Autos Lone Star Round Up includes plenty of show stoppers
Lone Star Round Up in Austin is a show that always brings out a crowd of car lovers and car owners, and this year was no exception. The weather stayed pretty clear for the show on Saturday, after being hit or miss most of the weekend and days leading up to it, and the threat of storms didn’t seem to intimidate the masses at all.
One thing about the Round Up is that you truly have a wide variety of vehicles. There were plenty of show stoppers around, like the flawlessly chopped and customized white traditional 1928 hot rod by Ricky Bobby’s Rod Shop in Tennessee. There was also a lot of classics and restorations, as well as a lot of rat rod style builds, including a trend that seems to be growing of highly detailed builds with created elements of disrepair, most notably seen in what I like to call “the faux-tina”, when a car is painted and then sanded to look as if it has aged.
Houston car owner and Los Cochinos car club member Billy Powell’s gorgeous 1936 Ford Coupe, customized by Powell, with work by David Martinez at Martinez Industries in Los Angeles, was one of many knockouts who took home a top award. Running under a tight deadline, you would never know it by the top notch, high quality work that it was completed in just a matter of days immediately prior to the event by renowned Houston painter Rob Leddy.
A major setback for the weekend happened on Friday, however, when local car builder and long time Lone Star Round Up supporter Mercury Charlie was involved in a serious accident in one of his hot rods in Austin. He will recover, but was unable to attend the show, while his team manned the booth anyway and the annual Sunday party at his shop went on as planned. Still in the hospital at the end of the weekend, people flocked to his shop for the party anyway, with many people seeing it as a chance to contribute to his medical funds, as donations were being accepted to the free show to benefit the fallen hot rodder.
Overall, though, it was another massive success, with endless eye candy, top notch music, vendors and friendly faces. I look forward to what they have in store for 2016.
If you are looking for a local hot rod show this weekend, be sure to check out the 3rd Annual Lone Star Deluxe Show in Texas City. A fun event with hot rods, customs, classics, food, fun and a pin up contest hosted by local favorite MCMiss V Haven, it is sure to be a good time for all.
For more information, visit them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/theLoneStarDeluxe.