79-year-old Illinois grandma with a 1957 Cadillac is hooked on burnout contests
- This 79-year-old grandma is hooked on burnout contests
- She drives a custom 1957 Cadillac
- She’s even earned herself some trophies
Published on Nov 25, 2024 at 6:00 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Nov 22, 2024 at 8:07 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
A 79-year-old grandma from Illinois is hooked on entering burnout contests in her 1957 Cadillac and even has a few wins under her belt.
While many folks like to slow down and take things easy as they enter their twilight years, Annie Koehler has decided to dedicate her time to burnout competitions across the US.
Koehler – dubbed ‘Annie the Hot Rod Granny’ – was gifted the Cadillac by her son Jamie Hitchens who custom-made it at his auto shop in Bethaldo, Illinois.
The custom Caddy comes with a big-block Chevrolet V8, with no supercharger or turbocharger – just a burnout expert behind the wheel.
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The grandma drives a custom 1957 Cadillac
We’ve heard plenty of tales of people finding vintage vehicles stashed away at their grandparents’ homes, like this guy who discovered an untouched Lamborghini Countach and Ferrari 308 in his grandma’s garage, or the granddaughter who begged her grandpa to give his long-abandoned Ferrari 512bb a bit of TLC.
However, Koehler makes full use of her classic Cadillac every chance she gets.
Not only is she happy to travel across the US with her son, but she enters any burnout competition she can find.
The duo once took the Cadillac on a 4,200-mile road trip from Illinois to California, taking part in a smattering of burnout contests along the way and picking up some trophies.
She’s on the hunt for more burnout contests to take part in
Koehler, who has eight grandchildren, came to the hobby quite late in life but is now completely hooked.
So much so, that she even put a request out asking people to let her know about any other burnout contests she can enter.
Koehler has started her own YouTube channel where she shares clips of her burnouts – you can check that out here.
Koehler, who used to work as a semi-truck driver, has packed a lot into her 79 years.
Alongside raising a family, she’s worked as a semi-truck driver, a musician in Nashville, and has even published her own children’s book.
“I thank God every day I’m still here to get to this season of lighthearted foolishness,” she told The Drive.
What an absolute legend.
Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Across her career she's covered a wide variety of topics, including celebrity, cryptocurrency, politics, true crime and just about everything in between.
