The city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, welcomed Darryl Starbird's annual car show with open arms, once again-can this really be the 44th edition? My, how the time flies when you're havin' fun, and you can't go to a Starbird show without havin' fun; it's against the rules, you know.
With more than 1,000 vehicles of all stripes on view, there's still room for monster trucks-crushin' stacks of used-up traffic-and motorcycle daredevils at one end of Tulsa's huge fairgrounds facility. Anyway you look at it, this is one absolutely amazing and unique venue for a car show. The now Quik Trip Center building was dedicated in 1966, laying claim to having the largest free-span roof in the world, which means no columns. It's held up by cables on pylons; think of the show being held under the Frisco Bay Bridge, only on concrete instead of water, and you have the general idea. The vehicles at this event mostly ride in from Oklahoma and neighboring states, especially Kansas. They also come from across the nation and north of the border, all to Go for the Gold, which is an award that adds up to $20,000. This brings together some of the wildest examples of vehicular art on Planet Earth, along with the debut of fresh, professionally built rods and customs, amazing homebuilts, and a few that make you say, "Hey, I remember that from when I was a kid in school back in the 1960s, even built a model of it!"
The Go For The Gold award...
The Go For The Gold award went to New Jersey residents Sam and Patty Magarino for their Thom Taylor-designed roadster, Magnitude, fabricated at Marcel's Custom Metal, built by Barry Lobeck and his crew of talented artisans, and based on Ford's best-selling styling cues from 1932-40. From its debut at last year's Detroit Autorama-where it received not only a Great 8, but both the Alexander Brothers Award and Yosemite Sam's Sculptural Elegance Award-the roadster continued its winning ways on the road to this ultimate victory. Congrats on a job well done.
From a team of bikini girls struttin' their stuff to the aforementioned monster truck and daredevil action, plus much, much more, there really is something for the entire family, right, Dad ... Dad?
This year's show also hosted the National Rod & Custom Car Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and although this invitation-only affair isn't open to the general public, the prestigious event is still newsworthy. On alternate years, it's held at Darryl Starbird's National Rod & Custom Car Hall of Fame Museum, less than an hour's drive away in Afton, Oklahoma, a place you really need to visit if you're interested in the history of our hobby. Each year, potential inductees are voted on in five categories by the museum's honorary board members, of which, I'm proud to say, I'm one. After much soul searching, as all were more than worthy, it boiled down to the following five: Steve Frisbie for Customs; Barry White for Rods; Steve Stanford, whom I had the honor to introduce, for the Special Designers Hall of Fame; Bill Smith for the highly prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award; and Mark Moriarty as Builder/Owner of the Year.
No one can tell you for certain what the future holds, but we I know we'll be there next February at Darryl Starbird's 45th annual Tulsa, Oklahoma, Rod & Custom Car Show. How about you?
 |  Yogi Snider out of South Coffeyville,...  Yogi Snider out of South Coffeyville, OK, brought his Old Gold Deuce highboy that simply bled nostalgia. It was enough to bring a tear to even an old kustom guy's eye. KKOA's Jerry and Elden Titus agreed, saying they'd like to have it in their garages, as well. Is it the paint, the whitewalls (good choice, by the way), or what? Whatever it is, it grabbed Yogi a Fine Nine, so he must be doing something right, wouldn't you say? |  Dennis McClendon from Mesa,...  Dennis McClendon from Mesa, AZ, was a Fine Nine-an award culled from 18 entranced, out of which the Go for the Gold 20-grand winner is chosen-finalist with his chopped '62 Chevy Bel Air bubbletop sporting a full tube chassis and Algon fuel-injected 409, bumped to 485 cid. And, did we mention the bumpers are narrowed and tucked and that all that horsepressure reaches the ground via a Richmond six-speed tranny and Currie modular 4:10 rearend? |
 The Kustom Kemps of America...  The Kustom Kemps of America Award was nailed by Jeff Myers from Arkansas City, KS, for his chopped '57 Caddy Eldorado, painted in Candy Wild Cherry and 'flake, with an amazing pearl-white interior from Fat Lucky's out of the Austin Speed Shop. If it were 1962, we could go cruisin', pick up a couple of chicks, then hit Harvey's Broiler, The Clock, Grisinger's, and ... wake up, Jerry, time to write another caption. |  Did someone say customs? They...  Did someone say customs? They must have, as Mike Buzzello put the torch to his 426 Hemi-powered '61 Plymouth over in Omaha, NE, showing the world just what can be done to turn one of these wallflowers (oops, Mayflowers) into a beauty queen. Mike's Outkast sports a 1-1/2-inch chopped top and Jag XJS headlights, and is dropped over a Kugel-suspended 2x4 rectangular tube chassis. This and a zillion more details got Mike a Fine Nine nod. |  Memphis, TN's renowned mega-rodder...  Memphis, TN's renowned mega-rodder George Poteet's contribution to the prestigious Fine Nine club was his amazingly detailed Dave Lane-built Deuce Delivery De-Luxe, which asks the musical question: Is the resto rod really dead, or has it just been waiting for the right moment in time to make a grand re-entrance? Don't look, but I think it just did. Why, it even has that rare Ford option for 1932, the Chevy V-8. Granddad just had to know which box on the option list to check when ordering, that's all. |