Model T Jamboree Part II

To recap: The 2007 Ohio Model T Jamboree took place over the Labor Day Weekend and was centered around Mount Vernon, Ohio. My father-in-law, John, entered his 1915 Model T, and Dave and I went along for the ride.

Early each morning everyone set out from the Mount Vernon town square and headed off along the same route to the same destinations. Along the way, the residents stood on their porches and driveways to waive and take pictures.

On Saturday morning we stopped at Malabar Farm, which once was owned by the renowned writer and conservationist, Louis Bromfield. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall were married and took their honeymoon there.

It’s a beautiful place. We’ve toured the main house before. We didn’t do that this time so I couldn’t get pics of the room Bogart and Bacall stayed in. If you ever get a chance to visit I recommend the tour, though.

There was livestock.

In a pasture there were 2 Clydesdale horses and another breed of horse. The other horse was fully grown and came up to the Clydesdales' withers (shoulders). The difference in size was dramatic. To give you some sense of scale, I’m about 5 feet tall. I'm accustomed to feeling short, but standing so close to the Clydesdales was like standing next to giants.

There were really cute sheep, of course. Dave suggested I pet them, but I declined. I've read Stephanie's fleece washing tutorial. Ick.

After Malabar Farm we took a scenic drive through Mohican State Park and then moved on to the lunch stop hosted by a church. Ts quickly filled up the church parking lot and were parked along the surrounding streets.

This is the overflow lot across the street.

Here’s a shot of a Model A Ford. Model As were built in the 1930s and came with more frills than Model Ts. Some have rumble seats. They’re really classy cars.

That night dinner was at the Knox County Fair Grounds. Conversation at our table centered around re-built carburetors. My eyes soon glazed over the way a non-knitters' does when knitters discuss the merits of various methods of casting on.

There’s always an auction to raise money for next year’s jamboree. This year John forgot to bring something to donate to the auction. He and Dave urged me to finish the second sock so we could donate the pair to the cause. I wasn’t close to finishing, but I’m curious how much people would have bid for some wild colored women’s hand-knit socks tailored to my size 7 narrow feet. (Yes. Size 7 is rather large for a person who is only 5 feet tall. I have big feet.) People bid on all kinds of things from Model T parts to Vera Bradley bags to hand-made beaded change purses and holiday decorations.

On Sunday we set out in much the same way as the day before.

Many owners of antique cars keep them garaged, trailer them to special events, display them, then trailer them back to the garage without ever really driving them anywhere. The owners who participate in the T Jamboree are a different breed. Their cars are driven all over the countryside.

There can be problems when Ts follow each other too closely up and down hills. There are no seatbelts, and sometimes the brakes are iffy. Driving uphill can be as scary as driving downhill. If the car ahead doesn't speed up enough to let the following cars get a running start up a hill, the cars behind can really struggle to make it to the top. Dave was driving. He got grumpy when that happened, and it happened a lot.

Along the way there were occasional breakdowns. When that happened a few cars pulled over to help out. The rest of us kept moving so as not to tie up traffic.

Since we were in the country, we saw some sheep.

We also passed 3 buffalo farms.

I managed to get a shot of some buffalo, but of course it isn’t a good shot. You'll just have to take my word for it that those brown blobs are buffalo (bison, actually).

The lunch stop was at the Village of Dresden, home of the Longaberger Basket factory. The factory was closed for the Labor Day Weekend, so there were no tours.

Ts lined the streets of Dresden. If you gnore the garbage can in front of the tree, you'll get an idea of how picturesque it was.

After lunch we wound our way back to Mount Vernon, where we said goodbye to John and headed home. We had a fantastic time and plan to do it all again next year.