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Fin in the sun -- cruising the beach in yesterday's classics
by Jason Dietrich
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These three promising groms have the coolest ride in the carpool, when they can convince lifeguard and surf instructor Jim Miller to drive his '46 Ford Super Deluxe Station Wagon. Chloe Barone, 8, Chanel Smith, 10, and Derek Cowell, 9, want to go to the beach. The car was on display Friday at Ruby's in King Harbor. |
Woodies, T-Birds and little deuce coupes lined up by the beach last weekend for a little bit of fun fun fun in the California sun. Bombers, gassers and muscle cars sat next to the classics immortalized in Beach Boys' songs while a carhopping waitress sold cokes at the first "Cruise at the Beach" in Redondo Beach Harbor.
More than 125 pre-1975 American-made classics started rolling up to Ruby's Diner, Friday night as the sun started to dip in the sky. Cruise organizer Darryl Boyd had hoped to have 25 cars show up for the event's first night. He had spent the last two weeks stopping by local cruise nights and passing out flyers. As Friday night neared, he started getting phone calls telling him to reserve more spaces.
"It went from 25, to 50, to 75. By the time people started showing up, it kept on going. The wait time to get into Ruby's was over an hour," Boyd said.
He was hoping to recreate some of the atmosphere Harbor Drive had in his high school days during the late '70s and early '80s when hot rodders and street racers would hang out in the same parking lot.
"There's so many hot cars around the South Bay, guys will meet wherever there's an open parking lot. But here you can go down to the marina or walk down to the pier. There's a little more to do than just stand around the cars," Boyd said.
But whether they're meeting in a parking lot on Redondo and Hawthorne boulevards on Tuesday evenings or at the Hottentot in Lomita on Wednesday nights, most of the cruisers show up for the same reasons.
"It gives us old guys a chance to stand around and kick tires," said Redondo Beach City Attorney Jerry Goddard.
"It gets us out of the house," agreed Mike Miller of Lomita who showed up in his '60 Pontiac cruiser.
Even if Harbor Drive never regains its former status as the place to cruise in the South Bay, the "Cruise at the Beach" will be happening every Friday at Ruby's Diner in Redondo Beach from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Or until interest peters out, said Boyd, who figures the event will probably run until October then pick up again in March.
Until then, car buffs can get their fill of chrome and fins at Hermosa Steakout's classic car and bike night from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 6 and Sunday, Aug. 27. The Steakout is at 1141 Aviation near Prospect. El Segundo's Main Street car show, which draws hundreds of classic cars annually, is coming up August 12. ER