Car enthusiasts, photographers and the curious met to soak in the creativity of Santa Rosa’s monthly Cars and Coffee meet-up at Coddingtown Mall on Sunday, Nov. 10.
The vehicles on Sunday spanned at least a hundred years of automobile development, or at least the flashiest examples of that evolution, from a Ford Model-A hot rod to a new McLaren GT.
Santa Rosa’s Cars and Coffee meet-up is on the second Sunday of each month from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the Coddingtown Mall parking lot in front of the library. According to the event’s Facebook page, there are no rules other than the simple mantra of “Be safe. Be courteous.”
Other than a couple of disruptively loud motorcycles, the event had a fun and respectful atmosphere with many families bringing their young kids. The demographic was multigenerational, with novices and experts alike discussing their know-how and craftsmanship.
“You’re looking at five years of weekends right here,” said Devin Mann, who was there to show off the hours he’s poured into his 1960s Willys Jeep. “I only used original parts. Real stuff, made by Jeep back in the day.”
That wealth of knowledge and camaraderie around workmanship was central to many of the conversations.
“People just come and want to talk,” said Brian, a self-proclaimed car guy and part-time mechanic. “There’s some great stuff here. Compliment a guy’s car and he’ll talk your ear off for the next hour.”
Brian, who was selling his vintage orange and chrome Corvette, invited attendees to sit in the driver’s seat.
“Not just kids. You sit there, hold that steering wheel and see for yourself what it’s like,” he said.
While everyone who came to the meet-up shared a love of cars, participants gave different reasons for spending their Sunday morning at the show.
Linda and Don, a couple from Sebastopol, were there to window shop.
“Ain’t she purdy?” Linda asked Don about a ’50s Studebaker truck. “Sure is,” he said.
Lucas was there with his girlfriend, and had a simple reason for attending: “Cars photograph nice,” he said.
Tony Douglas rode his vintage Cushman scooter out to the show to get a laugh out of the weird, spaceship-like design of his ride. “There was this blues cat back in the ’50s, Bo Diddley, who used to rip all around Chicago from gig to gig on one of these,” Douglas said. “They’re funky, really funky!”
The event officially ended at 10 a.m., but by 9:30 a.m. at least half of the cars and visitors had departed.
The next Cars and Coffee meet-up in Santa Rosa will take place on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8a.m.
