After our morning driver's meeting at the hotel in Nag's Head we made a short drive north to the site of the first manned self propelled plane flight. Orville and Wilbur Wright made the trip from their home in Dayton, Ohio to the sands of the outer banks of North Carolina to test their experimental aircraft over 100 years ago. The rest is history. The park is very well laid out and includes re-creations of their originally camp. The runway in the sand is marked and there is a huge memorial on the hill overlooking the site. It was a very interesting stop on the Tour.
From the Wright Brother's Memorial we continued north to another famous beach town. Virginia Beach is the home of the Naval Air Station Oceana and home to the jet fighters that are part of the Navy's strike force. We had stopped there last year and it was thrilling to see the planes and the people that help to make our country safe and free. This year we had been invited to enjoy some lunch at the Officer's Club on the base. It was quite an experience to dine with the airmen and women of the base and enjoy the displays and surroundings of the club. After lunch we got a chance to see some of the planes that have played a part in the history of Naval aviation at NAS Oceana.
From the airbase many of the Road Tourians made a trip to Dumars Drive-in located in nearby Norfolk, Virginia. Famous for their ice cream and BBQ, Dunars is also the originators of the waffle ice cream cone and some folks just had to give it a try. It is reported to be excellent.
By this point in the Tour the weather had turned sunny and warm. We spent Wednesday afternoon hanging around the hotel parking lot cleaning the cars and tightening some loose nuts and bolts. After some dinner many folks walked on the beach and enjoyed the free band concert put on by the city every Wednesday evening. We were getting close to our destination and life was good, warm and dry.
Thursday morning on our way out of Virginia Beach we made a stop at Bobbie Lou and Hoyt Duff's Lynnhaven Pier in Virginia Beach. Hoyt and Bobbie Lou have been participants on many Road Tours in the past and have become a part of our Road Tourian family. Earlier this year a storm hit Virginia Beach and wiped out much of their pier. With no insurance the repairs are going to be quite costly. In order to help defray some of the cost they are selling planks to folks who can have a message engraved on the plank. At our morning driver's meeting we passed the hat and raised $150 for the Lynnhaven Pier Fund. There will be a plank that will read " Street Rodder Cruise to Ocean City, May 2010" which will be a permanent memorial to our great week on the road.
From Virginia Beach the way to Ocean City takes you over and under the Chesapeake Bay via a very long bridge and tunnel system. This engineering marvel dramatically reduces the time for traveling up the coast. We arrived in Ocean City about 2 PM on Thursday. The town was already filled with street rods, customs and muscle cars. The weather was perfect and the Special Events team again had everything running very smoothly. It was the 20th edition of Cruisin Ocean City and by all accounts the best one ever. Our Street Rodder Road Tour hospitality tent was a hub of activity. Everyone wanted to get a look at the new Shadow Rods 27XL roadster pickup built by Cotati Speed Shop. We also had a special guest in our tent almost all weekend. Henry Winkler was on hand to greet the crowd and sign autographs. The Fonz even took a moment to pose with the Road Tourians by the pickup.
It was a great weekend in Ocean City that topped off a great week. There were loads of fun, food and interesting stops along the way. Thanks to everyone that welcomed us during the week and thanks to all the participants who helped me enjoy my week on the road too. Check out the schedule and try to join us on one of the Tours we have planned this summer. You will have a great time. For those of you who can't get away this year. Follow our blogs right here at www.streetroddrweb.com for all the latest news and updates. We are beginning the Woody's Hot Rodz Tour this weekend as we travel from the NSRA Mid-America Nationals plus in Springfield, Missouri the the huge NSRA East Coast Nationals in York. I hope to see you on a Road Tour soon.