The country’s oldest Corvette show is on the move again.
Bloomington Gold returned to its hometown in 2022 for a milestone 50th anniversary year. The event was held at Illinois State University in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
But event organizers list St. Louis suburb Madison, Illinois, as the site for their 2025 event.
Bloomington Gold launched in 1973, coming back to the Twin Cities after decades away. Securing the car show for Bloomington-Normal is considered a signature accomplishment for former Bloomington-Normal Area Convention and Visitors Bureau [CVB] director Crystal Howard, who left the hospitality hub in 2024.
Bloomington native Melissa Chrisman has since filled the top job leading Bloomington-Normal tourism. Chrisman said the CBV was "disappointed Bloomington Gold chose to leave their namesake."
"Our staff along with several other groups involved with putting this event on worked incredibly hard to keep them here and have their 2025 event in Bloomington-Normal," Chrisman said.
Chrisman said the move to Madison was prompted by a desire for attendees to be able to drive the cars.
"At the end of the day, we don't have a racetrack in Bloomington-Normal," she said. "They had that availability that we just didn't have."
Multiple calls and emails over the past week went unreturned by Bloomington Gold. The convention translated to about $1 million in annual economic impact for the Twin Cities.
