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Community Corner

VIDEO: Best of Cruise the Backlot

Cruise the Backlot, now in its third year, has drawn hundreds of people to see vintage cars, revitalization of downtown Skokie.

A pageant of classic cars, from Depression-era Fords to cherry-red muscle cars from the 1960s, were on display Wednesday in downtown Skokie for the final time this year.

A shade under 75 car aficionados brought their pride and joy to a parking lot adjacent to the Skokie Public Library, showing off vehicles that ranged from those that were painstakingly restored to others that were customized for their owners.

Chicago resident Israel Balaguer showed off his yellow 1949 Four coupe, customized by a shop in Oklahoma. He and his wife Wanda have toured the Midwest in the car, visiting large car shows in Evansville, IN, and Des Moines, IO.

Balaguer said he likes his cars customized rather than restored to their original condition.

"I'm going to take it on the road," said Balaguer, who has attended Cruise the Backlot the last three years. "I like hot rods. It's a nice car, it's a nice ride and it's a hot rod."

Balaguer said he customized the interior, complete with flames looping across the dashboard, satellite radio and a skull topping off the gear shift. A 2,000-watt bass speaker adds to the car's deep growl.

But most of the attendees brought cars that were restored to their original state.

Mike Dennis, a Chicago resident, showed off his gray 1929 Ford Model A, a car that would look more in place in a film like Public Enemies than 2010 Skokie. In fact, Dennis said, the car was in the 1987 movie The Untouchables.

"A lot of people think these cars were all painted black, but no, that's not true," he said. "They're classic; they have that classic look to them. They really don't look like a lot of the muscle cars from the '60s or '70s."

Dennis says he prefers older cars, which don't resemble vehicles on the road today.

"I like it's age [and] the fact that it's 80 years old, plus the fact that it's still out there," he said. The maximum speed is a meager 55 mph, he said.

"You got to remember back in 1929, there weren't a lot of paved roads, and what paved roads there were, they weren't paved for very long. So you couldn't really go that fast," he said. "But going that fast, you also had to stop, and if you look at the tires, they're really like overgrown bicycle tires."

Dennis' Ford uses mechanical brakes; today's cars use hydraulic brakes to accommodate the heavier, faster vehicles.

Skokie resident Gary Watson is another fan of antique cars. His 1917 Chevrolet 490 is built with a wooden frame and features an exposed engine when the hood is lifted.

"You won't see another motor like this unless you find another Ford 490," he said.

"Holy moly," exclaimed an onlooker when Watson loosened two screws securing the hood.

Riding in the car "is like a ride at Disney World," said Watson's wife, Karen, a Skokie Part District's cultural arts supervisor who helped plan the event.

Dennis found his car on eBay, and purchased it from a Michigan dealership. He might not be done purchasing antique cars, though.

"I would like to get another car. I'm kind of looking at a 1909 Hupmobile," he said. "I like the odd cars. They kind of stand out."

Overcast skies that signaled the beginning of fall may have kept drivers away, said Howard Meyer, executive director of the Skokie Chamber of Commerce, which co-hosted the event with the park district and Independent Merchants Association of Downtown Skokie. Typically 80 or so classic cars are on display at the event, which occurred on the third Wednesday during the summer months.

But Meyer said the event again proved popular throughout the summer, with a crowd of more than 900 checking out the 90 cars on display in August. And as the village seeks to attract more businesses and shoppers, the event works in tandem with Skokie's downtown revitalization project.

"It's a great way to bring people to downtown Skokie," Meyer said.

For more scenes from Cruise the Backlot, click on the video.

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