You might be surprised to learn that one of the Ferraris that played a starring role in the 1986 flick “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” is here in Richmond, tucked away in a private collection. It’s not a real Ferrari — three replica cars were built specifically for the movie — yet even those replicas have fetched $300,000 to $400,000 at auctions in recent years.
If you dream of hot rods, muscle cars, antiques, mods, classics or supercars, there are many on full display at the car meetups and cruise-ins that bloom around the Richmond region along with warmer weather. These casual but organized gatherings are an easy way to admire vehicles of all shapes, sizes, horsepowers and vintages. Their owners come, open the doors and prop up the hoods, and invite others to share in the fun.
“I call it a passion for cars,” says Kenny Holder, who founded Cars & Coffee Richmond in 2011. “Yes, there’s an emotional connection, but for me, it’s a passion. It’s like having that Hot Wheels car you had when you were a kid — that first thing you bought with your own money that you took care of.”
Photo by Michael Lee
Pull up and Park
More than a decade ago, Holder, his cousin Damond Knight and a friend wanted to create a space where car enthusiasts could get together to share stories, swap ideas and show off their wheels. Inspired by the loosely organized, informal parking lot shows called Cars & Coffee that began in California in the early 2000s, they started a similar meetup here. At the first C&C Richmond event, there were 20 cars. Now, more than 100 owners often attend the biweekly meet, and a busy day can include upward of 140. “It was about bringing everybody together from different backgrounds,” Holder says.
Another goal is reaching people who might not consider themselves car enthusiasts but enjoy looking. “We wanted to bridge the gap between the community around us and the auto community,” he says. “Success for me is when I walk around and see smiles from little kids, and I meet people who you wouldn’t normally see talking about cars.”
Holder grew up attending the New York International Auto Show at Manhattan’s Jacob Javits Convention Center with his uncle Tommy Wynn, who was into cars. Now a senior software engineer, Holder owns a 2009 Nissan GT-R, a 2012 Maserati GranTurismo and a 2014 Dodge Viper — the same type of car his uncle owned.
Car meetups are about ‘bringing everybody together from different backgrounds.’
—Kenny Holder, Cars & Coffee Richmond
C&C Richmond has met at several locations around the region since its founding in 2011. The group currently gathers at Stony Point Fashion Park from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. every other Saturday, weather permitting. Participants pay a $5 fee to help cover the cost of insurance and security; for onlookers it’s free.
Cars & Coffee Richmond founder Kenny Holder (Photo by Jay Paul)
C&C Richmond attracts American muscle cars, top-of-the-line sports cars, tricked-out everyday drivers and antiques that are either lovingly restored or works in progress.
“You never know what’s going to be here,” says Todd Jenkins, standing among a cluster of Porsches. “You could have a $20,000 [Mazda] Miata next to a million-dollar Ferrari. This is a very democratic form of car event. Car culture is hidden in Richmond. You never know what’s in [somebody’s] garage.”
Jenkins occasionally brings his 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, which he inherited from his father in 1995. At the time, the car had only 39,000 miles on it, but it needed to be “refreshed.” Jenkins did the work in stages, eventually showing it at the exclusive 1998 Concours d’Elegance car show in Amelia Island, Florida. He tries to drive the car regularly — “The worst thing you can do is not drive them,” he notes — but will put it in an enclosed trailer when he and his wife travel long distances. One of their favorite local drives is to follow state Route 5 to Williamsburg, have lunch and then return.
Jenkins’ attachment to the car goes beyond its mechanics. “Cars became a passion for me because my father was 60 when I was born,” he says. “It was something he and I connected on. We didn’t go out and play ball. Cars were something we shared a love of.”
When the Mercedes reached its 65th anniversary in 2022, Jenkins reenacted a photo of his father standing next to the car wearing a belted trench coat and fedora. The recently snapped photo shows Jenkins standing in the same position, wearing the same coat and hat.
Rusty Holcomb, who worked for Page Auto Group for 35 years, retiring as service director, agrees that many people feel an emotional connection to cars. “You do become attached [to a car],” he says. “Most people [who] have these old cars, they grew up with them and couldn’t afford them. Now they can.”
Holcomb also points out that cars became status symbols in the mid-20th century. “Everyone at school, they knew you by your car,” he says. “Maybe they didn’t know your name, but they knew your car. Back in the day, you could date girls you wanted based on your car. That was your calling card.”
Owners bring a wide variety of vehicles to Cars & Coffee Richmond. (Photos by Michael Lee)
Community-driven
Holcomb is now chairman of the board of River City Cruizers — the spelling is deliberate, to separate the group from a similarly named organization in the Midwest. Formed in 2020, the club’s primary goal is to raise money for local charities and welcome people wherever they are in their car journey. “You have to be a little bit of a gearhead, just have a little passion for a car,” he says. “You like to look at them, drive them, maybe own them.”
The Cruizers hold small fundraisers throughout the year and one large event in the fall. Revenue comes from registration fees paid by car owners and donations from supporting businesses. There’s no entry fee for spectators. The Cruizers’ signature event, an annual car and truck show, is set for Oct. 13 at the Chesterfield Technical Center Courthouse campus, and proceeds will benefit the county’s career training programs.
“There’s a huge need for the younger generation to get into the auto repair field,” Holcomb says. “Currently, there’s an 800,000-technician shortage in the U.S. This event is open to everybody so people can just come see what it’s about.”
River City Cruizers also hosts “cruise-ins” at area restaurants. They are free and usually feature raffles with donated giveaways. “People will stop, see 20 to 50 antique cars and enjoy dinner,” Holcomb says.
And you never know what you’ll see. “We don’t care what you drive,” he says. “We’re not like the clubs where you have to drive a Mustang or a Chevy built in a certain year of production. Some of the younger members gravitate toward the cars they grew up with. I grew up with the muscle cars of the ’60s and ’70s. Most of the younger kids drive Hondas or Toyotas. That’s perfectly OK; that’s what they grew up with.”
Another club open to all makes — but with age limits — is Ferdinand & Friends, established in 2023 by a group of vintage Volkswagen owners who routinely saw one another at Cars & Coffee Richmond.
“A lot of the guys with classic cars at C&C kept talking about a get-together that was just classic cars,” says Al Bryan, one of the organizers. Ferdinand & Friends — named for the developer of the VW Beetle and founder of his namesake company, Ferdinand Porsche — is dedicated to cars of any make that are at least 30 years old.
Bryan says that most of the people who come to Ferdinand & Friends enjoy working under the hood. “They usually have a good mechanical knowledge of their vehicle,” he says. “There is no typical person. We have people from all walks of life. Some folks are mechanics, but some are physicians. It’s a matter of personal interest in automotive history, and it’s a hobby.”
Anybody is welcome to come and look. You don’t have to have a showstopper to show up.
—Al Bryan, Ferdinand & Friends
Bryan’s 1963 VW Beetle and 1970 VW Squareback need regular valve and timing adjustments, as well as frequent oil changes, to keep them running. And he wants them to run. “To me, that’s the fun of them,” he says. “I drive them all over the place.” But not, he notes, on highways and interstates. “That’s where you get stones, and their suspensions aren’t as stable at high speeds. Plus, they’re very light [vehicles].”
Cost of maintenance varies, he says. “It depends on the vehicle. If you have a Chevy or a Ford, you can find good sources for aftermarket parts for those vehicles. When you get to Porsches, high-end Mercedes, Lotus and Ferrari, those parts are going to be more expensive. Serious hobbyists like to tinker with their cars; they have time and money invested.”
Ferdinand & Friends meets at the Stony Point Village shopping center in Bon Air. There’s no cost to participate, and attendance varies. “We could have three or four cars or 25,” Bryan says. “It’s been a cozy group, diverse, with many different makes and models of vehicles. Anybody is welcome to come and look. You don’t have to have a showstopper to show up. It’s about the process and seeing classic cars restored and being restored.”
Space for All
Girls & Gasoline founder Nickie Armstrong (Photo by Jay Paul)
Nickie Armstrong owns five Ford Mustangs: three for racing, a 2016 Shelby GT350 and a 1978 Ford Mustang King Cobra. She first became familiar with the make from watching her father restore a 1973 Mustang. Years later, she met the man who would become her husband when he worked on her Jeep. He also happened to be a Ford technician, and he encouraged her to return to her car roots.
“I went down a horrible rabbit hole,” she says of her car collection with a laugh. She asked her husband to finish restoring the ’78 Mustang before the end of March, when their first child was due to arrive. “It’s the only one with a back seat,” she says.
Roughly four years ago, while attending a local car meetup, Armstrong had an idea: create a car club for women. “I thought, ‘How cool it would be to have other girls to talk car stuff with?’” she says. “Most of us get overlooked at meets or car shows. Every guy who comes up will talk with our significant others. So we were like, let’s make lemons out of lemonade.”
Girls & Gasoline was the result — a club that aims to bring women together who appreciate auto culture and encourage participation in local auto communities. The group has an active Facebook page, hosts monthly meets or indoor gatherings and attends events hosted by other clubs. “We try to keep variety so we’re inclusive of everyone,” she says.
Any car is welcome, too. “We have licensed racers and driving instructors all the way down to folks with their ‘mom’ cars, their daily drivers,” Armstrong says. “I love the friendship and community [the group fosters]. We did holiday charity laps [at Richmond Raceway] in December.” For some of the women, it was their first experience driving on a track. “They had an absolute blast. This is how we get girls on the track and how we get them excited.”
We want to educate, support and empower women.
—Nickie Armstrong, Girls & Gasoline
When members of Girls & Gasoline attend car events together, they attract attention. “It’s not every day you see 15 to 20 really cool cars piloted by women at a meet or car show,” she says. “A lot of times, people will say they have someone they want to refer to the group. Men have requested to join, with encouraging words. We don’t keep people out. If guys want to come, we’re totally open as long as they support our mission.”
Armstrong credits a strong team of volunteers, all of whom have full-time jobs, for keeping the club moving. “I couldn’t do what I do without the amazing support of administrators and moderators on the page,” she says. “These ladies have become a second family to me; they keep the wheels on the pavement with the Facebook group.”
The group did a backpack and supply drive for HER Sports in Charlottesville and hopes to increase community involvement, perhaps through hosting workshops. “We want to educate, support and empower women to pursue all their dreams in auto culture,” she adds. “Our members range from teens who come with their moms to retirees.”
Supporting dreams seems to be the goal of all the local groups. As Todd Jenkins, who grew up with his father’s collection, puts it: “There are so many things to love: the mechanics, speed, beauty. These are all different ways people connect with cars,” he says. “It allows people to express themselves, whatever car culture they’re in: rat rod, low rider, hot rodding. No pun intended, this hobby is a vehicle for people to connect with and explore their passions.”
Owner PG Lamb touches up his 2022 Acura NSX Type S. (Photo by Michael Lee)
Nuts & Bolts
Want to see the cars for yourself? Stop by any of these events. They are generally free for attendees; some charge a small fee to exhibit a car. Most meetups have a “wipers on, meet off” rule, meaning they cancel in case of rain. For more cruise-ins, car shows and clubs in the region, visit carclubcouncil.com.
Cars & Coffee Richmond
8 to 10 a.m. every other Saturday; $5 to exhibit, free for attendees
Stony Point Fashion Park, 9200 Stony Point Parkway
Ferdinand & Friends
8 to 10 a.m. the second Saturday of each month, April-September; classic cars: stock models to 1990, custom to 2000
Old Stony Point Shopping Center, 9006 Huguenot Road
NK Cruisers
6 to 9 p.m. the first and third Friday of the month, April-October
Rosie’s at Colonial Downs, Lot 7, 10515 Colonial Downs Parkway, New Kent
Oldies but Goodies Classic Cruisers
8 to 11 a.m. the first Saturday of the month, April-October
Keystone Truck & Tractor Museum and Keystone Grill, 880 W. Roslyn Road, Colonial Heights
Cars and Coffee 804
8 a.m. to noon, quarterly
Richmond International Airport, Economy Lot A
Virginia Classic Cruisers
5 to 8 p.m. the second Friday of the month, April-October
Pearson Honda, 14001 Hull Street Road, Chesterfield
