When Andy Ochoa learned that his restored 1952 Chevrolet COE pickup was going to be immortalized with a miniature diecast model by a major California toy car manufacturer last year, he knew his truck had arrived.
“You can’t get any better than that,” Ochoa said.
Ochoa’s rich burgundy snub-nose pickup turned heads at the 31st annual North Whidbey Lions Car Show in Oak Harbor Saturday and took top honors with the “Best of Show” award.
Collecting trophies has been nothing new for the retired Ferndale resident ever since he rescued the truck from a pasture in Eastern Washington in 2007 and worked two years to restore it.
Ochoa was inspired by other COE (Cab Over Engine) trucks sporting different configurations that were featured at the Hot August Nights Car Show in Reno over the years. He decided he wanted to craft his own, turning a flatbed into a unique pickup.
“The cab is factory original, every piece of it,” said Ochoa, who did a lot of the work himself. “The only piece that’s not original to the cab is the steering column and the steering wheel.”
“The bed is a matching year that I bought through the catalog.”
Roughly 200 participants paid to showcase their cars, trucks and motorcycles at Windjammer Park and be in the running for 62 trophies in 21 categories, as well as eight special awards.
Temperatures reached the 80s during the event.
“The weather was superb,” said Car Show Chairman Terry Beatty. “We had a lot of really great cars, a lot of first-time winners and a lot of first-time attendees.”
It was also Ochoa’s first time entered in the Oak Harbor show. He also took home the Chairman’s Choice trophy.
The winners of the eight featured categories:
Best In Show — 1952 Chevy COE pickup, Andy Ochoa.
People’s Choice — 1966 Ford Mustang, Rob Myers.
Chairman’s Choice — 1952 Chevy COE pickup, Ochoa.
Oak Harbor Auto Center — 1937 Packard 120 Touring Sedan, Doug and Sharon Beattie.
Les Schwab Tires — 1964 Pontiac Bonneville, Allen Yaros.
Mayor’s Choice — 1929 Pierce Arrow, Roy Dunbar.
Commander’s Choice — 2010 Chevy Camaro, Timothy Collett.
Editor’s Choice — 1969 Chevy Chevelle, Bill and Adriene Bennett.
