Woodward Dream Cruise

Woodward Dream Cruise

Third Saturday in August

Since 1995, the one-day Woodward Dream Cruise has featured a parade of cars driving down a 16-mile stretch of Woodward Avenue in the suburbs just north of Detroit, Mich. Owners of antique cars, muscle cars, custom cars, street rods, and special interest cars participate.
The first Dream Cruise was held in 1995 as a one-time event to raise funds for a children's soccer field. It attracted a crowd of 250,000, more than 10 times the number anticipated. The event proved so popular that it has grown into an annual event and has occurred each year since then, on the third Saturday in August. More than 40,000 classic cars travel the route from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Spectators line up along the sidewalks with folding chairs and blankets to watch the parade of interesting cars.
Car clubs, radio stations, and the automobile industry have taken an active role. Street rods and concept cars from North America and around the world participate in the Dream Cruise, which has developed into a multi-community street festival, with entertainment stages, food and merchandise vendors, parades, and automotive displays. It is arguably the largest one-day auto event in the world.
Woodward Avenue has a long automotive history. The second person to ever drive a car on Woodward Avenue was Henry Ford in 1896. In the 1950s and 1960s, Woodward Avenue was the Detroit area's most popular spot to go "cruising," driving slowly up and down the street to show off your car and to see the cars of others. The Dream Cruise reflects a past era, when youth in the area often "cruised" Woodward Avenue at night, driving muscle cars, visiting drive-in restaurants, looking for friends, or engaging in street races. Because the Dream Cruse particularly celebrates the heyday of the automobile from that time period and Detroit's prominence in the automobile industry, some of those who drive cars in the Woodward Dream Cruise wear 1950s style clothing and play "oldies" rock music from their car radios.
The Woodward Dream Cruise, Inc., is a nonprofit organization that coordinates the efforts of the nine communities involved in the event. Sales of Dream Cruise merchandise raise money for nearly 100 local charities.
The Woodward Dream Cruise has inspired similar cruises in nearby Macomb County, northeast of Detroit. Various "Gratiot Cruises" take place on Gratiot Avenue, another main thoroughfare once known for cruising.

CONTACTS:
Woodward Dream Cruise, Inc.
www.woodwarddreamcruise.com
Ferndale Downtown Development Authority
149 W. Nine Mile Rd.
Ferndale, MI 48220
248-546-1573; fax: 248-591-7034
www.ferndaledreamcruise.com
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Celebration days: Aug 20, 2011; Aug 18, 2012; Aug 17, 2013; Aug 16, 2014; Aug 15, 2015