Cruisin'

Today is the Woodward Dream Cruise, the annual celebration of classic cars. It's a polarizing event for many Detroiters. Many folks love taking their classic car out to cruise Woodward on a beautiful day in August. Others hate the traffic, the difficulty in getting across town during the cruise, and how it has morphed into a week long event, to the point that you can see folks sitting in their lawn chairs on a Monday evening, watching a few classic cars amongst the normal rush hour traffic. Many even schedule their vacations around the cruise.

Personally, I'm a little torn by the cruise. I love the democracy of it - how anyone with any car can cruise Woodward, from a Model T to a 48 Dodge to a 57 Chevy to a 79 Chevette. And I've got to appreciate anything that causes folks to come from out of state to visit Detroit and help support our economy. But I haven't gone to the cruise proper for a few years, and I won't be going this year. Breathing in the exhaust fumes from many cars built before emissions standards isn't my favorite. And even though I work for an auto maker, I'm not really in to the classic car scene. I think classic cars are cool, but I couldn't look at a Bel Air and tell you the model year.

If you enjoy the cruise, you've got a beautiful day for it - but if you don't enjoy the cruise, you've got a beautiful day to enjoy all of the other great things Detroit has to offer!