Weekend of vintage car events officially underway in Lincoln

On Thursday morning, dozens of classic cars and hot rods left the Museum of American Speed in Lincoln at 8:30 a.m. for a 180-mile ride through Southeast Nebraska. The road tour is part of the International Speedsters Trials and Reunion weekend hosted by Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed.

The events continue Friday with a Hill Climb from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 6200 West Fletcher Ave. On Saturday, the reunion ends with a family friendly Cars & Coffee gathering from 8 a.m. to noon at Speedway Motors, 340 Victory Lane.

Tim Matthews, curator of the museum, said there are more than 120 registrants for the weekend events with participants coming from around the world. Several have traveled from New Zealand and Canada to partake in the festivities.

“This is our 10th running of the speedster reunion and it just keeps growing,” Matthews said.

Mike Vaughn, a volunteer at the Museum and a local Model T expert, took the lead for the road tour with an early 1900s Model T.

A few other notable car enthusiasts have made the trek to Nebraska for the weekend including car builder Chip Foose from California and 101-year-old Ed Iskenderian. The diverse participants have brought a large variety of cars that have passed through generations of hands.

“It’s an opportunity to take really old equipment, basically cars that come from the dawn of automotive activity in America, and then souping them up with old period parts,” Matthews said. “The cars are usually using speed equipment to make them faster and go further.”

Chadwick Azevedo traveled from Tennessee with a Model T that his dad and grandfather built in the late ’70s with all original parts.

“My grandfather, mom’s dad, had built this to be the fastest speedster at the time,” Azevedo said. “This sucker would do well over 100 easily.”

Azevedo attended the Lincoln reunion for the first time with his son, Alex. The two were decked out in racing goggles, vintage clothing and said they were excited to reunite with friends.

The car is a family treasure as it was passed down to Azevedo’s mom, Shirley, in 1985 after his dad’s death. The slick white speedster is on its second paint job with “Shirley” scribed in a bright blue on the side.

Just as a parent can’t choose a favorite child, David Coleman from West Virginia can’t choose a favorite car. This weekend, Coleman decided to bring his 1920 Ford Model T Hot Rod. It’s one of the many cars he owns that he rebuilt and has been driving for 20 years. Coleman often travels to events around the country with this weekend marking his sixth time in Lincoln.

“There’s a lot of people that you meet here that have similar interests with cars,” Coleman said.

Dean Robertson from South Dakota is another longtime attendee who has been participating for the majority of the event’s history. He drove a 1932 Model A Roadster, a hot rod in the ’50s.

“Everybody has a good time,” Robertson said.