Weekend Showcase: Art Car Rally starts in Golden Valley
There’s a car rally beginning in Golden Valley this Saturday, but not the type you might imagine. Fasten your seat belts. There’s a gearhead, motor mania event rolling through your area this weekend.
“The Minnesota Art Car Rally is a progressive event beginning in Golden Valley, weaving through North Minneapolis, hitting Fridley, and finishing in Spring Lake Park,” says Patti Paulson, owner of the Lipstick Car and organizer of this fall’s Art Car Rally.
It’s not exactly a Mopar motivating event, but these rides are works of art in their own right. The event begins at 9:30 a.m. at PRISM’s Shop for Change at 1220 Zane ave N. in Golden Valley. You’ll see art cars such as the toy-covered Toy-oh-Tah – its owner, Carol Ahlgren, says it’s a work in progress like a lot of these cars. Carol considers the art car community family. “We’re all very different in terms with what we do with our lives, and what we do for a living, and some of us just came into this on our own.”
The owner of a PT Cruiser with a whimsical farm theme to it, Butch Johnson likes to call it the ‘Moo Machine.’ Or there’s an intricate 1997 mini van by Tjody DeVaal.
“I’m a graphic designer, so I did more than just decorate. It’s got little sayings all over it using scrabble letters,” says DeVaal. And it’s not just for motorized four wheel rides.
“Who doesn’t love riding a monarch,” said Paulson as she peddled her Monarch Bike. Art bicycles will be on the roll as well. And be sure not to miss Magenta Aquarius and her artistic roller dancing exhibitions. “I will be all over the event. I plan to meet right here at the beginning and be all the way until the end,” she says.
The Art Car Rally has a higher purpose other than just fun. There will be a raffle with many great prizes. The proceeds will go to benefit Toni Warner, a fellow art car enthusiast, who had a devastating heart attack last spring that put her in the hospital for over a month. “I just want women everywhere to know that your symptoms may not look like regular heart attack symptoms that you’ve learned. I thought I had the flu and it turned out that it was a heart attack,” said Warner.
It’s a car rally that may not move fast, but will be a lot of fun.
A full itinerary of Saturday’s events are posted on the Minnesota Art Car Rally Facebook page.
