Volume 48 Number 1

Alton Love Captures Pittsburgh Steel City Award of Excellence

By Janet Bires

While Football may be king in Pittsburgh, auto racing is the passion of many area residents; and the 49th Pittsburgh World of Wheels presented by Pittsburgh Raceway Park featured several attractions that were of special interest to race fans.

In the Drag City USA display, spectators got a close look at five of drag racing’s most iconic championship vehicles: “Big Daddy” Don Garlits’ Swamp Rats 3, 4 & 8, Don “The Snake” Prudhomme’s “Wynn’s Winder,” and Connie Kalittta’s “Bounty Hunter.” Spectators crowded around this display all weekend, and they also enjoyed the large collection of local race cars entered in the show. It seems the people of Pittsburgh love action, and the Action Arena drew a big audience for the street bike stunt team show and the Pittsburgh Derby Demons.

Above: (left) Alton Love’s ’56 Chevy – Steel City Award of Excellence, Best Custom, Outstanding Display; (middle) Pete Simpson’s ’70 SS El Camino – CASI Cup, Best Truck, Outstanding Display; (right) Len & Gene Shilts’ 1933 Boydster III – Outstanding Altered Rod, Outstanding Display, Outstanding Detail, Outstanding Paint, Outstanding Engine-Rod.

The Summit Racing Equipment Show Car Series is what draws the big guns on the circuit to Pittsburgh. Big winners in the competition included Alton Love’s ’56 Chevy 210 (Best Custom), John Mai’s ’33 Willys (Best Rod), Pete Simpson’s ’70 Chevy SS El Camino (Best Truck), Tony Starita’s ’09 Custom (Best Bike), and two of Curtis Ukasik’s vehicles: his ’69 Pontiac Trans Am (Best Street Machine/Comp) and his ’70 Chevelle (Best Restored). Rising Star awards were presented to Kevin Taylor’s ’06 Honda (Overal); Brian Lehman’s ’97 Mustang Cobra (Paint); Michael Barnyk’s ’07 Mike Bros Custom (Engine); Anthony Younkin’s ’69 Ford F-250 (Interior); and Dan Ireland’s ’07 Subaru (Display).

The Steel City Award of Excellence went to Alton Love’s ’56 Chevy 210, and Peter Simpson’s ’70 SS El Camino took home the CASI Cup.

Above: (left) Bob Russ’ 1974 Datsun 620 – Outstanding Off Road, Outstanding Display, Outstanding Paint, Outstanding Engine-Street Machine/Comp, Mac Tools Master Builder Award; (middle) Don Opsatnik’s ’50 Mercury – Outstanding Full/Radical/Hand-built Custom, Outstanding Engine-Custom, Outstanding Interior-Custom, Class Winner; (right) Shawn Pengilly’s ’49 International – Outstanding Full/Radical/Hand-built Truck, Outstanding Paint, Outstanding Engine-Truck, Outstanding Interior-Truck.

Other highlights at this year’s World of Wheels were the pinstripe charity auction benefitting the Autism Society of Pittsburgh, a collection of vehicles from Builder of the Year Bill Steele, and the World of Wheels 1961 traditional rods and customs section.

The crew of the Pittsburgh World of Wheels presented by Pittsburgh Raceway Park would like to thank everyone who helped make the 49th edition a great success.