By Peter Fabbri
WEST BRANCH – Hundreds of classic and custom cars and trucks will descend on downtown West Branch on Saturday morning June 4 when the Flint Back to the Bricks Discovery Tour comes through town.
The tour begins in Mt Pleasant on June 3rd and travels to many locations throughout Michigan during the six day tour. West Branch has been a popular overnight destination and host city four times in the thirteen years of the event which draws participants form all over the State. The last event in West Branch was in 2019, the tenth anniversary of the Promo Tour.
This year West Branch will not be a host city but the June 4th route takes them right through the heart of downtown on the way to Tawas where they will have an overnight stay.
There are well over 300 cars signed up for the tour this year as the event becomes more popular each year. The route takes the vehicles on back roads through rural Michigan on maximum 55 MPH roads so that all vehicles can travel the route including Model T’s, Rat Rods, Convertibles and Trucks, Camaros and Mustangs, Mopar’s and Corvettes. It’s a tour for everyone.
The arrival in West Branch from Mt Pleasant will be staged near M30 so that they will proceed east into downtown starting at 10:15 AM in parade fashion. This offers a great opportunity for the citizens of the West Branch Area to welcome the drivers to our town, show our enthusiasm with our great West Branch welcome and to hopefully ensure that West Branch gets considered again for a future Promo Tour.
Dave and Pam Stilber, Promo Tour Captain’s, commented on previous tours coming to West Branch “ the excitement of staging 200 vehicles on M55 to have a police escort through town and having several hundred people lining the street, waving flags and cheering really made a person smile and feel welcome”
A great welcome is what we will provide! Local owners of classic and custom cars and trucks are invited downtown Saturday morning to park along Houghton Avenue and show off their vehicles and to enjoy the parade. Local residents and visitors are encouraged to come down for the parade with signs and flags and wave the Promo Tour on as they travel through town. Plus you get to see some awesome vehicles. Get there by 10 AM so you won’t miss the parade!
For more info on the parade contact Pete at 345-5226. For Promo Tour info see www.backtothebricks.org
