The Minnesota Street Rod Association’s annual Back to the ‘50s Weekend is held at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in St. Paul. From June 21–23 this year, they celebrated their 50th event and registered vehicles had to be 1964 models or older. On the application form it stated “No Mustangs” as they were introduced as a 1964 ½ model.
What began in 1974 at the Midway Shopping Center and Porky’s Drive In with 125 - 150 cars has grown over the years. By 1979, there were 400 cars and the MSRA decided to move the car show to the fairgrounds.
A high school buddy and I decided it was time for us to attend this event.
The first leg of the trip for me and my wife, Sue, in our 1939 Plymouth street-rod was to the Upper Peninsula. We stopped in Mackinaw City to see the 30-foot-tall Mack-A-Tron, made from many parts of cars and motorcycles and some pieces from the Mackinac Bridge. It resembled the Bumblebee transformer toy. We spent the night in Gulliver at the home of Lee and Jan Ekblad. Lee and his brother-in-law, Al Goudreau, were making the trip to Minnesota in Lee’s 1959 Rambler.
On Thursday morning, we headed west on U.S. 2 to Norway, then took two-lane U.S. 8 across Wisconsin and around 7 p. m., checked in at our hotel in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Soon after, we headed to a motel a few miles away to pick up our $40 prepaid registration materials. On our applications, we had selected the north location instead of the south one. Our Registration Number letters were received about 10 days before we began the trip. We needed to present these to receive our numbered packets. This letter also had a note about rules including no ‘flame throwing’ or ‘burnouts.’
In the packet were two pin-on participant buttons, a sticker for the windshield, a dash plaque and two tickets for giveaway items for Saturday and Sunday. All entrants hoped to have their entry selected on Saturday for the ready-to-drive yellow 1932 Ford roadster.
Area motels, hotels and campgrounds had impromptu car shows. We stayed about 14 miles from the fairgrounds and had 20 registered vehicles in the parking lot.
We joined the entry line at the fairgrounds about 9 a.m. Friday. Our pin-on buttons and the car registration were checked at the gate. It took about 30 minutes to find two parking spots, way off the beaten path. We saw hundreds of cars along the way. There were cars built in the ‘50s, older ones that were driven in the ‘50s and many being enjoyed and driven by people who, 20 or 30 years ago, were in their 50s.
If you wanted a specific parking spot, you had to get up early, even if camped in one of the two on-site campgrounds. One camper from Fargo, N. D., said he had his 1950 Chevrolet pickup parked in line at 4:30 a.m.
The 322-acre fairgrounds venue is impressive. Streets are paved with curbs, sidewalks and street signs and it has many permanent structures. Hundreds of events are held there during non-fair times. There are 80 full-time, year-round staff members. During the annual 12-day fair that leads up to and includes Labor Day, there are 1,750 staff members.
According to Bob Salmonson, who has attended all 50 Back to the ‘50s events, there were 10,453 entries this year. The fairgrounds rental fee for “the largest street-rod show in the nation” is $300,000.
License plates from many surrounding states were seen along with those from three Canadian provinces. Vehicles ranged from stock Model T Fords and Cadillacs from the teens to beautiful restorations, creative rat rods, lead sleds and traditional street rods from later years.
Ladies had the opportunity to see things specifically for them at the Ladies Showcase, where they lined up each day to receive a large, free tote bag - a different color each day - and to shop. Kids had events for them and the Kid’s World amusement area.
Evening entertainment was held at the bandshell, with Richie Lee and the Fabulous 50’s Friday and Mitchell Hall and the Tennessee Trio (a tribute to a younger Johnny Cash) Saturday. There were other musical acts performing, including The Dixieland Pickup Band on a truck that paraded through the fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. A pin-up beauty contest was also held.
There was a constant flow of vehicles up and down the one-way streets. Some were noisy with open exhaust headers and a few were revved up for the onlookers, but no burnouts.
Many vendors were on site promoting products offering special deals. At the Classic Car Marketplace, cars were bought and sold. Former NASCAR driver Richard Petty was there with a display trailer, and he spent a lot of time signing autographs.
Several corn dog outlets were busy providing food and at least one place selling a BBQ pork chop or chicken breast on a stick. We dined at these locations.
Most folks we talked to had been to this show before. It really is a sight to behold for any old car enthusiast. The day we saw Bob Salmonson, his wife Donna, their daughter and two grandchildren were all there. The family tradition continues.
On the way home, we took I-94, and State Road 29 through Wisconsin, enjoying the four-lane roads, and entered Michigan at Menominee.
For me, it was a one-time event, as we just live too far away. The week-long trip in our #42 covered 1,716 miles.
