CALGARY – In this era of instant communication, one might think an actual printed-on-paper calendar of automotive events would be on the endangered list. Not so.
Celebrating 30 years in 2015 is the Northwest Cruise Calendar – formerly the Calgary Cruise Calendar. It lists almost 800 car events that happen in western Canada over the course of a year from cruise nights to rod runs, show and shines and swap meets. The calendar lets gearheads know where to be and when to be there.
More than 100,000 copies of the eight-page calendar are printed and distributed annually, and it also appears online at www.members.shaw.ca/calgarycc/.
According to its Calgary founders and car enthusiasts Mike Marsh and Les Edwards, the cruise calendar is not getting any smaller. Instead, it’s growing.
“There are more and more events every year,” Marsh said. “And sometimes, we’ve had to double print runs to satisfy demand.”
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Marsh drove his modified 1937 Ford hotrod to events that were either local or within a day or two of travel time. He was also curious about where everyone else in the car community was going, so he began acquiring information and listing a variety of rod runs and show and shines. He’d offer the printed page of events to friends and fellow members of the Wild Rose Rod & Custom Club.
Around the same time, Edwards, aka the Bubblegum Man, was a member of several different car clubs – and he’d get numerous flyers promoting both local events and those a little further away.
“I’d get phone calls from people wanting to find out what was going on, and I was getting tired of repeating the information,” Edwards said. “So, I figured, why don’t I just write this all down.”
Marsh and Edwards ran separate listings for just a couple of years before they realized a coordinated effort would be a better approach.
“We were just two idiots sitting in a basement trying to put this together,” Edwards laughed. “We had an archaic word processor, and I’d read out all of the information we’d gathered and Mike would type it in. That took us months of work. It’s much easier to put together now.”
Funds for printing and distributing the calendar came out of pocket when it was a smaller endeavour.
“I never wanted people to have to buy the calendar,” Edwards said. “Early on, Mike and I agreed that it’s free, or it’s not for me. We just paid (for putting the calendar out ourselves) because it was the right thing to do.”
But, as the cruise calendar continued to grow, sponsors and advertisers were sought to allow increased print runs, and the name was changed from Calgary Cruise Calendar to the Northwest Cruise Calendar.
Marsh and Edwards both said the calendar was never just a two-person affair. Many people have had a hand in making the list of events the success that it is, and they currently include Marsh’s wife Michelle, Lyall Carter at Canmark Print, Mike Siewert and Matt Gergely. Siewert maintains the online calendar of events, and Gergely now looks after gathering cruise and show information in the northern part of Alberta.
“We’ve had worldwide interest in the list, and have mailed them out to places such as Australia, Europe and all across the U.S.,” Edwards said.
To get a printed copy of the eight-page calendar, mail an 8.5 by 11-inch self-addressed envelope with a $3 stamp on it to Mike Marsh at 4513 Forman Crescent S.E., Calgary, AB T2A 2B1.
Cut-off for submitting a listing for the 2015 edition – the 30 th annual calendar – is Feb. 28. Call Les Edwards at 403-275-3830 or email calgarycc@shaw.ca.
Greg Williams is a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Have a column tip? Contact him at 403-287-1067, gregwilliams@shaw.ca, or visit gregwilliams.ca.
