Pepper Place Car Show

August 30
The Great Southern Region of AACA hosted a car show at Pepper Place and the turnout was fantastic. Among the many classics, the Bolton’s Bremer motor scooter stole the spotlight, especially with the younger crowd. Dozens of future old-car enthusiasts lined up for a turn, their excitement proving that the love of vintage wheels is alive and well.
Held on Saturday, August 30, the event was part of the Cars at the Market celebration of Pepper Place’s 25th anniversary. From 9 a.m. to noon, the Martin Biscuit/Jeni’s Ice Cream parking lot was filled with old cars, trucks, and motorcycles on display. Visitors also strolled through the Market to enjoy live music, delicious food, and beautiful crafts from local artisans. It was the perfect mix of community, culture, and classic cars.

AACA Eastern Regional Tour – Aroostook County, Presque Isle, Maine

August 11-15
After many months of dreaming of a cool, northern Maine vacation in the midst of a hot Southern summer, Eddie and I picked up our friend Joy Bailey in our 1979 Pontiac Bonneville Safari station wagon. We were anticipating a week of fall-like weather and packed accordingly.
Our plan for Day 1 of our travel northward was to travel to Staunton, Virginia, taking it easy and stopping at ethanol-free gas stations along the way. The weather in Birmingham was hot, steamy and sunny, all the more to appreciate the cool Maine weather, right? As we prepared the house for our departure, we called Joy to let her know that we would be there shortly to pick her up. “Today?”, she asked in alarm. “Today,” my dear husband confirmed. Joy has never packed more quickly! We had discussed early in the planning whether it would be better to take a leisurely four-day drive north to scope out ethanol-free gas stations or to make it a quick three-day drive. We had opted for the leisurely four-day drive, but evidently our decision didn’t get to Joy. Our bad? But even with that little mix-up, we were on the road before 10 a.m., oddly reminiscent of National Lampoon’s Family Vacation without the travel problems Chevy Chase had on his trip.
On Day 2, we began the day without any issues and pressed on through beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley, a quick pass through West Virginia and Maryland on I-81 and on through Pennsylvania. We spent the night in Middletown, New York, remarking how the traffic was surprisingly light. The day was hot and sunny, with no hint of the cool northern weather we were expecting in beautiful New England.
Day 3 found us amid heavier traffic and fewer non-ethanol stations. We travelled through New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire before reaching our destination for the night in Bangor Maine where we had our second surprise of the trip….the hot weather had followed us to Maine! We had record highs in the 90s and our dreams of cool, fall-like weather were vanishing like smoke up the chimney. I did have my first lobster roll of the trip which did not disappoint me and pacified my ire over the hot weather just a little bit.
Sunday, Day 4 of our travels, found us leisurely leaving the hotel late in the morning since we had a long time to go a short distance. Since Bangor was the birthplace of Paul Bunyon, we stopped at his statue for a couple of pictures.
We also went to an outside church service in a park before searching for the preferred non-ethanol gas station. Once filled up, we got back on I-95 for our final leg of the trip. I began looking for moose on both sides of the road, just knowing that after many years of looking for one, this trip would surely allow me a glimpse of the elusive creature. After a while, Eddie saw a sign telling us about a scenic overlook and he thought it would be a good time to stretch our legs and see the scenery. We parked in a space and piled out to see the view. I was still on the lookout for the moose that I just knew would eventually show himself. There were quite a few people at the overlook, and one asked Eddie what was wrong with his car. He turned to see green liquid spewing out from under the car. My heart sank. We had come so far with no problems, only to have the car overheat with just a short way left to go.
Fortunately, after we opened the hood and let it cool down for a few minutes, we were able to crank it up and head on to our destination.
A short way down the interstate, we left I-95 and rolled on to historic US 1. U S Highway 1 stretches from Maine to Florida and was the road connecting the original thirteen colonies over three hundred years ago. Its northern point of origin is just outside Presque Isle and its southern point ends in Key West, Florida and is 2,321 miles long. Most importantly for us, it was the road to take us to our hotel. Fortunately for us, there were no other signs of overheating while we completed our trip.
Aroostook County, Maine is the largest county on this side of the Mississippi River. People in Maine just call it “The County”. Typically, the temperature ranges from 70 to 77 degrees in the summer. The weather rarely goes above 85 degrees according to the weather station. Well, let me tell you something…. They didn’t consider that a convoy of old vehicles would be coming up there to heat up the atmosphere! We arrived with temperatures over 90 degrees, so hot that the moose went into hiding the whole time we were there. Aroostook County is an agricultural county and they grow 4% of the nation’s potatoes among other crops at the northeastern tip of the United States.
We rolled into a beautiful town and found our hotel with ease, unpacked and got ready to spend a joyous week seeing the sights beginning the next day. We found an interesting restaurant called Governor’s Restaurant and Bakery to have a bite to eat before settling in for the night. I highly recommend it if you ever get up that way.
On Monday we registered and began saying hello to old friends while meeting new ones. That evening, we were invited to an Ice Breaker Reception at the Maine AACA President Craig’s Car Barn. We were happy to see that AACA Great Southern Region President Ken McClellan, and his wife Phyllis safely made it from Leeds Alabama in their 1998 Pontiac Firebird. A delightful time was had by all even though the heat continued to be more like Alabama than Maine. The National AACA President David Anspach was there to say a few words and meet everyone.
Tuesday started bright and early with a tour to Ashland, Portage, Fort Kent, and St. Agatha. We had a delightful lunch at the Lakeview Restaurant. They put on a fantastic spread and no one left hungry. The afternoon included Madawaska, Lille Cathedral, and Van Buren Ice Cream before going back to Presque Isle to clean up for the entertainment in the Ballroom that evening.
Wednesday’s tour went to Littleton, Houlton Airport, Oakfield, Sherman, Pattern where we had lunch at Shin Pond Village before leaving to see the Logging Museum and stopping again for Ice Cream. The best part of this day to me was the slight rain that cooled down the high temperatures. That evening we did the Estey Museum which was a Victorian historical home owned by the town’s 20th century eccentric business woman with an amazing success story.
On Thursday, we toured Fort Fairfield, Easton, Mars Hill and had lunch at the Big Rock Ski Area Lodge. That food was fantastic. It was catered by the Maple Pig barbecue. Even though it wasn’t our Alabama barbecue, I could have eaten it every day! After lunch, we went to the state park to rest, walk, and enjoy the water scenery. Some even decided to take their shoes off and wade in the water. We ended the day by touring the James School which was representative of the one room schoolhouses that used to be all over the county.
We arrived back at the hotel with just enough time to clean up before taking our cars to the AACA Car and Music Festival put on by the AACA and the town. It seemed like the whole county came to admire our cars, eat food from food trucks and enjoy a fantastic band that was as good as, if not better than, the 70s band, Chicago. They had over fifteen members of the band and could play as many instruments as you might find in a small orchestra. A good time was had by all and several enjoyed dancing in the street as well.
Many thanks to Ken McClellan for the picture below showing multiple cars on the tour that attended the Car and Music Festival.
Friday’s tour included the Loring AFB Museum with lunch at Limestone Phil Kilcollins Farm before going to Maysville Museum and Presque Isle Air Base in the afternoon. Thanks to Ken McClellan for the picture below showing some of our cars at the Air Base Museum.
We concluded our week of touring with a Cocktail Reception and Dinner at Presque Isle Forum where we parked our cars in the building while we enjoyed our choice of steaks or lobsters and clams. No one went away hungry, I can assure you. The live music was an added treat.
We left Presque Isle the next morning with a little bit of sadness and a group of new friends. Our thanks go out to Craig Green and Kim Smith for all their hard work in making this a fantastic driving tour. – Suzanne Bibb

​

AACA Eastern Region Tour

August 11-15
From August 11th through the 15th, the Main Region hosted this tour of Aroostook County, Maine. It is the northernmost county in that state and is larger than Connecticut and Rhode Island combined. With only 65,000 residents, there are a lot of remote areas and open vistas. Eddie and Suzanne Bibb as well as Ken and Phyllis McClellan joined about 50 other cars and braved the long drive, and it was well worth it. Of course, every trip encounters a surprise and ours was the weather. Not rain but a very unusual heat wave. Temperatures were up to the mid 90’s, which the locals told us was about 20 degrees above their normal August weather. Guess we brought our heat with us.
Presque Isle was the home base and the tour began with a reception at the president’s car barn in town on Monday evening. It was a great place for this event with automobile memorabilia around and lots of nice cars parked in the neighborhood. Even the neighbors enjoyed having our treasures parked around their homes.
Tuesday began the actual tour. This day was spent in the northern part of the county and we drove about 190 miles in total through the day, traveling all the way on beautiful rural roads to places like the northern tip of Maine where Highway 1 begins in Fort Kent. We visited many historic places as well as a collection of automotive memorabilia and tractors, ending the morning with a great buffet lunch at Lakeview Restaurant, It’s name is very indicative of the view over the lake and valley. The afternoon drive included a stop by the Lille Cathedral, which is an all wood cathedral that is being restored, and an ice cream stop at Van Buren Ice Cream along the way on Highway 1.
Wednesday was spent in the south and west part of the county. Once again, beautiful roads throughout the countryside with stops at the WWII era Houlton Airport and beautiful vista of Mt. Katahdin (highest point in Maine), then stopping for lunch at Shin Pond Village. While we ate lunch, we learned about the area via history and artifacts that included Teddy Roosevelt’s time in the area. After leaving lunch, we stopped by the Maine Logging Museum for more history of that industry and the area, a gorgeous drive through rolling hills and forest, and once again stopping by for ice cream on our way back to Presque Isle. You have to understand that with the higher than normal temperatures, these ice cream stops were great, especially for those that didn’t have A/C in their cars. The evening, for those who were interested, involved a visit to the Estey Museum. This was a beautiful Victorian house in downtown Presque Isle with a rich history in the area.
Thursday was spent in the eastern part of the county. You have to understand that all along the east and north of this county is New Brunswick, Canada, and you are constantly reminded with border crossing signs. We drove the morning through a lot of Amish countryside, passed many a horse and buggy, drove around a mountain with wind turbines lining the ridge, and ended with a lunch and more history at the Big Rock Ski Area Lodge. The afternoon drive had stops at the launching point of Double Eagle II, the first balloon to cross the Atlantic, and James School, one of the original schools in the area (bell tower and all). The late afternoon and evening included Main Street being blocked off in front of the host hotel with our cars parked along the side and middle of the street, a fabulous band playing music from the 60’s, and several food trucks. The town came out in force and was a lot of fun.
The last day of the tour, Friday, began with a stop at the Loring AFB Museum. Much of the morning was spent at this Cold War Era Air Force Base and the tremendous history that surrounds it. An extra treat, and one the car aficionados loved, was the ability to drive our cars down the 2.5 mile long runway at any speed we chose. Imagine that. We proceeded from there to have lunch at Kilcollins Farm. Phil Kilcollins collects and restores old tractors. The large collection includes several brands and all have been completely restored by Mr. Kilcollins himself. He is a lifelong farmer and restorer who was fun to talk to. The afternoon drive continued to be beautiful country with stops by two more museums that focused on more history of the area. The day finished off with a Closing Cocktail Reception and Dinner at Presque Isle Forum, a large indoor event facility, with all of our cars parked inside the Forum around the tables. It was a fitting end to a great week.
– Ken McClellan

Dayton Grand National

July 24-26
I had the opportunity to attend the Grand National Meet at the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio with my newly minted teenage (13) grandson. What a treat.
This is my oldest grandson, Cameron, who lives in Lexington, KY and he loves cars, old and new. I met him in Dayton on Friday morning as he was traveling back from Bowling Green State University where he was attending a church youth camp. We first headed to the host hotel to pick up our registration packet, parked the car trailer at the Air Force museum, then headed to the Packard Museum for the afternoon to see the Zenith Cars. As always, those cars are fabulous and fun to see. Cameron loves Dodge Chargers and Challengers and was rewarded to see a pristine Charger at this venue. We also saw a brass era Velie (never seen or heard of one before) and many more fabulous cars. Being at the Zenith display also awarded us entrance to the rest of the Packard Museum which was a great place to spend time looking at some of their collection and talking to one of their employees for much more in-depth details.
Saturday morning, as usual, began with getting the car unloaded from the trailer and ready for the show. And what a show it was. Although it was hot, over 300 cars were in attendance and everyone who attended was rewarded with viewing beautiful cars from every era possible. As you might imagine from the pictures, I love the brass era cars first and the Roaring 20’s and then 30’s as well. Everything was there, including a late nineties Camry. Now I feel old!
On Sunday morning we headed to the Air Force Museum. As I said before, Cameron loves cars but is also fascinated with planes. I have to say, if you love planes, this place should be on your bucket list if you have never been. I was there 35 years ago when it was simply called the Wright-Patterson AFB museum and they only had 2 hangars full of planes and some outside. Now they have 4 hangars full of every plane you can imagine and we spent all day until closing, still not being able to spend enough time seeing everything. BTW, it is free to attend and the many docents are a wealth of information. For the trivia minded, we even asked one of the docents where the name Hangar came from and was given the following answer. The term “hangar” is derived from the French word “hangar,” which means a shelter or shed. Learn something every day.
The weekend was a special experience and one I will not soon forget. – Ken McClellan

Pontiacs, Plymouths, and Lakefront Hospitality: A Saturday to Remember

July 12
For those in our club who missed the opportunity to join us on our visit with Eddie and Suzanne Bibb and their cars on Saturday, the 12th of July, you missed a good one. Just saying.
We began the day by meeting at the Buc-ees in Leeds. Eddie Bibb joined us there with his 1986 El Camino and led us to our first stop, which was the Bibb’s storage facility in Odenville. Three others were also able to drive their classics, including Ken and Phyllis McClellan with their 1959 Triumph TR3A, Bill Corn with his 1989 Cadillac Fleetwood Coupe, and George Miljus, a friend of Eddie’s that drove a 1988 Pontiac Fiero. As you can see from the pictures, there was quite an array of very nice cars (and trucks) that ranged in years from a 1941 Cadillac Fleetwood to a 1996 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham. Most of the vehicles in this facility were GM branded, except for a large 1976 Ford Thunderbird and a Rolls Royce. My personal favorite was a red 1966 Pontiac 2+2 (I never heard of one).
After we finished perusing these great cars, we followed Eddie through some nice backroads to the Bibb lake house on Logan Martin for more cars and a great lunch. As one might expect, the whole basement was filled with 7 more classics. Once again, all were GM branded except a beautiful gold Plymouth Duster. The lunch they provided was fabulous and I believe everyone had a wonderful time of good food and great conversation.
I hope to see more of you down the road as we plan more events.
– Ken

Cruisin’ Through July with Hot Cars & Cool Ice Cream

July 4
July was a very busy month! The first stop was in Auburn Indiana for the Central Spring Nationals. The Nationals were held at the Dekalb High School which is a large facility with plenty of room for cars, trailers and motorhomes (including ours)
The weekend started off with a cruise-in on July 4th around the Dekalb County Courthouse.
It was so hot, but a lot of people took advantage of the ice cream on the square.
Saturday was the day of the show and there were so many cars including corvettes, military vehicles, little cars, big cars and so much more. Note the parking places that the seniors decorated for their senior year.
Check out this display of the fire extinguisher on the last car
This poor little bird was sitting on an egg in the middle of the chaos but toughed it out and never left !
After the delicious awards banquet, we enjoyed a nice quiet evening before heading out the next morning to Wauseon Ohio for the Crosley Nationals at the fairgrounds. This is an event that we always enjoy. It is a very casual week with lots of fun activities. The activities include bingo prizes, a Crosley tour to the ice cream shop and of course lots of dog walking.
Crosley owners have one problem. It seems you can’t have just one. So this 1951 Farm-O-Road one is now part of the collection:
We do not have any plans to restore it, the plan is to take it to Wauseon and have fun!!
Next on the agenda was the Grand Nationals in Dayton Ohio. The plan was to take the 1958 Cushman and the 1948 Crosley for a Senior but the Crosley had other ideas, so they both stayed home. There were some beautiful cars at the Zenith competition. The Zenith cars were displayed in a museum that was an old Packard Dealership which added a unique perspective. Here are some pictures from the museum
The cars participating in the Zenith contest are obviously the cream of the crop and the judges had a very tough job determining the winner. Unfortunately, there were too many people to get any pictures of the cars but here are a couple pictures of the awards displayed.
– Vicki Bolton

From Model A to Great Race
A Timeless afternoon with the Jenkins

June 14
Garrett and Judy Jenkins welcomed our members to their home for lunch and a tour of their home with a garage full of antique autos.   A delicious hot dog lunch along with some tasty homemade ice cream was served.  Prior to lunch, we viewed their vast array of autos including Model A Fords, 60’s Corvette, Pontiac GTO, 65 Mustang and their beautiful motorcycle.   A special treat was seeing their 37 Ford which they have driven on multiple Great American Races.
After lunch, Garrett discussed their experiences participating in the Great Race.  Also, fellow member Sam Barnett added to the discussion about his experiences in participating in the Great Race.   Great Race T-shirts, hats and programs were available to take home.
It was a great day of fellowship and food offered to our members by the Garretts, including having his 99 year old dad joining us.  He shared the memory that he still remembers going as a child with his parents to Long-Lewis Ford to purchase a new Model A Ford.  He remembers that his mom wanted to buy a red car – but the only color of car available that day was BLACK – Henry Ford’s Favorite Color!
Thanks to the Garrett and Judy for hosting our club – Bill Gardner.

​

Let’s Drive Cheaha

Saturday, May 24
Bo Bogaty, Bill Corn, Eddie Bibb and I met at Buc-ees to begin our drive. The weather was threatening north of us, but we were left with very comfortable temps and off/on sunshine for the entire drive.
Our drive began by passing through downtown Leeds and traveling Old Hwy 78 to Pell City. Next we headed on a pleasant two lane across Lake Logan Martin on our way to the north side of Talladega. Finally we picked up a very winding and beautiful drive through the Talladega Forest and up the mountain to the state park.
Our first stop was at the trail that headed out to Bald Rock Overlook. If you have never been there, it provides you with a beautiful view over the valley to the north. Next, we made our way to Bunker Tower, which is situated on the highest point in the state. Phyllis had packed for us a tasty picnic lunch of sandwiches, chicken salad, various chips, tea, and homemade brownies. Altogether a wonderful meal at a picnic table under the trees.
Lunch was followed by a visit with the park historian at the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) building at the base of the tower for some history of the park. We also climbed the tower for a 360⁰ view from the mountain top.
The return trip was also very pleasant, winding on country backroads through Talladega County, crossing the Logan Martin Dam, and on through Shelby County back to Leeds.
Our final stop was at the McClellan residence for some excellent desserts of homemade pecan pie and almond cherry dumpcake.
Hopefully, more can join in the fun for the next drive.
– Ken McClellan

Dual Meet in Tucson, AZ

May 1-3
Since there were no good airline connections from Birmingham to Tucson, we decided to drive the motor home to Tucson. And since we were going to drive, we decided to take a car to the Grand Nationals and Western Spring Nationals. The trip out was uneventful, and we took 2 and half days to drive out there. But one night after we stopped a storm came through and really rocked the coach. Other than not getting much sleep it was fine. The next day, as we continued westward, we encountered a small dust storm. It was small but powerful enough to almost blow us off the road. Fortunately, we did not encounter any more of those dust storms. We were able to stay at a very nice RV park right next to the hotel casino complex. Thursday night we went to the Rolling Through Time Auto Museum. What an amazing collection! On Friday, it was time for the Grand Nationals. The Crosley was being very temperamental and did not want to start. Finally, with some help, it cranked and we put it on the field. The little car won its first Grand Nationals so it will now go on to Dayton to try for a Senior. The day finished with a BBQ by the pool. The Nationals on Saturday brought out a few more cars so there was more to look at and enjoy. The day finished with a banquet inside the hotel. The hotel and casino was a beautiful venue and the cars were spectacular. We left very early Sunday morning to head home and be back Monday night. After two very long days and one fight with a construction barrel that we lost, we made it home. Thankfully, the barrel only took out one headlight. Now to get the car ready for Dayton!
-Vicki Bolton

​

Let’ Drive Tour
Covered Bridges

April 12
We gathered at the Tractor Supply in Trussville to begin our tour to the covered bridges of Blount County. Blount County is known as the “Covered Bridge Capital of Alabama”. Although the day started out rather cool, the day turned into a beautiful day for touring and exploring. Ken did an incredible job of mapping out the drive. Our first stop was the Swan Bridge. You no longer drive across this bridge, but you can walk across it. The river was up because of the recent rains and it provided a beautiful scene
The next bridge was the Easley Bridge which we drove across and then stopped to get out and admire the bridge and the view. We were able to walk down the hill and look at the creek below and get a different view of the bridge. The underneath side provided an interesting view of the immense beams used in the construction.
Next, we drove to Palisades Park in Oneonta Alabama. This was an amazing place with spectacular views.
We finished up the tour at Horton Bridge. This bridge is also closed to through traffic. Another beautiful bridge, but we didn’t spend too long here because the next stop for the day was Lunch!
We went to Charlie B’s in Oneonta for lunch. It is a local meat and three café. They also had delicious desserts. It was delicious and allowed us plenty of time to relax and review the day. After lunch, we returned home via some beautiful back roads.
If you missed this tour, I hope that you will consider joining us for the next event. It was a great day to enjoy old cars and friends.
-Vicki Bolton

Let’s Drive Tour
Welborn Muscle Car Museum

January 25 – Alexander City
Several members drove to the museum on Saturday morning. It was a beautiful day for the drive, and we were joined by some members of the Mopar Club for the drive up to Alexander City.
When we arrived at the museum we were met by Alton Freeman, the museum curator, who gave us a personal tour. He was a delightful tour guide with lots of stories about the museum and the cars.
After the tour of the museum, he also took us to another building to see some of his personal cars that he is working on.
It was a great day and we topped it of with a visit to the local bar-b-q restaurant which was very good.​