The biggest classic car show in the world.

[Lefty48197]

It's happening tomorrow on Woodward Ave., from Eight Mile Rd. in Detroit up to Pontiac, Michigan.
This years show is the tenth anniversary of a show that started out as a charity event to raise money for a local youth soccer league.
Today, it's turned into an enormous event that will feature over 30,000 classic cars crusing and parking along Woodward, turning it into a sixteen mile scene right out of American Graffiti.
By noon tomorrow, every single square inch along Woodward will be occupied by a beautiful vehicle, and every single one of them will be in showroom condition. There won't be one single spot of rust, or exposed primer, and all the chrome will be fully polished.
The cruisers come from just about every state in the union to show off their precious cruisers. Some even have their hot rods shipped over from Europe for the show.
The actual show occurs on the third Saturday of August, but the truth is that the show is over one week long. They've been out cruising all week, and even prior to that.
Last year, the show was toned-down due to the power blackout. Most of the out of towners lost their hotel rooms, and couldn't make the trip. As a consequence, the crowd was held to only about 1.3 million spectators. This year, the crowd is expected to be back around 1.7 million.
If you love classic cars, then you absolutely MUST make the trek to Detroit for one of these shows, at least once in your lifetime. Bring your hot rod, and get ready to party Motown style!
Woodward Ave, or highway M-1 has the distinction of having the first stretch of paved roadway, and the first traffic light in the entire country.
Tomorrow, Woodward will be jammed with every single car imaginable. There will even be some things you would never have imagined. The Corvette and 57 Chevy limousines come to mind.
The air will be filled with the rumble of some of the most powerful automobile engines you will ever hear. The rumbles will be accentuated by the Ah-Oogahs of the old Model T's.
Twelve hours from now, I will be in absolute HEAVEN! I can't wait!!!

[salinen]

1. Is my envy showing

but there is a car show here too. I saw some mid-fifties Mercs today.

[Lefty48197]

2. The 49 Merc: The first hot rod

Chopped, dropped, and shaved.
It's one of my favorites.

[NWHarkness]

3. We will be working it hard!

We will have voter registration booths set up in Ferndale and Berkley, and we have about 30 volunteers who will be circulating in the crowds with campaign lit, bumper stickers, etc.

I also heard that Congressman Levin will have a truck going up and down Woodward giving away free lemonade. or, as they are calling it, "Levinade".

[Lefty48197]

4. Good for you!

And thanks for doing that good work!
Ferndale and Berkley should be fertile ground for organizing Democrats. Don't forget to go to Royal Oak! If we can get the "leather" crowd to vote, then Bush will lose by a landslide. Likewise, Birmingham and West Bloomfield seem to be 'artsy' Democratic leaning cities, and the Democratic credentials of Pontiac are clear. There's not a right wing town along the entire roadway!

[NWHarkness]

6. Stop by!

We will be in the parking lot at the Vinsetta Grill at Woodward and Catalpa, and in front of the Just 4 Us store on 9 Mile, just west of Woodward.

BTW, I spoke with State Rep. Andy Meisner today, and he said he had been doing door to door in West Bloomfield, and found very heavy support for Kerry there.

We are going to carry Oakland county decisively, and rout Bush in Michigan!

[Lefty48197]

8. I'm getting a real kick out of Oakland Co. politics lately

I remember when the Reaganites used to talk about all the "Reagan Democrats" up in Macomb Co. I never understood that. A bunch of white gun owning, tax and abortion hating conservatives. I think they were more like "Zell Miller Democrats".
At that same time, the Republicans liked to think of Oakland Co. as their "solid south". Just because it is a wealthy county, the Republicans felt they were guaranteed the Oakland Co. vote.
I'm pretty sure we've won the last three Presidential elections in Oakland Co. Thanks in no small part to all of those communities on the Woodward corridor.
The funniest part is that Grand Rapids hard core right wing Republican Betsy DeVos (Amway) has been feuding with the establishment Oakland Co. Republicans, and the GR Reps have been trying to take over the OC Rep. party. Betsy is really out of touch with OC, and she is hell-bent on destroying their Republican party.
I'm enjoying the show.

[GOPisEvil]

5. Man...I'd like to see that.

I do like the classic cars.

[Mika]

7. Too bad the US gov prevents Americans from going to Cuba..

You all would just love all of the beautiful classics there. I'm not much of a car buff, but the island is full of them.

[frylock]

9. i had the chance to check it out in 2000..

and it is truly amazing.

[MrScorpio]

10. Enjoy it guys. I wish I was there

eom

[Lefty48197]

11. If you're going:

GO EARLY! The place will be TOTAL gridlock by about 11 a.m. Get there by 9, or earlier, and cruise up and down for awhile. You don't really need a classic car. The two outside lanes are reserved for cruisers, while the other two are mostly shared by classic cruisers, and late model spectators.
Cruise up and down the road and get a good look. You can probably find a pretty good parking space on one of the side streets up until about 10, or MAYBE 11 a.m. By that time, the street turns into a parking lot. Traffic moves at about 1/2 mile per hour. No kidding. It's the most polite, and the most fun traffic jam you will ever be in.
The heavier traffic seems to be between about 11 mile and 16 mile, with the heaviest concentration being the 13/14 mile area. All along those stretches, the street is completely lined with classics. It's beautiful.

[NWHarkness]

12. The cruise campaigning in Ferndale was a HUGE success

We set up 2 tables to give out lit, and had about 30 volunteers working the crowds all around Woodward and 9 Mile.

We passed out thousands of campaigns flyers. All the volunteers came back empty handed, and said they could have passed out as much material as they could have carried. We also gave out at least 1000 lapel stickers. There were people wearing Kerry stickers everywhere you looked.

We also signed up dozens of new campaign volunteers.

There were a few run ins with Bushie nitwits, but most of the response was great. We are fired up for this campaign in Michigan, and we are going to win!