I did it. Albeit that was 10 years ago. Met a guy and paid him $50 and he gave me every registered owner, for the life of the vin. Found it and bought it back. It's the one in my avatar. Check out my build thread, it has more of the story.
What about the 2.8! Lol. I had an s10 with a 2.8 and a 5 speed and that truck was freaking rock solid. I only used for hauling trash and dump runs, but I'll be dammed if not fired up every spring.