Our monthly Cars and Coffee event is always a fun and exhilarating way to start a Saturday. If you stayed home Saturday morning, you missed something amazing. The show takes place every third Saturday, rain or shine, and this month, we decided to break away from our regular location in St. Petersburg at the duPont Registry HQ and take our event out into the community. It took a few months to choose the perfect spot in the Tampa Bay Area and we were thrilled to announce Tampa’s Aviation Authority opened the gates of their oldest field for an unprecedented event: Peter O. Knight Airport.
Located on the southern end of the Davis Islands, Peter O. Knight Airport was Tampa’s main terminal from 1933 to 1945. We thought it would provide ample space for our regular attendees. As we arrived at 5 am cars were already in line waiting to join the show. Buddy Brew was first in with much welcomed coffee and breakfast. Cheerleaders from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers arrived on their party bus to promote the fall season, and PDQ began preparing for brunch. Our local sponsors, Reeves Import Motorcars, Dimmitt, Mercedes-Benz of Tampa, Ferrari of Tampa Bay, Jaguar of Tampa, and Producer’s Realty Corp, showed their support and helped us set up the show. Presenting sponsor BMO Harris Bank offered a VIP pavilion with hors d’oeuvres and refreshments. SeaVee Boats took the opportunity to showcase their latest center console powered by Mercury’s new 400 horsepower Verado R. BLVD Customs arrived with the latest in Focal Audio in their latest builds. Cycle Springs offered two-wheeled entertainment with a host of Suzuki & Kawasaki bikes. For those needing Italian inspiration, Ducati was represented by Euro Cycles.
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At first we weren’t too sure about the turnout because of the new location, but I was witness to a line of waiting supercars that spanned over a mile long. The show officially started at 7 am, but the traffic jam did not dissipate until after 10:30. We packed in as many cars as we could, but sadly we had to park hundreds of late arrivals on the grass along the fence. (Early bird gets the worm!)
Friday morning our esteemed publisher appealed to the motoring masses with an interview on WTSP Channel 10 News. Along with an extensive local promotion campaign, it helped make this show one for the record books. We hope everyone had a great time, and if you have any ideas on how we can improve on it, please let us know in the comments below. Stay with us for info on our fall events.
Evan Lewis
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Michael Bartley Photograph
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Mike Nicholls
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Toby Edwards Photography
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