For ardent Ute fans, 2025 will be a year to remember as the University of Utah debuts a one-of-a-kind vehicle that will turn heads wherever Swoop lands for a visit. Its name is Red Betty, and it arrives with the beauty and classic styling of a 1953 Chevy pickup, combined with all the advanced technology of today’s modern American engines.

This Red Betty will be the first iteration of what is intended to be an ongoing tradition of driving nostalgia that will take place, ironically, in Utah County, not far from the U’s big blue rival, Brigham Young University.

“Representatives from the U came to me and said they wanted to build a vehicle that Swoop could use at parades, ball games and other appearances,” explained Robert Staker, co-owner of Resurgence Automotive in Fairfield, Utah.

After hearing more about what they were looking for, Staker had the idea to not only “build a really nice truck, run it for a year and brand it a University of Utah product so people know that it’s the U’s vehicle,” but also to put the truck up for auction afterward. “Let the people who want to make donations to the school kind of wrestle over the thing with their checkbooks, if you will,” he said.

It’s a process that could repeat annually. The idea took off from there, and after months of diligent restoration work, Red Betty was born.

Classic meets modern

“One of the parameters we had to work within was that the truck had to be a 1955 or older in order to be used in the Days of ’47 Parade,” Staker said. After finding a suitable truck, the real work began.

First, for a fresh look with no rust, they removed the old body, then built a brand-new body out of all-new metals.

Next, for the drive of a brand-new truck, they installed a new fuel-injected modern V-8 engine with a 10-speed transmission. The motor is reliable, allowing the driver to just “get in that truck and drive it.”

The final product has all the modern amenities:

• Full custom suspension
• Overdrive transmission
• Air conditioning
• Power steering
• Power brakes
• And more

“It’s a very drivable, very user-friendly vehicle wrapped up in an old package,” said Staker.

It’s those attributes U officials believe will make it quite a desirable collector’s item for some interested U fan when it hits the auction block next year.

“Because the classic truck market is a solid market right now, it makes sense,” said Brian Rasmussen, director of marketing at the U. “Trucks right now are people’s daily drivers. Before, a truck was just a piece of equipment, and now a truck is actually transportation and it’s a status symbol, if you will, and this one is an icon.”

“We intend to use the truck in community appearances and parades, obviously,” said Brett Eden, director of Auxiliary Business Development. “This vehicle is, dare I say, a mascot of sorts that represents the university in a variety of settings and in a unique way, so we want to use it in any place we can.”

Red Betty is scheduled to make its public debut at the Days of ’47 Parade in downtown Salt Lake City on July 24, 2025.