Benvenuti amici!
One year ago several FIAT 500 owners, of varying ages and backgrounds, gathered to celebrate their daily drivers. Unlike most USAmerican motorist gatherings, this one focused as much or more on the drivers as it did their coaches. With a commemorating event just around the corner, I think a quick recap is in order. Let's ride…
Many have chosen to do just that. In this photo of a Guidare e Gelato cruise to the annual Strawberry Festival, in Cedarburg, two coaches joined us for the first time. One, pictured above, is a giallo 500 Sport. The other is an azzurro X1/9. The drivers of each FIAT are very active on our Facebook page and enthusiastic about the brand & club. The household of the Sport has multiplied by three, while the X1/9 almost always brings in other drivers of vintage FIATs.
While some have decided we offer something they'd like to regularly take part in, others are just fine taking us in spaced doses or once, then, never again. I dig that. FIATs are not coaches every person wants to drive every day and not every person driving a FIAT does so for any other reason than they are small, economical at the pump and different. It takes all kinds to build a community. That includes the Italian runabout variety.
Ciao!
@
Most of my creative ideas come to me in a seemingly random manner. That is not the case with Cream City 500 Club. As has been documented on this blog and the CC5C/CCCC Facebook page, the idea for this club began with the friendly prodding of friends at our Local Studio and a random celebratory cruise & lunch with another married FIAT-driving couple. That is the very core of our club: FIATs. Family. Fun.
Ten months after that random cruise, with friends, we held the very first CC5C Guidare e Gelato gathering and led the cruise to a gelateria. The idea is any 'official' CC5Cruise is a Guidare e Gelato event. Unfortunately, we do not stop for gelato on every one of them. The name of our cruises is meant to be more of a nod to the Italian pedigree of our coaches as well as a cheeky wink to all the non-Italian North American car clubs.
The inaugural CC5Cruise event drew, I believe, 20 FIATs. Sixteen of the attendees actually stuck around after the photo-op and joined the caravan to La Coppa Gelateria & Café. Although the entry into the outdoor mall area was a bit awkward, we caused a stir and had a great time.
Our second Guidare e Gelato was a cruise into the heart of Milwaukee. We met where we ended our previous cruise and drove to the Pabst Brewery for photos... Cream City Brick buildings as a backdrop. The attendance was half what is was the month before, but that worked to our advantage. It was that much easier to stage a cool shot of our rides. Plus, it marked the first time we stopped for a family-styled meal and a vintage FIAT joined us… an X1/9!
It has been asked, of me, many times whether I mind non-500 FIATs joining our club & cruises. I want to take this moment to answer it 'officially'… once & for all. N-O. I do not mind non-500 FIATs joining our club and/or cruises. If you keep up with this blog and our FB page, you know I have a passion for ALL ITALIAN BRANDS IN THE FIAT FAMIGLIA. I want drivers of these lovely coaches to feel free to come & go as they please. This is a 'family' of Italian car lovers. Not every member of any given family looks or sounds alike. Why would a club identifying itself as La Famiglia exclude members that look different?
I first thought to name the club after the Topolino & the Cinquino, because it is the coach I assumed most members would own. I didn't see or hear of many vintage 124s and/or X1/9s in the Milwaukee area. Plus Cinquecento fit perfectly with Cream City. The more I dove into the wonderful world of FIAT S.p.A. history, the more I realized just how important the 1936, 1957 and 1991 500s were to Italy and the rest of Europe. It mirrored how important our first 2012 500 was/is to us. But that does not equate to us missing the fact there are other FIATs out there.
Get over the name. Get over the model. Get over whatever hang up/s you have and start joining in on the F-U-N of life experiences with other amazing people in your immediate area. Life, after all, is what this is really all about. Am I right? Of course, I am. Keep cruising.
The third Guidare e Gelato saw 11 FIATs join in on the fun, as seen above. It was held in October. That meant the view, as we made our way through tree-lined windy backroads was amazing. We concluded our drive with another family-styled meal. This would be the second time a CC5Cruise would end with such a meal. It has, to some degree, replaced the idea of stopping for gelato. But I have not given up looking for a way to get the cold, tasty treat back into our time together.
The fourth Guidare e Gelato did not have tasty treats on the menu, but it did have cold. We led the fair-sized group to the Third Ward area and stopped for some Ping-Pong and food. I had no idea whether anyone would be up for this one. It snowed that day and many, including ourselves, had recently purchased a 500 ABARTH. It is not the model you would immediately think of when taking in a winter drive. All went without a hitch, we had an absolute blast and the ABARTHs handled the white stuff flawlessly!
As the cold lingered, while snow melted, and another CC5Cruise seemed increasingly more unreasonable an idea, we decided to hold a planning meet for the upcoming driving season. After the meeting we drove to Divino Wine & Dine for lunch. That day we put down some delicious food and put together what would become a breathtaking year for our toddler of a club.
We agreed, in part, at the enthusiastic request of our Sales & Service department, the first 'official' CC5Cruise of 2014 would be a shared drive & dine with Brandon, Jeremiah & Luke. This marked the first CC5Cruise with a non-FIAT-related vehicle. Luke trailed us in his slick, red VW Golf. The original Polo/Golf look, just as is the case with the Renault 5, was based on and meant to compete with the FIAT 127. So, Luke & his German coach fit right in.
But I digress.
The chosen eatery was the same as it was for our third Guidare e Gelato and we had a fantastic turnout. The Fox & Hounds restaurant agreed to reserve an area for our group, which was a good thing. So many people joined us, there was one free seat and little elbow run to be had. It was truly a family affair… one I intend to make an annual group event.
One final note on this CC5Cruise: I found the tree-lined windy backroads were even more fun in our ABARTH!
We quickly followed up our first CC5Cruise of 2014 with another. This time, we were led by an X1/9 and drove to the Wisconsin Automotive Museum. I think a vintage FIAT taking the lead on a cruise to an auto museum was the only way to go. In addition, it gave the missus & I the opportunity to take a position near the rear. That led to us getting loads of great photos and enjoying the ride without the pressure of looking after the group.
Here is a second shot of the Auto Museum CC5Cruise group. How cool does that X1/9 look in the midst of more modern FIATs? To tell you the truth, I think of any post-Giacosa designed FIAT as modern. The Italian coach builder had a different energy after don Giacosa retired. FIAT was, once again, focused on making a global splash.
We ended this event with a pitstop at The Mineshaft for lunch.
This is a different type of cruise… one I find inspirational. On our Facebook page, you may have noticed a photo album called 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.' That title was inspired by this photo and the one directly following it (See; below)...
A 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.'… in the truest sense… is a random gathering of two or more CC5C famiglia members. A photo is taken and shared on our Facebook page. I am very proud of the fact quite a few people from our group hangout in-between events. Truth be told, I could not ask for a better outcome than friendships growing out of our original proposition. For me, it is proof we are a life experience society.
I've grown that Facebook photo album, over time, to include stuff I want to share with the group. However, the very essence of 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.' is still very much about FIAT-driving friends getting together, because they actually enjoy the company they share.
The shot, above, is a special Guidare e Gelato cruise I proposed. It took us to Jefferson County. Ten or eleven members cruised to and/or met at the Hwy-18 Outdoor Theater, also known as a Drive-In. This was to commemorate the very first television advert FIAT aired in the USA, upon their return to our market. In fact, a large source of inspiration for our gatherings… along with the vibe I do my best to establish… for our group is based on the spirit of FIAT adverts over the decades.
I find there is something FIAT communicates, in print as well as in moving film, that is unique to the Italian automaker. Whether or not there is an Italian person present in their adverts, there is always the soul of Italian (and generally Latin) flair & drama in those ads. Modeling club events after them draws people to at least check us out.
Many have chosen to do just that. In this photo of a Guidare e Gelato cruise to the annual Strawberry Festival, in Cedarburg, two coaches joined us for the first time. One, pictured above, is a giallo 500 Sport. The other is an azzurro X1/9. The drivers of each FIAT are very active on our Facebook page and enthusiastic about the brand & club. The household of the Sport has multiplied by three, while the X1/9 almost always brings in other drivers of vintage FIATs.
While some have decided we offer something they'd like to regularly take part in, others are just fine taking us in spaced doses or once, then, never again. I dig that. FIATs are not coaches every person wants to drive every day and not every person driving a FIAT does so for any other reason than they are small, economical at the pump and different. It takes all kinds to build a community. That includes the Italian runabout variety.
On the subject of community… it has always been a goal of mine to support and be supported by our local Italian community. One of the 2014 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.' was an opportunity to take part in local news advertising for the Milwaukee Festa Italiana event. It is a local festival, that takes place on our Summerfest grounds, celebrating Italian heritage.
The Italian Community Center asked, at best, for five FIATs. Imagine their surprise when seven drove onto the grounds, together, in the middle of a work day on a sunny Wednesday morning. The news agencies present as well as the Italian Community Center were so excited they asked whether we had an interest in taking part in this sort of thing every year.
How cool is that?!
Another community I've made it my business to wedge our group into is the greater FIAT community… on a national and international level. It is with this in mind we attended the annual gathering of FIAT Club America. This group has been around a few decades. That means they weathered the years FIAT no longer sold their fun lil' machines on our shores. I've offered my services by submitting editorials for their self-published RICAMBI magazine and becoming a Regional Contact for Wisconsin.
Their annual gathering is called FIAT FreakOut! and, in 2014, was held in the Midwest for the first time in the group's history. The Chicago area event is also the first time the group met so far to the West. I felt we had to attend. By doing so, we forged new relationships with other community movements and solidified friendships we'd formally only enjoyed online. This 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.' drew six or seven local and non-local CC5Cers.
Our next Guidare e Gelato also drew a non-local CC5Cer. Colin Brown braved a drive from Minnesota to help us celebrate the birthdays of FIAT S.p.A., the FIAT 500 and CC5C. Unfortunately, timing limited attendance. For the first time, even I could only join the first mile or two of the caravan. I will put a lot more thought into planning future July gatherings.
One late July/early August gathering requiring very little from CC5C, in terms of planning is the Reina Italian Auto & Moto Show. Reina International Auto, a local fine foreign coach dealer puts this show on every year. Attendees are treated with the opportunity to feast their eyes on beautiful Italian machines of all vintages, wheel counts and price tags. Considering the Reina involvement in performance/Motorsport, it makes perfect sense to develop a relationship based on our mutual appreciation for Italian things that go Vvrooom!
This photo captures a moment that, like our Reina 'Random. Road. Rendezvous.', is performance/Motorsport based. This is the group we led to the FIAT/SRT-sponsored ABARTH Track Experience. We led three other ABARTHs to the Autobahn County Club, in Joliet IL, to enjoy a day at the track on FIAT USA. The experience provided an opportunity to learn more about our "Small but Wicked" rides and meet with Madison-based CC5Cer Mike Bradley.
The packaged bonus to living with an ABARTH 500, I think, drew CC5C attendees closer… as intense life lessons tend to do. I could not be more thrilled. Or could I?
Next on the CC5Calendar takes us back to the start of this entry. On 17 August 2014, we will celebrate the very first CC5Cruise with a trip to the Madison area. The initial destination is the home of Craig & Ann Swenson. They graciously offered to host a light lunch and lead the group of attendees, through windy backroads, to the Wollersheim Winery. Our Southeastern Wisconsin-based club will not be the only attendees from our area, though.
The winery will also be playing host to Cedar Creek Wines this weekend. A happy coincidence or fate? You decide.
That wraps up this recap of our first year in cruises. I trust you found the themes of our cruises inspiring. FIATs are not ordinary cars for ordinary people. Why should a club devoted to these cute lil' buggers and the cruises of said club be any less extraordinary?
"Life is best when driven…"
Vivere.Amare.Guidare.
Ciao!
@
