Adaptability is the name of the game when it comes to outdoor events, something organizers of the sixth annual Wheels & Keels Collectible Car and Boat Show discovered last Saturday. As in previous years, the show was to be held on the beautiful first fairway of the Moorings Yacht and Country Club. However, when heavy rains put a kibosh on that idea, Plan B was quickly put into place.
“Yesterday we realized we couldn’t use the Moorings Club. We couldn’t put cars on the grass and we had too many cars to use the parking lot at the Moorings. Saint Edward’s was gracious enough to let us use their facilities,” said Wheels and Keels Foundation President Gavin Ruotolo.
In the end, they used both venues. Friday evening’s dinner and auction continued as planned at the Moorings, and on Saturday the “wheels” took over the parking lot of Saint Edward’s School and the “keels” remained docked or trailered at the Moorings. Attached golf carts formed efficient trolleys to continually ferry folks from one venue to the other.
Early showers put a slight damper on the show, but then the skies cleared up as attendees began to arrive. Watching as owners polished the rain off their beauties, Ruotolo said with a pragmatic shrug of his shoulder, “They know we live in Florida and we can’t control the weather. If it wasn’t for all the volunteers and the staff at the Moorings we could never put this together. We have approximately 24 volunteers plus all the staff at the Moorings Yacht and Country Club.”
The Wheels & Keels Show, supported by Hemmings Motor News & Motor Trend, and sponsored by, among others, Porsche of Melbourne and McLaren Palm Beach, was judged by a dozen experts under the guidance of Chief Judge Joseph Vicini. The task could not have been an easy one considering the enviable assortment of classic, sport, exotic and antique cars and luxury boats.
Some of the older vehicles on display included a 1937 Packard Coupe, 1931 Bentley Roadster, 1929 Dodge Brothers Senior Roadster and the granddaddy of them all, a 1926 Ford Model T. On the water, the Blue Mist, built in 1917 and designed as a personal commuter craft to ferry a family from Long Island to Manhattan, was attracting lots of attention.
“There were three made; this is the last one on the water,” said owner Allen Zwickel, who has turned it into a live-aboard. “It’s my house.”
Proceeds from this year’s show will benefit the Youth Sailing Foundation of Indian River County, The Arc of Indian River County, the Indian River Rowing Club and the Navy SEAL Trident House, a quiet refuge in Sebastian for families of returning or deceased SEALs.
“All these people brought their cars out and sat through the rain; I give them a lot of credit,” said YSF’s Chris Pope.
