In preparation for this weekend’s 20th annual Blast from the Past Car Show in Salina, the top three winners from last year’s show have shared pictures and information on their trophy worthy rides.
Steve Hansen, Centerfield, was one of the top three winners at last year’s Blast from the Past show, and his trophy winning 1930 Ford Sedan began as a mistake involving alcohol.
In 1997 he attended an automotive swap meet, and at the end of the event he was walking around looking over the leftovers that hadn’t sold, knowing, in the back of his mind, that his wife had told him not to bring home another car. He saw this old, dilapidated car body, just bare bones, not even any seats, made a lowball offer to the owner, who accepted it, and Hansen went home with another car!
After the purchase the car was stored for a few years, and he bought pieces for it here and there but didn’t invest much time or money into it. He actually built 8-10 cars in this time period, selling them and using the proceeds to buy more parts.
“I wanted it really nice,” said Hansen. “It was kind of a snowball effect. I’d sell one car then use the money to buy nicer parts for this one, and it kept building and building, but it’s exactly how I wanted it to be. It has a piece of my heart and I’m very proud of it.”
The upholstery was finished in the ’30 Sedan right before the Salina Blast from the Past last year and he was excited to be honored for his work there. He loves the low-key, down-home feel of the Salina show and though he moved to Centerfield just four years ago from Lehi, he loves the area, the people, and the small-town vibe.
“The park where they hold the show is very nice, very shady, and it’s got a family feeling,” he said. “It makes me happy to be there. Everybody knows everybody and it’s a personal, part of the community, feeling. We’re excited to be there this weekend!”
He says he’s a builder, not a show-er, and often doesn’t sign up for the shows until the day of, because he might change his mind; but, as a millwright by trade, he’s a glorified mechanic that always has several cars in his shop waiting either for his time or some parts.
“I’m always working on multiple cars,” he said. “If we’re not at our cabin in the mountains I’m in the shop. Sometimes I get a lot done, sometimes not, but it keeps me happy.”
He’s been building cars since he was twelve years old with his brothers and dad, who was a hot-rodder in the 40’s and 50’s. He said none of them had enough money for cars, they were all poor, so they ended up building their own.
He’s a Ford person though, and most recently finished a ’33 Ford truck that he’s excited to take out on the salt flats. He’s also got a ’38 Ford and a ’44 Plymouth, and his wife drives a ’56 truck she hot rods around in – to the post office or the grocery store. The couple have been married over 50 years and their cars and weekend rebuilt projects help keep them happy.
Albert Weeden, Layton, bought his 1957 Chev Handyman Wagon in 1968 as a wrecked mess, paying only $75 for it. The car traveled with him for over 35 years, sitting in his storage unit, back yards, and empty lots until 2006 when he finally got serious about restoring it.
“It changed courses a lot of times, and it needed a lot of parts,” said Weeden. “In 2006 I bought a wrecked GTO and my son in law, Chris Price, and I, transplanted a lot of parts from it into the wagon, the electrical, interior, dash, instruments, tranny, motor, door handles. And we finally finished the rebuild in 2018. I’d guestimate we spent over 8,000 total hours on the rebuild. Twelve years at sixteen hours a week… give or take. We’ve done a lot of other things during that time too.”
The Goat Wagon, as they call it, is a cross between the 2006 Pontiac GTO and the 1957 “One Fifty” Handyman 2- door six passenger station wagon, and all the work was done in their home garage by Weeden and Price.
He met Paul and Paula Martin, Salina, in 2019 at the Autorama and they praised his car and encouraged him to bring it to the Salina show. He said he’s shown it quite a few times since then, such as the shows at Peach Days and Hot August Nights, and it’s done well. His first year in Salina was 2022 and he loved his time in the small town.
“I like the down home, small community type shows,” said Weeden. “They’re the best. The people at the Salina show are so friendly and I’m looking forward to bringing the station wagon again this weekend!”
He said he’s been into cars his whole life, and so has Price, but parts aren’t easy to come by, nor are they inexpensive, but they love working on their projects together.
Weeden says they are in the middle of a rebuild of a ’40 Ford pickup for Price’s younger brother, and they’ll probably start showing it next spring. The duo has also built, from the ground up, a ’57 two door sedan Bel Aire, which was finished in 2002, and a ’40 Coupe Deluxe, which they also like to show, but they’re quite different from his station wagon.
“These projects are a labor of love,” he said. “It’s fun to do the rebuilds and it’s fun to show them.”
The 1966 Chevy 2010, owned by Dale Harryman, Sandy, was the other top trophy winner in last year’s Blast from the Past show. Harryman said he’s been working on cars since he was thirteen when he purchased his brother’s friend’s ’58 Chevy that needed a motor for $50. He said that’s what started this “whole thing”! He put the new motor in and drove the ’58 Impala to Jr. High, the only kid in the school who had a car!
He enjoys buying a wreck and doing all the work to restore them and has completed two ‘55s and a ’72 Chev pickup, as well as a ’31 two-door sedan. He said he had a particular vision for the Chev that earned a trophy last year saying he literally started from ground zero with it- when he purchased it, it was just a shell, no glass, no motor, no seats. He built a new floor, trunk, patch panel, motor, transmission, rear end, and added air conditioning and four-wheel disc brakes.
“It’s fun to do,” said Harryman. “I enjoy it. I have a friend that does the same thing, and we like to compare and help each other.”
Harryman has attended the Salina show for at least ten years and said he’s shown quite a few cars over the year, but what remains constant here is the good people that attend.
“It’s a fun show,” he said. “There’s a lot of different activities and we love talking to all the different car owners. Paul and Paula are such good people- everyone involved is and it’s fun to meet new friends. I had a buddy that grew up in Salina and he invited us down the first time, and we were hooked! It only took once! We come down and spend a few days, participate in the cruise Friday night and the show on Saturday. My wife enjoys the shows and our friends like it too. We make a fun weekend of it.”
He said he enjoys the location, the park is nice with a lot of shade, and the food is always top notch, and as a bonus, the scouts are always quick with their orders!
