| Tuesday, June 24, 2008 |
|
Arrival Day! Welcome to Cleveland, Ohio!
CruiseFest Registration is open from 2:00 PM to 7:00 PM in the CAC Hospitality Saloon at the Crowne Plaza Cleveland Airport Hotel
Your CAC registration kit will contain a number of maps, bags and coupons for locations of special interest in the Cleveland, Ohio area. |
| 2:00 PM |
CruiseFest Registration opens at the Crowne Plaza Cleveland Airport Hotel, in the CAC's Hospitality Suite located on the first floor. Sign in and pick up your registration kit. You can also purchase special edition 2008 CruiseFest drinkware, hats and logo-embossed clothing.
Get settled in, relax and catch up with your fellow CruiseFest attendees as they arrive! |
| 6:00 PM |
Dinner: Since there are several fantastic places to eat within a 1/2-mile walk, we will leave dinner up to you and let everyone select where they'd like to go. |
| 8:00 PM |
Social Hour at the CAC's Hospitality Suite. Stop by and celebrate the start of CruiseFest with your fellow CAC members, and mark the occasion by christening your CruiseFest Commemorative drinkware. |
| Wednesday, June 25, 2008 |
|
Rockin' & Rollin'!
Wednesday is the day we've set aside for a bit of fun at a Hall of Fame duo. If you're a Rock and Roll or Football fan, you won't want to miss these events! |
| 8:30 AM |
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Departure: With a permanent collection drawing from the most impressive and iconic rock and roll artifacts and a wide-ranging roster of on-going and temporary exhibits, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is dedicated to exploring the past, present and future of the music and the cultural context from which it emerges. The Museum continually augments its own collection of thousands of artifacts with items on loan from artists and collectors from around the world. In addition to these items, the Museum's exhibits utilize film, video, interactive kiosks and, of course, music. We should arrive at the Museum by 9:00am and your self-paced tour should take approximately 3-hours. |
| 10:30 AM |
Depart for Steamship Mather: The Steamship William G. Mather Museum, is Cleveland's only floating maritime museum. The former flagship of the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Company, this 618 foot-long riveted steel ship was built in 1925 to carry millions of tons of iron ore and coal until she was retired from service in 1980. What a tribute to northeast Ohio's Great Lakes and industrial heritage to have a restored lake freighter become one of Cleveland's premier museums! We should arrive at around 11:00am and the tour lasts for 1-hour. |
| 12:00 PM |
Lunch at Slyman's: At noon time, we'll break for lunch and cruise on over to Slyman's Restaurant - Cleveland's Favorite Deli and home of the biggest and best corned beef! |
| 1:00 PM |
Football Hall of Fame: Located in Canton, OH, the Football Hall of Fame represents its sport in a great many colorful and entertaining ways. Visitors entering the museum are greeted by a seven-foot bronze statue of Jim Thorpe, considered a legend of pro football dating back to his days with the Canton Bulldogs in the early 1900s.
After ascending a ramp to the second floor, guests learn about the first century of pro football in the exhibition rotunda. Memorabilia, video, and audio bring to life the development of the game from 1892 to 1992. The next stop is the Pro Football Today Exhibition Area which pays tribute to the current 32 clubs and highlights recent record holders in the NFL. From here, it only gets better as you go through!
The trip to the Hall of Fame takes approximately 2-hours, so we should arrive there around 3:00 pm. At around 5:30 PM, we'll depart for the hotel and should arrive back there by 7:00 PM.
Tour of the USS COD Submarine Memorial: Located on Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, the USS Cod is one of the finest restored submarines on display and is the only U.S. submarine that has not had stairways and doors cut into her pressure hull for public access. Visitors to this proud ship use the same vertical ladders and hatches that were used by her crew. The Cod is maintained and operated as a memorial to the more than 3900 submariners who lost their lives during the 100 year history of the United States Navy Submarine Force. The tour lasts for 1-hour. |
| 1:30 PM |
Great Lakes Pub and Brewery: Located in Cleveland, the Great Lakes Brewing Company is a principle-centered, environmentally respectful and socially conscious company committed to crafting fresh, flavorful, high-quality beer and food. They aspire to maintain their status as the premier craft brewery in the Great Lakes region and are dedicated to uncompromising service, continuous improvement and innovative consumer education.
Tours are 45 minutes long and two samplings of their micro-brews are offered at the end. Cost is $3.00 per person |
| 4:00 PM |
Cleveland Metroparks: The oldest park district in Ohio, the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District was born in 1917, the initiative of a young, self-taught engineer who had conceived the idea of an outer chain of parks with connecting boulevards some 12 years earlier.
The sixteen reservations of Cleveland Metroparks consist of over 21,000 acres of various landscapes and attractions for visitors to enjoy. The Park District is commonly referred to as the "Emerald Necklace" because the reservations encircle the city of Cleveland. Discover and enjoy any or all of the reservations!
It's easy to enjoy the picnic areas, reservable picnic areas, shelterhouses, wildlife areas, waterfowl areas, overlooks, all purpose trails, outdoor education facilities, and special features and attractions with downloadable maps and easy-to-follow directions.
We'll actually do a cruise of several of these parks - perfect Corvette driving conditions!
The cruise will last approximately 3-hours. |
| Thursday, June 26, 2008 |
|
Caravan Day!
Now that you've had a chance to see a few of Cleveland's most popular attractions, or done the tourist thing, it's time to check out some of the more Corvette-related attractions in the area!
** - Please note, the events listed below are a package deal. American Custom Industries is 2-hours west and ProTeam is 1-hour south from there. The route we'll be taking will take up the majority of the day and we really don't have an easy way of splitting up the group if you choose to attend one over the other. |
| 8:15 AM |
Cuyahoga Valley Train Tour: On the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad you will experience the fun and adventure, the romance and nostalgia of riding the train on one of the oldest, longest, and most scenic excursion railways in the country. Enjoy an unforgettable journey through the heart of beautiful Cuyahoga Valley National Park, along the Cuyahoga River and the historic Ohio & Erie Canalway between Cleveland and Akron, and on to Canton.
For those going on the train tour, we'll be departing the hotel at 8:15 for a 9:00 departure from the train station. |
| 9:00 AM |
** American Custom Industries Tour: American Custom Industries manufactures Corvette fiberglass body components. They specialize in the prototyping and manufacturing of both stock and custom items, using hand layup and closed molding (RTM) processes. ACI's showroom also stocks a large selection of Corvette accessories and detailing supplies, along with the latest in Corvette gifts and apparel. Along with their manufacturing division, they have a complete service department and body and paint shop to baby your Corvette.
The drive to ACI will take approximately 2-hours and the tour will be approximately 1.5-hours. |
| 12:00 PM |
Lunch - Quaker Steak and Lube: For those of you going on the Cuyahoga Valley Sceneic Railroad, we'll be having lunch at Quaker Steak and Lube, a very cool motorsports-themed family restaurant. |
| 12:30 PM |
** Lunch - Tony Packos: For those of you going on the American Custom Industries tour, we'll be having lunch at Tony Packos, specializing in Hungarian hot dogs, chili, peppers and pickles. |
| 2:00 PM |
Cleveland Botanical Garden: For seventy-five years, Cleveland Botanical Garden invites you on a journey of majesty and intrigue to two of the world's most exotic ecosystems — the spiny desert of Madagascar and the cloud forest of Costa Rica — brimming with soaring strangler fig trees, “upside down” growing baobabs, the world's largest chameleon (with, incidentally, the world's longest tongue), neon-colored poison dart frogs, and butterflies that flit from bloom to bloom…and this is just what you'll experience inside our 18,000 square foot glasshouse.
Outdoors, you will enjoy one of the premier horticultural collections in the United States. Cleveland Botanical Garden features more than 10 acres of world-renowned gardens, including its Japanese Garden, Rose Garden, Western Reserve Herb Garden and five display gardens.
The tour should last between 2.5 - 3-hours. |
| 2:30 PM |
** ProTeam Classic Corvette Collection: The world's largest collection of classic Corvettes can only be found at ProTeam Corvette Collection in Napoleon, Ohio. Their entire stock of 1953 to 1967 Corvettes are stored in their climate controlled indoor showrooms year round, for your convenience. ProTeam also carries 1968 to 1982 Corvettes as well as other pre-owned C3, C4 and C5 models. Many of their Corvettes have been beautifully restored to like-new condition and carry prestigious honors such as the Bloomington Gold Certification, the coveted NCRS Top Flight award, and the Triple Crown designation.
The trip to ProTeam should take about 1-hour and the tour will last about 1.5-hours. |
| 4:30 PM |
Cleveland Metroparks: The oldest park district in Ohio, the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District was born in 1917, the initiative of a young, self-taught engineer who had conceived the idea of an outer chain of parks with connecting boulevards some 12 years earlier.
The sixteen reservations of Cleveland Metroparks consist of over 21,000 acres of various landscapes and attractions for visitors to enjoy. The Park District is commonly referred to as the "Emerald Necklace" because the reservations encircle the city of Cleveland. Discover and enjoy any or all of the reservations!
It's easy to enjoy the picnic areas, reservable picnic areas, shelterhouses, wildlife areas, waterfowl areas, overlooks, all purpose trails, outdoor education facilities, and special features and attractions with downloadable maps and easy-to-follow directions.
We'll actually do a cruise of several of these parks - perfect Corvette driving conditions!
This cruise will last approximately 3-hours. |
| 5:30 PM |
If you're on the ProTeam Classic Corvette tour, we'll depart for the hotel at this time. Total travel time should be about 2 - 2.5-hours. |
| Friday, June 27, 2008 |
|
Car Show Day!
The final day of CruiseFest features the traditional car show, a cruise to the Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum or Cleveland Metroparks, and the farewell dinner at night. |
| 9:30 AM |
Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum: The Crawford Auto-Aviation Museum, showcases nearly 200 antique, vintage, and classic automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles, automobile culture and aircraft. The Crawford collection is one of the top ten in the nation, according to Car Collector magazine.
During this time, one of the largest collections of Vatican art and historical objects ever viewed in North America will be on display at the Museum. Please Note: To see the Vatican exhibit, there is an additional $9.50 entrance fee on top of the group rate of $7.50 (total for admission for both displays would be $17).
The museum tour should last for 3-hours and then we'll head back to the hotel. |
| 10:00 AM |
Cleveland Metroparks Cruise: For those of you that didn't get a chance to go on the Wednesday or Thursday cruise, we'll take another cruise heading north, turning around and heading back down south, or we could start out heading south and then turn around to head back north again. We'll let you know what we decide. For those of you that attended the cruise on Thursday, you're more than welcome to join us once again!
This Cruise should take about 3-hours. |
| 1:00 PM |
Free BBQ Lunch & Car Show @ Hotel: A free BBQ lunch will be held at the hotel. Please have your CruiseFest 2008 Lanyard with you. |
| 2:30 PM |
Corsa Performance Tour: CORSA Performance is an engineering and manufacturing company based in Berea, Ohio, that specializes in high performance stainless steel exhaust systems for the marine and automotive aftermarket. Corsa's exhaust systems are extremely popular among Corvette performance enthusiasts, and now's your chance to tour their facility!
The tour should last approximately 1.5 - 2-hours. |
| 6:30 PM |
Farewell Dinner Banquet: Our chance to award prizes, hear some news, and feast! Following dinner, we'll have the awards presentation and a few words from Rob.
Dinner will consist of the following:
- Roast Beef
- Chicken Piccata
- Roasted Garlic & Shallots Mashed Potatoes
- Green Beans Agli e Olio (which came highly recommended)
- Tiramisu for desert
- ...and salad & dinner rolls, of course
|
| 9:00 PM |
Social Hour at the CAC's Hospitality Saloon. Stop by for Blender Wars! |
| Saturday, June 28, 2007 |
|
Departure Day!
CruiseFest has come to a conclusion for another year. |
| 11:00 AM |
Check out time for the Crowne Plaza Cleveland Airport Hotel. |