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events Ice cream and muscle cars Cruise In draws crowd
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Dramatic paint jobs abound at the Cruise In at Bruster's ice cream on Garrisonville Road.
billy howell
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This Chevy Impala carried a $3,442.40 price tag when it was new. One of the extras was two-speed windshield wipers.
billy howell
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Car enthusiasts will return to Bruster's next spring for another round of family friendly Saturday night outings.
billy howell
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Cruise In holds blowout end-of-season event
by Shannon Howell
Date published: 10/30/2007
by Shannon Howell
Starting the summer with just three cars, the Saturday night "cruise-in" event held behind Bruster's Ice Cream on Garrisonville Road recently celebrated a season-ending "blowout" with more than 70 cars.
Trophies donated by local businesses lined the top of a table by the front of the parking lot where Gary Ingoglia announced the winners. He also handed out candy to the many children in the group.
Ingoglia says the show is "all about the community."
His neighbor Ron Phillips, a retired Marine Corps gunnery sergeant, started the cruise-in in June hoping to provide a fun, free and safe event for car enthusiasts and their families.
"We started out with three cars and got rained out a few of the first weeks," he says, and adds, "We've been going strong ever since."
At the blowout, more than 70 antique and muscle cars were parked in straight lines, all with their hoods raised to display immaculate motors. One car even had a curb-service tray attached to its window, complete with fake food.
Mike Vuckovich and his 15-year-old son, Nick, proudly showed off their blue and white 1966 Shelby GT 350 clone.
Vuckovich and his family moved to the area in early summer. One night, he happened to drive by and saw all the cars and said, "Holy cow!" He has been coming back regularly.
Vuckovich praises the car show's family atmosphere and likes the fact that it's something he can enjoy with his son. Plus they "absolutely" love getting the free ice cream donated by Bruster's each week to car owners officially entered in the event.
Huddling under a blanket on a lawn chair were Laura Santos and two girlfriends. "The guys have more in common than the girls. We come for the free ice cream," she said.
Robert Silvrants, 12, sat on the running board of his dad's 1938 Chevrolet Rutledge firetruck polishing a canister, one of the few things not gleaming on the beautiful old truck. He's happy to give information about the firetruck to passers-by.
He and his dad, Rick, belong to an antique firetruck club and enjoy the cruise-in. They also take their firetruck to charity functions and parades.
Phillips started the cruise-in for people like the Silvrants and the Vuckoviches to encourage younger people to stay off the roads and be in a safe atmosphere.
"It's just a big pleasure to pull the people together," he says, smiling, "These guys are the best people in the world."
When asked what his "dream car" is, Phillips says "a Model A Ford," which just happens to be the car he has brought tonight.
He said he had always wanted one when his brother-in-law called a few years ago to say he had spotted a completely original one in Charlotte, N.C. Phillips bought it sight unseen and still loves it.
Apparently he's not the only one. All the car owners in the crowd look like proud new fathers.
The cruise-in behind Bruster's Ice Cream and Ken's Wellness Pharmacy on Garrisonville Road plans to return next summer.
Shannon Howell is a freelance writer who lives in Stafford County. You can reach her by e-mailing shannonh34 @mac.com.
Read more stories about Stafford
Date published: 10/30/2007
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