New for 2026

Below are some changes coming for 2026 in an effort to improve the overall experience at Ponies In The Smokies, presented by National Parts Depot:

Car Show

  • We are moving from paper judging sheets and manual tabulation to a Judging App which will improve efficiency of the judging process and accuracy of the results.
  • We are teaming with the Mustang Club of America to leverage their membership to supply judges.  We will merge their discipline, unbiased approach, knowledge and white glove treatment with our judging criteria and format to produce more consistently fair results. 
  • We are dropping Shine Run Bonus Points from car show judging.

Decals

  • We are dropping the need to distribute Shine Run and Driving Experience decals

Shine Run

  • We are moving from a paper Shine Run Card to a Shine Run App using a combo of a QR Code and GPS location which will ensure fairness and efficiency of hand tabulation.  Registration is all done through the App so there’s no need to track down a ClearShine team member or PITS Crew member to purchase a paper card.
  • We are extending the Shine Run from 4-days to 5-days(Sunday through Thursday) so it now runs from Sunday 8am to Thursday evening when the stops close for business.
  • As always, the Shine Run stops have rotated to include new locations while keeping some crowd favorites. 
  • We are using Newport Speedway as a 1-day only stop on Wednesday again, but we will have two places to make your draw, one inside the entrance gate and one outside the entrance gate avoiding the gate fee if you do not wish to enter the Speedway.

Shine Run Party

  • Thursday evening’s Shine Run Party is returning to Junction 35 Spirits at the Mountain Mile in Pigeon Forge, TN and we’re including a YouTuber Meet
  • ClearShine Products will give out their limited number of Goody Bags on a first come, first serve basis at the Shine Run Party to those that show a completed hand on the App vs at the beginning of the week to anyone that registers.  

New Website

  • We are on the cusp of launching a new website to provide a more modern look and feel with more functionality and an immersive user experience.