Showy and special, street rod is ready for Cruzin’ to Colby

It’s hot pink, crazy-loud and ready to roll. Troy Rimstad’s street rod, a replica of a 1934 Ford three-window coupe, will be one of the showiest cars at this weekend’s Cruzin’ to Colby.

With car events Sunday and Monday, after a Saturday-night Beatles tribute party, this will be the 20th annual show and controlled cruise in downtown Everett.

“I’ve been a car guy since I was a kid,” said Rimstad, 46. Outside his Everett home Thursday, his dream car let out a big, bad growl as he started and revved its 461 big-block, supercharged engine.

The public has a chance to see — and hear — this flame-adorned beauty during Sunday’s controlled cruise. Hundreds of vintage and specialty cars are expected to take part in the 1-4 p.m. drive.

Event organizer Joel Starr said there will be something new along the 14-block course. An outdoor beer garden will be open Sunday and Monday at Hewitt and Wetmore avenues, on the south side of Hewitt. “They’ll have a front-row seat to the cruise,” he said. Also new, the Seattle Inboard Racing Association will have vintage hydroplanes on display Monday.

Starr came to the rescue to organize Cruzin’ to Colby in 2017 after its longtime sponsor, the Seattle Rod-Tiques car club, bowed out. Many club members are seniors now. It was Starr who helped launch the car show 20 years ago to boost business at the now-closed Flying Pig, a downtown pub and restaurant he owned at the time.

Many Seattle Rod-Tiques members still participate in the event, Starr said. Their lovingly restored cars “get a home on Colby,” he said.

Another group, the Snohomish County Football Officials Association, also helped save Cruzin’ to Colby by providing event volunteers. With Starr, 59, ready to step aside, the football officials group plans to head up Cruzin’ to Colby next year.

Scott Pattison, a board member with the group, said the association will have about 20 volunteers at this weekend’s event. The association expects to oversee Cruzin’ to Colby through 2021, he said.

Since its start, according to Starr, the car show has raised more than $200,000 for charities, particularly the local Camp Fire council and Providence Hospice and Home Care of Snohomish County. Along with those organizations, this year’s event will support the Snohomish County Football Officials Association.

“We give that money to student athletes in the form of scholarships,” Pattison said. At its December banquet, he said, the association awarded a total of $17,000 to about five athletes.

On Thursday, Rimstad did more than show off his shiny car. He explained his history with it.

The hot-looking car — featured in the August 1990 issue of Hot Rod magazine — was built in 1986 by Jack Bliss. It has a fiberglass body, a replica of a 1934 Ford.

Bothell’s Steve Cosner, who died in 2012 at age 65, bought the car from a California owner in the mid-1990s, Rimstad said. Cosner’s son, Evan Cosner, is a longtime friend of Rimstad’s.

“When I first saw this car, when he pulled it out of the garage for the first time, I was blown away,” Rimstad said. Rimstad took pictures of the car that day. He’s kept them on a wall in his garage ever since.

His friend inherited the car after his father’s death. A couple of years ago, Rimstad reached out to his friend to say he’d be interested in buying the car. He recalled telling Evan Cosner, “I got to ride in car shows in it with your dad.” In February 2018, Rimstad bought the street rod — he doesn’t share how much he paid.

“I started taking it to car shows. It’s really cool how people recognize that car from years ago,” said Rimstad, who’s now on a committee that works with Cruzin’ to Colby sponsors.

Along with that Hot Rod magazine, Rimstad has another memento — he had it way before getting the car. An image of the pink hot rod is on a T-shirt from a long-ago Seattle Rod-Tiques “Blast from the Past” car show. Rimstad said he found the shirt stored in his attic.

Rimstad, who works for Boeing, said his 7-year-old son Vinnie will appreciate that car someday. And his wife Kim, whose favorite color is pink, “is very supportive of all this stuff — she knows how much I love my car,” he said.

“It has a big place in my heart,” Rimstad said.

Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460; jmuhlstein@heraldnet.com.

Cruzin’ to Colby

The 20th annual Cruzin’ to Colby will bring crowds and vintage cars to downtown Everett this weekend. Scheduled events:

Saturday: All-ages kick-off party 9-11 p.m. with Beatles tribute band The Lonely-Hearts Club at Tony V’s Garage, 1716 Hewitt Ave. Admission $10.

Sunday: Controlled cruise 1-4 p.m. on a 14-block course in downtown Everett. Staging begins 11 a.m. on Colby Avenue south of Wall Street.

The International Auto Sound Challenge Association’s sound-off competition, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at U.S. Bank parking lot, 1702 Hewitt Ave.

All-ages dance 6-10 p.m. with Moxie, a band featuring Motown music, at Tony V’s Garage, 1716 Hewitt Ave. Admission $10.

Sunday and Monday: Beer garden open during cruise and Show and Shine at Hewitt and Wetmore avenues.

Monday: 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Show and Shine, with more than 700 cars parked in downtown Everett. Entertainment stage will feature Danny Vernon’s Illusion of Elvis show and the Moon Daddy Band.

Vintage hydroplanes from the Seattle Inboard Racing Association on display at U.S. Bank parking lot, 1702 Hewitt Ave.