Chrysler of Culpeper all Mopar event....

Sunday the Princess & I headed to Culpeper, VA to attend the 6^th Annual Mopar show hosted by Wade Schick’s Chrysler of Culpeper dealership.  The event had been rained out twice so when the weatherguessers said no chance of perception for this weekend, we all breathed a sigh of relief….  But it would be a little chilly….hmmmm  We launched at 7AM from the WAWA in N. Stafford and 44 miles later we arrived at the dealership.  The Rappahannock Region Mopar Club manages the event with the able assistance of Wade and his staff at the dealership.  This year the Mopar club only had 5 of it’s members managing the event but those 5 acted like there were 20 members running around getting stuff done!  Having been in a club years ago that put on events at an auto dealership, I know the work involved in moving so many vehicles off the lot for the event, then back on again when it’s over.  Having an event at a dealership has the advantage of great restrooms, shelter from the elements (rain, cold, wind, heat), better vendor spaces and vehicle centric problem solving.  Wade supports this event and others in the community..like a responsible, influential member of the community should.  Even though we don’t drive a Mopar we always try to attend this event when our schedule allows.  This year they would be giving part of the events proceeds to Fisher House Foundation so we wanted to represent them and Cruisin For Heroes at the event.

There were a few vendors that would brave the cold & wind to attend….one of them was the local Bruster’s Ice Cream store.  They have partnered with Cruisin For Heroes in the past and are going to support a monthly cruise in 2016 for Fisher House Foundation.  Sunday they would dress up an unsuspecting employee in the “Scoops” costume and extort money from all the show goers for the two charities represented at the event.  In the end they collected $250 to be split between Fisher House Foundation and Hospice of the Piedmont.  WOW….!

We set up our FH info area at the corner of the covered ‘porch’ of the building, we thought it would get the most exposure….it did.  But it also put us in the path of the 379 mph wind that was howling most of the day.  And you do know about ‘chill factor’ right?  The temp was about 43 degrees so with the wind it made the ‘chill factor’ close to absolute zero!  I thought it might be a little chilly so I dressed appropriately, even wearing long pants.  Something I usually don’t start till January.  But with that much wind blowing it was just numbing cold….

There were about 79 Mopars in attendance and one Chevy farm truck (not registered).  They ranged from a 1948 Chrysler to a near new Challenger that still had that ‘new car’ smell.  It would have been more interesting if more ‘older’ cars attended….but….I love the 60’s-70’s Mopar Muscle cars and the new Muscle cars too!  My favorite was the white ’63 Dodge 440 with a 426 Wedge….just too gnarly for me!  I knew it was special when the owner woke up the old wedge then backed off his trailer.  I tried to get a video of it while he parked but the staccato of the exhaust pulses overwhelmed my camera mic and it just sounds loud.  I remember when these puppies would roam the drag strip pits in SoCal.  To see/hear/feel a bunch of these Mopars and a few 409/427 Chevys; all growling and lurching around in the pits is something one never forgets.  It was like a bull fight; they would snort & bark back and forth at each other….like sumo wrestlers throwing salt.  Anyway, that was my favorite of the day.  Another thing that made my day a little warmer was the amount of Plumb Crazy cars in attendance, I can’t remember seeing that many at a Mopar event before. 

The Mopar club tallied up the judge’s findings and announced the winners while handing out the plaques.  Of course they were all winners; just look at what they drove to the event….except for the farm truck.  Fred, the Princess and some other willing hands helped us fold up and pack away our display.  We really were happy the event was over because I was numb throughout.  My fingers were so numb, I had trouble fumbling for the ignition key to start the truck.  At least the old farm truck has a heater, unlike someone that I will not mention, that drives a red/white ’57 Dodge, that makes it a point to roll up his windows in the summer heat to remind us that he has A/C….hehehehehe  Next year you need to check out this event….if you own a Mopar you will enjoy it.  If you don’t….you have a year to fix that….