Fabulous 50’s Fling helps community celebrate in many ways

Fabulous 50’s Fling helps community celebrate in many ways
Dave Mast

The return of the Fabulous 50’s Fling signified a move toward returning to normal for many, who missed the camaraderie of many car shows over the past 18 months.

                        

What better way to get back to some semblance of normalcy than to go way, way back, back before COVID-19 was ever a thing.

The viral pandemic swept away last year’s annual Sugarcreek Fabulous 50’s Fling, but the annual vintage car show roared back with a vengeance on Friday and Saturday, June 11-12 in downtown Sugarcreek, where warm conditions were welcomed by auto owners across the board as they celebrated the return of a form of art and a tradition they share.

With regulations for COVID-19 being relaxed several weeks ago, car shows are just now starting to rev up, and those who enjoy the sights of shiny chrome, the roar of souped-up engines and the nostalgia of these collectible cars were excited to get back to doing what they love.

However, it wasn’t just the automobiles people were excited about showing off and allowing others to enjoy, but also the return of the camaraderie and relationships.

According to Bev Keller, Fabulous 50’s executive vice president, cars were lined up at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday as judges greeted them and welcomed them to the show.

“They were lined up a long way,” Keller said. “I love seeing all of these people, and I love that we are getting back to what ewe enjoy. This is a place where we can all reconnect with people we have seen over the years here at this event, and we missed that a lot last year.”

Keller said this event is a big one for Sugarcreek, with many of the car owners making this their annual pilgrimage to Little Switzerland in Ohio. She said she heard from so many people who were excited to get back to the car show circuit. While there were a couple of shows throughout Ohio, they were few and far between for a group that is passionate about their shows.

Keller also said they had 98 cars show up for the Friday evening cruise-in and poker run.

“That was a great number for us, and the people got to get out in the village and the area and visit a lot of businesses,” Keller said. “This event is such a shot in the arm for the Sugarcreek business community. Our committee did a fabulous job of putting everything in place to make this a success after missing last year.”

The car owners couldn’t have agreed more, expressing their satisfaction with the event.

Sam Concelman, a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania native and owner of a 1955 Chevy Bel-Air, didn’t even register his automobile for the show. He and his wife simply like bringing in their car, relaxing under a tent and talking to people as they pass by.

“It’s a bit like having a child,” Concelman said. “After my wife, it’s second in command. We’ve had the car to shows in West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and more. It’s been terrible having to sit through this past year not having any shows. You find things to do, but I barely took the car out for a ride the past year, and I miss the chance to see all of the people we meet show after show.”

Larry Snyder from Atwater, Ohio has been to the show several years ago and is a longtime fan of car shows. He said with the lack of shows, like many, he ended up working on his 1960 Impala and pouring even more money into it to pass the time.

Chris Reed from Fredericksburg owns a 1972 Nova SS. He was a first-timer to the show and was enjoying the shade of his tent with those who came up to chat. He only purchased the car last year, so the show scene is new to him, and he was enjoying it.

“I never knew this even existed, but it is a great event,” Reed said as the live music from the band, The Belairs, arose from the pavilion near him. “I think seeing all of these cars and all of the people and talking about something we all enjoy is nice.”

Rich Harmon of Bolivar has owned his 1962 Ford for 33 years and seemed to be a popular stop for passersby as they checked out all of the vehicles. A longtime showman, Harmon said with the shutdown experienced last year, he didn’t want to be stagnant, so he used that time to plant a garden.

Harmon said this was his fourth show since the COVID regulations relaxed, and he has taken every opportunity to get back in the classic car show groove. “It’s been nice to reconnect with all of the people I’ve grown to know over the years, and it’s fun to meet new people too, which is a big part of what makes these shows so much fun,” he said.

One of those people was Dennis Connelly from Newcastle, Pennsylvania. The two had never met, but he and Harmon enjoyed getting to know one another.

“We’ve met a lot of great people today,” Connelly said. “We had gone to a lot of shows before COVID hit, and that just ended, so I did work on my car a lot during that time, but nothing takes the place of shows like this.”

While there was much celebration, one missing piece of the puzzle came in the form of Clayton Weller, Sugarcreek’s longtime mayor and a driving force behind the Sugarcreek car show. Weller was a big fan of this show and poured himself into it every year. Weller passed away in August of 2020, and the committee and many others remembered him fondly, knowing he would have loved seeing the return of this event in Sugarcreek.

“This is the first one of these without Clayton, and it almost doesn’t seem right,” Keller said. “He was always such a big part of this, and we miss him dearly.”

The committee honored Weller before presenting the awards ceremony. In turning to the awards part of the event, the top honor of Best of Show was bestowed upon the 1970 Plymouth AAR Cuda owned by Betty Firebaugh, who was awarded $500, thanks to Tuscarawas Insurance of Sugarcreek, owned by Zach Mottice.


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