STATE COLLEGE — The 32nd annual Last Cruise car show was held in downtown State College on July 31. Spectators jammed South Allen Street to view about 70 vehicles which were included in the invitational “Best of the Best” show. Vehicles were judged in several categories, and spectators also voted for their favorite vehicle for a dollar. The event raises funds for the Centre County Youth Services Bureau through business sponsorships and fan voting.
Spectators were treated to a wide variety of beautiful vehicles at the show. Antiques, classics, muscle cars, race cars, sports cars, hot rods, pickup trucks and motorcycles were all on display.
Among the sports cars was a bright red 1954 Chevrolet Corvette convertible owned by Gene and Linda Castrovillo, of Central City. The Castrovillos and their son Anthony spent 16 months restoring the classic car, powered by Chevy’s venerable “blue flame” six-cylinder engine. The Castrovillos took the car to a show sponsored by the National Corvette Restorers Society in Warwick, R.I., where the car was autographed by 91-year-old Chauncey Williams. Williams was an industrial designer/draftsman hired by General Motors in 1952 to make a scale drawing of a clay model for “Project Opel,” which was the name of the secret two-seater sports car project, later named the Corvette.
Another bright red, attention-grabbing convertible shown was a 1962 Buick Special, owned by Don Magas, of Indiana, Pa. The rare Buick featured a matching red top and fender skirts, and it drew a crowd of admirers. Introduced in 1961, the Buick Special was marketed to compete with other compact cars such as the Ford Falcon, Chevy Corvair and Plymouth Valiant. The name “Special” was used on various Buicks dating back to the 1930s.
Richard and Lois Carl, from Millmont, brought their 1963 Corvette coupe to the show. This car featured the split rear window, which was used on Corvettes only for that year. A 327-cubic-inch V8 with a four-speed manual transmission powers the metallic blue coupe. Richard Carl said the car came from Puerto Rico, “mostly in pieces,” and was restored to showroom condition over a four-year period.
Drawing much attention among the hot rods was a low-slung 1929 Ford Model A sedan shown by Don Leitzell, of Beech Creek. The Model A features a chopped top, and sits on a lowered and stretched frame with a shortened 1932 Ford grille shell. Power is from a Chevy 350 V-8 with external exhaust headers. The glossy gray finish is accented with red wheels and “dog dish” hubcaps, mounted in classic wide whitewall tires. Leitzell found the car at RK Motorsports in Charlotte, N.C.
Taking the best-of-show award was a 1958 Chevy Impala convertible owned by Bob Gunder, and the crowd favorite award was given to Ronald Ruggiero for his 1959 Cadillac four-door hardtop.
The Last Cruise originated in the 1980s, when local radio DJs Wendy Williams and Kevin Nelson urged their listeners to come to State College for one last legal cruise on Beaver and College avenues before a new anti-cruising ordinance took effect. They expected a few cars to show up, but were shocked to find hundreds of cars inching through town in what Williams described in a 2010 interview as “gridlock on College and Beaver avenues as far as you could see, and police on every corner.” A tradition was born that night, and the next year an afternoon car show was added in the downtown area. The show’s location and format have changed over the years, and it has now become the “Best of the Best” show.
Following the car show, vehicles from the show as well as hot rods, muscle cars, antiques and classics from around the area took to the streets of State College for some cruising. The ban is lifted once a year for this event. Waving and cheering spectators greeted drivers as they rumbled and roared down Beaver and College avenues, once again reviving the tradition of “cruisin’ the block.”
