Antique & Classic Cars Blog

It’s over. The coolers are empty, the chairs are packed, the rods are back in their respective states, driveways, garages and carports. It’s the Ones again—or whatever you call the first decade of a century. The Fifties are gone for another year.

The Star Tribune hasn’t had a presence at the event before and it went pretty well. Thousands of car fans thought a classic-Buick bedecked calendar-poster would make a nice bedroom, shop or garage wall addition. A few folks stopped by to say a kind word about my car writing for the paper, and some left with my book, Dream Garages. Thanks to all of you–and to Paul Brand**(see below) and WCCO for having me on air for a bit of car gab.

Those who know this show know it’s one amazing experience, filling the venerable Minnesota State Fairgrounds completely with nearly 12,000 cars. Loosely (under)valuing these cars at an average worth of $10,000 means event-goers got to feast their eyes on over $100,000,000 in vehicles, all in one place.

You can’t see them all, you can’t talk to everyone, you can’t get all the good stories and photos and tips. No chance. But too much of a good thing is better than too little. At least here.

Paul Brand asked me if it was legit to just buy a car and come here knowing nothing about how to work on them. He was goading me, of course, having fun. There are always plenty of wrench turners to trade stories with, but if you just love the ’50s– had your first drive or date or kiss or, uh, other fun stuff, during that era, it’s a dear one and you don’t have to be a shade-tree mechanic to love its cars and music.

It’s not at all uncommon to have two or three generations on hand sitting, talking, reminiscing about the days when cars boasted style and craftsmanship and artistry from every piece of steel and brightwork.

Another remarkable thing about this gathering is the goodwill and mutual respect. Over three full days, tens of thousands of people baking in the sun, contained by the crowds, immersed in burbling engines sniffing exhaust fumes, I heard not one harsh word. Saw no fist fly, no shoving, no shouting, no strutting. No clash of egos.

The people at the show ranged in age from infants to elders in their 80s or beyond and in income by many zeroes. No one cares. That’s the beauty of the car hobby. It isn’t about class, it isn’t about “success,” it isn’t about schooling or background or age or income or business or looks or where you live or where you came from or where you’re going. It’s about machines. Beautiful machines that moved our parents and their parents and their parents. Machines that shrunk the nation and pulled the mountains and the seas and the winding coastal highways within reach of most any family with a desire to see this vast country.

It was a great collection this June. Amazing. A truly fine gathering of cars and car enthusiasts. Thanks to everyone who brought a car or just laced up a pair of shoes to come and take part in this event.

Back to the ’50s is one heckuva show.

**My friend Paul Brand, host of AutoTalk, was giving away signed copies of his book, How to Repair Your Car, to attendees who donated to the Scott Townsend fund. Scott has helped Paul at remote broadcasts for many years. This past winter, Scott was struck down by ‘Guillain-Barre Syndrome,’ which left him completely paralyzed and on a ventilator. He is now able to breath on his own and is making slow progress towards recovery, but faces at least a year of hospitalization and therapy. If anyone left the show a double sawbuck ahead and would like to contribute to this fine gentleman’s medical expenses, please send to:

“SCOTT TOWNSEND/AUTOTALK FUND”
c/o WELLS FARGO BANK
7000 BASS LAKE ROAD
CRYSTAL, MINN. 55428

On Thursday, June 28, from 7-8 pm, I’ll be appearing with a panel of gearheads on Town Square TV on cable channel 14 in the Minneapolis area. This is a live show and we’ll be happy to field your call-in car questions–especially if it turns out we have the right answer.

They should be running the phone number during the program.

We’re not as pretty as Paris, but for a car problem, this should be more helpful than footage of a hotel heiress leaving jail. If it isn’t, you can find more Paris on another channel.

The Fifties had some great cars and great music. But let’s face it, a lot of people buying, driving, wrenching and dreaming on the car scene weren’t around in the 1950s. If fond memories of drives and dates and races fuel the hobby, how do you keep it going year after year?

Ya get younger people involved, of course. The Rochester Student Street Rod Association is one connection between today’s youth and yesterdays rods. President, Ilya Leontovich, says the kids got involved indirectly. The school had a program where area residents could donate a car, which the school would then sell to raise money for things like shop equipment.

One of the vehicles that came in was this ’64 Ford truck. Rather than spiff it up and sell it, someone (like maybe Gary K., a former mechanic who now teaches) got the idea of rodding it as a project for the kids. The idea took off.

Today about four Rochester area schools are involved. Students (and recent graduates) participate and work on the truck. They’re forming a limited liability partnership to own it collectively, with some strict rules about driving records and obeying the law. Sponsors dig on the idea too, and have donated lots of parts and expertise to help the young motorheads turn out a mighty fine truck. Beats video games.

For younger drivers, this big-scale slot-racer-style track provides a little high speed fun and wheel time. If you can’t drink beer, you don’t have your own rod project to talk about and source parts for, a little track time is a pretty nice diversion.

We’ve all seen the amazing concept cars crafted for the dazzling Motorama shows in the 1950s. Manufacturers teased us with these cars and solicited public feedback, but seldom did they build the vehicle in display form. A lot of these magical cars went back to a Detroit special vehicles department and disappeared—crushed at top brass instruction, or maybe scuttled out a back door to become a subject of myth and lore.

Such was the case with the original Nomad show car, crafted from the first generation Corvette. Evidence suggests the original is gone forever. But this one is very, very, very close. Zane Zander has gathered every detail and photograph he could gumshoe on this car. This is his loving recreation.

With a few minor compromises—air conditioning, shift knob (the original had no evident shifter–and no engine), steering wheel center—this car is as identical from every angle, including the ribbed top, chrome-stripped tailgate, and unequal-split seat, as Zander could make it.

A few people ask whether it’s a Blue Flame six, the original Corvette engine, under the hood. Nope. It’s a small-block Chevy V8. The show car had no engine at all though, so call no foul. This is one stunning tribute to the true predecessor of all those fine Bel Air-style Nomads oozin’ cool at the fairgrounds.

Click & Clack have one. Here’s mine. If you like what you’ve read here and in the paper, and want some interesting car stories and amazing photos to take home with you, we still have copies of my book, Dream Garages, at the Star Tribune booth by the grandstand. This was a 2006 bestseller for Motorbooks (released in November 2006!) and features garages and vehicles from California, Washington, Minnesota, England and Italy.

Included: a collection of rare WWII Army vehicles, Jon Shirley’s Ferrari collection with several Mille Miligia winners and Roberto Rosselini’s Scaglietti-built one-off from the time he married Ingrid Bergman, the largest Model T specialist in Europe, largest E-type Jaguar collection, several great hot rod collections from vintage builder Vern Tardel, HopUp Magazine’s Mark Morton, and So-Cal Speedshop guy Chuck de Heras’s rods & Wurlitzers collection. You want amazing cars and some great trucks, bikes, tinkerabilia and stories, it’s here.

Twenty-five bucks at the booth, that’s $10 off the cover price and about what Amazon‘ll sell it to ya for, but you’ll have to get some phone-order clerk to sign that one. I’ll sign yours tomorrow 10am-12 noon for nuthin! Even if you’re low on dough, stop by and say hi.

Thanks for reading!

Creativity is busting the fences outta the fairgrounds, yet a few things manage to stand out. How about these rat rods that sit on the ground. Not sit on the ground like ‘how do they clear speed bumps?’ No. Sit on the ground like… Sit. On the ground.

This Farmall-fronted rod sits pretty low. Does it drop till it stops, pavement level? Dunno. Owner wasn’t around. Way sweet though. Whatever fields he crossed, ticks he braved, barns he peaked in and parts, dollars, dogs or tools he traded for the pieces was worth it.

Chad Kolman was relaxing in a folding chair behind his Unlucky Speed Shop rod. And it was on the ground. Sitting. Couple secrets for doing that. Air lift is one. Gets this eye-grabber up to a couple inches clear for lapping the fairgrounds. She’ll go 7 up, plenty for any sane driving. Not that all of it’s that. I asked if it did highway speeds–dumb question given the Kansas plate. He’s had it up to 130, so the answer’s yeah.

The other secret is a frame rail dropped 16 inches behind the motor and channeled into the body. That’s what allows it to sit on the ground.

This rod started with a body he bought here last year. Hauled it back to Kansas City behind his ’55 Olds. Built this prize in 5 months, with help from ace-welder friend, John Vestel. Apart from the welding—some of which Kolman did after some lessons from Vestel—this one’s all Chad.

Lotsa people tried to give him ideas on what to do and he told ’em all no. He had in his mind exactly what he wanted. Pretty good mental sketchpad, Chad. He’s buildin’ two more. If we’re lucky (or Unlucky), they’ll make the fairgrounds.

Go ten steps at this show without seeing something interesting and you’re probably on the phone or trying to keep ketchup from dripping on your Back to the ‘50s shirt.

Here’s a couple more interesting rides–some stock and some what stock would have looked like if the car weren’t an owner creation instead of a manufactured model.

Ah yes… Remember the ’55 Chevy El Camino? Neither do I. Chevy didn’t get around to building that model until 1959. But the raw materials were there earlier. This Pre-Camino uses a station wagon rear end, flawlessly blended to a Bel Air by Bob Peterson from New Brighton in 1966. Currently enjoyed by owner Steve Kovacovich.

Check this ’39 Buick. Switches on the stalks are nothing new today—here’s a very early implementation of that idea: a toggle switch on the column shifter with a single red-lensed bulb. Flip the toggle up for a left turn, down for a right. The little red light flashes so you don’t go 100 miles with your blinker on.

There’s lots of beauty on the outsides of these cars–curves and chrome and fins and vents. But carefully peak in when you can because classic dashes can serve up as much art and innovation as any panel or bumper. Check the conical main gauge on this ’61 Chrysler 300 C. The rest of the gauges and switches, including the clear steering wheel, are just as alluring. Mmm hmm. This is why classics live on…

The fins on the 300 deserve a second look too. Think George Barris had one of these around the shop when he designed the Batmobile?

The car is your canvas. That’s the beauty of rods and customs. What the manufacturer did can stay. Or go. Or a bit of both. You can find another like it, or sorta like it, or totally different. Take your plasma cutter, your welder, your filler, your english wheel, and bend and shape and weld and don’t stop until it looks like what you had in mind… or drew on a cocktail napkin… or saw in a comic book in the 1960s.

Steve & Melissa Gerhardt’s ’51 Ford is a nice showpiece of the customizer’s art. Fifty-one blue oval it mainly is, but not those fins. They came off a ’56 DeSoto. Steve bought the car with much of the metal work done but it wasn’t finished. He did up the interior. Check those door pulls and the gauges across the dash.

Flames are commonplace ’round the fairgrounds late June, but metal flames cut out of the hood? That’s customizing with a little help from air resistance. Huh? Well, the hood blew open and bent it. Gerhardt coulda sourced another one. What fun is that? Instead, he had a friend work it a different direction–into cut-out flames. Removing some metal created a bitta space for a high-rise intake and dual quads. And a coupla gauges–more gauges–too.

The Gerhardts run with the Old Flames Car Club, which has about 30 members. They’re based in the Prior Lake/Savage area. Another OFCC member is Jesse Novak, who likewise had some fun with his ’30 Model A sedan. Hot Rod Chassis & Cycle in Addison, Illinois, did his chassis but Novak’s poured some time and love into this one too. That’s a ’53 Mercury cop car flathead under the hood, sourced for $100–though not in that shape!

Careful how much coffee you drink before you start the show. Hitting this many amazing cars at one time with a fully alert brain might cause a sensory meltdown. Any person who can wander this show and not be pulled hither and yon by amazing sights has not a car loving cell in his or her body.

These tail fins–no need to tell anyone here they’re from a ‘59 Caddy–a Series 62 flat top, to be exact, from Menomonie, WI. Bill & Rose Jardine bought the car four years ago with 60,000 miles on the clock. They resprayed some of the paint in the original color; other than that, about all they’ve done with the car is put on some smoooooooth miles.

Not 50 feet from the Star Tribune booth is a trio of real deal vintage rods that’ll blow your mind. Each of these cars was built in the ‘50s with period speed parts, then sat for decades waiting to be found–by the right person. Brothers Pat and Jon Shimota were two of those right people.

Pat’s ’34 runs dragster-style no-brake front wheels, and a Chrysler Marine hemi engine. Awesome! A ’57 Chrysler three-speed sends power to the back wheels. This was built to race in ’58 or ’59, blown up on an early ET quest and left to sit till the mid-‘90s outside, down South. Every rodder fate took down that road knocked on the owner’s door to learn the car was Not For Sale. That is, till a recent shift in marital harmony changed his mind. Pat was in the right place with the right size money roll in his pocket.

Brother Jon likewise scored a ’34 barn-find with flathead V8, trick intake and dual carbs. These 3-window coupes have terrible paint, no amenities and gobs of old-style charm. As Pat says, all you do is care for the running gear. The bodies can fend for themselves. There’s lotsa older rods at the show. Heck, there’s lotsa eeeeverrything.

Every once in a while, a vehicle whistles for you when you weren’t looking. This ’57 Chevy pickup is flat-out beautiful. Looks stock, no fancy wheels, no bold pipes, no flames or fancy lettering. But if it makes your peripheral vision, it’ll pull you over. That’s what happened to Jim Popilek, who wasn’t looking for a truck. Well, soon as he saw this one, yes he was. Says he got a killer deal on it too. When the right vehicle calls for ya, keep an open ear.

Actually they’re everywhere. The vintage cars are rolling in from all points north, south, east and west, headed for St. Paul’s fairgrounds for the weekend’s Back to the 50s pah-tay!

 Tonight I was driving back in to the metro from Monticello on I-94 and passed a gorgeous, cherry red ‘56 or ‘57 Ford Thunderbird. Further on I passed a big flatbed rig with a pristine little blue and white Nash Metropolitan loaded on the back. Then, just north of Maple Grove I spotted a white ‘60 Chev Impala (bad paint job but who cares). That thing had more fins than Flipper.

So just what is it about these cars that get grown adult men and women so excited and giddy?

Angelo Gentile

Strib Specialty Pubs Group