Thirty-five years is an impressively long time for a kit car company to be in business, and Shell Valley is darned proud to be one of only a handful of companies to have made it to that lofty milestone. Shell Valley and Midstates Classic Cars, once competitors in the fiberglass snake biz, have been under one roof (and ownership) since 1999. Owner Rich Anderson and partner Bob Kallio (general manager of Midstates) recently pulled out the stops to celebrate the anniversary and welcome owners of both companies' wares in conjunction with the Tour Nebraska hot rod tour.
The festivities kicked off on Friday with a tour of the Shell Valley/Midstates manufacturing facilities. The spacious operation consists of a number of buildings, some exclusively devoted to each of the two divisions, some common areas shared by both. Although the two divisions form one company, the Shell Valley and Midstates Cobra replicas are distinctly different and will stay that way.
While Midstates is content to manufacture its refined Cobra roadster replica, Shell Valley has been busy adding models, including Daytona Coupe, Cheetah, and Jaguar C-Type replicas, as well as an expanding line of hot rods. The big news over the weekend was the first glimpse of Shell Valley's Model T track roadster, '32 Roadster, and '32 three-window coupe kits in the early stages of development. We are looking forward to seeing the first finished examples. Shell Valley will be building their own chassis (the Deuces will use '32 side rail stampings with Shell Valley crossmembers). Anderson says the rod market is strong and a natural for his company. Plus, Shell Valley continues to sell fiberglass replacement panels and bodies for Jeeps. Guests also got a glimpse of the molds and jigs where Shell Valley manufactures bodies and frames for other kit car companies like Dragon and Active Power.
Shell Valley wowed attendees with their potent factory racing team, consisting of a full-house Cobra replica sporting a 410-inch Chevy sprint car engine, a small-block stroker-powered Cheetah, and a '32 Vintage circle track racer with a hot 302 Chevy for oomph. Anderson races in track events around the country. Shell Valley kits not only look like racers, they can actually be successfully raced!
The gathering also gave guests a chance to meet the staff that designs and assembles their favorite kit cars. The sales force was on hand to explain the new models, and the staff showed off their frame-building jigs and body molds.
After sniffing around the factory the party moved to Village Center Mall, where the annual Columbus car show was in progress. Shell Valley's anniversary celebration coincided with the Columbus 32nd Annual Rod Run and Car Show as well as Tour Nebraska. The Friday evening show kicked off both events, and the Cobras were welcomed with open arms. About 100 rods, customs, antiques, musclecars, sports and kit cars turned out for an informal show and pizza dinner with rock 'n' roll playing into the night.
Saturday was the kickoff for Tour Nebraska, which featured a 300-mile tour of scenic sights around the area (with a similar tour the next day). For Shell Valley and Midstates customers who were not so adventurous, Anderson and Kallio set up a shorter tour of scenic spots in and around Columbus. Cobras, Cheetahs, and rods lined up at the Victorian Inn for the start, followed by a brisk trip to Central Community College, where Anderson pointed out the building where students are learning auto mechanics, engine building, and bodywork/painting skills by assembling a Shell Valley 427 Roadster kit. Anderson explained that the future mechanics assemble the chassis and engine while another group of students learn real-world painting skills.
Shell Valley has a similar program with a local high school, where the students recently assembled a donated Cheetah kit. Anderson laughingly recalled getting a friendly phone call from the local police when overanxious students pirated the car from the shop and proudly drove it around downtown Columbus! One of the students had so much fun he's now an employee at Shell Valley.
From the college it was a short sprint to Lakes Babcock and North, part of a power generating system for the surrounding communities. It was a great place for photos, and the gang stopped along the beach for a group shot. A light rain started spitting down but only lasted a minute before the sun broke through again...someone at Shell Valley must be living right!
After a cross-town cruise the snakes slithered around the scenic trees in the Wagner Lake area before parking in Pawnee Park for a look at the Higgins Memorial. The WWII memorial pays respect to Andrew Higgins, a Columbus native who invented the famed Higgins landing craft that ferried the troops ashore at Normandy. There was a replica Higgins boat as well as a memorial to the 9-11 tragedy fabricated of scrap from the towers. When the Shell Valley and Midstates group lined up in front of the memorial they became a featured attraction themselves, as onlookers began streaming over from the water park across the way!
From there the tour wound through another park and ended up in downtown Columbus, a lovely historic city with a hometown look. The buildings are beautifully restored and maintained, and there is an adjacent rail yard just across the tracks (a delight for rail fans). We stopped off at Dusters, a microbrewery that also offers premium root beer and cream soda (for the designated drivers). After a cool-down it was time to return to the mall for the big show, where over 300 more cars on Tour Nebraska joined the cars from the previous night's event.
The show was hopping, with a special area roped off just for Cobras, Cheetahs, and Shell Valley rods (no Shell Valley C-Type Jags showed up this time, but Anderson is thinking about building one for his personal ride). The Nebraska Rod and Custom Association, organizers of the show, gave out over 100 trophies. The Best Cobra trophy went to Tim and Debbie Booth, who brought Vurple, their two-toned purple Shell Valley replica, all the way from Parker, Colorado. Best of Show went to West Coast Performance Center's wild custom West Coast Cobra. The evening was topped off with barbecue, drinks, and more music.
Sunday morning the Tour Nebraska folks took off for another 300-mile jaunt, while the Cobra crew turned up at Rich and Robin Anderson's lake home for an outdoor breakfast and boat rides. A special guest was Ian Briggs, who imports Shell Valley kits to England via his British American Engines concern.
All too soon the weekend was over, but Anderson and Kallio were encouraged by the turnout and have vowed to do it again next year, but even bigger and better. Shell Valley and Midstates fans should be there!