San Bernardino, CA: Rendezvous Back to Route 66 Rolls On

Yesterday marked the tenth year of the Rendezvous Back to Route 66 in San Bernardino under the auspices of the San Bernardino Area Chamber of Commerce. The current classic car show is what has evolved following the demise of the former San Bernardino Convention and Visitors Bureau.

It was a nice gathering on the streets of downtown, a little subdued while I was there, no doubt a reaction to temps approaching the century mark. I might’ve made an entire day of it except for a season opening reception in the evening at the Desert Art Center in Palm Springs.

I made my usual gazillion pictures, but really only liked this one, above, a detail of a tail fin and the chrome spare cover of a 1957 Chevrolet BelAir owned by Raymond Rodriguez of Grand Terrace, Calif., in light reflected by an adjacent vehicle.

The sold-out show is as much about the cars as the culture they represent, a time when San Bernardino was a broad-backed middle class working town with good jobs and schools, where one could raise a family and live a decent life. Cruising E Street with the windows down and music playing on summer evenings was a manifestation of that former time.

Driving into town from the 215 I was encouraged by construction of the new 5th Street Gateway Project. I’m hopeful for the future of San Bernardino, and successful events such as the car show is certainly a small part of that.