A new outlet for an age-old passion of fast cars and roaring engines was founded in the Piedmont Throttle Kings.Around 24 members strong, the car club is already making its presence known by coordinating the recent Piedmont Business Council’s Bama’s Best Burger Car Show and creating a calendar with monthly Cruise Ins throughout the summer.
President Steve Robertson said the club started in December when a group of car lovers decided it was time to create a way to gather more enthusiasts like them into one place. After the group’s first organized meeting in January, the club had officers and a name, which pays homage to a 1960s Piedmont car club of similar name, Robertson said.
Although the majority of its members own modified or refurbished show cars, Robertson said ownership is not a requirement to be in the club. “We’re just out to get as many car enthusiasts involved in this as we can,” he said. “You don’t have to have a car to love them.”
Members range in age from early-20s to senior citizens and the spectrum of cars gets even broader, with modified foreign tuner cars all the way to classic 1970s American muscle cars.
Robertson said the variety the car club offers its members, and the people who attend their events, provides a unique look at all kinds of different cars. “You get a lot of ideas from looking at other people’s cars,” he said.
Robertson, who owns a boat repair shop on U.S. 278, even reserves a bay appropriately named “Hot Rod Bay,” where members gather every Friday night to work on the latest four-wheeled project. “Right now we’re working on a 1951 Ford two-door coupe,” he said. “We’re putting it on a 1982 Crown Vic frame. It’s stuff like that we really enjoy doing.”
The upcoming schedule of Cruise Ins will give the members, and other area car enthusiasts, a chance to bring their latest pet projects to downtown Piedmont to show off.
The first Cruise In is this Saturday from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Robertson said the event will include some musical entertainment, food and plenty of cars to enjoy.
The club plans to host a Cruise In on the third Saturday of every month through July.
Robertson said the event is a great way for families and car lovers to enjoy the inspiration they can get from other cars. “The main thing is to just let a bunch of enthusiasts get together and look at each other’s cars,” he said.
With the success the Throttle Kings saw with the Bama’s Best Burger Car Show, Robertson said he is hoping to see a similar turnout of around 85 cars. In the future, the club plans to take the wheel on the entire car show event, and making it their own, Robertson said.
The Piedmont Throttle Kings meet the last Tuesday of every month at the Old First National Bank in downtown Piedmont. Member fees are $10 per month and go towards the purchase of t-shirts for events and other event-related expenses. For more information, contact Robertson at 447-3041 or Dan Freeman at 239-6580.
