The Woodward Dream Cruise is this Saturday, August 15th. Of course, if you live in Metro Detroit, you already knew that. This is the 15th year of this event that started as a small fundraiser to build a soccer field in Ferndale. Everything from classic old cars to muscle cars and street rods will be cruising up and down Woodward Avenue.
A classic cool car cruising down Woodward Avenue.Locals who live along the Woodward Corridor are the ones that are most affected by the influx of the one million plus visitors who will attend the event.
I have many friends who live near Woodward, whether in Berkley, Royal Oak, or Ferndale, who make a point to get out of town this weekend. They go “Up North,” to escape the traffic and congestion.
Luckily, I live a few miles west of Woodward and the congestion has never affected me. I can drive into Birmingham this weekend, park the car, and happily enjoy the cruise.
But, do you know what I can’t do? I can’t go have my new favorite omelet at The Flytrap in Ferndale. (It’s the blat+c, in case you were wondering.) It would be difficult to try and venture anywhere along Woodward this weekend. Yes, The Redcoat Tavern is off limits as well.
Why can’t I go to these lovely establishments? I won’t be able to get there. I’m actually ok with that; I can schedule my weekend around the event.
I quite like looking at the cool cars; they are what built this city. If you look at the definition of Detroit on dictionary.com the 3rd entry is the U.S. automobile industry. And we all know what troubles they have been having recently.
A custom truck, complete with flames.So, is it really that difficult to change our schedules around a bit or take an alternate route and embrace the event? I’m getting kind of sick of everyone complaining about it.
The people who will be lining up on Woodward to watch the cars go rolling by are gearheads. These are the people, I assume, who are most likely to buy American cars. These people are going to be pumping lots of money into our local economy by going to the establishments that I can't get to.
And for that, I’ll happily stay close to home and avoid Woodward for a few days. I’ll be cruising to nowhere.