AUBURN – Just before noon, they began lining the street.
Vintage Duesenbergs of all colors filled with people stopped in the 1600 block of Wayne Street, ending a ride that began in rainy Garrett and concluded at the same spot it does every year – the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum.
And then it was all hugs.
People spilled out of one car and leapt to hug people in the car next to them. Women wore hats or dressed in vintage clothing.
The men shook hands, gave each other high-fives and exchanged notes on engines and paint.
It was a reunion among members of the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Club, who completed the 35th annual Auburn Cord Duesenberg Festival Hoosier Tour on Thursday.
“This is our first time this year seeing some of our friends,” said Karlene Fredricks, who came from Toledo to be a part of the Labor Day festivities surrounding the festival. “That’s what all the hugging is about.”
Jack Laughlin of Fort Wayne drove his yellow 1929 Duesenberg in the tour. It was his third or fourth time in the tour, he said.
Though this year was a little soggy, the rain helped him in at least one way, he said.
Sometime during the night, Laughlin’s car was knocked out of gear, rolled backward and hit a pickup truck at a hotel, he said. It left a bit of white paint on the back bumper of his car, paint that was slowly being washed away by the rain.
“It’s just a little spot,” he said, relieved.
He was among those clasping hands with each other, seeing old friends and exchanging stories that have happened in the past year.
“It’s a reunion,” Laughlin said. “That’s exactly what it is.”
