Buncha' crazies at the Green Hill Church Red, Hot, & Blue Community Celebration and Car Show

It was so hot on Sunday that nobody in their right mind would spend the afternoon outside. And yet, 105 cars and trucks showed up for the Green Hill Church Red, Hot, & Blue Community Celebration and Car Show, and every one of them was brought there by deranged people. In their defense, they did have a nice, shady place with a giant tree and a picnic shelter, and there was a band and grilled hamburgers and stuff to help keep their minds off the weather. Mt. Juliet dignitaries like the fire and police chiefs gave out some plaques, and there were some better-than-average door prizes provided by the show sponsors. Overall, they did a really nice job putting this event together. But the heat—blech!

Double coverage of the Mt. Juliet Providence Cruise-In

Every Saturday night throughout the summer, the car nuts gather in the parking lot outside the American Jewelry store in the Providence shopping center, Mt. Juliet, Tenn. My family is temporarily living in Mt. Juliet during a move, so it’s easy for me to run over and snap pictures at this one. For this story, the photo album actually contains photos from two different weeks, July 29 and August 12. That means double the pictures for you to look at all in the same album! It’s hard to tell the difference, though, because they were all taken at the same time of day, and always on a hot, clear night. Let’s take a look at a few of the standouts.

Cars on display at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C.

A new president takes office this week in our nation’s capital. And it so happens that we were recently in Washington, D.C., so I’m using this as a tie-in for a car-related story. The Smithsonian’s Museum of Transportation is usually included on lists of car museums, so naturally we had to go here. Truth be told, there weren’t many cars to look at, though. Cars are presented as appliances here. They have a collection of cool cars hidden in their catacombs, but they aren’t available for public viewing. Really, all of Washington, D.C. comes across as anti-car culture. The streets are jammed with hideous red and silver taxicabs, police cars, and black SUVs. Personal cars are typically rough, beat-up hoopties that reflect the harsh traffic and parking issues that clog the streets. I snapped a few pictures, though, and there are a few interesting things if you squint hard enough.

2015 Hazzard Run from Nashville to Gatlinburg

Who would have guessed that moving to Tennessee would bring me this close to a TV show that I used to watch as a kid in the ‘80s. But it seems like there’s a little Dukes of Hazzard influence all over the place here. Why, just last weekend I took my family to the annual Hazzard Run. Sure, I loved watching the Dukes of Hazzard. But I never owned a General Lee, or a Rosco P. Coltrane police car, or a Daisy Duke Roadrunner. These folks are serious about this. But that’s alright by me. My son and I still enjoy watching this silly, simple show today. And it might be a little nerdy, but we have fun seeing the cars and stars of this little slice of pop culture as they make their rounds of the Nashville area.

Stuff from the Stone's River Car Club Swap Meet

It’s still winter in Nashville, but that doesn’t mean that people have given up on their automotive projects. There are cars in various states of readiness all over the city. Now’s the time that people are searching for parts and pieces for their pride and joy. Swap meets are happening on a pretty regular basis right now, and one of the best swap meets was the Stone’s River Car Club event at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. How’s about we take a look-see at some of the more interesting stuff out there.

2014 Hazzard Run brings The Dukes of Hazzard to life

Yee haw! As a car chase-loving boy growing up in the ‘80s, The Dukes of Hazzard was one of the greatest TV shows in the history of the world. I still watch the show today with my own son, and it still brings back some nice memories. And I’m not alone. There are still die-hard Dukes fanatics out there. Some are even more into it than me, including the ones participating in the Hazzard Run over the weekend. These guys and gals gathered behind Cooter’s Place in Nashville with their very own General Lees and Hazzard Sheriff’s cars, and caravanned down to Cooter’s Place in Gatlinburg. There. They met up with actual cast members from the show. It seemed like a good time to me, so we got up early Saturday morning to see them off.

Personal luxury abounds at the Fontanel Cruise

The picturesque Fontanel in Whites Creek has become a family favorite of ours, and the Thursday night cruise is one of the best around. The event flyer made it seem like last Thursday was the last one of the year, so we made a quick stop over there to have some dinner and check out the cool rides. Luckily, it sounds like they might have a few more car events at Barbara Mandrell’s old mansion, so we may just get to come back out here while the leaves are changing. But for now, let’s take a look at the nice stuff that was there while the sun went down.

Rare rides at the Hartman's Heritage Center Cruise for the Cure

Most people know that every Saturday night throughout the summer, the Hartman’s Heritage Center in Independence hosts one of the area’s biggest car cruises.  But there was a bit of a twist this weekend, because the event started a couple of hours earlier, and was presented as a full-fledged car show.  Known as the Cruise for the Cure, raffle tickets were sold in an effort to raise money for mammogram services at St. Luke’s Hospital.  I have no doubt that the donation was generous, because there were some great door prizes up for grabs, and the car count was sizable.

Cruise to the K brings good luck to the Royals

It’s always fun when a car show is tied into one of Kansas City’s major attractions, and that was the case on Sunday when hundreds of old cars headed to Kauffman Stadium for the 4th-Annual Cruise to the K Car Show.  And even though this was one of the hottest days so far this year, a majority of the car show folks stayed for the Kansas City Royals vs. Washington Nationals game.  All-in-all, I’d say it was a pretty successful event.

2011 Chevrolet Caprice PPV history and test drive review

This week, I had the opportunity to drive Chevrolet’s newest and hottest performance sedan on public streets. Yes, it is cool. No, it is not available in stores. What is this forbidden vehicle that is setting the GM message boards ablaze? I’ll give you a hint--it’s a name you know.

After a 15-year hiatus, Chevrolet is finally bringing the Caprice back to the U.S. lineup. Right now, the plan is to make it available as a police fleet vehicle only for 2011-2012, but there is a decent chance that we could see it in civilian hands eventually. Let’s take a look at the Caprice in a little more depth.

20th Annual National Police Car Convention raids Kansas City.

The Smokeys were thick as bugs on a bumper when the Police Car Owners of America hosted their 20th Anniversary Convention in Kansas City over the Independence Day weekend. Police cars, both real and replica, came from all over the country to tour local landmarks, drive on scenic roads, and show off their public safety sedans.

I've always had a soft spot for police cars. For one thing, I don't believe in movies that don't involve at least one car chase where a minimum of 18 Gran Furys get trashed. But also, my dad had lots of Caprices and Impalas around when I was growing up, and my current car is a '96 Impala SS, all of which have a connection to the police cars that were derived from them.

Here, speeder, speeder. A look at police vehicles, past and present

Police cars have the distinction of being among the most important vehicles on the road, as well as some of the least respected.

Behind the scenes, the men and women behind the wheels of these rolling billboards of law and order are putting their lives on the line everyday to keep the world safe from killers, thieves, and other miscreants. We’d live in a pretty rough world without their service.

More visible, at least to the public, is the police car during traffic enforcement duty. The last thing we need are drivers thinking they can recklessly bomb thorough residential neighborhoods with no regards for the safety of others, and to that end, this is also an important function of the police car. Of course, that noble service can get muddled a bit when you see one of these cars hiding at the bottom of a hill on a lightly traveled roadway, nabbing people that venture five-miles-per-hour over the posted speed limit.