DIDSBURY -- Do you remember your first car? Was it a hand-me-down or did you scrimp and save for years until you could afford that sweet muscle car? For Didsbury resident Stan Konschuh it was the latter.
Making just over $2 an hour in the oilfield back in 1972, Konschuh was able to save enough to buy a 1969 Plymouth Roadrunner. In fact, 50 years later Konschuh still has that very same car, which is this year's Didsbury Fuel-A-Palooza Motor Fest feature car.
"This is a special year for us," said Konschuh. "The car, obviously, is 50 years old this year. I bought the car out of Olds. It was my first vehicle when I was just out of high school with my first job."
Konschuh recalls he bought the car from the Olds dealership on April 13, 1972 for $1,875.
"I was making $2.30 an hour," he said. "It took a long time to pay for. It was MotorTrend's car of the year. It was a special year for the car as well that year."
Konschuh said he was looking for a muscle car and the Roadrunner fit the bill perfectly.
"All us young guys were looking around for horsepower," he said. "Obviously, I was on a limited budget so I kept searching and searching. Then I came across this car. It was a little tucked away in the corner. The dealership wanted more money. He wanted $2,220 or $2,250 and I just couldn't afford that at $2.30 an hour."
Konschuh said the Plymouth Roadrunner is still the best car he's ever owned.
"It was my everyday driver," he said. "I drove it for 10 years. I met my wife in the car. She spotted the car."
Making 2019 even more special for Konschuh is the fact that he and wife Sarah have been married for 40 years. In addition, the house they live in just west of Didsbury is 100 years old this year. As well, the farm has been in the family for 90 years, he said.
Konschuh redid the motor in the Roadrunner back in the late 1970s.
"I wanted to really do some racing," he said. "I wanted to make it into something spectacular but the motor just wasn't up to snuff. I spun a bearing and I shut it down. I parked it in the garage in the early 1980s."
Konschuh said he had several offers on the car during that time and thought about selling it.
"I was just married and had three young boys," he said. "Money was scarce; interest rates were high. I thought about selling the car but with a blown motor I just decided to put it in storage and I left it there until I started the restoration in 2001."
Konschuh said it was a long, slow process to rebuild the Roadrunner.
"I started with a nearby auto shop," he said. "It was a slow process. The car was pretty straight but it was just a slow, ongoing process and it lasted until 2009."
Konschuh was planning to just have the car as an everyday driver but was so impressed with how it looked that he entered the Roadrunner in the Didsbury Show 'n Shine that year.
"We've been in the Didsbury car show ever since," he said. "I go around to some of the other local ones as well but the Didsbury show is my favourite. There's a little bit of something for everyone there."
Konschuh joined the Didsbury Car Club three years ago and has recently joined the executive as a director.
"I wanted to give a lending hand," he said. "I've always participated in it. I wanted to become a part of the group. It takes a lot of work and organization to do what they're doing. Many hands make easy work."
Konschuh was pretty excited when he found out his was the feature car for the Fuel-A-Palooza event.
"I was surprised and thrilled," he said. "It was unexpected. I didn't build the car as a show car. I have had a real soft spot in my heart for it for a long time. It's been my buddy. I met my wife as I said. Had two of the three kids with the car. It's been part of the family for a long time."
Fuel-A-Palooza Motor Fest
The 27th annual Fuel-A-Palooza Motor Festival goes this weekend, May 10-12 in and around downtown Didsbury.
The event, which is organized by the Didsbury Car Club, features an in-town cruise on Friday, May 10 starting at 6 p.m. The cruise goes through Didsbury and then up to Mountain View Dodge in Olds for a drive-in theatre featuring the hit movie Grease.
The Didsbury Show 'n Shine car show takes place on Saturday, May 11 and features vintage cars, trucks and bikes all throughout the downtown core. Also at the Show 'n Shine is: the 100-foot shoot-out, motorcycle stunt show, Bent 8 pin up contest, car culture vendors, live music, beer gardens, food trucks and much more.
There will also be the Curves and Chrome Cabaret starting at 4:30 p.m. at the Didsbury Saloon on May 11. The cabaret will feature local performers and a silent auction.
Proceeds from the event will go to the car club's charities: Chinook Arch Victim's Services, Hope 4 MVC Kids Society, Mountain View Food Bank and Suicide Awareness Movement.
On Sunday, May 12 there will be the rockin' blacktop 100-foot shoot-out finals.
Please note that the following roads will be closed during the Show 'n Shine on May 10 at 5 p.m. until May 11 at 5 p.m.: 19th Street from 15th Avenue to 20th Avenue, 20th Street (Main Street downtown) from 15th Avenue to 24th Avenue, and 20th Avenue from 17th Street to 21st Street. Also, side roads going from 20th Street to 21st Street from 17th Avenue to 22nd Avenue will also be closed during that time.
From May 10 at 4 p.m. until May 12 at 4 p.m.: 19th Street from 20th Avenue to 24th Avenue (north of the Didsbury Memorial Complex) for the 100-foot shoot-out.
Also note that from May 10 at 5 p.m. to May 12 at 10 a.m. 19th Avenue (The street with JD's Restaurant and Didsbury Saloon) from 20th Street to 21st Street will be closed for the Show 'n Shine and Cabaret.
