Dogwood Festival

One of the fun things about travel is you never know exactly what you will see and who you will meet. -Or where you' might end up!
When the opportunity to jump into a festival presented itself, we took it! The Siloam Chamber of Commerce was very nice when they heard we were passing through and learned about our mission, and they invited us to their Dogwood Festival. Terry and I arose early and set up for photos on a really nice grassy area of the park, right beside the entertainment stage. The clouds threatened rain, but things stayed dry, and the overcast sky provided a nice protective shade from the sun. -And the lights in the time machine looked really good in the subdued lighting!
Met lots of nice folks, and a handful of real 'Back to the Future' fans. Answered questions about TeamFox, PD, DeLoreans, and Terry's sister brought us a fantastic lunch just as my stomache was starting to think about a fill up. We departed around 5pm, and I'm guessing we raised about $300. just by seizing the opportunity to join the festival.

Arkansas

4.23.09 Thursday Arkansas.
We slept in the upstairs of Terry’s sister’s house. A big farm house with a red barn and a stream and rolling pastures. The cows mooed us to sleep. We woke to word that our home city, North Myrtle Beach was on fire, with 40+ homes destroyed and several hundred damaged. It is dry and windy and the fire has crossed several roads, but the complex our business is in is operating a normal schedule. Smoke and ash are in the air from the reports we’ve heard. Our fantastic neighbors have a watchful eye on our home and puppy dogs, so we can rest easy tonight.
We were invited to bring the time machine to Allen Elementary, a school full of first and second graders. They announced the day before that the ‘time car’ would make an appearance during recess, and we arrived right on time! Each class marched out and stood in an orderly line along the curb as we demonstrated the doors of the DeLorean to their collective ‘oooh’s and aaahhh’s!’ I asked them what color the car was painted and, clever kids that they are, replied ‘none!’ Terry spoke just a bit about Parkinsons, as she led them around the car, and explained why we travel around. When I asked each class who had seen the movie ‘Back to the Future’, I was delighted, time after time that at least 1/3 to ½ had seen the film! Just amazing. Many said the cowboy one was their favorite, implying that they had seen not just part one, but part 2 and 3! It made me proud that their parents were raising these kids right! Although I’m lucky to have seen the film when it first came out on the big screen in 1985, I’m somewhat jealous that I had to wait 17 years into my life for it to happen. These kids got an early introduction to one of the greatest films of all time.
I gave each teacher a poster of the car for their classrooms, which seemed well received and after two hours of the parading, demonstrating of the gull wings, and answering questions about going back to visit the dinosaurs, we departed. The tiny people waving and smiling and saying ‘thank you’ was a bright spot in my day. I’d like to remember the experience, but think rather that we should simply repeat it, often, with other schools.

Onward we drove the time machine to visit an assisted living facility where Terry’s mom lives. It’s a great ‘facility’ if you can refer such a home-like place by such a term. After a bit of chatting, laughing and generally provoking the greatest mother-in-law in the world, I left Terry for some mother-daughter time while I checked the latest on the fires.
Still not contained, and more houses destroyed, but the wind was turning back inland. Our first son (beagle) does not like smoke. It has freaked him out ever since, in my impatient hunger, I unwittingly turned up Terry’s crock pot to ‘High’ before stepping out to run an errand. Poor doggie didn’t know how to call for help as the house filled with smoke. I returned to find him on the back porch all nervous and worried and upset. It took weeks to get the smell of burnt whatever-that-was-in-the-pot, out of the house.

Back at the Senior Village it was dinnertime and we escorted Stella to the dining room where her normal table was full. So we sat her down at the next one over, where I met a man named ‘Guy’, and his wife. She saw our Team Fox shirts and asked about them. After the general introduction of who, what, why, etc. she shared with us that Guy was diagnosed in 1995 (and misdiagnosed for years previously.) He asked how ‘Michael’ was doing, and I related how he had been working very hard this month making appearances on every TV and radio show, magazines, etc., since April is Parkinson’s awareness month. Guy mentioned hearing MJF on the radio. I asked how he felt, and he admitted he was having a ‘good day’, which is always something to be grateful for. His wife asked what we knew about the latest research, and (thanks to us attending the roundtable discussion in Atlanta earlier), we were able to relay some hopeful bits of information to them and tell them how efficient and aggressive the foundation is operating to find a cure. Guy asked where we were from, and when I said North Myrtle Beach, he mentioned the fires. I was impressed that he was so razor sharp and up to the minute on his news! Apparently it was now the top story on CNN.

Back to the farmhouse, the sun is setting, and we're hearing the soft sounds of spring peepers, cows mooing, and misc. insects in the pastures. In the distance some coyotes began to howl, a mother apparently calling her pups back from playtime.
Time for bed.

Cows.

Having mentioned to Mary how much I’d like to take a photograph of the time machine with a cow, she arranged for a neighbor to stop by before his rounds and take us on a bovine safari! ‘Roy’ is just about what you would imagine a perfect farmer to be. Older, kind, friendly, -and he knows his cows. I worried about how the cows would react to the time machine, and us fearing they would be easily spooked. But Roy was prepared. He didn’t make any promises, but he had a few tricks up his sleeve. He said morning or evening when they’re laying down was a good time, so I hopped in the time machine and followed him slowly off the road, through the gate and into the green pastures. Up a hill and there they were. A whole lot of cows. Or ‘cattle?’ They seemed to recognize his red pickup truck, but were not too sure about the silver car with flip up things. He stepped out and explained that if the cows saw him, they wouldn’t be afraid, and sure enough, they didn’t spook.
One cow approached the hood and decided to take a few licks. I wish John DeLorean could have been there. As foreign as the whole scene was to us, I would have liked sharing it with John, who, I think would have really felt like an alien! And I imagine seeing that cow’s green, grassy, slobbery tongue investigating his stainless steel namesake would have amused him and brought him much joy.

Dogwood Festival Announcement!

Our next stop was Arkansas to visit family, and we received word from Terry's sister that an event was happening during our stay and we could be a part of it! So. . .
the following press release was quickly created:
Press Release!
Another stop on our drive to cure Parkinson’s!
The Delorean Time Machine will appear at the Siloam Springs, Arkansas 35th ANNUAL DOGWOOD FESTIVAL on Saturday April 25 , 2009 from 9am to 5pm.

The award-winning festival has exhibitors from all over the United and is organized by the Siloam Springs Chamber of Commerce’s Volunteer Dogwood Festival Committee. Established in 1974, the festival brings an estimated 30,000 into the two major downtown parks in Siloam Springs.

We will be with the famous vehicle known from the ‘Back to the Future’ movies raising funds and awareness for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, and we invite everyone in the area to come out and enjoy a great ‘time!’

For more information about our mission, visit http://www.ToTheFuture.org

Giddyup.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Leaving Texas, we passed several troupers on the roadside, and the final one pulled out in a big cloud of dirt and flipped his lights on after we passed. Here we go. Terry had the registration out before we had come to a stop. License and insurance was in hand and out steps the ranger in a big cowboy hat. I imagined the sound of spurs as he approached.
‘Is there a medical reason for your speeding today?’ he asked. For a second, I thought about making up something like ‘Temporal displacement syndrome’, but just said, ‘No sir’, handing over the usual documentation. He said, ‘Back to the Future?’ and I said, ‘Yes!’ Long story short, we all parted ways happy, us having collected a genuine Texas ranger warning slip for our scrapbook, and he having captured a time machine (and lots of dash cam video footage to prove it.)

Bombardier Hangar Event

After the session, we took some crew photos with the car and drove the car back through the doors, into the freight elevator and headed for Love field for the second part of the event. The security was pretty tight, with escorts needed to accompany you about the property. Several folks outside the perimeter asked if they could take photographs, which for once, became an issue due to security.
A guard approached, asking cameras be put away. The observers objected, saying I gave them permission! I had to explain to them that I don’t mind photos being taken of the car, but I don't make the rules for the airfield area and that they should listen to the security man. (Trying to keep cameras from clicking on the time machine is like throwing candy into a classroom and asking the kids not to grab some. The guard certainly had his work cut out for him, and I apologized for the trouble.

The hangar had a few jets to be removed before we could drive in, so we drove over to another, to get into some shade. The mechanics ‘hovered’ around and took 'authorized' pictures, but as we explained our mission and told them about TeamFox, they started giving donations, which was really cool.
The gathering went smoothly. Stanchions were set out to keep the car safe. Many guests had 'authorized' photos taken with the car, and they spoke to us about about Parkinsons. Although the evening was a free party for guests, and we didn't solicit donations on this particular occasion, several insisted on making a contribution to our cause after sharing their own stories about PD.
Oh yes, and there were fancy cookies shaped like airplanes!

To Texas!

Monday, April 20, 2009
We leave Celebration for another event in Dallas. This time, it is a corporate event that has a 'Back to the Future' theme, which we often do, with a portion of the expenses going to the MJFF.

We arrived at the Intercontinental Hotel around 3, but first found a spray wash for the car. It needed some TLC after such a long two-day drive. Made contact with the event organizer and loaded in the car at 8:30 or 9pm. Freight elevator! Love those things! It was a simple 'spectacle', driving the organization's president across the ballroom floor with a grand entrance, and the largely French Canadian crew were very nice to work with.

Celebration Exotic Car Festival, Day 2

Saturday, April 18, 2009
Saturday morning up early again to set and prep the cars for the car show itself. Our time machine was in the company of the 'Countach' Lamborghini- (which, according to my British friend and exotic car enthusiast Tom, is an Italian exclaimation of amazement - there is no literal translation but the story goes the chief engineer walked in to see the first development model being made and shouted "COUNTACH!" and the name stuck ever since!) from Cannon Ball Run, the Dumb and Dumber Lamborghini, Kit the Knight Rider car, the Munster Mobile, the Monkey Mobile, the Bat Mobile and the General Lee. Not to mention a land speeder, R2D2 and all manner of creatures and beings from Star Wars.
We met several friends who came to show their support for not only Make A Wish, but our 'ToTheFuture' mission, and inserted their donations into Mr. Compassion!

The days not done. We load our car into the event hall at Sea World for display at the Dinner and Auction. A beautiful venue, fab weather great food. Entertainment with 'Prime Time' from NYC and Gilbert Godfried. An evening to remember, I’ll never be able to look at my refrigerators butter door the same way again.

Celebration Car Show

mo
Friday, April 17, 2009
We were invited to the Celebration, Florida Exotic Car Festival. It is an annual event to raise funds for Make A Wish, and we were happy to be a part of it!
Friday morning dawn, we set up for a TV shoot with the local Fox station morning news. Thank you Christine (our on-the-spot reporter) for making waking up so early not only worth it but ever so much fun! The funniest moment came when Gilbert Godfried, a guest and performer at the car show, was interviewed in the DeLorean. He had us all bursting out in laughter, while the live interview was being broadcast.
Friday afternoon found Terry driving a golf cart and Oli driving another dream car, a Lotus Elise. We are having the time of our lives!
Friday night at the Kissimmee Jet Reception for fine wine, cheese, and assorted French delicacies along with an aerial demonstration of two WW2 yellow jets, followed by a Blue Angel that was awesome. We visited with friends, enjoyed the beautiful cars and jets on display and ate snails. Yummy. Wonderful fun for two simple time travelers, but more importantly, great to be here for Make a Wish.

It's Going to be All Right!

Here is a video from our experience at the Speedway. Enjoy!

The Return.

We got home around 9:30pm Sunday night and organized the credit card payments, loose change and bills. Much to our surprise, we raised $1265.00 + Brad’s $50. for a grand total of $1315.00 for the MJFF! Another successful leap ‘to the future’ in our DeLorean Time Machine!


-And, mission aside, we did make many people very happy.


Now, to give our stainless steel temporal transport device a much needed oil change. . .

Auto Show Day 5

As expected, the final day was a slower wind-down period, and we took time to just enjoy some of the other cars and look around before it all disappeared. We began straightening up the literature and other debris that collected under the hood and behind the curtains, and we took advantage of the fact that for once, we had a second car that we could fill up with some of the equipment. Terry having her car here made packing up a breeze. In a DeLorean Time Machine, you must usually pack in an extremely strategic and efficient manner! I snapped a few shots of our display and even took advantage of our proximity to the ‘Splinter’ to stage several nice photos with our stainless steel car next to the wooden one. I wanted to get the DeLorean on the actual race track before we left, and Terry generously asked Brad if he’d like to have her passenger seat for a lap. As a true shutterbug, he replied that he would much rather be photographing the car on the track, -which is what we ended up doing!

Auto Show Day 4

This was expected to be the ‘big’ day and it was. At one point, there was an endless stream of people flowing past, non-stop. Kinda like tubing down a river. Occasionally some would break free from the current to donate and have their photo taken with the car, and others would just desperately try to capture the DeLorean time machine on film for later viewing, as they were swept downstream! Terry says that each day our approach to the crowd becomes stronger and more creative. As a result, donations were up, and Keith Larson with WBT News Talk Radio ventured from his remote broadcast booth and took a moment to talk about the car and the Michael J. Fox Foundation. It was fantastic –and unexpected advertising! The speedway added three photos of our DeLorean to their website, which was also a surprise, given our last minute plans to attend. Many folks approached, shouting, ‘There it is!’, so word was certainly spreading.
We took over 100 photographs of folks sitting in the car, and they all turned out really great, if I do say so myself. The more we do, the more we learn how to do better, and this show was no exception. Brad stopped by to check on us and see how things were going. He presented us with a generous check of $50. , to add to our cause, on behalf of he and his wife. What a great gesture!
Terry struck up a conversation with a chef who seemed quite interested in the time machine, and quickly arranged a ‘barter’ for a southern gourmet delicacy. A photo was exchanged for a couple of deep fried peanut butter and jelly and deep-fried grilled cheese sandwiches! We decided if it clogged our arteries, we would at least die together, well fed, with smiles (and a bit of jelly) on our faces!

Auto Show Day 3

This is the Speedway crew, including Megan and Wendy who helped get us in the show and set us up.
With Terry now accompanying me, this boosted my spirits and we approached the show with twice the strength and enthusiasm. A professional photographer, Brad Bowling from Cars & Parts magazine (seen here laying across table!) struck up a conversation and we discovered we were both big movie fans, as well as beagle owners. An invitation to dinner at their house followed, reinforcing my belief that this experience had definitely turned the corner. Brad and Heather are quite a sweet couple who, with their beagle Nemo were fine hosts. The visit was entertaining and educational. Car shows are a new venue for us and each of them, along with their friend Rick (also a writer and photographer) gave forth gems of information that will help us in the future!
The weather was improving and my favorite car of the show that I mentioned earlier was uncovered. It was an original design by a guy named Joe Harmon http://www.joeharmondesign.com/
who built it out of wood. It was named ‘Splinter’, and was no ordinary ‘whittle job.’ He built a solid sculpted form, cast it to make fiberglass molds, then weaving cherry strips together to form intricate wooden sheets, pressed them into the molds along with special adhesives to produce the amazing body. Check out his site for the whole scoop!
One difference that stands out about this show is the reaction of the attendees.
More specifically, the recognition and understanding and appreciation that we built a time machine out of a DeLorean. These are ‘car people’, that REALLY like cars. Many of them attend this show in search of illusive car parts to complete their own projects. And by parts, I don’t mean fuzzy dice. I mean sections of steel body panels, rare antique wiring harnesses and raw materials to fabricate their own parts that either no longer exist, or never did! Many of them haul little wagons around with them, in hopes that they will fill it with that left front fender for their 1928 Model ‘T’ The recognition of ‘Back to the Future’ is there, but the prevailing sentiment seems to be, ‘You must have put a lot of man hours into this’ which is a common phrase, when they discover we are the owners and that we built it ourselves. After about the third time of seeming unknowledgeable about the mechanical aspects of our car, I snuck a peek at my owners manual in the glove box to look up the answer to the recurring question of ‘how much horsepower she got?’ I soon sounded like one of the crowd, proudly twanging “She got ‘bout 130 -at 5500 rpm, that is. Ain’t no racing car I recon, but she can sure git if she ‘unts to.”
Terry just smiles.

Auto Show Day 2

After a tasty cookout and visit with friends last night, I arrived back at the garage around 8am to light the car up and prepare for the crowds. It was drizzling and being a weekday, most of the folks were retirees. This is the south, and much of the attendees were dressed in stereotypical denim farmer overalls, or camouflage pants. And of course, ball caps.
The day was long and a little disheartening. I played the video on Parkinson’s and the mission, along with some brief clips from Back to the Future, which helped with the education part of our goal, but donations were going to be a struggle it seemed. Many would read the sign “Take a photo, but give hope”, quickly snap a picture, grab a brochure and move away as if an emergency had just come up. More than a handful of people replied that they were out of work, as I started welcoming them to make a donation. There was no shortage of cameras and video recorders, and people seemed quite enthused about seeing the car and taking what they could from the experience. I quickly realized that once they purchased their ticket into the auto fair, they did not expect to spend anything more beyond a corn dog and a ‘Sham-Wow.’ And I can’t blame them. I questioned my wisdom of exhibiting at this show, and quickly tried to think of ways to turn things around and make it more of a success. My growing frustration was soon diffused. One particular man seemed to really study the video and the car and the donation signs. He wasn’t repelled by the invitation to help cure a disease. After some careful and genuine consideration, he approached the donation jar and without stopping, placed a prepared bill in the top. With a tight throat, seeming to force back emotions, he whispered ‘My wife has Parkinsons.’ He kept moving, not wanting to engage in conversation.
In a way, I am grateful. It would have been very difficult for the both of us.
But he had given more than he realized. He gave me a gift of renewed resolve, and encouragement, right at the moment I needed it. This weekend was going to be a struggle, but if I had given up, it wouldn’t have progressed as wonderfully as it did.

Auto Show Day 1

I woke up at 5am to make the trip to Charlotte solo. Terry had to stay behind to manage our business, but would join me Thursday night. I certainly prefer having my co-pilot with me. The GPS planned a great route that took at least 45 minutes off the normal highway path we have used in the past to Charlotte. The roads were great! Just a few small towns with fewer traffic lights. Often 4 lanes, many of which were new.
Arrived around 10am for set-up and media day. Drove down a tunnel under the racetrack and into the inner field. It could not have been smoother. We were the last car into the ‘Nationwide’ garage, which is one of two long buildings with roll up garage doors lining both sides. About 40 ‘bays’ in total. The garage is normally completely empty, except on racing days, when it is filled with racecars, drivers, mechanics, their teams, parts and rolling tool bins, all of which disappear after the race is over. A 6 foot wide yellow line runs down the center floor of the building from one end to the other, designating the neutral zone, to be kept clear. For a garage, I noticed the floor was very clean, painted blue, with the exception of that yellow line.
Today, the garage was in a different ‘mode’. All the garage doors were blacked out with plastic and black pole curtains finished off the disguise. Colorful convention taffeta hung overhead to further transform the garage atmosphere into a show room. Most of the featured cars were in place, having arrived the day before. Theatrical lights were being hung to illuminate the specialty vehicles in a classy way. Two ‘bubble’ cars caught my eye first, on display from the Reno Auto Museum. They were Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth originals. He was known for his ‘Rat Fink’ character in the 60’s as well as a prominent custom car builder, many of which were reproduced by toy model companies.
My favorite car of the show happened to be right beside me, however, I would not discover this until it was dis-covered the next day. . .