After continued difficulties with individual acts of stupidity, the club that started and promoted the Coon Rapids cruise has decided they are done.
Short version:
Over the past few summers, there has been more an more people leaving trash in parking lots where they would gather and watch. The club would have people out on Sunday mornings cleaning it up.
People doing burnouts and driving stupidly: The club would take pictures, post them, and help the police track them down
residents complained. The club presented at city hall several times in open forums.
I publicly spoke in front of city hall, on record, in favor of it, as a long term resident as well as a occasional cruiser. At that time, I had a group of businesses that all were in support of the additional traffic as well as the general added interest in that section of the city which had been going downhill but in now being revitalized.
Now, the majority of the larger parking lots are closed to cruises AND spectators, including both malls and Cheapskate. People parking were blocking customers from being able to use spaces set aside, and after being asked, the "cruisers" wouldn't move. Police action involved several times.
The cruise isn't an official event, the city council can't stop people from driving it as it's a county road (plus a hospital sits just past the west end of the cruise area). City council had asked police to be fairly lenient in regards to driving instances. Focus was for safety of crowds, janky looking vehicle builds, and burnouts. Revving, the occasional test of acceleration from a roll was tolerated if it was controlled, etc had been allowed.
With the closure of the main parking, more stupid driving, and just general lack of enjoyment by the club that has been promoting it, they're stepping away. The blame is mostly on a younger crowd, not the more experienced and what we typically would call Hot Rodders.
Anything you see regarding the cruise being moved, re-started, or otherwise is now a separate function. Cold Steel Cruisers is not involved unless it's on their FB page or website.
As of about 10:30 this morning....
After continued difficulties with individual acts of stupidity, the club that started and promoted the Coon Rapids cruise has decided they are done.
Short version:
Now, the majority of the larger parking lots are closed to cruises AND spectators, including both malls and Cheapskate. People parking were blocking customers from being able to use spaces set aside, and after being asked, the "cruisers" wouldn't move. Police action involved several times.
The cruise isn't an official event, the city council can't stop people from driving it as it's a county road (plus a hospital sits just past the west end of the cruise area). City council had asked police to be fairly lenient in regards to driving instances. Focus was for safety of crowds, janky looking vehicle builds, and burnouts. Revving, the occasional test of acceleration from a roll was tolerated if it was controlled, etc had been allowed.
With the closure of the main parking, more stupid driving, and just general lack of enjoyment by the club that has been promoting it, they're stepping away. The blame is mostly on a younger crowd, not the more experienced and what we typically would call Hot Rodders.
Anything you see regarding the cruise being moved, re-started, or otherwise is now a separate function. Cold Steel Cruisers is not involved unless it's on their FB page or website.