Model A Fords on parade

ROGERS -- Seven 80-year-old Model A Fords in front of the 55-year-old Susie Q drive-in drew quite a bit of attention Saturday.

When the Susie Q opened in 1960, the Model A was already an antique. Manufactured from 1928 to 1931, the Model A Ford was the second model Henry Ford made.

Seven Model A Fords -- of several styles and colors -- were parked beneath the awning in front of the Susie Q, driven there by members of the Natural State Model A Restorer's Club.

"It was the only mode of transportation people had," Charles Crabtree said. "It was better than a horse."

"I thought it would be fun since the Susie Q is the oldest restaurant in Rogers," said Crabtree, event organizer.

Lee and Goldy Edmundson, managers of the Susie Q, have run the business for the past seven years, since the original owners, J.D. and Patty Head, retired.

"It will be 55 years this month," Goldy said.

Passersby as well as customers stopped to look, take photographs, ask questions.

"Is that a rumble seat?" asked Chris Sultemeier of Rogers. Crabtree showed Sultemeier and Nathan Gairhan, both of Rogers, several of the vehicles and opened the rumble seat on a convertible roadster owned by Marcia Cothran of Pea Ridge.

"I hope the rain is gone," one lady said, noting that her Model A's windshield wipers weren't very good. She worried about the rain because showers hit several areas of Benton County. Model A rivers usually keep the windows open when the temperatures are warm because the cars do not have air conditioning. The vehicles travel about 40 miles per hour.

Cothran's 1929 roadster convertible is bright green. Bought by Marcia and her late husband, Maurice, from Beulah Prophet of Pea Ridge, the car has been restored to as original as possible, Cothran said.

"My dad had a Model T and a Model A," Crabtree, of Pea Ridge, said. "They used to buy them (the cars) for $10 or $15, drive them out to Washington state to pick apples and then either drive them back, or sell them and ride the bus or train back.

"Sometimes you had to overhaul them on the way out. They even took out the tongue of their shoes and used them for bearings," Crabtree said, explaining that the leather from the shoe worked for repairing the car.

Crabtree bought his first Model A in 1975 in Wichita, Kan. He currently owns two Model A Fords, one that he inherited from his sister after she died.

The original Model A came in several colors -- maroon, green, gray, brown, blue.

Coy and Carlene Mann of Rogers had their 1929 Model A sedan at the Susie Q. It is original, built in Canada, Mrs. Mann said.

"It's not as shiny as these others, but it's got personality," she said.

Members of the club are from Rogers, Pea Ridge, Elm Springs, Garfield, Farmington, Winslow, Fayetteville and Seligman, Mo. Anyone who owns or is interested in Model A Fords is welcome, said Cothran, who serves as club secretary.

"We need help keeping the old cars alive," Crabtree said. "Several kids stopped by and asked questions."

"It's a family oriented club," president Dick Knapp said. "Really you don't have to own a Model A to be a part of the club, in fact, the best way to get a Model A is to be a member of the club. These guys know where to get them."

Knapp has a 1929 business coupe that was his grandfather's.

"He gave it to me when I was 16. I actually drove it to high school in 1955. I've kept it all these years and restored it twice," he said, adding that he drove it to his 55th-year high school reunion in Wisconsin. He plans to give it to his eldest grandson, who is now 11, when he turns 16.

"It's a fun organization. I've been a member of various Model A clubs for over 50 years. It's been a part of our family," Knapp said, adding that he's given Model A cars to two of his three children.

"His dad (Knapp's son) was into Mustangs, but since I gave him the Model A ... he's looking forward to getting it," Knapp said, explaining that the business coupe was "one of the cheaper models" and didn't have a rumble seat. The green coupe with black fenders is a two-seater. "I didn't have it out Saturday because it blew a head gasket."

He said he gave a "very rare model Cabriolet convertible" to his daughter in Kansas City.

One of the Model As, a two-door 1930 sedan, is owned by Paul and Becky Klaassen of Rogers. It had been owned by Crabtree's brother-in-law.

Club members share information and expertise on where to find parts and how to restore the vehicles. The club meets the third Monday of each month in the Rogers Chamber of Commerce.

"They're just a neat old car. They were a step above the Model T; it was something both men and women could drive," said Gene Newman of Garfield. He explained that the Model T required three pedals to work to drive and the Model A had a standard shift mechanism.

"He can put 'em together and take 'em apart in his sleep," Teresa Newman said of her husband. The Newmans, who own many antique cars, have about eight Model As.

"We've got a lot of old cars... I don't have a favorite," Gene Newman said. "My dad used to have a Model A. I had one when I was a senior in high school. It goes way back."

Why preserve old cars?

"They're history," Newman said. "They just don't make them any more."