May 23, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES I, II, III & IV • Page 19 Chattanooga (continued from page 16) Japan on Aug 6, 1945 revealed to the people of Oak Ridge what they had been working on. Up to that time they had no idea what was being made or how it was to be used. The parade of cars then headed toward the Chattanooga-Choo-Choo Hotel. After checking in, it was off to the Early Bird Social. There, we greeted old friends from the previous year. We spent the rest of the night talking about cars, the show, and tours for the next few days. Thursday was a day on our own to see the many sights in the Chattanooga area. Mary, Dom, Sue, and I headed out to see the sights in my ’55. First on our list was Ruby Falls, which is deep inside Lookout Mountain. To see the falls, our guide took us down an elevator where she walked us in about half a mile through a winding cave. When we got to the end, she turned on colored lights that lit up the falls. We took a walkway that brought us around the back of the falls and took some pictures looking straight up 145 feet to the top of the falls. Our next stop was the Tennessee Aquarium a few blocks away. I would highly recommend visiting the aquarium if you’re in the area. There were two buildings, one for fresh water, and the other for salt water. One of the enclosed tanks had a colony of penguins. They were fun to watch as they dove into the water, swam around, and then jumped back up on the rock. Along with all species of fish there were snakes, birds, alligators, and turtles. You can’t leave without going to the Butterfly Room. This screened in room was amazing. Butterflies were all over; one even landed on my shoulder. Some butterfly colors you only get to see in books and magazines. A sign at the exit said, “Please check for hitchhikers.” On Friday morning I was up early for breakfast with the judges at 7:30. I’m still learning, so I followed the judges from car to car asking questions about the judging process. You think you know a lot about cars until you walk around with a team of guys who could tell you if an accessory was a correct option for the year car you were looking at. The team I was with had 14 cars to judge. As each car was done, the results were sent in by a runner to be tabulated for the awards dinner. Most of the guys were in the parking lot either with their car or involved in the judging process. In the afternoon, we toured Coker Tire a few blocks away. There was quite a collection of cars and motorcycles. The motorcycles were on shelves secured to the one wall of the building. They all had plaques showing the year, make, and model. The collection of cars was impressive also, including stock car racers from Honest Charlie’s Speed Shop next door. We were on our own on Saturday morning. One option was the Jack Daniels distillery about 90 miles away. Mary and I decided to travel into Georgia to Fort Oglethorpe and the Chickamauga battlefield. We stopped at the visitor center, where a forest ranger spoke about the fighting that went on as if he were actually there in 1863. The visitor center has exhibits, a bookstore, and a display of 346 weapons. Many of them are rare and unique. We also took a portion of the seven-mile auto tour through the battlefield, stopping at some of the monuments and exhibits. Between 1890 and 1899, Congress authorized the first four national military parks. The first and largest was Chickamauga/Chattanooga. The awards banquet was at 6 p.m. Steve and Theresa Jones and Bob and Wendy Emerson received CDPC for their vehicles. Mary and I got a participation award. Dom and Sue Speronza received a Preservation Mini, and Chuck and Joyce Gibson got their first Junior. Larry and Jane Jamaitis received an HPOCF & Oval. Sid and Shirley Jones took Best in Show -- six cylinder along with a Preservation Mini. We said good-bye to our Area 9 hosts and all the rest of our friends, new and old. We will see them all at the next Area 9 meet in South Carolina. Sunday brought car repairs for Dom and Sue. Dom had a new muffler installed before the trip, but it wasn’t put in properly. That morning, the muffler came loose from the exhaust pipe. Two of the guys backed the car up onto a curb. They blocked the wheels, got under the car, and reattached the muffler to the front pipe. The rear tailpipe was mangled beyond repair. All the way home, Dom had to leave windows open. After we started out, Sid said he was hearing noises in the front wheel. We pulled in for gas at the next exit to find that his wheel bearing needed to be replaced. A toolbox and jack appeared, and the parts and grease came out of the trunk. Steve worked his magic as both front wheels got new bearings and grease. The group made a few other stops, and arrived at the hotel in Salem at about 6 p.m. The next day brought a stop at an antiques dealer. Larry bought an oil can for his garage collection. We reached our next hotel around 6:30. This was to be the final stop and we had reservations for a final dinner. We presented Theresa and Steve with wind chimes from all of us as a token of our appreciation for leading us on a fantastic round trip tour to Chattanooga. Mary and I thank everyone on tour for their friendship. We will join some of this group in July for the “Flint or Bust” tour. Traveling with the PBTR is truly the best way to “See the USA in your Chevrolet.”