Saturday we began our
40 mile cruise to Culpeper, VA and The
16th Annual Culpeper Renaissance 4th of July Car & Bike Show. Our adventure started on dry pavement but as
we passed through Bealeton it started misting….then at Brandy Station the sky
opened up and it poured! But hey….we
drive an old farm truck so a little rain just cleans off the mud and bugs…..grinning Our “inside contact” guy, Bob, had secured a
very good spot for us to set up the Fisher House Foundation information
canopy. We were positioned right on a
major corner where everyone would have to pass by at least a couple times
during the day. And that the path to the
‘inside’ restrooms was right in front of our set up didn’t hurt either….thanks
Bob and all the folks from Culpeper Renaissance for helping us showcase Fisher
House Foundation!
Fred
brought Maxine his ’57 Dodge out in the rain to be part of our display and I
had the farm truck on the other side of our set up….Lou’s Ford didn’t want to
get wet….I’m not going to go there….hehehehehehee The attendees began arriving while we were
setting up at 7AM….in the morning! I’m
sure the forecasted rain kept a lot of people at home with their ‘special’
rides but many came out anyway. It
rained a few times during the day but we just dried off the cars and kept at
it! This event is always one that should
be on your calendar….just too many cool cars come out to play at this deal.
I
made the mistake of beginning to photograph the cars around 11AM and it was
just too late, too many spectators! The
crowd was shoulder to shoulder most of the time and as I tried to wait for
clear shots of the vehicles, the flow of people just wouldn’t stop. So I tried to take them from the back of the
cars….but where do the owners sit….in the back!
That didn’t work either. Then it
rained two times when I was about half way to the end….rain & cameras don’t
play well with each other…. In the end I
missed most of the cars, I got 45 out of about 150. Every year the event has “showcased” cars. This year it was the Mopar muscle cars of the
late 60’s to early 70’s and there were a few nice examples of that genre. The two entries that drew the most spectator
interest were the pair of rat rods and Bill’s 1923 Ford Model Speedster. One time we counted about 35 people crowded
around Bill’s car as he explained the workings of it, started it up and
demonstrated how the three pedals worked then ended up honking the oogha
horn! The spectators loved this
car. And the one rat rod owner up the
street was demonstrating his ride to the spectators and had a 40’s pin up girl
for eye candy….something nice to look at….I mean the car….
We
had sunshine for about three hours then around 2PM the clouds reappeared and by
2:30 Operation Deluge was upon us again.
The awards were finished just as the clouds let loose….a very final end
to the event! We broke camp, packed up,
said our goodbyes and motored home….in the rain….with no defrosters….it’s a
farm truck….
We
collected $402 in donations for Fisher House Foundation that included a
sizeable gift from the Fredericksburg Classic and Muscle Car Club and a nice
one from a hot rodder that drives old gassers on the street! We gave out a dozen Fisher House magazines
and talked to many many people about Fisher House Foundation. It never ceases to amaze me that so many
people don’t know what Fisher House is.
This is why our mission at Cruisin For Heroes is to raise awareness and
funds for Fisher House….we always raise awareness….but don’t always raise as
much money. But this Fourth of July was
a good day for Fisher House.
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