OAC XV: Aug. 26-29
JUST AHEAD: Friends, Fresh Air, Open Roads, Sunny Days, and Spectacular Scenery
We are thrilled to be here at the beginning of the Summer Season, 2021, hearing great news daily about a “return to more normal.” We invite convertible lovers to shake off the dust accumulated over a year of relative isolation, drop the top, and once again motor out on the open road! Here’s what current plans look like:
THURSDAY, August 26 – The Topless Family Rendezvous
Gas ‘er up (unless you already have a E-roadster!) drop your top, put on cruising tunes and motor over to “the Good Neighbor City” – Middleton, Wisconsin. Head for OpenAir Headquarters, the newly renovated Middleton Marriott to join the OpenAir lovers checking in. Go to OAC Registration (2:00-5:30PM) and pick up your Welcome Kit, shirts, hats, and tour goodies. Meet old friends and get to know the new recruits. Hear some great road tales and share a few of your own. We’ll kick things off tonight with a special, deluxe OpenAir table-served Welcome Feast prepared by Marriott’s excellent chef. We’re planning to have special guests, do a drivers’ meeting, toast the open road, swear-in navigators with the “sacred OAC oath,” and get prepped with tour tips for adventures in the “Driftless Region.”
FRIDAY – August 27 – Driving Deep into the Driftless Where Few Have Gone Before
Roll out of bed early, grab breakfast, and get ready to join your Grid Section at the appointed time. Join the world’s friendliest topless touring troupe, some 200 breezy cars and 400 smiling people strong! We’ll visit friendly area checkpoints, sample local favorites, and get cruising on the twisty turns of the stunning unglaciated area. We may even have a golf putting contest, so bring your favorite flat club. Watch for lots of horses and cows and be alert to wild turkey, foxes, coyotes, and an occasional white-tail deer ready to dart across the road. Watch for cheese curds, too! Visit unique and off-the-beaten path shops and checkpoints. Play the “Does This Taste Like Chicken?” game. Explore verdant river valleys; follow twisted forest trails and enjoy the sweet sounds of back roads summer. Wave at convertible friends – or cows! Tonight, put a party of eaters together and enjoy dinner on the road or in Middleton at Good Neighbor Fest!
SATURDAY, August 28 – Topless Beauties, Hidden Gems and Driftless Delights
Today, before we head out for even more seldom-seen wonders off the beaten path, we will start with an eye-popping exhibit of our own exquisite Topless Touring Machines. The “Driftless Concourse” is a fun opportunity for all of us, and our Middleton friends, to get a look at our assembled touring treasure. Vote for favorites in several categories and on Sunday we will award prizes. We will distribute tour routes and passports for the “My Uncle Knows a Guy…” game. We’ll visit checkpoints that give us a special taste of this area, help understand its history, offer back road’s driving thrills, and showcase little towns, artists, and vistas experienced by the lucky few. (We may even crown a putting champion!) We will drive some unforgettable routes, see “picture postcard country,” and raise a toast to fine local beverages. Tonight meet the friendly folks of Middleton at the Good Neighbor Festival or taste the work of a top Middleton chef!
SUNDAY, August 29 – Buckets, Prizes, Cheers, Winners, Smiles, Awards and Topless Spirit
After every OAC tour, most participants agree, Sunday comes too fast. Get breakfast, then head for the 10 a.m. OpenAir Wrap-Up Celebration in the Marriott Ballroom. Today we recognize members who have achieved major milestones touring with us. This is where you use the passport game tickets you earned to enter fabulous “bucket drawings” and maybe take home a prize! We’ll reveal the favorite cars selected at the OAC Concours, celebrate the joy of our fifteenth OpenAir Classic, and draw the name of one lucky member who was with us all four days to win the Grand Prize! Be sure to get contact information from your new friends and wish your touring buddies a safe journey home. Some will stay to explore more of the Middleton Area, go to the Good Neighbor Fest, or back to favorite tour spots.
JUST ADDED: OAC cars will be “The Grand Finale’” of Middleton Good Neighbor Fest Sunday. All entrants may participate and 10 to 15 are needed to carry VIPs and dignitaries seated up over back seat.
Mark your calendars for 2022!
OAC XVI is set for August 18-21, 2022. Stay tuned! It will be revealed at the OpenAir Conditioner in Madison in late January 2022!