Frankenmuth Autofest 2010

The Cruis’news mean green company truck and trailer were both loaded and off we went. traveling to  Frankenmuth, MI (also known as “Little Bavaria”) on Thursday, September 9, 2010 for the 27th annual Country Cruisers Car Club  sponsored Frankenmuth AutoFest.

After arrival at Heritage Park which is located behind the Bavarian Inn Hotel along the Cass River,  the Cruis’news crew set up in the middle of an empty park that will soon be swamped with a few thousand classic cars of all makes and models.  on the way  Main Street Frankenmuth we witnessed 100s of cruisers making their way through town.

Tony D’ana the “go to guy” for the AutoFest was throwing a car show at the local McDonalds restaurant. “Each year the turnout is larger than the previous years, and everyone is in a great mood’ explained Tony. Thursday’s car show was blessed with 70 degree, sunny weather.

Friday in Frankenmuth was simply incredible. All of Main Street is closed to traffic from 4pm – 10pm to allow for the Cruise Night / street party. As four bells echoed down Main Street from the Bavarian Inn Restaurant’s clock tower the excitement began.  1,000s of spectators and car buffs cheered on the pavement pounding Rails, thunderous street machines and the ear popping street machine as they started the festivities by taking a run down Main Street. These few minutes of excitement is worth the admission, I may have forgotten to mention that it is all free to the public on Friday. Soon after the streets were filled with classic vehicles of every type and the evenings fun began.

Very early Saturday morning, around 1 a.m. the cars started lining up for entry into Heritage park. These early birds were not going to miss out on their “regular” parking spots during the weekend. The remainder of the park filled fast after the gates opened around 7a.m. Saturday.  The crowds of spectators and car owners filled the paths between the thousands of classic cars which had been parked everywhere throughout Heritage Park. 

All was going well until Mother Nature decided that the vehicles could use a wash. What started as a slow drizzle, turned into an all night rain. People decided it was a great evening to be inside at the 50s/60s Oldies Fest featuring the famous “Contours” plus “Phil Dirt and the Dozers”. The dancing continued till the wee hours.

Sunshine was abundant Sunday morning which allowed the grounds to dry out rapidly and the large crowds of car lovers to return for a “look see”. The show and shine lasted till approximately 1 p.m. when the awards ceremonies began at the “Rockin’ Ronnie” pavilion which was surrounded by anxious car owners.  The show producers were introduced and they then gave out 100s of awards in many classes.  A brief history and description of the “Top 25” winners were given along with the famous “Stein” trophies. The winners drove their classics past of the crowds which had gathered for the Awards.

Check out our photos from the 2010 Frankenmuth Autofest by going to our Media page.

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