Remembering the good old days

Apr. 10—Yuba City resident Robert Osborne said he has fond memories of when his father brought him home from the hospital in his 1965 Cadillac Coupe deVille — a car that was three years old when he was born.

Osborne said the dashboard was huge, so big that his mom once propped him up there for a picture.

He said it is "memories like that" that have stayed with him over the years, even prompting him to get into the business of car restoration himself.

Osborne bought a 1965 Buick Skylark for $20,000 three years ago and has slowly been adding improvements to it to where it is currently worth about $30,000, he said.

Osborne's Buick was one of a number of old-time restored vehicles on hand for show in the parking lot of Tracey's Diner in Marysville Saturday.

It's called cars and coffee and Osborne said the purpose is to reminisce about the good old days and to meet and socialize with people.

"It's a hobby to remember the good old days when there were rough riders, no A/C (in cars)," he said.

He said he enjoys sharing these memories with other car enthusiasts, as well as people just visiting for the day.

"We keep things simple, or as simple as you want," Osborne said.

Eric Maher, of Yuba City and owner of a 1951 Chevrolet Pickup, said it is good to just get out of the house and have a good time talking about cars and other topics.

"It brings the community together supporting local business," Maher said. "I think it is important (because) I think the public enjoys looking at old cars."

Maher, a car enthusiast himself, enjoys discussing restorations with others at these local events. Over the years he has replaced bumpers, a suspension system, wiring and steering columns on his pickup — a process that probably has boosted the market value of his vehicle about $10- or $20,000.

But he is not looking to sell it anytime soon.

"I am going to keep it for as long as I can," Maher said.

These vehicles are like people's children, said Mark Chavez, owner of a 1963 Volkswagen Beetle.

Chavez said it has been in his family from day one and it will stay that way.

Families stick together one dashboard at a time.