Park on Park is the name of the Mundelein car show that is held on the 2nd Wednesday evening of the summer months.  Street rods, collectible cars of all descriptions are parked on and around Park Avenue for the admiration of gear heads like myself.  As I grow older with every visit to a car show the nostalgia grows more pervasive.  I am conscious that these automobiles are relics of a bygone age.  A life-time ago, when I was 17, a 327 powered 55 Chevy was not an uncommon ride to and from high school.  Gas was $.30 cents a gallon.  That was the heyday of the hot rod, the muscle car.  They were the apotheosis of the industrial age, manufactured in the Detroit’s factories by muscle and by machine.

The engines by today’s standards, were simple, inefficient, and powerful.  A feature of that time, the engines, and the running gear of the car were mechanical connections, an extended machine accessible to understanding by common sense, and direct effort.  Today vehicles are platforms for computers, the mechanical aspects less important than the software that manages the systems.  The industrial age is in the rear view mirror.  The age of the electric vehicle has begun.  The factory floor of today is populated with robots controlled by computers, assembling vehicles.

Here are some pictures that I took at the car show.

This is a 427 ci powered Chevy Nova hot rod.  Two big four barrel carburetors sit atop the high-rise manifold.  The owner told me with a twinkle in his eye that as long as one does not step on the gas, “It gets pretty good gas mileage. But when you ‘step on it’ you can see the needle move on the gas gage.'”  No doubt.

This is the front view of a beautiful English Anglia street rod.  The Anglia is a tiny auto that was often modified for competition as a “gasser” in the 50s and 60s.  I remember seeing one of these at Piedmont Drag strip in those days.  The one i remember was painted bright orange, with a big block 409 Chevy motor shoe-horned into the engine compartment.  The crew attempted over and over to tune the motor. Finally the beast was dialed in. Car and driver disappeared with a roar down the track to cross the finish line.  The crew members jumped up and down for joy.  Those were the days!

This view of the label on the chrome valve covers of a 426 Chrysler Hemi motor is a reminder of the days when the mighty Hemi ruled the track, set the performance standard that the Ford and Chevy teams aspired to match.  Sometimes they did put a Dodge or Plymouth Super Stocker on the trailer.  Ramchargers was the name of a famed Chrysler factory race team.

This beautiful California built car is a modern variant of a nostalgia 60s era Super Stocker.  It’s a 1964 Plymouth Belvedere with a 440 stroker motor.  The car has a full tube frame.  The motor is set back in the engine compartment.  I spoke briefly with the owner who just moved into the area from California.  He has yet to race the car.  No question about it, this one will certainly hook hard when it leaves the starting line.

The last photo is of a “rat rod.”  Don’t be fooled by the appearance of a broken down old jalopy.  It’s vintage Ford body, painted and lettered to resemble a 50s era hot rod.  The big block 463 ci engine exhaust empties into collector stacks.  This machine sounds as raw, as brutal as it looks.

See you at the drag strip!