WYOMING, Mich. — At Rogers Plaza in Wyoming, people have been getting their prized vehicles show-ready since Friday morning. Events for the 19th annual Metro Cruise are now in full swing, with drivers ready to go cruising up and down 28th Street.
With food trucks and live entertainment, Friday's events are centered at Rogers Plaza, where 156 collector cars are on display, along with many more filling the area, ranging from cars close to 100 years old to brand-new sports cars.
All seven sights along 28th Street will be active on Saturday.
"From Granville through Cascade, they'll have a number of different features, so each one of them has what we call a unique piece of car-related entertainment," said event manager Brandon Simmons. "Some of them will have a monster truck display, one has a huge 40 by 60 timed RC race course, which is really cool."
Other sights include kids' entertainment and antique fire engines, along with other unofficial events hosted by businesses along 28th Street.
"The cars become a way of life," said Gary Elve standing next to his 1956 Chevy Nomad. Elve says he has been attending Metro Cruise since the first edition, and it's the people who keep him coming back.
"This whole group at the park right here, we're all friends. We get together, just have a good time," said Elve.
Having conversations with car owners quickly shows just how many stories lie with each vehicle.
"This was at my sister's house. It was a week old," said Jeff Lombard, showing the framed photo kept on his black Gremlin of himself with his wife in 1973, taken shortly after he had bought the car.
"We just park right here and sit, and run into old high school friends I haven't seen in 30 years. They know we're right here," said Lombard.
"This truck right here belonged to my mother, and before she passed, she gave it to me, and I drove it from California down here," said Raul Saldana. "Took me for four winners to fix it and I took all the paint off and I fixed all the little dents they saw, no holes, no patches, and I painted it myself. And I think she's very proud."
The event will go until 9 p.m. on Friday and will run from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday.