2026 Ms Main Street Vintage Pin Up Gala

Meet Kandi Blaze — Host & Experience Designer 💎🖤

There is a reason I keep doing this.

Not just the Pin-Up Gala. Car shows, racing events, community events and all the strange, wonderful things I’ve somehow found myself creating over the years.

I love watching people have an experience they didn’t know they needed.

I love the moment someone who arrived nervous begins laughing with a stranger. When someone who wasn’t sure she belonged suddenly realizes she does. When a downtown becomes more than buildings and sidewalks for an afternoon and turns into a memory somebody will talk about years later.

That’s the part I chase.

The pretty dresses, vintage cars, music, photographs and decorations help create the setting—but people create the experience.

And this Gala has become especially important to me because underneath all the lipstick, heels and fabulous vintage fashion is something much bigger.

Women showing up for other women.

Making room.

Cheering loudly.

Being ridiculous together.

And choosing kindness when nobody is keeping score.

That’s why I continue creating events like this.

I don’t simply want to give people somewhere to go.

I want to give them something to remember.

I’m Kandi Blaze, your host and experience designer for the 2026 Ms. Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala & Pageant.

And Saturday, I get the best seat in the house:

I get to watch all of you become part of it. 🖤💎

Meet Sandra Hedlund Tunnell — Gala Judge & VIP Ambassador 💎🍂

If you’ve spent any time enjoying downtown Ashland, there’s a pretty good chance Sandra Hedlund Tunnell has had a hand in something happening around you.

As Executive Director of Ashland Main Street, Sandra spends her days helping create and support a downtown that she says people genuinely want to be part of. She gets to see firsthand just how much people love this community—how much they want to be here, enjoy it and support it.

But there’s quite a bit more to Sandra than the woman behind Main Street.

Outside of her day job, she’s a horseback riding instructor. She gardens. She reads. She crafts. She travels.

And apparently, she smuggles internationally.

We’ll come back to that. 😂

When I asked Sandra what kindness means to her, she described it in two parts: being aware of other people’s needs, and being willing to give them grace and support.

She recently saw a shirt that said:

“Be kind—it’s not that hard.”

And as Sandra pointed out—it really isn’t.

There’s something beautifully simple about that answer, especially coming from someone whose work is so deeply connected to people and community.

Sandra knows downtown Ashland from the inside out. She knows the businesses, the people behind them, the work that happens quietly in the background and just how much heart it takes to create a place people genuinely want to be.

That perspective is one of the reasons I’m so happy to have her joining us this Saturday.

Because our VIP Ambassadors aren’t simply there to look at a score sheet. I wanted people beside our ladies who understand community, connection and the kind of character that can’t always be measured in points.

Sandra absolutely belongs among them.

I am incredibly excited to welcome Sandra Hedlund Tunnell, Executive Director of Ashland Main Street, as one of our 2026 Ms. Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala Judges & VIP Ambassadors. 💎🍂

Oh—and the international smuggling?

Sandra casually ended the information she sent me with:

“I am an international smuggler. (Here’s hoping the statute of limitations on that is expired.)”

We have elected not to ask follow-up questions. 😂

Meet Mandi DeLarec — Gala Judge & VIP Ambassador 💎🏁

Some people grow up around racing.

Mandi DeLarec quite literally grew up in it.

A second-generation racer raised at Dragway 42, Mandi grew up in the shop alongside her dad, surrounded by Buicks, race cars and all of the lessons that come from a life spent around motorsports. Today, she has been racing herself for more than 11 years and can be found behind the wheel of her ’91 Foxbody, Vivian — named after Julia Roberts’ character in Pretty Woman, Mandi’s all-time favorite movie. And she isn’t afraid to mix things up, either. From 7.0 Index to No Box and Box off the bottom, if there’s a class she can climb into, chances are Mandi is willing to give it a shot.

At Darana Dragway 42, Mandi’s official role is Social Media and Marketing, although like most people who truly love a racetrack, her job description tends to grow depending on what needs done. From the ET Shack to the Water Box to the gate — and now helping build sponsorship opportunities for the 2027 season — she has become part of the heartbeat behind the scenes.

But one of the things I especially wanted to introduce you to is something incredibly close to Mandi’s heart:

🛞💨 Ladies to the Lanes.

The podcast began as a dream of creating something Mandi felt women in motorsports desperately needed — a safe place to belong.

A place where women could talk cars without judgment.

A place to learn from one another, build friendships, collaborate, celebrate accomplishments and remind each other that women absolutely belong in every corner of racing.

What started small has continued to grow, with Ladies to the Lanes now available across podcast platforms and shining a spotlight on women throughout motorsports. One of my favorite parts is their Female Final Friday, where they recognize women who make it all the way to the final round and give those accomplishments the attention they deserve.

And when I asked Mandi what kindness means to her, her answer told me just as much about her as anything racing ever could.

She knows what it feels like to be torn down. She was bullied heavily in high school, and instead of carrying that forward, she decided to become the person who builds others up.

In her own words, she loves nothing more than being someone’s “hype girl.”

She believes women in racing — and honestly, women everywhere — need a whole lot more lifting up and a whole lot less tearing down. Whether it’s in person, through a text message or across a microphone, Mandi is the kind of woman who is ready to remind somebody else that they are capable, worthy and very much meant to be here.

And THAT is exactly the kind of energy I want beside our ladies this Saturday.

I am incredibly excited to welcome Mandi DeLarec of Ladies to the Lanes as one of our 2026 Ms. Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala Judges & VIP Ambassadors.

Bring the horsepower.

Bring the heels.

Bring the hype girls.

We’ve got room for all of it. 🖤💎🏁

Meet Nicoletta Barracuda —  Gala Judge & ViP Ambassador 💎👗

There are some people you ask to be part of something because their résumé fits.

And then there are people you ask because you already know the kind of human they are.

Nicoletta Barracuda grew up right here in Ashland and still calls this community home. She works locally, is a mom, an artist at heart, a maker of things, an animal lover, a nature girl, a proud self-described weirdo, and someone who can apparently look at absolutely nothing and decide, “Yep. I can make something out of that.” 

She loves creating, upcycling, crafting and working with resin. She has a passion for makeup and cosplay, loves putting together creative looks, enjoys vintage styling, and considers Halloween a perfectly reasonable excuse to really flex those makeup skills.

Her mom will also tell you that animals seem to trust her, her flowers around the house are always beautiful, and that she has an enormous heart for the people around her.

And I already know what she is like inside this event.

Last year, Nicoletta volunteered with us during the Main Street Bash. She helped at registration, joined me during the VIP portion of the Pin-Up Gala, helped our ladies throughout the day and got to experience firsthand what this strange little idea of mine looks like once sixteen women, downtown Ashland and a whole lot of moving pieces come together.

She has volunteered alongside me at other community events too, including registration for the Hayesville Vermillion Volunteer Fire Department.

So when I found myself needing another woman beside our contestants this year, I realized I had someone practically standing in front of me who already understood the assignment.

And perhaps more importantly, she understands why kindness matters.

When I asked Nicoletta what kindness means to her, this was her answer:

“Kindness means to me going out of your way to help others for no reason other than to help. To lift them up. Support them. Wanting nothing in return. I have received so much kindness in the last year that I’m beyond blessed. It truly is a wonderful thing to give kindness and also receive it. It costs nothing but the reward is worth everything.”

The last year has asked a great deal of her.

Nicoletta is a breast cancer survivor, and that word survivor is still very new. The experience is fresh, the healing is ongoing, and it is only one part of who she is — but it has given even deeper meaning to the kindness and support she talks about.

In her own words, she has learned that you are never alone in your battles.

And somehow, even through a very hard year, she still manages to meet life with goofy humor, positivity and an insistence on looking for whatever bright spot she can find.

That matters to me.

Because our VIP Ambassadors aren’t here simply to look at dresses and fill in numbers on a piece of paper. They spend the afternoon beside these women. They watch how they treat people. They see the laughs, nerves, kindness, interactions, little moments and personalities that never fit neatly into a photograph.

And Nicoletta already knows how to see those things.

I am incredibly happy to officially welcome Nicoletta Barracuda as a 2026 Ms. Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala Judge & VIP Ambassador. 

And in a little full-circle moment, the photo we chose for her official Gala card was taken at last year’s Main Street Bash — standing beside a Big 3 Racing car, our 2026 Gala and Car Show sponsor.

Apparently she was already auditioning for this job and none of us realized it yet. 

Meet Tiffany Flamingo — Gala Judge & VIP Ambassador 💎🦩

Last year, Tiffany Flamingo walked into the Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala as a contestant.

She walked away our 2025 Miss Main Street Bash Runner-Up.

This year, she’s coming back—but this time, she’ll be standing beside our ladies as one of their Gala Judges & VIP Ambassadors.

And if all you knew about Tiffany was the pink, the pin-up dresses and that enormous smile, you’d be missing the best parts of her.

Tiffany is no stranger to pin-up culture. She has appeared at events throughout multiple states, holds numerous pin-up titles and is a member of the Atomic Red Hots, a body-positive charity pin-up group. She genuinely loves this community and the women in it.

But for Tiffany, pin-up has also become a way to do some pretty incredible things for other people.

Liver disease has touched Tiffany’s family deeply. Both her mother and her daughter have faced serious liver struggles, and in 2023, her daughter received a liver transplant.

So when Tiffany had an opportunity to use one of her pin-up events to raise money for the Shenango Valley Children’s Transplant Fund—the same organization that had helped her own family—she did. She raised $500 and turned around and gave it right back to help another child and another family facing the road hers already knew.

That tells you quite a bit about Tiffany.

So does the rest of her life.

She volunteers. She works as a lifeguard. She loves traveling, road trips and camping adventures with her family. Give her a good meteor shower and a night sky worth staring at, and she’s pretty damn happy.

And she has one of those hearts that seems to continually find somewhere useful to put itself.

Tiffany is the woman who shows up. She helps. She encourages. She supports. And somehow, through all of it, she keeps that giant Flamingo smile.

That is exactly why I wanted her back.

Our Gala has never simply been about who can put on a beautiful dress and strike a pose. It’s about the women wearing those dresses—and how they treat the people around them when nobody is scoring it.

Tiffany already knows what it feels like to stand in front of those judges. She knows the nerves, the excitement and the vulnerability that come with putting yourself out there.

Now she gets to be one of the women on the other side saying, I see you. Go have fun. You belong here.

I am incredibly happy to welcome our 2025 Main Street Bash Runner-Up, Tiffany Flamingo, back to Ashland as one of our 2026 Ms. Main Street Bash Vintage Pin-Up Gala Judges & VIP Ambassadors. 💎🦩

Last year she wore the sash.

This year, she helps decide who wears one next. 🖤