A Sycamore gathering to admire vintage cars on Sunday brought people out from across the state.
The weekend brought a mix of clouds and sun, up and down the streets of downtown Sycamore. That’s where car lovers gathered at the Sycamore Fizz Ehrler Memorial Turning Back Time Car Show. They passionately showed off their prized possessions. The fast talkers explained their cars’ makes and models while reminiscing about their favorite rides.
Ron Bychowski owns a yellow 1924 Ford T-Bucket. This isn’t his first car show. He said it serves as a backdrop for family pictures.
“I looked at the kids and I'm like, ‘wow, they grew.’ And so, they recreated the whole photo again,” he said, “and the little brother, who wasn't so little, was like, ‘argh, this is too close to my sisters, get me out of here.’ But I'm like that's neat because that was the fourth time that it happened today.”
Dan Gardner is from Machesney Park. While most car owners entice people with their shiny details and monster truck sizes, Gardner used sound.
He replicated a cop car from an old tv show that aired from 1979 to 1985. He said creating this type of car was on his bucket list.
“I always wanted to make a ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ cop car,” he said. “So, I did it. COVID came around, I needed a project, and this was my project.”
Gardner said he didn’t realize how much attention “The Dukes of Hazzard” car would attract.
Gardner is also inspired by another TV show. He said he’s working on a ’74 Chevy van. He wants to transform the van into a vehicle like the one from the series “The A-Team.”
Sycamore isn’t the only car show these owners attend. But for some, it’s more convenient.
Chuck Jennings was at the Dirty Bird Cruise night on Saturday. This event is a precursor to the show. He said Sycamore is one of the more generous towns when it comes to putting on car shows.
“When they have a car event,” he said, “they pretty much turn the entire downtown over to the car guys and as you could see there's quite a few here and if it doesn't rain tomorrow they're expecting to have 1000 cars show up.”
Rick Rippeon is from Dixon. He was at the car show with his friends Mike Magnafici and Russ Shuck. They travel around visiting other car shows across the state.
Rippeon said other car shows are usually confined to a grassy field. For him, the Sycamore car show has a hometown flavor.
“I think because it’s on the downtown streets,” he said. “You’re parking on pavement, and you get to, you know, explore the town so you know there’s places to eat, different businesses to look at. And it’s the way it’s spread out.”
Sitting next to Rippeon, Shuck talks about his prized possession.
“Oh, I got a ‘74 Ford Bronco that I built from scratch from the ground up,” he explained. “I cannibalized two of them to build one and everything. It’s an everyday driver and I kind of like showing it off.”
Rippeon said the Bronco gets a lot of attention.
The first owner of the car sits in the passenger’s seat beside his not-so-furry friend. Shuck jokingly used a fully clothed skeleton to represent this individual.
Although most people came to show off their cars, they shared that the show was also an opportunity to meet others as much into cars as they are. Jennings said he enjoys talking to like-minded people.
“That and of course, I guess it's a little bit of exhibitionism,” he said. "You know, [I] don't mind showing off my car but I also want to see all the rest of them and maybe get a few ideas.”
These new friends will more than likely see each other again at Sycamore’s next show, or even at a different car show. In the meantime, there’s always more work to be done on their pride and joy.