2011

Oct. 21-23, Regional Tour, Glidden Preview, Brenham, TX  

2012

Feb. 9-11, Annual Membership Meeting, Punta Gorda, FL

May 13-17, Muscle Car Tour, Branson, MO 

Jun. 17-22, One & Two Cylinder Tour , Jugville, MI 

Jun. 21-25, Chrome Glidden Tour, Billings, MT  

Jul. 15-20, Heritage Tour, Homestead, IA  

Oct. 21-26, 67th AAA Glidden Tour, Brenham, TX 

Underlined items are direct links to registration information. 

The AAA Glidden Tours originated early in the Twentieth Century and were intended to demonstrate to the public the reliability of the automobile. By the early teens the point had been made and the tours faded away. They were revived in 1946 by The VMCCA as a premier antique auto event and AAA was again a sponsor. It soon became apparent that putting on an event of this scale every year was a heavy burden on our club and so an agreement to alternate years of responsibility for hosting the event was made with The Antique Automobile Club of America. For many years VMCCA has hosted the tour in even numbered years and AACA hosts in odd numbered years.   

This year AACA put on the 2011 tour, hosting it in Cumberland, MD It appears to have been a very successful event.  Some 268 cars, all pre-WWII (1942 and earlier) took part. 

Acres of cars as seen over this gorgeous Duesenberg

The full week of touring took participants into three states to many spectacular sites and over some of the prettiest back roads of America.  

Bill Johnson's 1931 Buick

I will leave the detailed write up to the club magazines, The Bulb Horn and The Antique Automobile. Here you can just get small feel for the tour through a few pictures courtesy of Bill and Jane Johnson. 

Billy Melton's Buick Touring

Paying toll with wooden nickels

Wayne and Rosa Ann Hadden's Studebaker Phaeton

Back roads and old cars. Does it get much better than this?

A brand new antique car museum will open soon in Kearney Nebraska. The  museum will be known as Classic Car Collection and will have more than 130 cars displayed in a facility encompassing some 50,000 square feet. The cars are reportedly valued at more than 3.5 million dollars. 

Exterior of building with a Reliant Delivery Van

The cars to be displayed are the personal collection of Bernie and Janice Taulborg of Elkhorn, NE. The cars range from the early 1900's up to the 1980's. Each of the cars will be described in a multi-media presentation on iPads that visitors will carry, providing a self-guided tour.   

A corner of the interior of the museum

The facility director is J. L. Schmidt. Our own Kermit Wilke has been pressed into service on the advisory board. The museum hopes to be open this November. 

 by Russ and Marj Bees 

HOO BUT HOOVER?

2012 Heritage Tour

Homestead Iowa

July 15-20, 2012

For cars built 1949 and earlier�

The Heritage tour for 2012 will take you to the first presidential library and museum to open, that of Herbert Hoover.

Homestead, Iowa, where the tour will be based, is part of a National Historic Landmark called the Amana Colonies. The colonies are a group of seven villages that functioned as a self sustaining commune from 1855 until 1932. We will tour through the colony visiting the many artisan workshops, museums, and antique shops, and venture out to other areas.

Homestead is in predominately rural Iowa, about 35 miles from Cedar Rapids, and works well for the older cars. Our rooms are in small restored hotels and bed and breakfasts built in the late 1800's. All of these places are within a short distance of one another. Hotel rooms in Homestead are limited to 42. Late registrants will be able to find accommodations about 10 miles away.

Hope to see you there.

See the VMCCA.org web site for additional tour and hotel accommodation information.

Russ and Marj Bees, Tour Directors

RussBees@msn.com

515-961-4120 or 515-720-3468

14527 Summerset Rd.

Indianola, IA 50125-8358

By Jamie Crandall 

Pat and I just returned from the 2011 Glidden Tour held in western Maryland. There were 268 cars on the tour and by the end of the week we had covered over 550 miles. The days were long --- longest day was 145 miles ---- and the terrain was mountainous. The most common question asked ---- would the 2012 tour be Model T friendly? The answer is yes. The longest day will be 110 miles and the terrain is rolling but no long hills to contend with. I advised everyone we are trying to attract brass cars and Model T Fords!

This October, we are hosting a regional tour called "A Sneak Preview Of The Great Texas Trail Drive". We are basically trying a few things to get reactions before including them on the big tour next year. One thing we will do on this tour is to introduce the Glidden Wranglerettes. They are a bunch of girls from the Southeast Texas Barrel Racing Association that have agreed to put on a short barrel race and to help with parking from horseback during the week of the tour. They are going to practice at our place for the regional tour and I'm anxious to get everyone's reaction. By the way, my wife, Pat is a member of the club and will be one of the wranglerettes! Next issue, I will report on the tour and various reactions!

We have decided to limit the tour to 200 cars. We have had many inquiries and over 100 signed up for information at this year's tour. Some of our highlights include a tour of the Blue Bell Creamery, George Bush Sr Library, Bluebonnet Opry, Washington On The Brazos Park, and the oldest cotton gin in the country.

I will announce hotel information in the next issue. Applications will be available in the spring. We hope your plans for next year include "The Great Texas Trail Drive"!

Bring your boots and jeans ------- we'll provide the hat!

Tour Hosts: Pat and Jamie Crandall   patandjamie@hughes.net 

Registrar: Bettye Ames   bames@ktc.com  

                     67th Revival AAA Glidden Tour                        

For cars 1942 and before

October 21 - 26, 2012

Do you know what it is? See answer below. 

Facebook has become an extremely popular social networking site, reportedly having more than 500,000,000 users. That is something like one in fifteen people on the planet! There is no doubt that it is a great tool for keeping in touch with people and organizations in a way that was undreamed of and impossible just a few short years ago.

We try to keep up with the times so we have created a VMCCA page within Facebook. Join! Contribute! Make it a forum for all things VMCCA. Click on the "Find us on Facebook" box below. Then click Like!

Whatsit answer: 1937 Buick grill