Bud Stangel of Enterprise isnt one to rest on his laurels, and hes ready to try for another top prize at the Oregon Mountain Cruise this weekend.

Last year the 1932 Cord L-29 hed restored from a bunch of junk not only won the coveted Peoples Choice Award at the Oregon Mountain Cruise car rally in Joseph, but went on to win Best of Show at an even bigger show in Walla Walla, Wash.

This year Stangel is getting the Cord ready to make another appearance in Joseph, and is also continuing restoration work on an even older L-29 Cord, a four-door sedan made in 1929.

Stangel turned 87 this week, and isnt ashamed to enlist sons and grandsons to help out when he needs it. I just cant get up and down as well as I used to, he said.

Last Friday, he and son Joe were working on his award-winning Cord in a back corner of the massive Stangel Industries shop.

Theres an issue with the engine, said Joe. Its running but it shouldnt be making that noise. 

Last year it took a team of three generations of Stangels in Stangel Industries and Machine Shop to get the Cord ready for its first appearance at Oregon Mountain Cruise. It had just returned from being upholstered and there were a lot of parts to put together. All three of Buds sons and some of his grandsons worked overtime to get the Cord ready for the trip to Joseph.

Last week the cream-colored Cord only needed an overall buffing and the elimination of that pesky engine noise to be ready to go for another run up to Joseph for the cruise.

Stangel bought the award-winner through e-Bay after bidders failed to make the reserve during its first appearance there from a Montana fellow who moved to Arizona.  When asked how much it cost in its pre-restoration stage, Joe Stangel answered for his dad: Probably more than he wants to admit.

 Stangel wasnt the only one who expressed interest in the old Cord avid car collector Jay Leno was also in contact with the owner, with the message that if Stangel didnt buy it, he would.

The Stangels still have the business card of Lenos car restorer, Randy Emms, in one of their project restoration notebooks in case they ever want to sell. He sold us parts, Bud Stangel said. He was real helpful.

Stangel said that probably the most difficult part of restoring the old Cord was replacing all the rotting wood that forms a good part of the car frame (under the upholstery of doors, windows, rumble seat and so forth).

This Cord is only one of a series of old cars that Stangel who operated the Enterprise Airport for 25 years until retiring in about 1986 has restored. 

They include a 1933 Chrysler, a 1937 Cord, a 1959 Ford, a 1959 Chevy El Camino, a 1967 Mercury Cougar, the 1932 Cord and the 1929 Cord hes still working on. 

One of his most ambitious projects was restoring a 1931 Perth Amboy Bird biplane, which sat in Stangels garage in pieces for about 20 years until he had the time to put it back together after his retirement. By 1994 it was ready to fly again, thanks to Stangel.

Its still sitting in the airport, he said, adding that he last flew it about three years ago. Alas, the veteran pilot is now grounded because hes no longer able to get medical approval for his pilots license. 

Even on the ground he manages to find plenty to keep himself busy. Watch for him and his Cord at this weekends Oregon Mountain Cruise.