LEXINGTON — They flooded the infield on a steamy Sunday afternoon, snapping photos and loitering among the eye candy.
The thousands of automobile enthusiasts who turned out for the final day of the Mechanics Bank Vintage Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio didn’t go home disappointed. There was something for everyone at the car show and Concours d’Elegance.
There were Porsches and Jaguars and Austin Healeys. There were Corvettes, Mustangs and one immaculate Gran Torino.
There was even a 1958 BMW Isetta 300, a three-wheel, single door vehicle that has to be seen to be believed (Google it).
But nothing drew a crowd like Doug Keppler’s convertible 1970 Orange Volkswagen Beetle. Keppler, a Lucas native, wore an orange polo shirt and stylish orange English driving cap to match his car.
“People romanticize the Beetle,” said Keppler, who has owned the car for about 30 years. “Everyone has a memory with one of these cars in it.”
Gary Scholler agreed. The Butler man was showing his cream colored 1964 Beetle Deluxe with a matching Venetian blind in the rear window.
“There’s hardly anyone I talk to who doesn’t have an experience with a VW Beetle,” Scholler said. “It’s a memory thing. Volkswagens were very inexpensive, so everybody had an experience with one. They either owned one or their parents owned one, so it brings back memories for anybody who takes a look at it.
“Most of us baby-boomers are looking back at those memories and we’re a little nostalgic.”
Scholler owned a pair of Volkswagens when he was younger. He decided to buy another VW in the early 2000s.
“One day I was on eBay and I said, ‘I would like to have another Volkswagen.’ I found this one in Orlando, Florida,” Scholler said. “I started bidding on it and my wife asked, ‘What are you doing?’ I said, ‘I’m going to buy another Volkswagen.’ It didn’t get to its price, but the owner called me and said I could have it for the highest bid so we ended up with it.
“I had it shipped up to Ohio in 2003. The first time we actually saw the car was when it was delivered. We bought it sight-unseen except for some photos on the internet. It was quite a chance we took.”
Keppler bought his VW from a work colleague for $650.
“That was 30 years ago and she wanted to get rid of it,” Keppler said. “I had it restored in 1997.
“I always liked the Volkswagen. I had Volkswagens for years and my brother had one.”
Keppler hasn’t had the vehicle appraised but estimated its value at $14,000.
“But I’m not ready to get rid of it. I enjoy driving it to car shows and going on little cruised with it,” he said. “My last name is Keppler and it’s German. Maybe Volkswagens run in my blood.”
Pinney Shines
Lexington native Michael Pinney started 10th in the MINI Challenge on Sunday, but quickly moved up through the field. He finished seventh overall out of 47 cars and second in the M2 class.
“The car was actually better than I expected,” Pinney said. “We hadn’t had time to get the balance on the car right.”
Pinney took advantage of a great start, moving up to fourth.
“It was a blast to finish that far up out of that many cars,” Pinney said. “It was my first time driving one of these things, so I’m excited.”
Pinney still has family in north central Ohio.
“I have a cousin that lives right down off Steam Corners Road and the rest of my family lives in Bucyrus,” Pinney said. “I know one of my cousins was here and I’m not sure who else. They usually roll in and go to where they are going to watch the race from and I’ll run into them later.”
So how did Pinney plan on celebrating his triumphant return?
“I’ll finally be able to relax and maybe have a couple of beers,” he said. “I haven’t been able to do that all week, so it will be nice to finally unwind.”
Follow Curt Conrad on Twitter @curtjconrad.
