This week I have the honor of giving you Anna Tyner’s story. This blog is different from the other blogs that I have written and I hope that you enjoy this story as much as I have enjoyed hearing it and writing it!
Anna Tyner and her partner Loop Roby own a 1972 Toyota Land Cruiser. The vehicle has been with them for 34 years. Let me start from the beginning, Loop Roby acquired the Land Cruiser during his college years. He drove it from Boise, Idaho to Seattle, Washington in the 1980’s on the hopes of becoming a rock star. His rock star career didn’t pan out so he went back to Boise where he met Anna.
Anna recalls how Loop would drive her son to school with the doors off and her son thought that was the coolest thing on the planet! They parted ways and met up about 10 years later. Anna was living in Kentucky and told Loop that he should come down and check out the South. He came to visit and decided to stay. But there was one thing missing…the Land Cruiser that he had left in Boise. Knowing how much he loved the vehicle, it was a huge part of him and a huge part of her past, there was only one thing to do. Go back and get it! They flew back to Boise, rented a U-Haul and hauled it back to Kentucky. As they slowly made the drive across the country, Anna was starting to fall in love with it. Once they reached their destination, she declared the Land Cruiser hers!
The Land Cruiser sat in the garage for a few years. Anna and Loop said they would fix it when they got old. Finally, the time came to fix it and start driving. It took several tries at getting the carburetor going. Finally, they got it running and are out enjoying driving it. They put new tires on it, changed a few hoses, replaced the front brakes and shocks and redid some electrical work to get all the lights working. Anna and Loop call the vehicle “The Beast” or Desert Rat. They drive it around a 30 mile radius but did take it camping to Lake Barkley recently which was about a 100 mile trip. They also try to hit every car show that they can find. Anna has been asked how much would she sell it for and her reply, “I wouldn’t take a million bucks for it! No amount of money could ever replace the memories of our lives together in it.”
I asked her what she likes about the local car scene. She said, “We love the local car scene! The people are the most interesting and all the vehicles send my blood pressure through the roof!” I think she likes vehicles! They recently attended the Clarksville Gearheads Cars n Coffee and won pick of the month. Congratulations! Anna and Loop also participated in the Gearheads Trunk or Treat, dressing their Land Cruiser up.
Thank you Anna for participating in our Full Throttle Thursday blog! I love it when a vehicle has history and yours certainly does.
Join me each week to meet a new vehicle owner and their vehicle.
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