SAAC Presents:
A Fun Visit to the F.O.R.D. Club's 8th Annual Car Show, Saturday, June 7, 2008, Meriden, CT
(This page created 6/29/2008)

(Back to the SAAC Main Page)  |  (Back to the SAAC Photo Pages Index)

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The information provided electronically, on paper, or otherwise is strictly for entertainment purposes only with no guarantees of any type, expressed or implied. Participation in any activity is strictly voluntary and done at one's own risk. The Shoreline Antique Auto Connection web site and it's author expressly disclaim all responsibility for any & all damages or claims, however caused. Observe all safety precautions when engaging in any activities with antique or modern automobiles. Obtain proper coverage from qualified insurance professionals for any type of activities, auto-related or otherwise, in which you may wish to engage.

"Fun In The Meriden Sun!"

We understand that "F.O.R.D." stands for "Ford Owners - Real Dreams," although there were beautiful old cars & trucks of all sorts on display at this cool car show. We only had a short time to try & take it all in, but we're sure glad we made it! Hats off to our friend Jack D. and all of the F.O.R.D. Club for a great event!

Yes, I had a great time visiting the F.O.R.D. Club's 8th Annual Meriden Car Show a few Saturdays ago, on June 7th, 2008. It was a wonderful day and a great location for a car show--and many very beautiful specimens on display indeed. I even noticed another fellow Shoreliner there, Orlando Amato, with his magnificent red '62 Thunderbird (subject of one of the images on this page).

Another standout there was a particular 1963 Ford Falcon, that, as it turns out, our friend Bill Silvestri was able to view a couple of weeks later, at another car show further north in the state (the "Cars are the Stars" show in Somers, held 6/22/2008). Here is a clip from Bill's jnote dated 6/22/2008:

"...Lots of great cars. A favorite was a '63 Ford Falcon Futura. All original 2-door sedan with 12,000 miles. Still owned by original family. Sat in a heated basement for 35 years. Was off-white with red interior. 260 V-8, automatic on the column. Really nice car..."

Anyway, the entire Meriden event was a wonderful old-car picture-taking opportunity, and of course I took a few pictures (including a couple of that super-clean original '63 Falcon--check out the detail IMAGE AT THE RIGHT, of a vintage "Member, Rockville Fish & Game Club, Inc., 1964" decal that was in the left side window!)...with the thought of putting some onto an SAAC web site feature page...and so here's the "finished product" (quotation marks are intentional, since I am constantly finding mistake, omissions, typos, that I need to go back and fix, long after the feature page is "finished"). As I browsed and shot pictures, I didn't see too many window cards, so unfortunately I don't have too many vehicle names nor descriptions to present. But we'll go with what we have--obviously the pictures also speak for themselves to a great extent.

Thinking it might be nice to get some feedback, if possible, from the organizers, about the event, I wrote to our friend and F.O.R.D. Club official Jack Danovich, and he wrote back with a nice response--here are excerpts from his note dated 6/11/2008:

"...Thank you for coming down to the show, really appreciate you stopping by and taking some photos. I would be very glad to put something together for you--thanks for asking...Orlando's awesome red 'Bird ended up with the Best Of Show Trophy at the show--well deserved and an absolutely stunning automobile...We ended up with 79 cars through the gate, not the largest show for sure, but we were very happy with the turnout and the quality of the many great old and the few new cars there, especially on a 'pleasant' 94 degree June day. We probably have a 50/50 split on folks that return from the previous year and new faces that come in for the first time, which is pretty cool..."

Sounds great, Jack, and thanks! Readers please also check the Cruise Nights section of our Calendar page for information on the F.O.R.D. Club's "Dino's" Sunday night cruise in North Haven, which are also highly recommended; here's our online report about our visit to one back in June of '06: http://members.aol.com/cgearannex/DnosNrthHvnCruzJune06.html

We again thank Mr. Danovich and all of the members of the F.O.R.D. club for this very fine car event--we had a great time visiting. Ok, so let's get on to the images...

BELOW: Let's start out with a couple of overall type views. This one is a bit more of that lineup of cars that's used as the lead picture in this feature, up near the top of the page. As you can see, many types, styles, and model years of automobiles were represented.

BELOW: In this view we've moved over a bit to the left, so that we're now sighting down the rear ends of the line of cars shown in the above image. The line of cars to the left now, which are parked on the grass, were listed as "club cars" (cars presumably owned by F.O.R.D. Club members), which were not to be judged, but were placed for display only. Also, unfortunately I don't have any overall views of the shrp-looking two-tone green Cadillac that's visible at the lower right corner of this view, but our friend John from Stony Creek Auto Service told me that this particular Caddy belongs to his dad!

BELOW: Still within the "display only" section of club cars on the grass median were this sharp pair, of what appears to be a '60s Mercury Comet and a '50s Ford Sedan.

BELOW: Still within "club cars" on the grass were this kool kustom Mercury (we assume anyway) in classic "grey suede" with prinstripes, and also a very proper-looking '60s Camaro just beyond it.

BELOW: (left) - The dark grey hot rod pickup and the black '57 Chevy with continental kit were both pristine, and made for a wonderful photo composion. (right - A gorgeous early GTO led up a row of other classic muscle cars, including an early '70s Chevelle.

BELOW: More fantastic antiques on another grassy portion of the show field, just off of the parking lot--this is what car shows are all about!

BELOW: This is a front view of that two-tone green 1956 Ford Sedan that was shown in one of the above shots (parked next to the white Comet); Ford certainly did a nice job with the '56's, and this is one fantastic specimen. Love the correct "period" license plate on the front too--1956 was the last year that Connecticut issued this unique & odd-sized type of plate--by 1957, we were on to the "standard" size plates that continue to today.

BELOW: Here's that '63 Falcon Futura 2-door sedan. that everyone's been noticing--it's gorgeous! This is an all-original, low-miles car--wow. Listed options on this particular Corinthian White Falcon are: 260 CID V8 ($162.20 extra), Ford-O-Matic transmission ($172.90 extra), white wall tires ($33 extra), and AM radio ($58.50 extra). Other original features: bench seat, back up lights, and undercoat. It was purchased originally on 4/27/63 from Ed's Auto Sales in Colchester, CT--the bottom line on the sticker was $2,600.10 (a transportation charge of $57.50 was also listed on the sticker; the base price was $2116.00). The people who currently show this car are Doreen & John Ward of Rockville, CT; Doreen's uncle K.E. Weller of Rockville was the original owner; it was gifted to Doreen on 7/30/87--she is only the second owner!

BELOW: Here's an interior shot of the '63 Falcon that I took through the glass of the closed window (so there is a slight reflection). What an unbelievable historical piece!

BELOW: And to finish up, a rear view of the '63 Falcon.

BELOW: Orlando Amato's fantastic '62 Ford Thunderbird--there aren't many things you can say about this car that haven't already been said--but words really can't do this gem justice...

BELOW: I really liked this big white Mercury Convertible--I'll guess it's around a '60 model or so--fantastic!

BELOW: I also really liked this beauiful and very tastefully done 1933 Ford Pickup Truci, from the window card indicated to be owned by Al Kolevich of Southington.

BELOW: And a rear view of the extremely nicely-done Kolevich '33 Ford Pickup Truck.

BELOW: I guess you might call this a "nostalgia rod," or a "traditional" hot rod. This '32 was positively spotless, and detailed-out to the max, in 100% "period" style--a real standout...

BELOW: The same "traditional" '32 hot rod from the above image. You have to admire the taste and restraint with the build of this car, right down to the very subtle "big 'n little" wheels & tires choices--one cool ride indeed.

(Back to the SAAC Main Page)  |  (Back to the SAAC Photo Pages Index)