Dear Editor,
This letter is a thank you to all who were involved in the recent April Action Car Show at Swanny Park. I have attended several of these events in recent years and each one is bigger and better than the one before it.
There were a few signs indicating the Rotarians played a part in presenting the event. Hmm, the Rotary, business people as I recall. Business folk are bottom line numbers folks. Well, they got the numbers right, from the 283s, 302s, 327s, 350s, 389s, 400s, 409s, 426s, 427s and 440s all the way up to 500-plus and more. If those numbers don’t ring a bell, ask someone over 35 or 40 and they will explain them with a smile.
It was a menagerie with Mustangs, Stingrays, Skylarks, Cougars, Chargers, Roadrunners, Thunderbirds, Firebirds, Impalas, Falcons and more. There was everything from custom trucks to hot rods to modified customs to rebuilt stock beauties.
But it wasn’t just about cars and trucks. It was about the good times they represent. Walking through the crowd there were comments like: “Look at those fins!” “Didn’t your dad have one of those?” “Man that was my first car. I loved that car.” “Aw, that is the car we drove to the senior prom.” “I got more tickets driving that thing! It could fly!” “Look at the length of that thing! I can’t believe we drove cars that big.” It was about the music that brought me back to the time I was At the Hop with Peggy Sue and Barbara Ann. I imagine everyone who attended the event had at least one happy memory related to the exhibits.
The real thanks goes to all the dedicated craftsmen and artisans who spent untold hundreds of hours, even years, restoring and rebuilding their and our dream cars. I know for them it was a labor of love because some of them had “baby” books filled with pictures of … well, their babies.
Over the years at our house, we have talked about a trip to Europe to visit the art galleries and museums. Well, maybe we will get there and maybe we won’t but one thing I can say for sure – we won’t be going to Europe during the week of the car show. I know real art when I see and it was in the park on Saturday.
Thanks again to everyone, especially those who worked so hard on the cars. I am already looking forward to next year when I can again enjoy a cheeseburger in paradise.
Jim Hofmann
Moab
