ABILENE, TX – Some enthusiasts satisfy their longing for cars by buying the vehicle that they’ve always dreamt of having and then modifying, upgrading and maintaining it as a hobby. Then we have people who are crazy enough to not only buy cars by the dozens but also have multiple cars of the same make and model. This might sound odd at first but is normal when you look at it from an enthusiast’s perspective. 

A resident of Abilene since childhood, Randahl Lohse’s family first moved here when his dad, a military man, was stationed at Dyess Air Force Base. His father was also a mechanic and that is exactly how he fell in love with cars! At the age of fifteen, he even ended up building his first engine, which went into a 68’ Ford Falcon that he bought for 200 bucks—his first car ever!

One year later, Randahl ended up meeting his future wife, Debra Lohse and got married after seven years of dating. He has since been living a family-oriented life, working as a firefighter for three decades before finally retiring in 2018. He enjoyed his line of work and considered it to be the best job in the world. One thing that fascinated us was the house that the Lohse family lives in today. Randahl conducted most of the construction mostly by himself and with some help from his friends. He even went and explored other houses under construction when he faced problems, this was way before Youtube. This shows how consistent and dedicated he is with anything that he does, exclusively because of the “If you can do it, I can do it!” approach. 

Randahl has also applied the same dedication towards his love for cars and trucks. Specifically cars from the 60s and 70s, that he has admired from a very young age. Most of his cars can be labeled as “built not bought” because he works on them in all his free time. With cars as beautiful as his, it is no surprise that he always tries to take part in car shows every time he hears about one. And while calling it a hobby, we’d emphasize how enthusiastic he is about these cars.

It was in his childhood that Randahl fell in love with the 60s model F100 trucks and later bought three of the exact pickups. Shortly after retiring, he bought six vehicles. His car collection includes another beautiful 68’ Ford F100, a 65’ Ford Econoline Pickup, two 67’ Mercury Cougars, a 62’ Mercury Comet S22, and a 70’ El Camino that he has owned for over 40 years. 

Randahl’s current project is a 66’ Ford F100 that he found in Lubbock, TX. It was already in great shape due to a thorough restoration already done to it. He later added automatic power steering, power brakes and a smooth C6 automatic transmission to make it more comfortable, along with a gorgeous, original Ford Rangoon Red paint. He also plans to beef up the engine to at least 500 hp but he is not stopping there. Randahl has a long list of parts waiting to be added to the mix, we’re super excited to see the final transformation!