages of passionate enthusiasts who used their own hands, hard work, and energy to improve the performance and appearance of their cars. That do-it-yourself spirit is alive and well today and Goodguys and Speedway Motors celebrate it with the Homebuilt Heaven and Traditional Homebuilt Heaven awards selected at every event.

The Homebuilt Heaven and Traditional Homebuilt Heaven awards are chosen from the Speedway Motors Homebuilt Heaven area, one of the most popular of the Saturday Special Parking Areas hosted at Goodguys National events. Car owners who have done much of their own work on their vehicles can choose to park in that area and get a small placard to fill out indicating which of the tasks they did themselves, and which ones they farmed out to professionals.

It’s a great way for do-it-yourselfers to showcase their hard work, and for Goodguys to show off some fantastic owner-built rods, customs, muscle cars, and classics. And the trophies are always pretty cool, too – in recent years, they’ve been made from Speedway spun-aluminum wheel covers.

At the end of the season, all of the Homebuilt Heaven and Traditional Homebuilt event winners are placed on an online ballot to determine the yearend champions for the people to vote on. The two winning rides receive a gift certificate, jacket, and more prize swag from Speedway Motors, in addition to the satisfaction of knowing that they’re helping to keep the homebuilt hot rodding spirit alive.

If you’ve got a garage-built beauty you’d like to show off, be sure to look for the Speedway Motors Homebuilt Heaven section in the Saturday Special Parking area at your nearest Goodguys event this season!