HMCCC Nashville Music City
July 6 - 12, 2010

 

HOT!  HOT!  HOT TIME IN MUSIC CITY!

On Monday, July 5,  HMCCC members and friends headed for Nashville, TN and the Music City Chevy Show hosted by the Eckler’s Chevy Classics State Representatives.  

Jack and Linda Flood in their ’56 Chevy, Rich and Lynn Hoff in their ’55 Chevy, Gary and Susan Shipley in their ’57 farm truck, Frank and Alice Smith in the ’48 truck, John and Janet Stein in their ’57 Chevy, Ed and Marsha Zimmerman trailering her ’57 Chevy (first time her car has been trailered!), Dave and Bonnie Warfield in their yellow SSR, and Linda Flood’s sister and friend, Joyce Johnson and Bruce Plumb in his ‘ 57 Chevy drove to Kingsport, TN for an overnight stay.   The drive was beautiful and all was going well until John and Janet ran out of gas!   Fortunately, Ed had a 5 gallon container of gas that enable the group to continue on 3 more miles to the nearest gas station and lunch rest stop.  
On Tuesday, Butch and Sissy Riley joined the group as we headed for Nashville.  Along the way, Dave and Bonnie; John and Janet; and Frank and Alice detoured to Seiversville to tour through Floyd Garrett’s Muscle Car Museum while the rest of the group continued on to Nashville.   After viewing over 90 beautifully restored vehicles of all makes and models, they continued on to Nashville and joined the rest of the club members which included Paul and Lynda Schneider (in their son’s ’99 Camaro), Flo and Gary Garman in “Juicy”, Dale Mealey, and Bob and Margie Slodysko

The Maxwell House Millennium Hotel (yes, it’s named after the coffee!), provided a shuttle that took a group of us to Historic Broadway Street in downtown Nashville.  There were lots of local watering holes that featured live music from 10 am to midnight every day.   After visiting some western clothing stores and the wharf on the Cumberland River (the one that flooded a lot of areas in Nashville), we ate at the Big River restaurant and returned to the hotel via the shuttle bus for an evening of rest, refreshment and “open mike” night in the hotel lounge. 

Wednesday morning, while sitting under the club tent in the parking lot, Jack met Tommy Garmon, a Nashville native, who operates tours of the local area.  Tommy volunteered to drive a group of us in his tour bus to the Hermitage that afternoon. (The Hermitage is the home of President Andrew Jackson – a native son of Tennessee).  Along the way, Tommy entertained us with information about Nashville, gossip about local celebrities and funny jokes.  One tidbit we learned is, in the South, you can say anything about anybody as long as you follow it with “bless his heart”. The Hermitage has been restored to its original charm (and has air conditioning!) along with the surrounding gardens where Andrew Jackson and his wife are buried.  At Tommy’s suggestion, some of us attended a dinner show at “Nashville Night Life” theater.  The food was good and the entertainers performed songs by Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Tammy Wynette and other country superstars.  On the return trip to the hotel, we made arrangements with Tommy to take some of our group on a tour of Nashville and the homes of celebrities who live in Nashville the next day.
Thursday dawned hot and humid, but the group who toured Nashville didn’t seem to mind as we rode in an air conditioned bus through the main areas of Nashville and it’s surrounding suburbs.  We saw the homes of Alan Jackson, Dolly Parton, Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, Ronnie Milsap, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill as well as famous record producers and local politicians.  On the return trip to the hotel, Tommy drove by Opryland, the Opryland Hotel and the Grand Ole Opry – all of which had been heavily damaged by flood waters. 

The hot weather continued Friday as HMCCC members cruised down the Cumberland River aboard the riverboat, “The General Jackson”.  We dined on fine food served family style in the gorgeous dining room/theater on the main deck of the boat.   The show, “Fiddlin’ Around” starred Tim Watson and his band.   We all agreed the show was great - that guy can really play a fiddle!  After the show, several of us purchased his albums which he autographed and posed with us for a group picture!  The fun continued Friday evening with Karaoke in the hotel lounge.  A talented group called “The Chevy Girls” (Linda F., Joyce, Susan, Lynn and Janet) sang their hearts out – unfortunately there were no talent scouts in the bar that night so they won’t be recording a CD anytime soon.  Gary S. sang a smokey rendition of “A Town without Pity”.  Susan S. brought the house down with “These Boots are Made for Walkin’”

It was overcast and much cooler on Saturday with scattered sprinkles when the judging got underway.  About 250 classics, trucks, Camaros (and even a few Corvettes!) were scrutinized and evaluated for craftsmanship and the possibility of an award.   HMCCC members helped decorate for the dance held that evening in the grand ballroom.  The group,”The Chessmen” played ‘50’s through 70’s classic songs and had an entertaining floor show.

Sunday morning brought welcome rain as we enjoyed breakfast and the awards presentation.  Steven Perry MC’d the event with special guest, Joe Whittaker announcing the award winners.  HMCCC was well represented with Dale Mealey’s ’56 Chevy winning 2nd place; Jack Flood’s ’56 winning 2nd place; Butch and Sissy’s ’55 Truck winning 1st place; and Flo and Gary Garman’s “Juicy” ’55 Chevy winning 1st in their respective classes.  In addition, Jack and Linda’s car won Best Interior and the Garman’s car won Best Paint.  HMCCC won club participation with 24 members and 10 vehicles.  After the awards, we bid good bye to our friends from all over the US and “Music City”, heading home in a cooling rain with pleasant memories of the great time we had in Nashville.  What a great trip with great friends!

~ Submitted by Janet Stein