Jacksonville Cars & Coffee is hosting its first virtual car show this weekend with an eye toward helping local charities during the coronavirus pandemic.
Normally, hundreds of car and motorcycle enthusiasts gather on the second Saturday each month at The Avenues mall, but because that’s currently not an option, the organizers decided to get creative, with a "Driveway Edition."
This Saturday morning they’re inviting the enthusiast community to post photos of their rides from their homes and to also consider making a donation to area charities at the same time.
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“The main reason we’re doing this is we want to bring awareness to many of the charities that are on the First Coast that are raising money for COVID-19 relief,” said organizer Chris Brewer.
Among the charities Jacksonville Cars & Coffee has spoken to this week are the Jacksonville Humane Society and the United Way of Northeast Florida.
The organizers are also stressing they want enthusiasts to take photos of their vehicles in a safe, socially distant way.
“Stay at home, take your photo at home, in a safe environment like that,” said Brewer.
Jacksonville Cars & Coffee wants to make sure the photos are taken at the time of the event, so everyone taking part will be required to use a common prop to prove the photo was taken specifically for the event, an idea that came from one of the participants, Brian Moody.
'He said, ‘I've got this idea. Rather than have people just post pictures of their cars, which, let's face it, you could just go on Google and type ‘super cool car’ and then post that picture up and say that it's yours,’ he said. ‘Let's give them a prop. So they have to include that prop in the photo,'” Brewer explained.
The prop will be revealed Friday, but Brewer says not to worry, it’s something everyone already has.
Jacksonville Cars & Coffee was started more than a decade ago by Brewer’s friend, Malcolm Hogan, who also owns AutomotiveAddicts.com.
It’s moved to different locations through the years, growing each time along the way. Brewer says they’ve counted up to a 1,000 vehicles at the current Avenues mall location.
The monthly gathering draws a large variety of enthusiasts, spanning everything from exotics like Ferraris and McLarens, to classic air-cooled VWs and vintage muscle cars. The motorcycle community is also well represented.
More information about how to take part in and enjoy Saturday’s virtual car show is on the Jacksonville Cars & Coffee Facebook page.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org, 904-358-6349 or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
