"When we lost Dee on December 22, we thought we couldn't do it," the local car enthusiast said. "The more we talked about it the more we felt we had to do it for Dee; he would've wanted us to go on."
Whether that viewpoint rang true or not, the turnout for the event held in honor of the deceased friend was believed to be one of the largest in Bourbon with a whopping 145 units on display, 135 of them signed up for competition. The weather brought sunny skies to set aglow the shiny exteriors and pristine interiors of the muscle, show and antique cars and motorcycles on display Sunday at the conclusion of the annual Bourbon Summer-fest.
A wide variety of makes and models were gathered at the Triton property adjacent to the Bourbon Community Park including older models including a 1930 Model A, a 1954 Jaguar Roadster, A 1938 Oldsmobile ZZ Pickup, a 1926 Ford Fairlane 500, a 1926 Model T Ford pickup and a 1923 Ford E T-bucket. Chrome shone and shiny colors caught the eye in myriad of custom and classic paint jobs — especially the shades of red — of which there were many hues, from "candy apple" and "deep ruby" to "sun fire."
And while there were a number of locals on hand to show off their rides, contestants traveled from all over to attend. Buster Pherigo of Pierceton said this was his second year coming to Bourbon for the car show and explained that last time he had won a prize under the special interest category for his 1986 Volkswagon trike.
"It took me about two years to build," he said of his custom vehicle that is part motorcycle, part car frame. "I like to come here (he said of the show), there are good people."
"Good people with good intentions" was the common statement offered by those in attendance that were not from the area — an opinion proven by the kindness and memorial of a handful of friends for a fellow car enthusiast that is still missed.