Tin Can Tourists’ 2014 Chautauqua Rally
January 26th 2014
DeFuniak Springs, FL – Panama City, FL
Last night must have been a bit warmer as I had to get up and turn the heat down during the night as it started to get a little too warm in the trailer. Still was a bit cool outside this morning but the wind had calmed down and it felt promising for a warmer day. Around 8:00 am one of the event staff came by and invited all of us next door for a pancake breakfast so we all walked over to the old hospital building where they were cooking the breakfast. It was a great breakfast and we got to eat in a nice warm building.
After breakfast we all made our way back to our trailers for the last show day. Finally the temperature was starting to feel better and for once I did not have four full layers on, just a T-Shirt with a wind breaker jacket. The event was supposed to start around 8:00 am but the event grounds were empty with even a few other exhibits packing up late yesterday and leaving. Unfortunately the weather this year has been horribly cold and has kept the crowds in out of the weather.
Around lunch things started to pick up a bit with the weather finally warming up quite a bit and the sun had even broken through the clouds. I am sure the Church crowds helped with so many Churches around the lake, as well as the Civil War battle that was scheduled around 1:00 pm. We had quite a few people stop by from lunch time until the time for the Battle. After the Civil war battle there was another increase in people wanting to see the trailers as they walked back to the parking areas.
When 3:00 pm came around the crowds had finally stopped and it was time for the events to be over. All of us started to pack up, say our good byes, and get ready to hit the road. It was just our luck; the best weather of the entire weekend was when we were packing up. By 3:30 pm the first trailers were starting to pull out, the first three had the furthest to travel home while the rest of us only had about 50 miles to get home and a few only had 5 miles or less! By 4:00 pm the last three trailers in the line-up would be those of us from Panama City, so we all traveled home together as it is fun to see everyone on the road get excited when there is a caravan of vintage trailers traveling down the road together.
By 5:00 pm we were driving into Panama City and I was the first one to turn off the highway for the last mile of my trip home, the other two trailers passed by blowing their horns and waving as they went by. It has been a great time regardless of the cold weather, in fact because of the cold weather we had some of the best time sitting around a nice warm campfire and enjoying each other’s company. Looking forward to the next time we are all together, because “the more we get together”……well you know the rest!
Tim Heintz
Tin Can Tourists Southeastern Representative
1950 Spartanette Tandem