Show Origins

Cat Jam has its roots in early summer 2002. An improptu, offhand comment on one of the message boards made it clear that Cougar and Thunderbird owners wanted to meet up with each other. However, the method left a lot to be desired: everyone had figured out that my house was about the midway point, and they were literally planning on showing up on my doorstep! I figured that if that's what they wanted to do, fine....but we should make something official, and make it open to everyone who wants to come, not just board members. So the planning began.

I found a public park where we could hang out, show off our cars and get to know each other. All expenses came out of my pocket. We had a small cookout, nothing major, and despite dodging a few raindrops all day, I think we all had a great time. But more importantly, we established long-term relationships that day while providing a solid base upon which to build future shows.

Now with several years' worth of Cat Jam shows under our collective belts, precedents have been set and standards needed to be established. Through polling on the message boards and at the events, here's what's been determined:

• Cat Jam will always be on a weekend in July every summer. This places the event square in the middle of summer, long before school starts in the fall, and generally fits will within most peoples' vacation plans. We determined that a static timeframe is pretty important for planning.
• Location will continue to be Youngstown, OH, USA. There has been overwhelmingly positive response for the location as far as driving distance, relative position to the majority of owners, and easy access to freeways and local roads. Add to that the generally low cost of living prices; lots of hotels; plenty of local and regional tourist locations; and of course, our huge array of eating establishments, and you have a great combination that works on multiple levels.
• Every year, Cat Jam will have a picnic at a public park on Saturday afternoon, and a cruise-in on Saturday night. Events on other nights will be determined toward the event times.

With this in mind, we hope that you can make an effort to attend a future Cat Jam event.

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