West Texas Roundup Takes over Cooks Garage

The West Texas Roundup is a celebration of classic American iron. The go-fast gathering was held for the second year in Lubbock – Home of Texas Tech, the birthplace of Buddy Holly, a whole lot of cotton and Cooks Garage.

Just on the southern outskirts of town you’ll notice a group of vintage gas station and automotive signs. We’re not talking about a handful of signs, we mean several rows of big signs all spaced out evenly and covering a shopping center-sized parking lot. From US 87 all of these signs come into view, Texaco, Bay, Apco, Derby, Zephyr and other, and you may wonder what the heck is going on over there.

Cooks Garage is what’s going on over there. A kind of strip mall corner section all on its own and chock full of an incredible array of automobilia and Americana presented in Texas hospitality. Actually, the Garage started as a sort of man-cave show room for Rev Limit Customs which, as you can tell, quickly spiraled out of control. Now there’s a restaurant, bar and grille area, party hall and an outdoor patio where you can relax with a cool drink and listen to some live music.

The show brought together a terrific gathering of pre-’63 rods and customs from all across the panhandle, New Mexico and Oklahoma for a couple days of hot rodding fun. Friday night was a meet and greet at the Garage with live music, cool cars and a star-filled Texas sky.

Saturday kicked off the official show with classic cars and trucks rolling in early to get a spot under their favorite sign. There were several station wagons on the grounds that made for some awesome cruisers including pair of 2-door Ford wagons. The satin black and red roof ’55 belongs to Gary and Lisa Smith of neighboring Amarillo and the ’57 parked nearby was from Lubbock and has proven itself on the road as it recently carried Pat Fleichman and his three sons on a road trip spanning 3,800 miles across the country!

Of course since this is Texas, there were a number of cool trucks on hand. Where else are you going to see a Duramax shoe-horned under the hood of a ’54 Chevy 3100 pickup? AJ Meadows’ truck had all the patina of a desert find pickup with the modern day power of a diesel and it’s been proven on the road. AG and Cherri Cook of Logan, New Mexico, cruised over with their Model A built for the long haul with a Brookville chassis an EFI fed small block and of course a 4L60E overdrive trans.

After weaving through rows of custom cars and classic signage, you’ll find the shop that was the nucleus for the garage; Rev Limit Customs. This is a full-on shop from design to crafting metal and building entire hot rods with a nod to tradition or even late model muscle. There were several of their projects on display as well as a couple finished rods including a bright green, 331-Hemi powered ’28 Ford Tudor.

If you found yourself needing to take a break from the West Texas sun, you could get a table and cool drink in the shade. There was live music, artists and stripers showing their talent and even a seminar on making neon lights and signs! Not to mention checking out the collectibles, neon and custom built trophies for the show.

The West Texas Roundup delivered a fun weekend for everyone that attended and Cooks Garage presents a unique backdrop for the show. If you’re passing through the Texas panhandle, we recommend you plan a stop in Lubbock to check out the Garage for a bite on the patio and to chill before hitting the highway. You may be there a while!

West Texas Roundup Photo Extra!