Celebrating 60 Years!
I really dig this show. Well, it really isn’t a show as much as it is an event. For decades the Early Times car club has been hosting a picnic at the Compton Hunting and Fishing Club right off the 710 at Atlantic.This year they are celebrating 60 Years. I am not sure if that means 60 years as a club or 60 years with the picnic or both. So, I look back at earlier posts from this event and I see that last year I reported it was their 58th year of hosting the picnic. That makes me assume this year is 60 years as a club and the 59th picnic. I then went out the garage and take a look at my dash plaques on my ’50’s Hotpoint Fridge door. Yep. 59th Annual Picnic. 60 Years as a Club!
Whew! Now that, that is figured out we can continue on with the story.
“But wait, T-Bone, I haven’t heard of this club before, can you tell me a bit about em?” – You ask.
Back in 2012 I was invited to their clubhouse and wrote an article with cool photos from the walls of their hideout and spreads from their HUGE scrapbooks they have kept through the years. Some photos in the scrapbook are NSFW but most of ya are retired so here’s the link:
The story begins in 1965 when a group of young car guys thought to band together to go to events and enjoy the cruising culture around the Long Beach region of Southern California. The club grew to over 30 members at one time and they currently enjoy the camaraderie of their 18 members. The members own anything from1948 and earlier with some exceptions to ‘50’s and ‘60’s American Cars. The club started with requirements of ’34 and earlier, then recently changed to pre-1949….
Below I have photos from this year’s picnic. Of course great rides and of course Mercifuls rolled up in style. We had seven members attend this year. One of the most popular rides in the lot was a nice old truck with a twin-McCulloch powered Go-Kart! I brought a set of Jarts, yep those things that were banned in the 70’s and outlawed in the 80’s. We played it safe and each of my buddies kicked my butt. If you are in Southern California in June, you gotta come picnic with us.
