EVENT:. 2004 Prowl/M•E•L & Ford Picnic
SPONSOR:. Cascade Cougar Club
DATE:. July 25, 2004
LOCATION:. Cedar River Park - Renton, Washington

By Steve Eitzen

If there is a Ford Enthusiast's Heaven somewhere in the hereafter, it is surely a broad expanse of cool green grass covered with a sparkling array of classic Fords, Mercurys, Edsels, and Lincolns. In the meantime, the Cascade Cougar Club annually provides a little bit of Ford Heaven right here on Earth in the form of their annual Prowl/M•E•L & Ford Picnic, held in conjunction with the IKEA Renton River Days celebration.

During the days preceding this year's event, however, a record breaking heat wave in the Puget Sound area had some folks worrying that the 2004 Prowl's bit of Heaven might feel more like the other place. But the pacific northwest weather gods must have a soft spot in their hearts for Ford enthusiasts, because a layer of morning overcast cooled the high temps and provided a perfect car show day.

Prowl Barbeque . . .

This year's Prowl festivities began Saturday afternoon with the traditional participants' barbeque hosted by Judy and Doc Anders. Cougars and other assorted Dearborn delights crowded the Anders' yard and the surrounding areas. The winning combination of burgers and dogs sizzling on the grill, great company and terrific cars assured all who attended of a fun afternoon.
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Cougars lined up in the Anders' back yard offered a mini Prowl preview as attendees enjoyed hot dogs and hamburgers in the shade of the big top.
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We included this barbeque photo not only because it's a nice view of John Benoit's yellow Boss 302, but also because of the thermometer hanging on Doc Anders' shed (highlighted above John's Elim). This photo was taken around 5:00 p.m. the afternoon before the show and the thermometer is pointing at 100. Fortunately, the weather gods gave us cooler temps for show day!

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Show Day . . .

The task of properly distributing nearly 200 cars around a car show site is no small undertaking, but Cascade C/C volunteers handled the job with courtesy and efficiency. By the published 10:00 a.m. starting time most participants were in place and the event was in full swing.

All told, 189 classic Fords, Mercurys, Edsels, and Lincolns—plus a nice array of import Fords—were on hand for the show. When asked for his thoughts on the 2004 Prowl, Show Committee Chair, Marc Ogren, said, "What struck me about the show was the incredible variety and quality of the cars. There were national award winners in every major category. Plus, there were national presidents from three different clubs on the show field; Cougars, Zepyhrs and T-Birds. The people, weather and cars made it a great weekend."

Our event photo tour begins with a look at some of the 60 Cougar show participants. From there, we'll zoom out for a view of highlights from the other marques on display. Enjoy!

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Beginning with a stroll down Cougar Alley, we find a stunning collection of 1967 Cats, including . . .
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Jan and Jim Murphy's restomod, . . .
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Brian Ankenman's GT and . . .
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Denise and Randy Smithhisler's beautifully restored standard.
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Moving on to the Cougar's second model year, we find . . .
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James Hunter's bright red standard . . .
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And Larry Waggoner's standard restomod, featuring a nifty set of . . .
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Cartoon cougar graphics.
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Dave Nashiff's nicely crafted XR-7 restomod.
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The 1969/70 model year classes were dominated by convertibles, including . . .
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The pristine '69 restomod belonging to David Knox . . .
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And Elaine and Jim Pinkerton's 1969 big block XR-7.
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Here we see Cascade C/C members (left to right) Neal Jacobson, Scott Ferguson and Heather Whittaker making a tough decision as they judge the show's sole 1969 XR-7 hardtop entry—Steve Eitzen's California Cat.
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Another look at the 1969/70 rag tops, featuring Paul Stabbert's stunning gold 1970 XR-7 restomod.
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One of the exceptions to the convertible majority in the 1969/70 classes was John Benoit's concours 1970 Competition Blue Boss 302 Elim—always a crowd pleaser.
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Standouts among the third generation Cougars (1971-73) were John Howall's flamed XR-7 restomod and . . .
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The convertibles belonging to Kim Lintott (red) and Lonnie Sparhawk (yellow).
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Wrapping up the Cougar section of this event report, we have Sandy Eden's nicely crafted, tuner-style 1999 Cat.

Now, let's leave Cougar Alley and see what else the 2004 Prowl had to offer.
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Back in the good old days, they just called 'em hot rods. Now, they're street rods. Whatever you call these examples of free style automotive expression, they're a fascinating addition to any show.
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Prowl 2004 featured a nice collection of street rods, many of them crafted in the traditional old school style.
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Not all Fords hail from Dearborn. As proof of that fact, Prowl '04 featured an international array of Fords from such far flung corners of the world as England, Germany and Australia.
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It has been said that the orignal Cougar personal sport luxury design is a natural evolutionary descendent of the Continental Mark II. The truth of that statement is evident in this photo of Steve Massee's 1957 Mark II (left) and Randy Brown's '56.
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This pristine 1956 Premiere restoration was proudly displayed by Paul Delo.
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The "Big M" era was also aptly represented by Loreen and Harry Robertson's 1957 Turnpike Cruiser and . . .
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Ray Akers' beautiful 1965 Parklane convertible.
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There were plenty of Ford convertibles on hand for the sun seekers.
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There were even a handfull of retractible hardtops for those who prefer to do their sun seeking with a little more style.
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Wayne Johnson's 1959 Ford Skyliner is an excellent example of the retractible hardtop breed.
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And for those who prefer a little less sun, there was the Mercury Sun Valley, with its tinted glass roof panel. This 1955 Montclair Sun Valley belongs to Don Gill-More.
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If Edsels had attracted as much attention in dealer showrooms five decades ago as they do at car shows today, Ford might still be making them!
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Even Edsel station wagons draw crowds. The 1958 model on the left is owned by Bob Bergman and the '60 edition on the right belongs to Ron Osborn
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American car lovers have been infatuated with Ford's Thunderbird since its introduction for the 1955 model year. Prowl 2004 featured an outsanding display of Early Birds, including . . .
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This pair of his and hers T-Birds belonging to Cathy and Frank Stubbs. Hers is the green '57 and his is the red '55.
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Not to be outdone, the later T-Birds drew their share of attention, as well.
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Say the name "Zephyr" to a vintage Lincoln enthusiast and his mind is immediately filled with images of graceful lines and thoughts of whisper-quiet V-12 acceleration. Here we see (from right to left) Ron Bloom's 1937 Sedan, along with the '41 Coupe and and '40 Sedan belonging to Alex and Virgie Cordas.
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More vintage Lincolns, including (from left to right) a 1948 Continental Coupe owned by Willie Spann; Marc Ogren's '47 Lincoln Club Coupe and a 1948 Continental Coupe owned by Jeff Norwill.
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One of a kind: Todd Humphrey's 1941 Lincoln Brunn-bodied Open Chauffeur Town Car.
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Look at that fantastic woodwork in the 1941 Town Car. And this was only the chauffer's view!
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At the awards ceremony, Irene Hagen presented the awards as Show Chair, Marc Ogren announced the winners in the participants' choice judging. Hats off to Marc and his hard-working volunteer committee for another fantastic Prowl!
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PHOTOS BY STEVE EITZEN
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