At 63, he got a ’63

John Bacon shows off his 1963 Ford Falcon Station Bus, which will be on display during Sea Cruise this weekend. The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson

Bacon had been eyeing it for years and his friend was finally willing to sell it this past June. On Saturday, Bacon will be showing his prized possession for the first time at Sea Cruise.

He wouldn’t mind a trophy, but he mostly likes chatting with people about his long-sought-after treasure.

Bacon’s Station Bus is basically a van, but it’s that 1960s style of van where the front is almost flat. The huge windshield and upright steering wheel are reminiscent of the front of a Greyhound bus, he pointed out.

What Bacon dubbed “Beasty Van” will be entered in the van category at Sea Cruise. But there probably won’t be anything else like it there — only 10,332 Falcon Station Buses were made.

The Station Bus has 15 windows, counting the triangle foldouts, he said, and six doors. The original 170 cubic-inch straight 6-cylinder engine sits between the driver and passenger seats, which makes it easier to work on in the rain, Bacon said.

1963 Ford Falcon Station Bus. The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson

“I was in the Navy,” he said. “Everything’s gray in the Navy.”

And he can easily fit his golf clubs in the back.

Bacon has wanted to buy the Station Bus for eight to 10 years. When his friend was finally ready to sell, “he hounded me: ‘You got the money?’” Bacon said.

He did, and doesn’t intend to let it go. Someday, he wants to pass it down to his two sons.

Right now, though, he’s having too much fun driving around listening to The Beach Boys and Jimmy Buffett.