How Frank Spinella’s Venom Outlaws Invaded – and Conquered – the Carlisle Ford Nationals
Mustang Owner's Podcast
How Frank Spinella’s Venom Outlaws Invaded – and Conquered – the Carlisle Ford Nationals
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Car
Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is a sports car made by Ford. It’s designed to be fun to drive, with options for different engines and styles like a coupe or a convertible. A Mustang podcast talks about how to live with one, what to maintain, and how to get the most out of it.
Brand
Venom Outlaws
Venom Outlaws is the group the hosts are talking about. They’re known for showing up in a big, attention-grabbing way at the Carlisle Ford Nationals.
Topic
Carlisle Ford Nationals
This is a big Ford car show in Carlisle. The hosts are talking about how the Venom Outlaws became a well-known part of that event.
Concept
club connect program
“Club Connect” is Ford’s way of working with car clubs and helping them get involved with Ford events. Here they’re talking about changing it and updating it for the future.
Brand
Ford Racing
Ford Racing is Ford’s motorsports/performance side. In this segment, it’s mentioned because the person working on “Club Connect” is part of that group.
Brand
red busting registry
“Red busting registry” sounds like a Mustang-community tracking list or program. The host is saying it launched and then the club’s numbers jumped a lot.
LIVE
Hello Mustang fans and welcome to another episode of the Mustang owners podcast.
I'm your host John Clore and along with my co-host Mike Ray and Mike and we talk about
everybody having a Mustang story every once in a while.
We come across some Mustang people that we just got to go wow and I think tonight's one
of those nights Mikey.
One of my favorite people in the whole Mustang community the first day or any time we ever
met we clicked right away literally I call my brother from another mother honestly.
I cannot relate more with somebody and absolutely love and admire what he's created over there
and we're going to share a great story tonight.
Geez I don't know who's going to be able to top that intro but we're going to welcome
to the podcast Frank Spinella Frank from the Venom Outlaws welcome to the Mustang owners
podcast.
Thank you gentlemen.
Thank you very much for having me.
No the thank is going to be on you thanking you because you're a busy guy and the reason
why we know that because we spent many times at Carlisle seeing what you've built with
the Venom Outlaws and then when we first pulled up on you years ago and then Mike I looked
at me and Mike and I look back and I go the Venom Invasion is here and not only Frank
did the Venom Outlaws invade Carlisle but Mike let's be honest they conquered Carlisle.
The Invasion hasn't stopped so it continues each and every year and just keeps getting
bigger and better.
So Frank we want to talk a little bit about how in the heck what was the genesis of getting
together with the Venom Outlaws because most people they have a little Facebook group they
have a Mustang club and they're down at the ANW Root beer or they go out they cruise maybe
do some videos together but your group I don't know where you found all these people because
we've we've hung with you many years but these guys are absolute blast to be with these are
high energy, high volume, have fun tonight kind of people and how did Venom Outlaws go
find these folks and how did you get this thing started?
You know what sets us apart is we started in 2014 and we didn't want to just build a typical
car club we wanted to build a family and that's what really sets us apart from everyone out
there you know we're all tight knit we all take care of one another you know if someone's
in trouble someone's there to help you and we built it on family vibe you know bring
your families we started out as a Mustang club you know now we're open to everything you
know when we're outside of Carlisle we do all different events but we definitely built
it on family you know the kids can come to our events anybody can come any age and we
make it fun no matter what we do or where we go and we are definitely the talk of the
town whenever we roll into we definitely you know make it the best that we can for everyone
that's involved.
No, Mike I don't know if you know this but the Venom Outlaws are not just there about
Mustangs and muscle cars and sports cars but they're all over the place Mike I thought
there was mostly just in the Midwest there for a couple of states in New Jersey, New
York City, PA, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Tennessee I mean you guys have you have chapters
are spreading around town I think what's happened Frank is you've set such a standard
of and you have to admit if you walk in anywhere near the Outlaws when they're at a show having
fun is the vibe.
It absolutely is and if you're in Carlisle that's like the mecca right for all of us
for every event of the year but they always got their matching shirts the t-shirts are all
matching the same colors and stuff you're not missing them.
They're making a statement where they walk yeah the kids are everywhere they're playing
they're dancing they got a big footprint there but that's what we wanted to
ask you a little bit about Frank so the family vibe is there we can see it a lot of clubs
it's more like they have a smaller tent they have their little rockers and they watch the
people go by you guys are like a disco you guys are like a club
you know we we come from the Jersey Shore so we try to make it you know
little tka and back in the day as Mike knows very well
yeah
so when you when did you decide to invade Carlisle when was when was your first Carlisle
because you guys were around a couple years and somebody said let's go check it out and then
you obviously had enough people to get a tent I want to say it was around 97 or 98
okay you know we we we were combined with two other clubs at the time
that's right wow I know it was that long I thought it was 14 inches or something
yeah you were with a couple other groups yes we were with two other groups
and then we ended up pulling ourselves away you know uh we we decided you know
let's do this on our own we we we have the manpower we know how to do this we want it to
be family oriented so let's just let's just pull away and let's set ourselves apart from
everyone else and that's basically what we've we we still try to do that to the you know to this day
well let's tell folks Mike about the Carlisle experience if you're a club
and you know Ken Appel one of the greatest event managers in the country he he does go out of his
way to make sure this event is club-centric so you get that if you get so many cars you get a
tent on the show field they Carlisle stands on their head to make sure clubs are interactive
with each other they get to do things they have events that they include you in and we'll go Mike
all over that show field from tent to tent and say hi but but it's a little different when you wind
up looking at the show field and you see all these little tents and then you see wait a minute what
is that it's like it's like in the it's like going to Chicago and all these little houses
then see Wrigley Field there in a neighborhood what is this giant structure here wait the Venom
invasion the Venom Outlaws are here and they don't just have a tent Mike they had like the Taj Mahal
but John listen to this so to let them know how much how big and they are that everybody knows
about it they are literally a destination at Carlisle a fixture if you will because for when we
were next to them like last year everybody's like where's your where's your guys tent at the show I
next to Venom so that's the way to describe where it was because everybody knows where the Venom
tent is so I mean it was very very easy to that and should I tell the quick funny story John
so you know yeah no no no about the tent oh last year our maximum tent we got it we got
Ken to get us right next to them as so we can everybody can know where we're at right but
wait wait wait let's explain there's a thing called the coolest club hangout that I
for what 810 years now yeah Kenapal has club connect go out and find the coolest club hangout
so you know I'd walk in Frank and I would see the T-bird guys they were in their poodle skirts and
they had a Rockabilly jukebox there and they that was cute they won it one year and then
the red most angry regency run one year they had a theme but but Frank Mike you have to admit
they took theme took it to another level and every time you would go to a moxamere you go what are
we going to do this year let's do like a racetrack design we had we had little checkered flags and
Mike I stole this from your tent but so Frank if you can tell Mike spent a lot of money on these
flags you know bring bring me at the car allow hang it in the tent
so we tried right how could no one can ever compete with them right so we had to say well
what can we do to at least draw some attention and one of the things was okay we came up with an
idea um to steal the steal the funder of the venom invasion right so we said you know what
make sure we get that spot right next to them we're gonna get a tent we don't have to decorate
at all we're gonna put one big sign up on the front and put ditto with an arrow pointing
towards us to just draw some attention you know hey that was pretty ingenious right to do that
because we're never going to be able to compete with them but we thought it was funny to do that
and uh yeah it was uh it was a good time for sure but venom like you said it takes it to another
level it's not just a club coolest hangout it's a I don't even know what to call it an experience
first of all how you got permission to get a tent as big as the grandstands I'm not sure
then you have to get a crane company to come in and put that up and then inside you know that's
why Carlisle ran out of tables because you had so many people in there and the kids were all over
the place the families are eating the food the music's going on and it's the themes you know the
when you had the pirate theme the Halloween thing I mean one year I used to bring forward
people over there and I'd introduce them to you frankly and they go they're looking around like
what is this this Mustang thing and you know you had an electric chair one year so I was able to
electrocute a Ford marketing person which is great I wish that thing was hooked up to more than a
12 but Frank where do you guys come up with these yearly themes what do you have a meeting how does
it work so we we have a meeting uh it's with the four of us and we we go when we pick the theme
and the theme usually starts around Thanksgiving wow and then right after New Year's is when we
start trying to weather permitting that's when we try to go into full gear of okay here's the theme
let's start going on the marketplace what can we build get the ideas and we start going you know
full throttle from New Year's until you know the day of and of course you would think with all of
the time that you have it comes down almost to the day before where we're still trying to put
stuff together or do painting and then you're loading the truck up we leave on Wednesday because
we get up there on Wednesday to build the tent so on Tuesday night at midnight we're still packing
the trucks and then boom we're up there around seven or eight in the morning we build all day on
Wednesday we try to finish up early Thursday so we can get back because a lot of our members now
are enjoying being up there so much most of them this is their vacation time believe it or not they
take vacation to be with us so we try our hardest to get back by Thursday night so we can start hanging
out with our members Friday night is our kickoff pizza party we have uh you know we have we have
lunch Friday during the day at the tent Friday nights to kickoff party pizza party uh Saturday
we have lunch again at the tent and then um Saturday night we have a ballroom um buffet style dinner
then we say you know we stay at the red line they have this huge patio they have the pool
there for the kids so we get a dj also and then it's like you know it's like a dance club that
mike is used to that's right you know on Saturday night it is and what sets you guys on i mean it's
one thing to have a cool tent and decorated but it's the props frank and i was told by some of
your members when you didn't when there's no prop out there that's available on facebook marketplace
or some some commercial place you guys make it you actually yes we'll try to build it close close
two to give you the idea oh that's what it is like you know when we did the 9 11 you know i built
the world trade centers you know to honor to honor everybody remember the fireman suit in there that
day remember that yeah we have to do the fireman suit oh that yeah that that you guys have taken
the coolest club hangout award to in the next level so what's happened frank i don't know if you
probably don't hear the discussions behind the scene so here comes the little club and they they
bought themselves they went to the the what mike what do you call it fast signs yeah themselves a
40 dollar banner and they got tablecloths at the party giant and they went they went all out and
they set up and they look over there and they go what's that oh that's that's the venom outlaws they
do the venom invasion here look what the heck and then they walk by very i don't know if you've seen
frank when you guys are in there dancing and the music's going the food's flying and people
have you seen people like walk by and then peer in like like they don't want to go in there that
what is in there because they don't know what is going on and what's happened is mike was it the
last three years or four years it's probably been four years people say well i'm not even going to
participate in the coolest club hangout because it's going to go to venom invasion so what did
well wait i don't want to come up with the idea you said wait a minute ken it's going to go to
venom invasion i mean every year what ford person who's been tasked to find the coolest club hangout
can give it to someone else in their right mind and not walk by frank's so you said ken you really
need to find out like maybe you do an honorable mention or do two or three because other people
yeah yeah so what the frank what you've done is other people have essentially given up
except for mike just goes ditto like i'm trying to cheat mike was cheating
but you know what's good is that you guys talked to ken into doing that so it makes it very very
you know it makes it you know all the other clubs work i'm sure just as hard
they do it's not it's not easy as a club leader and a president to try to pull your whole group
together you know for for a weekend that is you know it is very expensive you know
but it's very difficult to try to pull your whole group together for you know these three days
and when i'm up there i try to spend almost all of my time out on the road talking to people
shaking hands hugging people inviting people in to see to say hey listen i want you to experience
this come on in look around you know we have food and then you know come come be a part of us
we're all over the place you know we're not just you know just come on in and see it for yourself
you know and that's the most the most important message i'd like to get out tonight is that
you know if you're in between the road or you know you don't know come experience the venom
the venom invasion experience you know at the show field at the hotel it is i promise you it's one
of the most best adult weekends you can have you know and it's it's kid friendly and that's
that's the most important thing that we we strive for you know with all of our events but this one
is our Super Bowl so this one this one's near and dear to my heart john we have to make it to one
of them nights with them this year we're always tied up with all prior commitments all the time
we gotta either friday or saturday night go hang out with these guys for a little bit you know um
frank and i can tell you just from the forward perspective with the club connect program um
to see you guys out there and i can validate the amount of fun you have and i'm not knocking
any other club i mean i some clubs if they like to go to the tent it's hot and they fall asleep
that's fine there's nobody asleep in your tent it's just not in fact i i'm pretty sure and i'm
the state of pennsylvania thought there may have been a minor earthquake under the invasion tent
from all the dance uh something i don't know did you care about that too yeah so last year we had
the flood we're the tech flooded when you guys were in the tent so yeah so we we came and did we
bring hannah evans in uh the we're both in there with us so the hannah was with us for we were in
the tent for what almost an hour that it was 30 some minutes yeah yeah so the the club connect
program is winding down this year hannah is gonna she is the ford uh community engagement
specialist with ford racing he's gonna revamp and rebrand club connect at the end of the year
and so we wanted to give her the full carlile experience and we dragged her in there frank
and then the the skies opened up and we blamed it on mart mart savage who had a t-bird uh
he had a drive parade remember by the grandstand as soon as the t-birds got out there the
rain it came down frank in buckets yeah it was one of the worst years that i've been a part of in
a long time up there with the rain yeah that was the worst rain i've ever experienced in all my car
loungers especially on saturday yeah and on the saturday and show day so but yeah we appreciated
your hospitality and you know and i usually don't go picking through your food but i was hungry
so that was for you guys you guys are always welcome you guys are always welcome at the
hotel at the tent you at any event you you both know this so well i just thank both of you for
what you do i'm not saying this from the club connect perspective or because you win the coolest
club hangout i'm saying this as a mustang fan and as a fellow club member um you guys might you know
how hard it is to take a club to the next level and to stand out in this crowded world of mustang
club and i really truly think that frank spinella and the and the venom outlaws in all their chapters
have really done that and in this day and age that's a super hard thing to do frank hats off to you
and your entire thank you thank you very much you know john i thought you know we started it with
mox and we really showed how to grow and really take it to an insane level then red busting registry
came out and they just went bonkers right i mean the numbers were just through the roof right now
and now you look at venom and i mean to me is there something that could ever even top this in my
mind i say no after 20 plus years in the mustang community i do not see anything topping that
right now it's thriving it's at the top of its game every single year and they always used to ask me
what are you possibly going to be able to ever do top this i'm sure frank is asked the same exact
question every year and and he does it and it's fun showing them isn't it frank yeah it is every
year i always say how can we do better than last year yeah i say it every year where do they register
frank for carlow for your registrations so you guys are on facebook and instagram how do they get
together with the outlaws yeah so we're on we're on facebook you know venom outlaws and then um
you know obviously for carlow you go go on carlow's page and then you just register on their
venom invasion and then um you know you could they can private message me or um you know i
when i get the registrations i could find everyone's name and reach out and then you know we of course
we try to color coordinate everything we do our shirts sneakers i know mike's a big
sneaker fan like me okay mike we're we're wearing black and white on friday we're wearing red on
saturday i my bands just arrived today the ones just dropped on saturday yeah so so it's just you
know we're big sneaker fans my whole group we're we're uh we we have a sickness we love it we absolutely
love this event you know you see why me and him get along so good i see the same shoes yeah black
and white okay i can yeah i can deal with it black and white friday or what on saturday the black and
white sneakers friday we're wearing black and white uh shirts on friday okay and then
saturday we're wearing red because we want to stand out to everybody it's red and white covered
yep well you heard it there first folks if you uh you should check out the venom outlaws because
you get on facebook or check out their instagram page and if you want to really just let your
hair down and have some fun with the group and in all these different chapters so pretty much
anywhere uh i would suggest hooking up with them check out their car shows they do they do a couple
other shows in here but the time to join frank and his group and frank i know how this works because
i've worked with mike it's not just you you must have a really tight you're the guys that are running
your operation at carlo you all have to you need a team you can't do this by yourself no i definitely
do not we have one of the strongest teams that you can have you know around me my my team is is
strongest could be you know that's what makes it very very easy and you know it's it's not not easy
easy but it definitely makes it easier on me with how strong they are and what they do
carry out on their own yeah they have the same vision and the same passion i mean you can't be
yeah it's kind of like what makes the Mustang community so entirely different than anything
else you know mike i make fun of a lot of other cars but i don't think the seat the key of soul
club has this much fun do you think mike i mean maybe it's not as family oriented all i know frank
is right bench presses those come on yeah she looks she is the frank i gotta tell you we really
appreciate you coming on tonight i know you're a busy guy but we're if you want to just have people
look forward to carlough get them to come out i'm glad you let them let them walk in and enjoy
their time with you because you guys it's really rock congratulations on everything
bent amount laws and we're looking forward to the invasion mike let's face it yeah absolutely yeah
and we're going to visit every other club tent we want everybody to have their fun let their
hair down but when you have a few extra minutes go up past the invasion and see all these wild
people do they just really know how to enjoy themselves and frank the only thing i can compare
to mike what is what's that little movie line i always say when when clark grizzled got caught
in the pool with christie brinkley all right i remember oh no he was he he went down to meet
christie brinkley and and then uh veverly dillie angelo caught him in an office and she said you
know do you like that girl you know she's ugly is that what you like no and then what does clark
say she goes clark i know how to have fun well you know how to have fun and you bend them out
laws certainly you you do find fun at carlile i really appreciate you joining us tonight mike
aren't we lucky to just know this guy yeah i love you brother you know that no yeah anything we can
ever do to support we're here for you well thank you very very much for having me tonight
because of my pleasure folks i told you when you listen to the Mustang owners podcast your fingers
can be on the pulse of what's going on so that's why we need you to like and subscribe because otherwise
you know that that youtube algorithm is not going to share this stuff with all the other people that
need to know about the venom outlaws and the podcast so make it happen leave a comment if you've walked
by what's your thoughts we're we're gonna love it and we hope to see you at carlile as well and mike
in the meantime if we don't we can get some red and black or black and white and Mustang owners
podcast apparel for you so check that out as well on svtstore.com so mike another great guest
another great you're looking forward to carlile we'll probably have a full report
let's do a couple of podcasts from there and make sure we get frank on our on our podcast
when we're there at the carlile for nationals absolutely okay folks i hope you enjoyed that
episode it was just for you until next time we'll just have to catch you guys down the road
About this episode
Frank Spinella’s Venom Outlaws are portrayed as a growing, family-first Mustang club that turned Carlisle Ford Nationals into a recurring “Venom Invasion.” The hosts describe how the group started in 2014, expanded beyond Mustangs, and became a visible fixture on the show field—complete with tents, crane logistics, and a yearly theme that ramps up after New Year’s. Even a brutal rain year couldn’t slow momentum, as Ford’s Club Connect and a “red busting registry” helped fuel rapid growth.
Original notes
The greatest Ford festival party on the planet – the annual Carlisle Ford Nationals – is all about Blue Oval camaraderie and vehicle clubs and celebrating the myriad of Fords produced over the past century. After John created the Ford Performance Club Connect program for Ford Racing more than a decade ago, the Carlilse Ford Nats became his “Super Bowl” of car shows as he could meet up with dozens and dozens of Ford clubs all in one place over a single weekend.
John even got to choose Carlisle’s “Coolest Club Hangout” award each year as he and Mike visited as many of the club tents on the show field as they possibly could. But a few years ago, something big happened: Frank Spinellla’s Venom Outlaws Mustang Club showed up and turned the club hangout experience into a themed happening with a massive tent and custom-decorated footprint that dwarfed everything else that clubs gad set up on the Carlisle
Fairgrounds. In this episode, Mike and John visit with Frank to get the inside story of his club, and how being founded on family fun has powered the annual “Venom Invasion” at Carlisle.
Don’t forget to Like, Subscribe and leave a Comment. Plus, show that you’re a true Mustang insider by wearing Mustang Owner’s Podcast branded apparel, available on TheSVTstore.com!
Mustang Owner's Podcast
John Clor - Mike Rey - (Steve Hall)
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