Goldwing Geezers and Muscle Car City

It was time to take to the road again with the Goldwing Geezers, aka Bay Area Riders Club.  Only 4 others showed up for a trip to Punta Gordo (Yes, "fat bitch" for you linguists out there) to the Muscle Car Museum.  I don't know why more didn't show up.  It was a nice day and although it was St. Patricks Day, so what?

Mine is on the far right.  Not sure I get the jacket draped over the windshield, but I played polite lemming and went along with it.

The day was bittersweet because after the museum I went up to North Port about 30 minutes to bid adieu to the grandkidlings, Michael and Alhanna, who are going up North again to live in Canada.  It has been a kind of fringe benefit being down here and now if I want to see them I'll have to go to Oshawa Ontario,  which isn't too far from Toronto.  I don't do big cities, so they'll have to find me, wherever I am.

Before we start saying goodbye to the kids, however, we should enjoy the museum.  And I really wanted to.  However, the exorbitant entry fee kind of put me in a sour mood.  Am I starting to sound like the Geezers?  I still thought $13.78 was a bit much, but they had nice cars, if you like the muscle type (which I really don't).

There were scads of 'Vettes.  I drove a 'Vette when I first started working at the Mary.  I dated a girl whose father was owner of a distributorship in Burlington.  I can't say I was comfy in it, but I sure looked cool.

This was the pre-Muscle area with mostly old, and I mean old, 20's, 30's and 40's stuff.  Again, those style cars are OK, but they all tended to look alike to me.  It wasn't till the late 50's to early 60's that cars really possessed a style all their own.  You know, the kind of indivualism you could spot and identify from a mile away.  Try doing that now.

An original '53 'Vette.  

Nice area for Corvettes.  I liked the style of the old Stingrays.

A nice truck with wood insets along the sides.   

This was an an early version of an air conditioner.  Simple but effective, I suppose.  

This is for Rick in BFE.  

All kinds of "Goats: but no '68.

This thing had a propeller so I suppose its some form of speed boat.  Yawn. 

I liked this car, a Pontiac Grand Prix, probably best of all of them.  It wasn't a sports car, per se, but it was a nice big sporty thing from pontiac in 1967.  We had a 65 Bonneville growing up and it was a huge beast.  This one was aweful nice.

Nice Olds 442.

I'd hate to have to pay the insurance for this place.  Oh wait, I did.  

A well preserved Chevy.

I always thought El Caminos were an abomination.  They were a schizoid vehicle, and circus act, half car, half truck.  Never liked them.  But they have a following, that's for sure. 

Inside a 72 Nova.  

Camaro's.  Probably the nicest little car they made at the time.  My brother had a 68 dark blue convertible because they liked him best for some unknown and unfathomable reason.

Camaro interior.  

I just want you to know I hate stuff like this.  I hate stuffed animals in cars at car shows and I hate little stuffed boys taking a leak propped up on a fender.  I hate all that cutesy stuff.  One other pet peeve:  at shows after you park your car, you get it all cleaned and spiffy.  Then you prop open the hood and trunk.   A car should be displayed like it is in a showroom, not the garage bay.  Open everything for judging times, but after than close them up.  One person said displaying cars with  everything open is like looking up the skirt of a girl, just not very nice.

Nice old Chevy with a rumble seat.

I don't know about you guys but riding in the rumble seat would have scared me to death.  

This was in some movie but I've forgotten which one now.  This is on loan from a company that loans stuff out for films.  

Nice place, I suppose, but I prefer the quieter, quirkier cars that were used everyday on America's highways.  The Studebakers, Plymouths,  Chryslers and Imperials.  Maybe I'm just still mad because Phil had one and I never did.   

Thanks for joining the tour and see you tomorrow for the grandkids' sendoff.