I spent the Dukes of Hazzard Aniversary Weekend with Catherine and Bo!

Today, January 26, 2026 marks the forty-seventh anniversary of the premiere of our favorite TV show of all time, the Dukes of Hazzard. I've had some great adventures on this day throughout the years, none better than the Fortieth Anniversary Event that was held in Nashville in 2019 where I got to M.C. the whole shebang! I won't be spending today with the cast, but I did get to hang out with Catherine Bach and John Schneider this past weekend at the Pittsburgh World Of Wheels Custom Car Show. So that's a win in my book. 

I've been to the Pittsburgh World Of Wheels at least eight times over the years. The first time was in 1989 when I took the above photo with the Adam West Batmobile. I remember being disappointed I couldn't get inside the Michael Keaton Batmobile, but now that I'm older than eight, I can understand why that wasn't an option. Years later I recreated that pic at the Steel City Con, also above. I also met Michelangelo at that World of Wheels, even though my favorite Ninja Turtle was, and still is, Raphael. 

Over the years I've seen John, Ben, Catherine and Tom at the event. Here's my dad, Ben and me at the 2008 show. Just three Good Ol' Boys!

In 2017, Jeff and I worked the event with Catherine and Tom. Jeff was more enthused then he looks in this picture, I assure you. What I'm getting at is I have a nice history with this very well run event, but as we'll find out soon, not as long as some fans. 

Before we talk Dukes, I wanted me spotlight a buddy of mine and his amazing work. 

I went to middle school and high school with Lenny Pasquale. He was the second biggest Dukes fan in my class. He's always been a car guy and did some great body work way back then. He's turned his passion into his career and is now the proud owner of Lenny Pasquale Customs. His work was once again showcased at the event. The 1939 Ford Deluxe Coupe he built took one of the top honors at the show. Lenny's work is amazing and it's so awesome how well he's doing in the custom car world. Great hanging with you Len!

The event was advertised as not only having Bo and Daisy, but as having six Dukes of Hazzard cars! That's a lot! Going in to the show I didn't know whose cars they were or if there would actually be that many. There certainly was. Friday before the show I saw an interview on the local news with the car owners and knew I had to meet them. 

In this picture we have, your buddy and mine, Neal Clayton, and brothers Bill and and JC Ciaffoni, owners of Fuel Required Classic Cars, based in McDonald, PA. They own all these cars! Bill and JC have been sponsors of the World of Wheels for about five years and have been building their Hazzard County Fleet for a little longer. 

Of course their General Lee is the centerpiece of their collection

But having a Boss Hogg Caddy and all the other cars is so cool!

Ben would be proud!

So would Uncle Jesse!

They have a Rosco car and the Jeep! Each car was impeccable and the boys sure are proud of them. 

I'm really glad I met Bill and JC. Meeting fellow fans is always a blast and meeting fans as passionate about the Dukes and the cars as Neal and me are is something special. The Ciaffoni brothers are new friends and I look forward to hanging with them again in the future and hopefully doing events with them. 

I couldn't just include one picture of their General. It deserves to be praised. It's beautiful!

The Ciaffoni family also have a flagging and traffic control company called All Ways Safe. I love a good pun. All Ways Safe also had a presence at the show. They had a racecar and a drag racer on display. 

 

Turns out All Ways Safe bought the former Grindstone Fire Hall. Grindstone is a village right outside of Brownsville and happens to be where my wife, Natalie, grew up. The Grindstone Fire Department had a setup at the show. All Ways Safe and the Ciaffoni family helped Grindstone VFC with a fundraiser. 

 

They are raffling off one of three cars this year and were selling raffle tickets at the event. You can win a 1982 Corvette, a 1969 Beetle Convertible (Hugie Hogg Style) or a 2020 Polaris Pro XP. I bought a ticket for the raffle. If that sounds like something you might be interested in, tickets are available online at their site here. It was fun being at an event with a lot of hometown friends. The Grindstone fire chief, who I didn't know said "You're Larry! I just sent a picture of Daisy Duke to my buddy (who is a friend of my dad) and he said 'That's Larry Franks' standing beside her!" That was fun. 

More fun is when Catherine introduced me to the crowd. I love when she does this. She tells everyone waiting that I would love to talk Dukes while they wait and she is one hundred percent correct. Oh new pal John Pithers, more about him soon, sent me these pictures and I love them. 

I just love Catherine so much!

Speaking of John Pithers, here's our new friend. His awesome shirt first drew my attention, then we started talking and I'm glad we did.

I mean, look at that shirt!

While waiting to meet Catherine, John showed me this picture.

It's him meeting Catherine at this very car show in 1980! That is so cool. I have a little history with the Pittsburgh World of Wheels, but John goes waaaaay back. I couldn't wait to see Catherine's reaction to this one. 

Catherine was just as impressed as I was. This was something special. 

John wanted to try to recreate the original picture. 

He nailed it. 

The same picture at the same location, forty-six years apart. That is so cool. Catherine signed this one for John. That is an amazing collectible right there. 

I'm really glad I got to meet John and I can tell we're going to be friends. We've spoken a little since the show. I love making new Dukes pals and John is a true fan from the beginning. 

Another new friend is Rain J. He had a great Boss Hogg costume that really impressed the crowd. We should get Rain to compete in the Halloween in Hazzard Costume Contest at the Hazzard Run later this year. 

He had a daisy for Daisy!

I haven't seen John much in the last few years. It was great getting to hang with him while he was signing autographs. He made sure to point out the interesting collectibles to me. He knows how much I love Dukes stuff. It's funny to me when John, Tom or Catherine are surprised by an item. Just because their face is on the Ertl Hazzard County Road Map, that's about four feet by four feet, doesn't mean they've ever seen it before. John was introduced to one at the show. I also love seeing young fans so excited to meet the Dukes. Our hobby has a great future!

The show was very well organized. The lines to see both John and Catherine were long but they moved fast and it seemed like everyone got to meet both Duke cousins. 

The area in front of the stage was open and the Gen'ral was front and center. Anyone who just wanted a picture of the Dukes, and that was a lot of people, had a good vantage point to take the picture. 

The crew that worked for the World of Wheels did an excellent job and I know everyone went home happy. The impending snow storm, that we're still digging out of today, made the schedule a little hectic on Saturday and Catherine had to cut her appearance short because she had to catch an earlier flight, but everyone got their autograph or picture and got home before the snow started. 

We all love Bo Duke!

Catherine is just beautiful. I love spending time with her! There's our friend Larry, other Larry. Other Larry is a great guy. 

This is a cool shot of the stage area behind the General Lee. Catherine's setup was on the left and John was on the right. 

So many cool Dukes collectibles! I loved being a fly on the wall and listening to fan's interactions with the Dukes. 

John's autograph was the first one on John and JC's General Lee!

I get the honor of seeing Catherine a few times a year, but it's always a privilege to spend time with her. She is so amazing and I love her so much. 

 

I don't see John as often, but I hope that changes soon. He's always great to me and just my absolute hero. I've wanted to be Bo Duke my whole life. 

When the show wrapped up, I snagged a cool picture of the Allegheny River from inside the convention center. The storm hadn't started yet, but the river was partly frozen. Earlier in the week, the predictions said the snow might start Saturday night and I was worried it might hinder me getting to the show. Thankfully the snow held off until Sunday but it sure was cold!

On the way home I picked up a pizza from the best pizzeria in Pittsburgh, Fiori's. We love Pizza Wagon and Bud Murphey's here closer to home, but the best in the city is definitely Fiori's. 

Look at that cheesy pepperoni-y goodness. 

Natalie was a little worried about me getting home before the storm, but once the forecast shifted she was happy I had a good time. And happy I brought home Fiori's pizza. Saturday was a great day and a great way to celebrate forty-seven years of the Dukes of Hazzard. I got to spend some time with Neal, Lenny, John P., John and JC, and of course Catherine and John. That's a great day in Hazzard County.