The 2019 STM OktoberFest started with a bang on September 21st. The inaugural event took place in Little Rock, Arkansas but early entrants came from all across the nation. Greg Birky, Sentsat71, Lefturns75, RandB11, Bandit2026, Dirtmodwrench, TarheelRick, Marty W, Brian Conn, Steven, and David Bogard had entry forms completed when the starting gun sounded.
As the various builds progressed, MichaelF chimed in all the way from Germany and he and his crew set out on a fast paced build and later on, Tom Birky flashed a photo of a build of his own.
The OktoberFest crowds were heavy as they pressed into the barrier ropes at the various build areas to get a better view of the teams working at a feverish pitch on their individual builds. Some of the teams were knocking things out while others ran into problem after problem. A few of the teams got caught up in all of the other OktoberFest activities like the Bratwurst eating contest, the Beer Barrel races and the Pretzel Making competition. Fun as it was, their builds lagged. Of course, since it is OktoberFest, a handful of various build team members were found on Pass-Out Hill. As the last few Dumplings were downed and the Steins clanked sounding the end of OktoberFest, the builds were pushed out into the arena for all to see.
Greg Birky led things off with a gorgeous ‘57 Chevy. Although it started life as a mere Snap-Tite kit, Greg’s team made it look like a super custom build that could hold up against anyone’s big-finned Chevy anywhere! The color and finish were outstanding and Greg’s attention to detail really stood out. Lots of subtle hot rod touches really brought the ‘57 Chevy to life, including the gorgeous lake pipes. Long since thought as retired, Greg made statement with this build and told the OktoberFest Crowd that not only was he far from retired but that he was still one of the best! The crowd eagerly voted Greg and his team “Comeback Builder of the Year” Award!
Brian Conn rolled in with his crew and as usual, Brian took a difficult road with his build. Lopping off the front end of the body, taking out several scale inches and seamlessly adding a nose of his own casting, was almost the “easy” part. A harsh kit to begin with, Brian and his crew tackled countless issues along the way but they were finally able to get an amazing Torino Modified Street Stock rolled out in plenty of time. A wheelbase that now fit just right; that huge Ford power plant; and just enough nice touches like the rear spoiler made this one anxious looking Torino! The crowd enthusiastically gave Brian and his team “The Most Improved Builder” Award.
Lefturns75 and his crew from Podunkville, Arkansas simply buried everyone else. Since there apparently was no Roasted Roadkill, Possum Stew, Raccoon Ribs or Carp-On-A-Stick around to distract his builders, they knocked out an incredible Four builds during OktoberFest! He first rolled out a gorgeous Black Widow, complete with pin-striping and an 8-Ball shifter knob. Next, the Kookie Contender was pushed out into the sunshine. Nobody even knew for sure what the little hot rod was but soon, everyone decided they needed to have one! A Green Hornet came out and it captured the crowd’s attention immediately. The vibrant colors, chrome and hot motor had the Stein’s clinking for days! Finally, a purple Bucket T rolled out and everyone that had been hanging around Lefty’s shop was suddenly wearing white T-shirts with a pack of Lucky’s rolled up in the sleeve and their hair was all slicked back in a duck-tail! It was the 50’s and 60’s all over again! Since everyone watching this crew claimed it was like watching time lapse photography when they were building, Lefturns75 was given the “Octopus Builder Award” since he and his crew all MUST have had at least 8 hands in order to get this much done!
The crowds were curious at the TarHeelRick shop as it appeared he and his crew were working on some sort of sleek back shape. Problems beset the team as a Molotow Marker decided to go rogue and panel line scribes made a break for it every chance they got. Stripping the body and starting over, the team hustled to turn this sleek looking shape into something. Sure enough, when it was all said and done, out rolled a beautiful Hyndai that looked like it came right off the showroom floor! The crowd buzzed as everyone suddenly wanted to learn how to pronounce Hyundai correctly! For the South Korean masterpiece displayed at the German OktoberFest in Arkansas, USA, Tarheel and his team were given “The International” Award.
With a shocking display of German workmanship and crisp regimen, MIchaelF pushed out a stunning vintage NASCAR style Mercury! Even with the very late start, the colors, graphics, grille and wheel detail, and overall stance made it an instant crowd favorite! OktoberFest revelers began exchanging old racing tales, each one topping the other, and everyone always ended up lamenting that the race cars today just don’t look as cool as they did back in the day. As autograph seekers crowded in on display day, the MichaelF team was nowhere to be found as their German Ladies had a strict NO Work Rule for their men on certain days. Apparently a bus load of German Women, all wearing dirndls, rolled in early that morning and none of the crew has been seen since. Lucky them! MichaelF and his team did get “The Way Race Cars Ought To Look!” Award!
David Bogard and his Little Rock team had the advantage of working from Home so his guys were unusually focused during the event. It was also a true that many of his gang are currently on Probation and with familiar Police personnel on hand for the Event, they knew a lot of eyes were on them. Bogard chose a ’65 Chevy Pickup to build and he and his team tackled a few of the major problems early on and it made the entire overall project go much smoother. Hammerin’ Hank Gefner did the hood massage and bodywork; Freddy “Four Fingers” Larsen did the custom wood bed and Stitch Rainwater applied a nice metallic blue finish. All in all, a fun build for David and much less drama than he had anticipated with his crew. The crowd enjoyed the little pickup and gave it “The Best Pickup” Award! Even though it was the ONLY pickup in the Event, Bogard and his team happily accepted the honor.
In a surprise last minute move, Sentsat71 and his crew eased a very nice little Purple Corvette out for the crowd. It was widely rumored that Sentsat71 was not going to be able to get his crew motivated to get the build finished due to several setbacks along the way. But to the crowd’s delight, pushing through even some personal issues, Sentsat and his team were able to knock out a knockout of a Corvette! The white interior contrasted nicely with the vibrant purple finish and with just enough chrome here and there, the iconic roadster was a hit with the OktoberFest crowd! They responded by giving this little Vette “The Purple Heart” Award!
In maybe the most stunning move of all, Bandit2026 was able to get a mostly completed ’36 Ford Coupe finished! It was quite an accomplishment as he had been called away from the event. There were several days when the Bandit team had their big overhead door closed because of the out-of-town calling and most of the crowd assumed that no build would emerge. You can imagine the surprise when the door rolled up and out came this racy looking ‘36 Ford Circle Burner!! While other teams were generally partying after such a grueling build, the Bandit Team obviously snuck into their garage in the dead of night and got a lot done! The raucous crowd began chanting, “Put a number on it and let’s go!” Several of the crowd, with half empty steins in hand, volunteered to drive it right then and there! The OktoberFest crowd gave this team “The Out Of The Woodwork” Award!
LATE EDIT- LATE BREAKING NEWS! As the cleanup crews had almost finished their days-long job, Bandit2026's garage door had remained shut. They all figured he had hauled his Little Ford Modified home. But no!!! The door rolled up this afternoon and Bandit2026 and his team pushed out their completed build!! Even though it was mainly the large cleanup crew that still remained on the grounds, they all went Thumbs-Up and gave Bandit2016 their own "Got-R-Dun" Award!!
As many of the OktoberFest attendees were beginning to file out, Tom Birky and his team rolled out their build. It was a gorgeous little Corvette that they had had mostly done a little earlier. However, apparently Tom thought it would be good to take the car out to the local Drag Strip for some tire smoking fun. On one of his runs, the motor came lose violently, even knocking the windshield out of the car! Fortunately Tom was okay but it all meant that their team was a little late getting the car hauled back to the OktoberFest Garage area and cleaned up enough to push it out for the crowd. Tom and his team got the “We Wish We Could Have Seen It Before He Blew It Up” Award.
As darkness began to fall, the last car to get rolled out was from DirtModWrench and his crew. The long sleek Ramchargers rail job had fought them every step of the way, especially during final assembly when time mattered most. Somewhere during the fabricating process the frame or the body or the suspension or something got over stressed and bent. Every time the crew would nail down one part of it, another part would pop up on the other side! DirtMod asked for help from about four of the largest fellas he could see in the crowd and after having them all sit on one side of the frame, all of the estimated 1200 pounds worth, the team was able to get the front end reasonably together. Without Hans, Jurgon and the Schmidt twins, I doubt they would have been able to pull it off! In the end, the old school FE Rail job was beautiful and the crowd gave it the “It Was Worth The Wait” Award.
I had a very enjoyable time with this little OktoberFest Community Build and hopefully it can become an Annual Event with far more participants in the coming years. I very much appreciated those builders that took the time to get to the bench and to get one done! Any late comers for this year will be added as they come in. Now, it's on to cleanup efforts after such a Mega Event!! Thanks again! - David Bogard
