Vintage Weekend
Flurry of events delivers nostalgic feel over last weekend of September
By Jyll Phillips
For the Lincoln Sentinel
Lincoln County was alive with the sights, sounds, and smells of a day filled with events Saturday, September 26, bringing residents and visitors together to enjoy vintage and repurposed items and classic cars, along with great barbecue.
Vesper Vintage completed its second successful year at the Vesper Community Club. According to organizers, nearly 550 shoppers came to Vesper to shop from more than 30 vendors in a world of recycled, up-cycled and antique wares.
Offerings included handcrafted furniture from Julie’s Birdboxes of Lucas, fashioned with up-cycled drawers, chairs and frames; fun glassware from J & K Creations of Lincoln, featuring stained glass creations from Janell Flores and Keith Shoemaker; and pumpkins and mums from Brandy Krueger, just to name a few. The event included an assortment of lunch items allowing shoppers to stay the whole day. Vendors came from as nearby as Denmark and as far away as Iowa.
Vesper Vintage, the brain-child of Kerry Isbell, Anne Grace, Pam Morgan, and Kathy Lupfer-Nielsen, drew visitors to the county from all over the state, including St. Francis, Hill City, Scandia, Wichita and Platte City, Mo., some of whom were visiting the county for the first time.
“We hope everyone had a good time,” Isbell said. “We spend a lot of time planning, organizing and trouble shooting so the vendors and shoppers are excited to attend this year, and in upcoming years.”
In Lincoln, the Lincoln County Rod & Custom V-Eights & V-Twins Car Show, which included motorcycles and bicycles this year, took place in Lincoln with 112 registered vehicles, all painstakingly restored, customized, or original classics.
Like many of the automobiles on display, when Kenneth Meier of Beloit found his 1958 Chevy Impala convertible it was full of rust, and had a tree growing from the hood of the car. He took at least three years to bring the vehicle back to life, restoring it in better-than-new condition.
“We had a great day,” said organizer Bill Huehl, of Lincoln. “We had a lot of foot traffic, and we fed a lot of people.”
Lunch is provided free of charge for registered exhibitors, and available for a nominal fee for the public. The annual car show always brings exhibitors from throughout the region.
Meanwhile, the enticing aroma of smoked pork seemed to be noticeable throughout Lincoln, as the third annual Chamber of Commerce BBQ Cook-off brought contestants to the 100 block of North Fourth Street as early as Friday evening to start their smokers and prepare delicious meats.
The event is staged in a partnership between the Lincoln Area Chamber of Commerce and Lincoln Farm Supply, with local banks and businesses as co-sponsors. Five teams participated this year, competing for the best burger, the best pulled pork, the best in open class, People’s Choice and Best Theme award. As the judges cast their ballots, a pulled pork meal was available at The Cube, and open to the public.
Taking first place in the burger category was Rivals Rolling Smoke, with Michael Nelson in his Broncos jersey and Grant Heller in his KC Chiefs jersey. Herd Them and Drag Them Out, a team put together by Travis McElroy, took first place in the Pulled Pork category. A brisket entered in the Open category by Two Krauts and a Cooler (Tim Schmidtberger) took first place in that category. Getting Sauced, the team of Amy Hawkinson, MeriLynn McBride, Megan Huehl and Amanda Uhl, went home with the People’s Choice award and the Best Theme.
The day also included a visit from dozens of motorcycle riders who stopped at Happy Days Diner as part of a poker run, and Mettner Field played host to youth tackle football, adding to one of the busiest Saturdays of the year for Lincoln County.
