While the number of participants was down slightly from 2006, the Montana Fun Weekend again brought show cars, race cars and lots of travelers to Cut Bank. It was easy to see fine vintage iron at every motel in town, and there wasn’t a room to be had. Several of the show participants stayed in Shelby motels, plus the field at the Cut Bank airport was home to over 35 RV’s for the weekend.
     While the burn outs on Friday night got off to a slow start, the spectators watched around ten participants provide smoky action with wet and dry burnouts, plus the real “action packed” slow drags. Dean Beck from Libby took the prize money home for both the wet and dry burnouts. He was a past two-time winner in his 1957 Chevy pickup. In the slow drags, Mike Moran stepped out of his truck to prove that he could walk faster than it could idle down the track. He was followed closely as “champion of slow” by a vintage 1948 Pontiac. First place winners in the three classes received $100 for their efforts to please the crowd.
     Saturday brought around 150 cars to the ramp of the vintage WWII hanger to exhibit their cars and trucks in the Show and Shine.
     Apparently, the crowd much preferred the older cars, as the final tally of nearly 400 ballots showed that the newest car to make it into the top five was a 1955 Chevy pickup.
     Top vote getter was the 1940 Ford Standard owned by Dennis and Glennda Lagler of Warner, Alberta. Next, were Joel and Ruth Fenger who drove their yellow 1928 Model A Roadster from Chester. Bruce Keller from Kalispell was another crowd favorite with his radically customized 1955 Chevy pickup which had been stretched into an extended cab. The only Chrysler product to make it into the top five was the 1932 Plymouth coupe owned by Rob Ellenwood from Polson. Last, but definitely not least was Bob and Jo Joy’s 1933 Chevy Coupe with the license plate that says it all: “Joy4us.”
     In the airplane competition, crowd pleaser Thomas Thomas from Calgary was top vote getter with his yellow 1941 Boeing PT-17, Stearman bi-plane. Coming in second and third were Andrew and Carole Schultz of Calgary with their 2001 Cessna 172S, and Mike Anderson of Calgary with his 1968 Cessna Cardinal. This year, winners took home a $50 bill, plus an embroidered jacket.
     Short track racing (1/8 mile) is making a huge come-back in Montana. As far as we know, the Montana Fun Weekend events may have started the trend back in 2001 when we held our first drag races on Saturday night. Since then, the sport has grown to about 15 meets around the state annually.
     The stands were full, and the edge of the 660 foot length of the track was packed with spectators again this year, but who would have guessed we would experience our first “rain delay.”
     After the track dried, cars of nearly every description from a 2001 Focus, and two Model –A Fords to supercharged drag cars entertained the crowd. After it was over and the sun was setting, 53 cars and 108 pairings had been run down the track and a considerable amount of rubber had been left on the asphalt.
     This year’s top speed, and crowd favorite, was Pete Krona’s altered 1923 Model-T “Rif Raf.” The car was built in 1967 and raced for many years. After being in retirement for decades, Pete resurrected the altered and has been having a great time racing ever since. Pete turned in the fastest speed and ET of 111.11 mph and an ET of 6.60 seconds. Not far behind was his cousin Gary Hunsinger racing a 1993 Mustang, with a top speed of 108.43 mph with an ET of 7.095 seconds. Both Pete and Gary are from the Flathead area.
     While most of the racers were there just to have fun, several made their passes down the track in a very serious mode. The excellent timing system used enables them to check their speeds and times, plus it provides them with information on their reaction times at the lights. They can then tune their cars and make another pass to see if their work has improved the performance of their cars. This helps them prepare for “bigger” races, plus it gives the crowd a good show, plus it only costs the drivers a fraction of what it would at a larger track.
     As with any community event, success depends heavily on volunteers. The same holds true with the Montana Fun Weekend, and no one receives any pay for their long hours of work. It would be impossible to thank everyone personally here, but I would like to mention a few of those groups who made the event a success. The Triangle Car Club members who have been organizing a car show in Cut Bank for the past 23 years, the Glacier Hangar Pilots Assn., Snowbirds RC club, Alme Construction, Pete’s Auto Body, Hegle’s, Glacier Electric Cooperative, Cut Bank Pioneer Press, KSEN/KZIN Radio, Cut Bank Volunteer Fire Department, Glacier County EMS, City of Cut Bank, Glacier County, City-County Airport Board, Blackfeet Tribe/BIA Law Enforcement and special thanks goes to the dozens of individual volunteers and their families who helped with every part of the event and didn’t complain once. My apologies if I have forgotten anyone.

all photos are by Cliff Wevley unless noted otherwise.

Lagler40Ford---This classic 1940 Ford Standard was the top vote getter. It’s a daily driver owned by Dennis and Glennda Lagler of Calgary.

Fenger28A---This yellow 1928 Model-A roadster from Chester has been restored to all original and has
all the factory options. It’s owned by Joel and Ruth Fenger.

Keller55ChevyPU---No, you couldn’t buy an extended cab in ’55, but Bruce Keller of Kalispell made his own.
If you looked closely, you would see that much more than just a stretch went into this great pickup.

Ellenwood32Ply---Rob Ellenwood drove this sweet 1932 Plymouth from Polson for the Montana Fun Weekend.
It’s all steel, all MoPaR, and is definitely a winner.

Joy_33Chevy---Bob and Jo Joy have attended the Cut Bank car shows for many years, and this isn’t the
first time they have been a winner. They drove their ’33 Chevy over from Kalispell.

Thomas41Stearman---Always a favorite, Thomas Thomas flew down from Calgary with his 1941 PT-17 Stearman. The trip in the classic biplane took three hours with a favorable tail wind.

Rif Raf2---This view from the timer’s table shows crowd favorite Pete Krona in Rif Raf lined up with his cousin Gary Hunsinger in his 1993 Mustang. (Photo courtesy of Mark Volkomener.)

Falcon8r---This is probably the fastest 1961 Falcon you’ll ever see. The Falcon8r made several very good
passes on the 1/8 mile track. The red rocket is owned by Tres Meyer of Kalispell.

HotrodA---You didn’t need a super go fast race car to have fun. This Chevy-powered 1930 Model-A owned by Mark Gibbs of Kalispell made a good showing on the track, and Mark had a great time.