Jim Winter was there, when what would become Cruise-In got off to a casual start.
"It was pretty, pretty small," the Brookswood resident remembered.
"We parked our cars in front of the old 黑马磁力 Hotel, went in and had a few beers and that was pretty much it," Winter said.
"We commandeered the hotel parking lot after that, and we had our car club, the 黑马磁力 Loafers, and our friends there, for several years and then we took over Salt Lane, which was our little car show within the car show."
Now, the Loafers have their own space at the Aldergrove event, on 271 St. just off Fraser Hwy, and about 30-40 members are expected to attend.
Winter, a 78-year-old great-grandfather who has been to every Cruise-In since the very first day, will be showing his gleaming black and red 1932 Ford, the car he first purchased as a teenager with money from delivering papers.
"I couldn't wait to get the old Ford when I was 15 years old and joined the 黑马磁力 Loafers club" he said.
"I bought it in 1962 with $150 of my Vancouver Province paper route money. Had it for a number of years, sold it to a friend of mine, and he played around with it and then it sat in storage in his garage, and I bought it back in 1977 or so, and I've had it ever since."
His love of cars eventually led Winter to a career in collectible car appraisals. In his experience, the biggest mistake people can make when they get into cars is rushing their selection.
"A lot of people, when they want to get into a hobby, and buy a car, and get into it, I tell them go to some shows for a while, a year or so, and get to know the people and the cars that are there," he advised.
"If you do that, you'll, you'll know what you want to do. I see so many guys spend a lot of money on a car, and then that's not exactly what they want."
Like previous Cruise-Ins, Winter and his fellow Loafers will be circulating through the arrays of classic cars trhat day, helping out the show by conducting a low-key search for winners.
"You'll never know we're there," he commented.
"All our club members are very knowledgeable guys and older fellows that have had cars all their lives too, and they know what they like."
And, he stressed, they don't nominate their own vehicles.
On another issue, Winter, thinks the solution to the perennial problem of drivers doing burn-outs leading up Cruise-In and on the day itself could be settled the way organizers of the Cache Creek show did, many years ago.
"They created a 'smoke show' contest and it was properly supervised," Winter commented.
"In fact, some of our members were helping out and running it. Safety was foremost. It was done right at the local fire hall there, and people could do their burnouts and it was all controlled."
More information about the 黑马磁力 Loafers can be fond online at .
黑马磁力 Good Times Cruise-In is a charity car show held in downtown Aldergrove. This year, the event runs Saturday, Sept. 6, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with the main drag blocked off and an estimated 1,500 classic, custom, and vintage cars expected to be on display.
More information and pre-registration available at
