Looking forward to the return of the Cruise-In

I have written in the past about the 1940 Chevrolet pickup truck that my father and I have brought to previous Cumberland Valley Cruise-In events in downtown Corbin. To quickly review, the truck was restored by my grandfather. For the sake of time, I will not go into the details of how he obtained it, but with a lot of hard work and dedication he was able to get it looking pretty much like new. He painted it navy blue and got it road ready, but then it sat for several years.

Eventually, my grandfather decided that he would like for me to have the truck. It was an unbelievable gesture, but at the time I didn’t really know how to react. By this time the truck had sat so long that it was going to need a little more work to get it up and running again. The tires had gone flat, a small hole or two had appeared in the gas tank, and some of the tubing had developed dry rot, just to list a few of the issues.

Luckily, my dad is a pretty decent mechanic, so between the two of us, and with my grandfather’s supervision and guidance, we were able to make the necessary repairs and adjustments. It took a few new parts, and some trial and error, but once we finally got the engine fired back up we managed to get the old Chevy back out onto the road for the first time in a long, long time. It felt great to accomplish that.

As good as it felt to be behind the wheel of a 70-year-old truck, seeing everyone’s reactions as we drove around the neighborhood, it felt even better to get it cleaned up and show it off at the Cruise-In for the first time. There were so many people who came by to look and ask questions … I was just super-happy to tell my grandfather how popular his handiwork had been with all of the classic car enthusiasts in attendance that day.

The second time the truck made an appearance at the Cruise-In was also a lot of fun. My dad and I brought it down together, and I was lucky enough to have my name drawn for one of the day’s many door prizes – a brand new socket and wrench set. It was a very nice prize, and I still have it at home.

Anyway, as fun as the event itself was, the drive home was unfortunately not. You see, just about the time that we got back on the road the rain started. And it didn’t take long before it was coming down in buckets. It was at this point in time that I discovered the windshield wiper on the truck was not functional. It didn’t look like the rain was going to let up anytime soon, and with daylight quickly running out I decided to just take it real slow and make the trip from Corbin to London on Highway 25.

I could just make out the center line through the rain, so I tried not to think about any vehicles behind me as I very carefully drove this rolling piece of history through the storm and back to my grandparents’ house. It was a white-knuckle affair, and I’m pretty sure it took years off of my life, but, praise God, we made it.

My dad and I got the truck out again this past weekend, starting it up for the first time in a while and driving it around close to home. We washed and waxed it before putting it away, and now we are keeping our fingers crossed for good weather on July 9, which is the date of the next Cumberland Valley Cruise-In event in downtown Corbin.

I’m really looking forward to this for a few reasons. First, that will be my birthday weekend, and it should be a great way to celebrate. Also, it sounds like this upcoming show is going to be a real production, with inflatables and games for the kids (I have two), food and craft vendors, a petting zoo, and even a chainsaw carving demo!

Again, if all goes well I look forward to getting the old Chevy back down to Corbin again, but I also thought that I would take this opportunity to try and hear some of the stories behind other vehicles that will be on display as well. If a) you are planning on bringing a car or truck to the show, b) your are from the Corbin/Williamsburg area, and c) there is a particularly interesting story behind what you’re driving, then feel free to shoot me a message to tsherman@corbinnewsjournal.com.

I hope to hear from a few of you, and I hope to have the opportunity to meet up with you on July 9. I would love to get some photos of your ride, and maybe even get a little info for a future feature story. See you at the show!