While the Lonestar Rod and Kustom Roundup is itself a one-day event, you can easily make more than a week's adventure out of attending this gathering, as we found out while attending this year's fifth annual festivities. We knew there were a few people and shops we wanted to visit in the Lone Star state before the event so we went in early and made our rounds. On Thursday we took up Jim Jard's invitation to attend his Roundup pre-party at his Houston warehouse. Good people, cars, entertainment, and food were all part of Jard's get-together, and we were back again the next morning to set off for Austin.
Once in Austin on Friday afternoon, it was very obvious what the weekend had in store--plenty of great rods and customs from Texas and far beyond. Cruising up and down the South Congress strip was the entertainment for the night.On Saturday morning, the air was again alive with the rumble of dual pipes as rods and customs of all shapes and sizes rolled through the gates and found parking spots on the grass next to the shores of Town Lake at Festival Beach. The day continued with great live music on the performance stage and special delicacies in the huge food court. After a great day checking out the parked cars, the live action started all over again with cruisers prowling up and down Congress.
We concluded our own Texas trek with a few more visits on Sunday, and before we headed home we had already made our plans for another week of Lonestar adventure next year.
If there was any doubt as...
If there was any doubt as to where all the '32 five-windows went, we now know they headed to Texas. Kevin hitched a ride with Rick Love in his finally finished '32 five-window
The "world's strongest pound-for-pound...
The "world's strongest pound-for-pound man" showcased his talents in an amazing series of demonstrations of his unbelievable super-human strength.
Our Texas-sized week of fun...
Our Texas-sized week of fun and festivities really started with a bang when we attended Jim Jard's annual pre-Roundup celebration. Plenty of great cars and people showed up to get a jump on the coming activities.
South Congress Street near...
South Congress Street near the Continental Club...
...was the place to be on...
...was the place to be on Friday evening before the Roundup...
...Hundreds of cars lined...
...Hundreds of cars lined both sides of the street for blocks...
...Cruising continued late...
...Cruising continued late into the night.
The Roundup isn't all about...
The Roundup isn't all about hot rods with four wheels; some wicked two-wheeled wonders were in attendance. The latest addition to Flyrite Chopper's series of Seven Deadly Sins bikes was this slick scooter titled Greed.
Once Saturday came, everyone...
Once Saturday came, everyone headed out to the park to hang out with some friends...
...check out some hot rods,...
...check out some hot rods, and listen to some great Austin rock 'n' roll bands.
Newstalgia Wheel brought out...
Newstalgia Wheel brought out their recently completed, heavily channeled Model A sedan. It may look a little rough on the outside, but underneath is a custom-built tube chassis with an airbag-controlled suspension.
Don and Carolyn Smith from...
Don and Carolyn Smith from Mansfield, TX, fit right in with all the retro rides with their right-on '32 Ford Tudor.
Austin native Thomas Pina...
Austin native Thomas Pina gave kustom fans something to drool over with his skillfully sculptured '39 Chevy coupe.
Charlie Rambo has been putting...
Charlie Rambo has been putting together this perfect example of a full-fendered '32 Ford sedan for years, and the attention to detail shows.
Gary Carter's sharp '28 Ford...
Gary Carter's sharp '28 Ford modified is exactly the type of hot rod we were thinking of when we ran the article on Toyota four-bangers in our July issue...
...He must have been having...
...He must have been having too much fun cruisin' to have heard that it wasn't cool to have a non-American engine in a hot rod.
Rob Villarreal hails from...
Rob Villarreal hails from Dallas and was happy to hang out in the shade with his blue '49 Ford coupe.
Shane, Melissa, Kimee, and...
Shane, Melissa, Kimee, and Kaylee rode over from Ennis, TX, in this way cool copper-colored '50 Ford.
James Austin is just about...
James Austin is just about ready to take delivery of his stunning Gary Howard-painted '55 Chevy pickup from the South Austin Speed Shop. Sharp interior work was by in-house stitcher Fat Lucky's.
Plenty of stylin' chopped...
Plenty of stylin' chopped Mercs like this super-clean orange example were in attendance.
On Sunday after the Roundup...
On Sunday after the Roundup we had the good fortune to visit Gary Howard's shop and check out his private stash of future projects. Cars being built in the shop covered a wide range from an early style Model A coupe to a full-custom '60 El Camino...
...Jimmy Vaughn's '53 Ford...
...Jimmy Vaughn's '53 Ford Victoria is in getting the custom treatment to be followed by one of Gary's stunning paint jobs.