Aussies Arrived in Bethany on Route 66

After visiting Dearborn, MI, Chicago, IL, St. Louis, MO, and a few other cities, 25 Aussies from the Mustang Owners Club of South Australia made their way to Bethany, OK on Sunday October 12th as scheduled.  Our OMC board of directors scheduled a welcome dinner with them Sunday evening at the Pub W in Yukon.  We had a great time as they talked about their visit to the Henry Ford Museum, Greenfield Village, and a tour of the Mustang assembly plant in Flat Rock, MI.  They also talked about getting their kicks on Route 66.

One of the interesting things I learned was how many Mustangs some of them have owned over the years.  Some are first time owners of factory-built right-hand drive Mustang models only available since 2015.  But some, like Steve who was sitting at my table Sunday evening, has owned 6 Mustangs starting with a 1968 GT/California Special to a 2012 Boss 302.  Every one of these cars was purchased online or from magazines then shipped to Australia in containers.  Some containers delivered completed, ready to drive cars while others were just shells, chassis, and parts.  It’s amazing the enthusiasm they have for Mustangs considering the difficulty of importing them to Australia and too often being surprised over their condition when they arrived. But their passion is unmistakable, and they seem capable of overcoming just about any obstacle!

Monday was a busy day.  I escorted four of the visitors to the Blue Oval Car Barn in Mineral Wells, TX, a request by Steve months before they arrived.  Owner Finley Ledbetter and his manager Bill Patterson gave us a great tour of an awesome Mustang collection.  Jessica and Willie Summerford and Evelyn Epperson took a group down to Reba’s Place in Atoka for an Oklahoma style lunch.  The rest of the Aussies toured the Oklahoma City area on their own for the day.

Tuesday, we took many of the group to John Brown’s Thoroughbred Restoration shop in Piedmont.  We walked through several buildings where cars were being prepped, painted, and assembled in various stages of restoration.  We also managed to get an outdoor group photo with John and the Aussies which included a rare grabber orange Twister Mustang.  The afternoon was spent at Tom’s Carseum where owner Tom Douglass and manager Art Rivera gave us a first-class tour.  Tom has a great collection including a stainless-steel Delorean which was a real eye catcher.  We finished the day at Rudy’s BBQ for our monthly OMC cruise in.  Wednesday morning, we said our goodbyes and their leader Kathy Cochinos led the group west as they headed further down Route 66 to their ultimate destination in Santa Monica, CA.

There may be differences between us and our visitors in terms of language, culture, and even what side of the road you drive on,  but make no mistake, there’s sure no difference in the shared enthusiasm for the Mustang.  What a great bunch and an excellent few days.

Ron Hoeberling

OMC Vice President

vicepresident@okmustangclub.com