Benvenuti amici!
One of the most common questions I have fielded since proposing the Cream City 500 Club is "When are you starting a Facebook page?" It is a query I awkwardly answer as I have no personal Facebook presence. But I realize it is a powerful promotional and communications tool.
The value in this e-tool was never more clear than it was yesterday. One or two of our club members was/were running a bit late to our event and forgot the locale of our meeting. Their natural reaction was to search for a FB club page, in hopes to find info there. Of course, there was no page to be found.
So, with two successful meets under our belt and strong weekly readership, we have decided to launch the official Facebook page of the Cream City 500 Club. The proposal of the page is meant to create a user-friendly means of communication from club-to-members & supporters, members & supporters-to-club and, most importantly, members & supporters to other members & supporters. Posting of FIAT-related comments, photos & video clips is welcome. Posting of CC5C-related comments, photos & video clips is welcome. Posting of unrelated comments, photos & video clips is not welcome.
I have visited 'car guy' sites and been witness to the negative impact internet 'trolls' and other unsavory, imposing characters can have on a community. I do not want this negative influence in our community of proposition.
Here is the line-up of eight FIATs in attendance. Two Abarths, one 500T, one X1/9, two Lounges, a Sport and a Pop made up the parade this time. We caused a bit of a stir, as several people stopped to check them out. There was special interest in Sean Kane's 1982 X1/9...
I had to take a quick shot of this classic FIAT badge. The wreath motif is one fans of the CC5C logo are familiar. I created my own spin on the Italian wreath for the club ID. My goal was to pay respect to the past while also making something completely modern and decidedly mine...
After everyone was afforded the time to settle in and catch up with other members, as well as welcome new members, we paraded our 'centos along the lake shore and through the downtown area...
As you can see, we stopped at the Brewhouse Inn & Suites for a photo op. We were fortunate enough to have a mix of verde chiaro, bianco, argento (the X), grigio and nero FIATs...
This allowed us to stagger the cars artistically. On this side of the line-up, we have Joe's, my own, Mark & Lauren's and Mark & Jenn's fititos...
FIATs look very sexy when set against Milwaukee's storied Cream City Brick, no? I have been waiting to get these little buggies in the city for such a long time. I was relieved we managed to stop at the Inn on a day not many other photo shoots were taking place...
We nearly had the street all to ourselves. While there, we were approached by one of the founding members of the Milwaukee Minis car club. Fate? They are evolving into a micro car club of all brands, makes & models. In fact, this particular Mini driver also owns a classic 500...
Maybe we will join them on their events in the near future? It would be great to expand the community to put more smiles on more faces.
Alas, we neared the end of Saturday smile fest. Some of our members had other engagements to attend. We were thankful they made the time to be with us at all. Those able to hang out a little longer continued with us to another Città Crema destination...
No, we did not also have this classic Alfa along for the cruise. But I couldn't resist including it in this entry. It is a vision of loveliness and topped off our wheel time perfectly. We spotted it on our walk to where we would break bread. I thought I could work it into the blog and the FB page...
But better, because we'll have more trims & models. You and your FIAT make this club what it is. So far, we think it is BRILLIANT! Thank you for taking part in the fun of living and reading this blog. Remember to visit us on the all new CC5C FB. Until we see you again...
Ciao!
@
The value in this e-tool was never more clear than it was yesterday. One or two of our club members was/were running a bit late to our event and forgot the locale of our meeting. Their natural reaction was to search for a FB club page, in hopes to find info there. Of course, there was no page to be found.
So, with two successful meets under our belt and strong weekly readership, we have decided to launch the official Facebook page of the Cream City 500 Club. The proposal of the page is meant to create a user-friendly means of communication from club-to-members & supporters, members & supporters-to-club and, most importantly, members & supporters to other members & supporters. Posting of FIAT-related comments, photos & video clips is welcome. Posting of CC5C-related comments, photos & video clips is welcome. Posting of unrelated comments, photos & video clips is not welcome.
I have visited 'car guy' sites and been witness to the negative impact internet 'trolls' and other unsavory, imposing characters can have on a community. I do not want this negative influence in our community of proposition.
Taken at first CC5C meet - Bergstrom Milwaukee FIAT USA
So, what happens to the CC5C blog? No worries ~ nothing will change here. We will continue to share photos, brand history, stories, tributes and much of the same information in what has become our favored format. We still find tremendous value in blogging. But real-time communication is not a strong feature for blogs. There exists a disconnect which is nearly eliminated with an e-tool like Facebook.
We encourage you to continue to visit both sites on a regular basis. 'Like' us on Facebook ~ communicate with other members, supporters and fans. Use the information found on this blog as a source for some of your discussions. Spread the word and take an active role at our meets.
On the subject of meets, here are some photos from our first Cream City Cruise. Cream City Cruise is what we call our less than major events. There is still gelato involved, but these are shorter drives and meant to connect, in an exploratory manner, the fine neighborhoods of our great city.
Check it out!
The cruise began at the Halloween Extreme lot on Silver Spring Drive. Some members arrived early enough to enjoy some refreshing gelato on what turned out to be a beautiful September day...
Others arrived a little later or decided to hang out at the lot & show off their FIATs. Pictured above, closest to the camera, are Joe Noto's bianco e rosso 500 Abarth and Mark Friedel's nero, custom striped & modded 500T...
This fantastic shot is courtesy of & © Ben Davis
On this side of the line-up, we have Bryan's, Kathy's and the Davis' fičkos. The sun gave off a gorgeous glare in this shot. I added an edge blur to accentuate the natural and accidental effect...
Alas, we neared the end of Saturday smile fest. Some of our members had other engagements to attend. We were thankful they made the time to be with us at all. Those able to hang out a little longer continued with us to another Città Crema destination...
Finally, we stopped at Cafe Benelux for a leisurely, late lunch and refreshments. This is what our community is truly about ~ sharing our lives and interests in a way which makes this all too often big, cold world feel just a bit smaller and warmer. Many thanks to all in attendance!
Next month marks the anniversary of the weekend drive which sparked the idea to found this club. We propose a backroads drive through the Holy Hill area and lunch afterwards. The leaves are beginning to go through their Autumn transformations ~ So, there should be plenty of opportunities for amazing photos. We may also have the opportunity to take photos like this one on this very road...
Vivere.Amare.Guidare.
Ciao!
@
