Roswell UFO festival draws flying saucer car from Indiana

Steve Anderson, 67, drove a UFO-shaped car from Indiana to Roswell for the city’s UFO festival. The flying saucer car, built around a 1991 Geo Metro, drew attention from law enforcement in three states during the 18-hour trip.

Anderson made the car more than a decade ago. Sheriff Adam Carnal with the Crawford County Sheriff’s Department in Missouri said he has never seen anything like it on the interstate.

“I’ve been doing this for 19 years, and that’s the first occasion I’ve seen a vehicle like that traveling down the interstate,” Carnal said.

The car went through a rainstorm during the journey and was stopped by police in Missouri, Oklahoma and Roswell. Anderson said the vehicle gets attention at every gas stop.

“It takes me up to an hour to fill up my gas tank” because people stop to take pictures, Anderson said.

The trip to Roswell also brought calls from national and international press. Anderson said his slogan during the car’s construction was “to bring smiles for miles.”

Anderson said there are three rules for a ride in the UFO: Wear the alien glasses, have a ray gun for protection, and always act like an 8-year-old.

“I said, ‘Life is too short; you’ve got to have fun,'” Anderson said.

Roswell’s UFO festival runs from July 5 to 7. Anderson said he will be in Roswell until Tuesday, and then he will make the drive to Area 51.