Corvettes at Carlisle: Pics From the Downtown Parade!

by Steve Burns
Corvette Blogger

I was finally able to make it to Carlisle’s downtown parade for the first time last weekend. I’m little bit embarrassed to admit that in my 5 previous trips to Carlisle that it wasn’t really on my radar screen of must-attend events. Now I’m trying to find a functional flux capacitor and a DeLorean so I can go back in time and catch up on the parades I’ve missed.

The downtown parade gathers on the Fun Field near the end of Saturday’s activities. From there hundreds of Corvettes roll a few miles down the road to historic downtown Carlisle, park in the streets, and basically have a street party of sorts.

I arrived in town about 15 minutes before the rumbling exhausts filled the streets. Just as I exited my car rain started to fall harder than it had all day. I was convinced that very few Corvettes were going to attend this event. After all, Corvettes melt when they get wet, don’t they? As I proceeded up the sidewalk I was surprised to see people in chairs eagerly waiting for America’s sports car with cameras in one hand and umbrellas in the other. The outer bands of hurricane Irene couldn’t keep the people away. Just then the low rumble of thumping V8 exhausts peeked my attention and the rain lightened slightly.

Two-by-two the cars filed into town led by a fleet of Carlisle Blue and 2012 Corvettes. As I watched the cars head to their respective parking locations, I noticed the excitement level of the spectators increasing as each Corvette sauntered by. Almost like Christmas shoppers on Black Friday. Young and old, locals and tourists alike were just waiting for the cars to stop so they could jump into the streets and check out all the cool rides. Corvettes from all 6 generations were present including 2012 Corvette VIN #1 as well as the winner of the prestigious Keith’s Choice award. Probably one of my favorite moments of the evening was watching a couple of different Corvette owners invite some small children (probably 5 or 6 years old) to sit in their Corvettes. The kids’ smiles were overpowering. You just know that they’ll have cars in the downtown parade about 20 years from now.

I’m pleased to announce that no Corvettes melted or shrunk due to the light persistent rain that night and that the downtown parade will be on my agenda for next year’s Corvettes at Carlisle. It should be on yours as well.

Below are some of my soggy photos from the parade.