I've just returned to the office after a ten-day road trip that took me from Corvette Fever World HQ to the Land Of 10,000 Car Lovers (i.e. Minnesota) for two very neat shows.

 The first one was "Back to the '50s," the BIG weekend show that fills the Minnesota State Fairgrounds every year, thanks to the work done by the members of the Minnesota Street Rod Association (MSRA). 

When I say BIG, that's not an understatement...this year, no fewer than 11,510 pre-'65 cars and trucks were registered as participants' rides, and the spectator gate easily exceeded 100,000 for the weekend (especially Saturday).The best way to see the C1 and early C2 Vettes that were on hand was to make your way around the fairgrounds, where you'd see vintage Vettes parked singly, or in groups, along the streets that line the fairgrounds.

It wasn't hard to spot VetteRods at back to the '50s...this C1 looked especially wicked from a distance (and probably sounded even better!)

So what if Mooneyes Yellow wasn't an original 1963 Sting Ray color choice? This one wore its  color proudly! (Usually, at Back to the '50s, you see more factory colors and paint schemes than you do bright ones like this or custom paint schemes like Kandy colors or big-grain metalflakes.)

You can run to Back to the '50s, and you can hide...but cool VetteRods parked at curbside, like this '53, will almost always catch my eye.

(Want to be a part of next year's Back to the '50s? Start by scoping out the Minnesota Street Rod Association (MSRA) website at www.msra.com. )