More Than the Cars: My Trip to Outback in the Midwest
If you’ve spent much time around me, you probably know two things: I love a good road trip, and I have a hard time saying no when that road trip involves cars.
Over Labor Day weekend, I combined both—and threw in a birthday trip for good measure—by pointing my 2008 Pontiac G8 GT toward Indianapolis for the 10th Anniversary Outback in the Midwest. Is there a better way to spend a birthday weekend with your best friends and cars? I don't think so.
Outback is unlike any other car event I’ve attended. It celebrates the Australian-built performance cars that made their way to the United States wearing Pontiac and Chevrolet badges: Pontiac GTOs and G8s, Chevrolet SS sedans and Caprices, along with authentic Holden Commodores, Utes, Sportwagons and more.
This was my second time attending after first making the trip in 2023. Back then, fewer than 450 cars attended and I remember thinking there was no possible way they could squeeze many more onto the property.
Apparently, I underestimated them.
This year they packed in 611 Holdens.
And when I say “packed in,” I mean that quite literally. The main event still takes place primarily in the backyard of organizers Travis and Haley Bell!
A Pontiac at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Before Saturday's main gathering, Friday brought an experience I'll probably be talking about for a very long time: Outback at the Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Hundreds of Australian-built cars gathered at IMS, and eventually it was our turn to head onto one of the most famous racetracks in the world.
I've had opportunities to drive other tracks over the years, including turning 33 laps on the Texas Motor Speedway and a couple of track day sessions Hallett Motor Racing Circuit, but Indianapolis is different.
You don't truly appreciate the size of that place until you're driving down the front stretch with the grandstands and suites towering over you.
Even the famous scoring pylon had been transformed with Holden and 10th Anniversary Outback in the Midwest graphics.
We weren't racing. I probably reached only about 60 mph, and we got roughly a lap and a half.
Didn't matter.
I was driving my 236,000-mile Pontiac G8 around Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Most of the video from inside the car consists of me repeatedly saying, “This is so cool.”
Sometimes eloquent commentary just isn't necessary.
Imagine 611 of Them
Saturday morning we headed to the main event, where virtually every variation of these Australian machines seemed to be represented.
There were pristine stock cars, daily drivers, heavily modified street cars and full-on race cars. GTOs, G8s, Chevrolet SS sedans, Caprices, Commodores, Utes and Sportwagons stretched seemingly everywhere you looked.
Unlike many traditional car shows, Outback isn't judged.
There are no trophies to chase and no points being deducted because somebody has the wrong hose clamp.
You park the car, pull out your chair and enjoy yourself.
There are food trucks, vendors, raffles, parts for sale and plenty to see, but the real entertainment is walking around, checking out everyone else's builds and talking with the people behind them.
I even had the opportunity to meet Ed Bolian, creator of VINwiki, and asked him to add his signature to the dashboard of my G8 alongside professional racing driver Randy Pobst's signature.
He agreed, giving the G8 another little piece of automotive history.
Considering how many miles and adventures that car has accumulated over our 11 years together, I think the signatures fit its personality pretty well.
A Car Giveaway With a Bigger Purpose
One of the things I appreciate most about Outback is that the community uses this enormous gathering to do some good.
The event is supported by an impressive collection of automotive companies, vendors and individual enthusiasts who donate prizes, products and services. There were dozens of raffles this year, including some prizes worth thousands of dollars.
But the big prize was considerably larger.
They gave away a Chevrolet SS.
Entries were $50 each, with the proceeds donated to the Baldridge family to help with the day-to-day expenses of Tyler Baldridge, who lives with Coffin-Lowry Syndrome.
I've had the opportunity to meet Tyler during my visits to Outback, and this year I was immediately greeted with a huge smile and a fist bump.
I bought one chance on the SS.
Unfortunately, my driveway did not gain another car—which is probably for the best considering how many are already parked around my house.
The lucky winner was Nancy from Kansas City, Missouri, who had purchased just two entries. Watching her emotional reaction when her number was called, followed by her getting into the car and revving the engine for the first time, was one of the coolest moments of the weekend.
The car was awesome.
What the giveaway accomplished was even better.
The Best Part Isn't the Cars
As someone involved with several automotive organizations, I've attended more car shows, cruises and conventions than I could possibly count.
What keeps impressing me about the Holden community isn't really the cars.
It's how people treat one another.
If somebody breaks down, people help. If you're struggling with a mechanical problem, somebody probably has the tool, part or knowledge you need. Owners freely share information about their builds rather than guarding it like a secret.
I experienced that myself.
My G8 developed a cooling issue while we were waiting to enter Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I eventually discovered I was low on coolant, but another problem surfaced as well: the electric fans had been programmed to come on much later than I wanted.
The next day, my friend Josh—whom I hadn't actually seen in person since we met at a car event in 2017—pulled up the tune and changed the fan settings for me.
Nearly a decade had passed since we'd last been together in person.
It felt like we'd seen each other last week.
That's the car community at its best.
And it's something we know pretty well here in the Ozarks, too.
The vehicles may be what initially bring us together, but eventually the friendships become far more important than whatever happens to be sitting in the driveway.
236,388 Miles and Counting
When I finally pulled back into Northwest Arkansas, my G8's odometer read 236,388 miles.
I've owned it for 11 years and bought it with around 165,000 miles. It's definitely not a show car.
It's a driver.
In fact, Indianapolis was its second major road trip this year. Earlier in 2026, I drove it 2,002 miles round-trip from Northwest Arkansas to Pontiac, Michigan, for the Pontiac-Oakland Club International Convention.
Between those two trips alone, the G8 traveled roughly 3,500 miles this year just going to car events.
I've tried to sell this car twice.
Both times I found buyers.
Both times I backed out.
After a weekend like this, I'm reminded why.
This old Pontiac has carried me to racetracks, conventions, car shows and gatherings all over the country. It's introduced me to people who became lifelong friends. And now I can add Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the largest Holden gathering in North America to its story.
Outback gave me 611 incredible cars to look at.
It gave me a chance to drive one of America's most famous racetracks.
And it gave me another memorable birthday road trip with some of my best friends.
But once again, the thing I'll remember most isn't horsepower, mileage or even driving across the bricks at Indianapolis.
It's sitting underneath a tent talking with old friends. Meeting new ones. Watching enthusiasts help each other. Laughing with friends after the show was over and realizing that the cars had once again given us an excuse to be together.
That's something I hope we never lose in this hobby.
Because whether it's 611 Holdens in Indianapolis or a Saturday morning cruise through the Ozarks, the cars may be what bring us together.
The people are what make us want to come back.
Photography credit to G. Watson Images and other various attendees who shared their photography. You can view more of the professional footage by checking out G. Watson Images gallery.
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