Vintage Cars Shine in Ocean City

mvitale

Ty Kelly and his little sister, Maclyn, gear up for the parade on the Boardwalk.

By MADDY VITALE Scott and Pat Warner, of Egg Harbor Township, decided to take one of their faster cars to Ocean City on Saturday afternoon. So, instead of one of their 1928 Chevys, they opted for their pale yellow 1957 Chevy Bel Air. They weren’t going on a joy ride. The couple are car buffs, to say the least, and were heading to the annual Antique Auto Show presented by the Jersey Cape Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America. Scott Warner began collecting cars years ago. “I started off with a 1934 Plymouth and I sold that. Then I started collecting 1928 Chevys. Then I bought this one," he said of the 1957 Bel Air. "This way, I could keep up with traffic. We like to ride around, and we also do shows.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3koaOzOzVmM Spectators perused about 300 vintage American and foreign cars displayed on the grounds of the Ocean City Tabernacle. At the end of the show was a parade of the autos on the Boardwalk. There were all sorts of vintage cars -- from Fords and Packards to 1950s big-finned cars with pastel paint jobs to muscle cars of the 1960s and 1970s and exotic European sports cars. But one of the oldest cars at the show was a 1915 Overland Speedster. Scott Warner left his classic car to admire the vintage Overland model, while Pat stayed by their car to speak with spectators. “I’ve never seen one like this in original shape,” Warner said of the Overland Speedster. “It is just amazing.”

The 1915 Overland Speedster gives a glimpse into automotive infancy. While the Overland Speedster was at one end of the spectrum, a custom-built mini car that featured the Philadelphia Eagles logo, and the green color to match, was at the other. Kelly and Jim Kelly, of Ambler, Pa., brought their 9-year-old son, Ty, and 6-year-old daughter, Maclyn, to not only enjoy the auto show, but to also be in the parade. That’s because Jim Kelly’s uncle, Kevin Callahan, owner of Devin Sports, custom built the car for Ty to “drive” in the auto parade on the Boardwalk. “My uncle asked if Ty would want to be in the car show and literally he built this for him,” Jim Kelly explained. “We did some test drives. Everything is custom made, even the distance for the brake and the pedals for Ty.” Callahan said that the model car was created after a 1961 Devin SS car. A blue and white beauty of a vehicle was also on display, courtesy of Callahan. It was a 1958 Devin SS. When asked about the Devlin's estimated value, he said, “It’s around $300,000. It’s a beautiful car.”