Among the impact events on Friday were:
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| It was unusually subdued Friday, Aug. 15, in Birmingham, Mich., on the evening before the Woodward Dream Cruise. Normally, the area would have throngs of people and entertainment, but due to the power blackout that struck Michigan, much of the Northeastern United States and parts of Ontario and Quebec, the only visible street entertainment came from Paul Miles who was singing the blues to cheer people up. (Photo: Joseph Cabadas, Canadian Auto Press) |
- Berkley's Cruisefest, the official kickoff classic car parade, was cancelled.
- The annual Revvin' with Ford Charity Preview in Royal Oak, Mich., was expected to draw 3,000 partygoers and raise about $500,000 for the Children's Charities Coalition. However, with the power still out by early Friday afternoon, Ford cancelled the event, though it still plans to collect the total amount of money it pledged for the charities. The only entertainment around the Ford venue that evening (which in previous years would be booming with the sounds of the crowds and bands) was a street player, Paul Miles of Southfield, Mich., playing his guitar. "I'm the unofficial ambassador of the blues to Birmingham," Miles said. "I thought that I'd bring some good vibrations to counteract so much negative things. And I get a chance to see the cars. I like old cars and my dad used to work for General Motors for 30 years. Here I'm able to look back at the cars I used to ride, but I can't afford them now. Whew!"
Ford Motor Company's Mustang Drive In has been a staple along Woodward Avenue, just south of 13 Mile Road, for the past several Dream Cruises. This year, it was the site for members of the Special Vehicle Team Owners Association to congregate and enjoy the rock bands on stage, such as Mitch Ryder on Saturday, Aug. 16. During the power black out that plagued Michigan that week, festivities were a bit subdued even here. (Photo: Joseph Cabadas, Canadian Auto Press) - At Ford's Mustang Drive In, a band stage set up near 13 Mile Road and Woodward that was built to resemble an old drive in movie theatre, only about a third of the members of the Ford Special Vehicle Team Owners Association (SVTOA) came out for Friday's festivities. And, on Saturday, Ford was unable to bring out one of its prototype GTs. Still, Ford SVTOA Marketing Manager Jim Owens said, "Despite the problems that we've had with the weather and the power (outage), we've had a pretty good turn out. Our SVT owners are pretty much hard core enthusiasts and like to come out and see the cars go by." The SVTOA has 26,000 members in North America, which represents a considerable number of owners who bought the some 120,000 SVT models produced since 1993.
