First Cruise Night

I can remember driving by cruise night at the Sycamore in my hometown of Bethel, Connecticut as a teenager, wishing like crazy that I had something cool enough to take part. The stock '70 Ford Torino (except for the Cragars) with the 302 I drove at the time was only a dozen or so years old, and I figured far from worthy of sharing space with all those gorgeous hot rods. I think brother Pete would have fit right in with this old truck, which looked a lot better then than it does today, but it was busy being a work truck. Part of that work, by the way, included regularly hauling hot asphalt to make curbs and speed bumps. As much as this made me cringe back in the day ("Hot asphalt in the back of that beautiful truck? Are you nuts?!"), I think it actually helped to preserve the now refinished bed wood that remains.

Fast forward 30-plus years to yesterday, when this dream ride finally rolled in for its very first Sycamore cruise night:



Other than giving a couple friends a quick look at the engine I didn't leave the hood open, figuring just another dusty old straight 6 is hardly something to be showing off. Especially considering all the other incredible power plants on display. Someday I'd like to have maybe a small block V8 with some chrome and a nice neat engine compartment, in which case we'll sit there with the hood up like everyone else. For now I'll just try to keep the hood from becoming partially unlatched whenever we hit a good bump.

A great time overall. Spoke with lots of nice folks, including one guy who had actually been driving by our house regularly for years, all the while wondering if John's Old Truck would ever move from its spot in the driveway. He recognized it with a big smile as he approached, seeming genuinely surprised that it was finally going down the road under its own power. The moment that topped the evening, for sure. We're gonna have a lot of fun with this old thing...


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