Woodies

The penultimate destination of my American coast-to-coast adventure was Santa Cruz.  It was meant to be a sun-soaked few days on the beach, with a surfing lesson or two.  Instead, Santa Cruz was cloudy, drizzly and I was developing a chest infection.  Trying not to let these realities get in the way I set out to explore what else Santa Cruz had to offer.  I hit the boardwalk and ventured into the Amusement Park – not my usual cup of tea.  I even went on a ride.  Well, “ride” may be over stating it, as it was a sedate loop on the skyglider.  However, as promised this give me amazing views and a unique vantage point…of the flat grey clouds.

Sometimes though, and this is why I love travelling, a persistently optimistic outlook pays off and you are rewarded with something amazing which if you had been looking for it, you would never have found.  In this case my meanderings led me to the pier (this is not the surprising part, it’s a fairly prominent feature of Santa Cruz) and on the pier was a vintage car rally in full swing.  The cars were the amazing Woodies.

An obvious comparison is the Morris Minors of Britain; but in style, I’m sorry Morris, these cars are in a whole other league.  Like most things in America they are huge.  Curvaceous bonnets invite reclining – in a vintage bikini of course – and wood and leather interiors are made for a drive-in movie and a milkshake with your gal.  And no woody would be complete without a longboard on the roof.  I felt like I never knew what the Beach Boys were singing about until now.

The light was flat, there were lots of people enjoying the cars, but I still managed to get some good shots of these beautiful cars.  And that brightens up the gloomiest of days.