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A Moment of Reflection on the State of the Automobile & the Enthusiast
As car enthusiasts let’s take a few moments to reflect on the state of the automobile and what has become
an avocation for most of us as we close out 2012 and
enter 2013. Simply, we find ourselves surrounded by
the fastest, best handling and most technically
advanced performance cars ever produced. No doubt
about it. For those of you whining over the “muscle
car” era of the sixties and early seventies get over it,
you’re showing your age! If you don’t know it, this is
the real “muscle car” era and we should all realize it
and be thankful for it.
If you are not convinced, show me one car from the
sixties that can outperform a Corvette Z06 or a
Camaro ZL1. And if you still aren’t convinced how great things are as we closeout 2012, think back to
the late seventies and eighties and the only cars available to us then. You do remember how Lee Iacocca
saved Chrysler with the “K car” and the minivans don’t you? Exciting times. I don’t think so. You must
remember when the “hottest” performance cars’ speedometers topped out at 85 MPH and a car with 200
HP was considered to be a performance car? Looking back, yes even to the “muscle car” era of the
sixties, was there any production car produced that could compare in performance and build quality to
the performance car of the last few years? If there was, I‘d like to know what it is. Simply put we are
witnessing the greatest performance era of the automobile, bar none. And for that I can say “Lucky me!”
If that isn’t enough, we also find ourselves
inundated, almost overcome with car-related
activities of every type. This past summer in
Michigan I commented to another “car guy”,
during a Friday night gathering of FBody owners
on Woodward Avenue, that I could participate in
a “cruise” event every night of the week
throughout the summer if I wanted. In addition to
nightly cruises there were car shows and special
events weekly. Some of them, major events such
as two of the largest, lengthy and legendary auto
events in the country, The Woodward Dream
Cruise and Flint’s Back to the Bricks® Car show
and the supporting events which go on ten days
prior to the official date. It is almost inconceivable but these two events run concurrently, only an hour’s
drive between the two, and together they draw over a million people! A million people turned out to
either watch or be a part of the events in some form or other.
Michigan does not have a lock on the number and quality of auto-related activities going on. Every major
metropolitan area has numerous events and activities available for the enthusiast throughout the
weather-friendly months. If you don’t believe that then just go into any regional section of a forum and
check out events. I recently put together a “Snowbird Calendar of Cruises and Events for Corvette Clubs
in Arizona”. Just like in Michigan, I can find a cruise event to go to almost every night between October
and May. On Saturdays I can make it an “all day Corvette marathon”; Corvettes and Caffeine® starting
at 8 in the morning until about 11, then a Corvette club luncheon from 11:30 until 1:30 and then off to
the Scottsdale Pavillions for the oldest cruise-in in the country from 3 until about 9 or 10 at night.