Mr Horton entered his 1954 General Motor Company 100 pickup in the GWD Toyota Hokonui Ute Muster in Gore yesterday.
The pickup had its own patina, an aged finish, which he wanted to keep, Mr Horton said.
‘‘Sun-faded, rusty, bogged, dints, everything that has happened to it over the years is still on it.
“I’m not going to get rid of that look ... I love it.’’
He had owned the pickup for about two months and was planning to use it as a runabout.
“It’s going to end up with more dints and more scratches and that’s the way that I like it.”
At some point he would apply a clear coat paint to the pickup to protect the look.
He said he had wanted to own an old American truck for as long as he could remember.
‘‘It’s a dream come true.’’
The pickup was not all it appeared as it recently had an overhaul.
It now had a mid 1990s Mitsubishi L200 ute chassis and a new Vortec Chevrolet 350 engine.
“It goes pretty good all right.”
The inaugural ute muster was held last year as part of the Tussock Country Music Festival.
The festival was cancelled this year because of the uncertainty of holding the event due to Covid-19.
Muster organiser Annabel Roy said she was ‘‘really stoked with the turnout’’.
Eighty-eight people took part, up from 74 last year.
Holding the event under cover at the field days site worked well, Miss Roy said.
‘‘It was really good to be in a bigger venue.’’
There were categories including best dog in a ute, best classic ute pre-1980, best mullet and a bark up competition for dogs.
A crowd of about 250 people attended the event which was also a fundraiser for Rural Support Southland.
