Antique cars draw stares, waves and honks

GRANTSBORO - Excuse the motorists traveling the back roads of Craven and Pamlico counties Tuesday who thought they had slipped into an episode of the "Twilight Zone."

Dozens of antique cars - sighted near Weyerhaeuser, Askins, Olympia, Grantsboro, Arapahoe and Oriental - were real, not visions from a time warp.

More than 50 pre-1928 vehicles - T-model, A-Model, and roadsters, Franklin, Stutz and even Cadillac - are part of the North Carolina regional Horseless Carriage Club's weeklong tour around several eastern counties.

Motoring along at a steady 30-35 mph clip, they got plenty of looks, waves and honks along the way.

By midmorning, a crowd of about two dozen people greeted them at the Pamlico County Heritage Center, a welcomed pit stop for cold drinks, a tour of the museum and some good conversation.

Ed Gibbs of Greensboro was a 15-year-old passenger in 1953 when the club made its first Carolinas Tour to Wendy Hill, S.C. His dad was at the wheel of a 1923 Franklin, with a six-cylinder, air-cooled engine. Tuesday, he was at the wheel of the same car.

The lure of the tours is simply meeting new people, seeing new places and preserving history through the restored cars, he said.

"The good thing about this club is it is a driving club. We don't go to shopping centers and judge cars and hand out trophies," he said. "We get in our cars and drive, and enjoy them."

Gibbs' 1923 Franklin weighs 2,600 pounds and sold new for $2,600, or a dollar a pound.

"At the same time, you could buy a Model-T Ford for five or six hundred bucks," he said.

The club's Tuesday route went into western Craven County and back into northern Pamlico County via back roads, then a stretch on five-lane N.C. 55 to the museum, followed by more back roads to Oriental for lunch.

"We try to take the side roads where there's not very much traffic to stay out of everyone else's way, and we get to see the countryside," Gibbs said.

The cars filled most of the parking lot at the Grantsboro Town Hall and the crowd was busy taking photos and asking questions.

O.B. Howerin, a retired tugboat chief engineer who lives nearby, is an automobile fan and was impressed with the variety of cars.

"You can tell these people really take pride in these cars," he said. "With the museum here now, maybe we will see more things like this come our way."

Frank Wilson retired from management and now works part time in guest services at the Comfort Suites Riverfront Park in New Bern, the club's home base for trips to Pamlico, Jones, Carteret and Lenoir counties this week. He and his wife were invited along on the Tuesday ride. He had the day off and gladly accepted the offer.

"It's great for the area," he said of the tour. "It's gorgeous to come by the parking lot and see all the cars."

And the visitors add to the local economy, filling nearly 75 percent of the local hotel's rooms.

John Strickland of Salisbury brought two cars - a 1925 Coupe and a 1924 Touring Car - part of his 20-car collection.

Strickland, who owns three motorcycle dealerships, never had an urge to restore two-wheelers. He just loves fixing up and driving the four-wheelers.

Next year, he plans to take part in the re-enactment of a 1909 cross-country challenge drive from New York to Seattle in 30 days.

In 1909, Ford came out with a $300 car that was panned by the critics. So Ford challenged other models to the cross-country drive.

Strickland has traveled around the U.S. for national tours, and once drove in snow in August in the mountains of Colorado.

He, too, said meeting new people was part of the fun.

"We met a lady, about 83 or 84 years old in New Bern Monday," he said. "She liked the car, so we gave her a ride around town. She said her granddaddy had a car like this. As I said, we have a good time and drive our cars a lot."