The first
Cruisin' Christiansburg event was held in Downtown Christiansburg on Saturday, and the community really came out. If anyone doubted ours is a car oriented society, cruising through the crowds yesterday would dispel those doubts.
The Due South Band performed all day, a historic duel was reenacted (loudly), and the MCPS Team 401 robot thrilled everyone. That robot was built in six-weeks and had to be designed with specific functionality, then withstand competition along with schools located throughout the Eastern USA. Awesome.
Hats off to
Dale Echols who coordinated the parking of all the classic cars, which hailed from throughout the region. He counted 255 cars and noted that anyone with a vintage vehicle was welcome to come and participate at future events -- no club membership or fees required. "You've never seen more money in downtown before," was one comment overheard. Attendance was estimated to be between 5000-6000 visitors throughout the day, with new people arriving even as the event started wrapping up around 8:00 pm.
Another visitor checking out the fun noted that some of the cars were as old as he was (80 ish) but that "all the cars are in better shape than me." Many memories about first cars owned were heard in conversations around the street, and all car owners were happy to talk to you about their prized possession. A commitment to restoring the vehicles was evident both in the time they took to participate in yesterday's event, as well as in the cars themselves. Several area bikers showed up, too, joining in the fun.
The Montgomery Museum, RSVP, and Literacy Volunteers represented non-profit groups, while Duncan Automotive, AIG Insurance, and Dish/Echostar were corporate guests participating in the event. Other smaller Christiansburg retailers were also represented.
The next
Cruisin Christiansburg is scheduled for
Saturday, June 14th (Flag Day) and will feature special activities coordinated by the Christiansburg branch of the Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library, courtesy of Pamela Hale. Don & the Deltones and Olin Gardner are two of the featured performers scheduled and a children's activity area will include bouncey toys, a climbing wall and more to entertain the young ones. Many additional local businesses and non-profit groups are expected to be present.
This event footprint will include street closures for East Main to West Main in front of the Dollar General store, as well as closing Franklin from Depot Street to First Street, Roanoke Street from Town Hall to First Street, Dunkley and Hickok Streets. Special thanks to Councilmen Ernie Wade and Steve Huppert for their support, along with event "volunteer" Mike Barber with special assists from the town's Street/Maintenance crews and P&R Supervisor Charlton McCoy, and volunteers and board members of the Montgomery Museum & Lewis Miller Regional Art Center, especially Emma Jackson, Jean Galloway, and Sherry Joines Wyatt.
Event sponsors included Historic Cambria/The Toy Station, Coffee Depot, Old Town Printing, Shelor Motor Mile, Tan N Tone, Crockett Home Improvement, Louise Baker-Long & Foster, Burger King, Due South BBQ, FNB/StellarOne, and Duncan Automotive.
The key to the success of this inaugural event was a partnership, collaborating for the common good of the community -- downtown businesses and community groups, with the support of the town council's Central Business District committee and several non-profit organizations. Mark your calendar and plan to come see what community fun looks like on June 14.
See
everythingnrv.com for great photos of this event. More shots are can be seen at
Roanoke.com.