It’s been a year since Keefe Media International took over the National Impala Association, and the club has seen healthy growth since. Thanks to the steady growth of the association, the upcoming 2018 National Impala Association Convention is shaping up to be the largest one in history. This event will be held at the University of Dayton Marriott Inn in Dayton, OH from July 23-28, and will celebrate the organization’s 37-year history.
“We are very happy to see the positive response to our updated magazine and are hard at work to make the Dayton Convention the largest assemblage of full-sized Chevrolets in our history. Even though we are months away from the event, we have been getting registrations in already. The enthusiasm from our members has been very high- our first registration for 2018 came all the way from South Africa!” – Said Don Keefe, President of the National Impala Association
Keefe also announced that two special guest speakers are already scheduled for the event. The first being a former employee of Chevy’s Central Office Production Order (COPO) department in the late 1960s, Jim Mattison. Jim was involved with the building of many of the highest-performance muscle cars fro Chevy and will be giving a prevention on the history of the COPO cars.
Another speaker is Jim Luikens, a former Parts Manager at the Berger Chevrolet dealership in Grand Rapid, MI. He was heavily involved with the COPO program as well, as the dealership he worked at was one of the first ones to successfully market the Chevy crate engines. Jim will share his experiences with the COPO and create engine programs, as well as his experiences racing a 1965 Chevrolet Impala when it was new.
The 2018 NIA Convention will also feature Points-Judged and Popular Vote segments for show car, various activities, a cruise-in, show in Tipp City, tours of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, America’s Packard Museum, Carillon Historical parts, and the Write Cycle Company Complex.
All full-size Chevrolets and Canadian-built Pontiacs are recognized by the National Impala Association, from 1958-present. To register from the convention in Dayton, visit their site here.
Shawn Henry is a Texas native who has spent the majority of his career building and selling F-Bodies and Corvettes. Now studying journalism, he is taking a new direction with his love of performance vehicles.
