Classics, hot rods rolling into San Bernardino…
Classics, hot rods rolling into San Bernardino to kick off Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous
By Michel Nolan | michelnolan77@gmail.com | San Bernardino Sun
September 12, 2012 at 12:00 a.m.
SAN BERNARDINO — Time to roll back the years and party like it's the 1960s.
This "blast from the past," the Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous, starts Thursday night and runs through Sunday afternoon.
Now in its 23rd year, the Rendezvous celebrates the fabled Mother Road with 1,700 gleaming and classic cars, re-creating America's love affair with the automobile.
The Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous is a Salute to the Route like no other, attracting some 500,000 car buffs to the city's downtown streets over the course of four days.
Produced by the San Bernardino Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Rendezvous is the city's signature event – more than a national celebration, as visitors from all over the world come to do the route.
This year, however, there has been a speed bump of sorts in organizing the biggest event paying tribute to the 2,448-mile road.
This summer, San Bernardino's depressed economy and its recent bankruptcy filing forced the Convention and Visitors Bureau to seek about $36,000 in donations from the public to prevent the event from leaving downtown.
"By different entities working with us and trimming down costs, as well as the donations we received, we were able to make up the shortfall," said Karen Blanco, the bureau's communications director.
"With the bankruptcy of San Bernardino, we had a greater challenge this year," said Wayne Austin, the bureau's president and CEO.
Services normally provided by the city would have needed to be absorbed by the Convention and Visitors Bureau.
"The city worked with us, trimming costs wherever possible. We approached the public for donations, calling the program `Friends of the Rendezvous,"' Austin said.
"Through generous donations from the community as well as local businesses, we have covered the deficit and plan on this year's Rendezvous to be one of the best yet."
The nostalgic ode to the Mother Road celebrates the route with some of Southern California's coolest pre-1974 classic cars, cruisin' fun and lots of rock 'n' roll.
"This event has transcended into more than just a classic car show – it has become a union of generations," Austin said.
"It is now the grandfathers who are standing alongside their grandsons and granddaughters, teaching them how to rebuild a car, how to add the finishing touches to get it ready for its glorious debut at the show they've been attending for years. It has become a family reunion."
This year, the downtown streets will be transformed with nostalgic '50s and '60s Route 66 favorites – cruises, contests, car exhibits, vendors and food, live music and other entertainment, a kids' zone in Charter Park (Meadowbrook Park) with rides, games, a BMX stunt show, and a nightly movie at 7, as well as antique trucks from the Antique Truck Historical Society.
Live on the Stater Bros. Court Street Stage tonight is the Restless Blues Band from 5 to 9 p.m.; Friday are Jonny Come Lately from 6 to 7 p.m. and Mad Max and the Wild Ones, from 7:30 to 9 p.m.
On Saturday, look for Ashley's Midnite Riders from 1 to 2 p.m.; Neil Morrow from 3 to 5 p.m. and Wild Child, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Cold Duck performs from noon to 3:30 p.m. Sunday.
The 2012 Lifetime Achievement honoree is Vic Slick, known as the voice of the Rendezvous.
A longtime radio personality, Slick has been in the radio business for 29 years, and has been a DJ at KOLA-FM (99.9) radio for the last 18 years.
Slick will be honored during the opening ceremonies of the Rendezvous at 6 p.m. today.
Contests are plentiful at the Rendezvous. Competitions include: The Neon Light Contest from 7 to 9 Friday; San Manuel Poker Run Contest, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday; Model Car Contest, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday (at Carousel Mall); Open Header Contest, 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Saturday; and the Burnout Contest, 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday.
The Cruisin' Hall of Fame 2011 inductee, Kustom Kar designer John D'Agostino, will sign autographs from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday; and 9:30-11 a.m. Sunday.
The Parade of Champions Cruise, at 11 a.m. Sunday, stars all the cars selected by the sponsors, as well as the winners of the contests. This cruise is the best of the best.
Reach Michel via email, find her on Twitter @michelnolan, or call her at 909-386-3859.
Michel Nolan | Columnist