AMARILLO, Texas – The Texas Panhandle Mustang Club’s 36th annual round up of ponies and other Fords turned into a memorial “Ford Fun Day” to founding member Terry Gamblin. In attendance during the show held at Gene Messer Ford in in Amarillo, Texas, on a sunny Saturday in May were his wife, Helen, along with their children and grandchildren.



Gamblin was a die-hard Mustang enthusiast. In 2007, when a Mustang club member bought a 1969 Camaro Z/28, Terry ribbed him about a Blue Light Special on jumper cables at K-mart -- something he’d surely need after buying a Chevy.

He was also well-known as the go-to guy in the Texas Panhandle Mustang Club, which he helped form way back in 1977. Everybody would always call him for details on club activities over the years, and his leadership in the club will be greatly missed. Gamblin’s family members picked out a Mustang at the show for an award, which they will now do every year in memory of Terry. As show sponsor, Gene Messer Ford also picks a car for a special award.



For 2017, the show proved one of the largest ever, with some 112 cars registered from around Texas and the surrounding states of New Mexico, Kansas and Oklahoma. In the spirit of fun, the club invites all marques to participate, and about three-fourths of the cars registered were Mustangs and Fords. To encourage young people to participate, the club empowered members of the Auto Tech class at nearby Hereford High School to do the judging. Best of Show and Best of Show Mustangs, however, are picked by participants.

FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY JERRY HEASLEY