Locals to participate in Cadillac show

Southwest residents drive classsics to Henderson

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For these guys, a Cadillac is more than a car.

The members of the Cadillac-LaSalle Club of Las Vegas approach their cars with passion and adoration. For them, a Cadillac is a signal to the world that the man behind the wheel is a success.

On Sunday, members of the Cadillac-LaSalle Club of Las Vegas and Findlay Cadillac Saab of Las Vegas will host a Cadillac Through the Years car show at The District at Green Valley Ranch to bring classic cars and automotive art to the general public.

The Cadillac-LaSalle Club, a national organization founded in 1958, started a branch in the Las Vegas Valley in 1997. About 35 members are involved, and though most members own one or two of the cars, Colin Christie, a southwest Las Vegas resident, said a few of the Las Vegas club members own a dozen or more Cadillacs.

The "Cadillac Through the Years" event will feature a minimum of 25 vintage Cadillac and LaSalle cars, and the club has invited non-club members with classic cars to bring them to the event as well.

Christie said Findlay Cadillac Saab of Las Vegas also will bring a 2007 Escalade preview car, and other highlights will include artwork by Las Vegas resident Ruel James and a model of a World War II-era tank made by Cadillac.

Christie, a member of the local club's board of directors, owns a 1938 Cadillac Series 75 sedan and a 1939 Cadillac Series 75 Imperial sedan, both of which "tend to draw a crowd" when taken out in public.

When Christie decided to start collecting vintage cars about four and a half years ago, he knew he'd stick with the brand he'd driven for more than three decades.

"When it came time to collect a car, there was nothing else," he said. "My first Cadillac was a 1956 model that I bought in the early 1960s. Cadillac was always the best American-made car. It was what you aspired to."

Both Christie and Anthem resident John Bergler said they joined the club to connect with other Cadillac owners.

"It's a fun club, and it allows us to spend time with people with similar interests," Christie said. "It's also a great place for car tips and maintenance advice. Some of the newer cars can still go to dealerships for work, but many of these, like mine, are too old -- the mechanic would need to be 80 years old."

Bergler, who has been a Cadillac Club member since 1989, joined a branch of the group while living in Detroit.

He owns a white 1984 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible and a pink 1959 Cadillac Coupe de Ville, which he bought for his wife at an auction.

"She only drove it once. She says she doesn't want the responsibility," Bergler said. "I bought it on a fluke. I didn't plan on it, but when I saw it at the auction, I fell in love with it."

Bergler said though he loves his Eldorado Biarritz, one of only 3,300 cars of its kind, but the pink Coupe de Ville is the one that gets people's attention.

To add to the car's distinctive look, Bergler installed speakers in the car's front grille and he plays oldies and Elvis music when he takes the car out on the Las Vegas Strip.

"This car just appeals to everybody," he said. "Little kids, young adults, older adults, everyone just gets a big smile on their face when they see it coming, when they see those big fins on the back."

Bergler bought his first Cadillac, a triple white Coup de Ville, in Detroit in 1975. He said he first considered buying a Lincoln, but his wife talked him out of it.

"She said we should get the Cadillac -- she said, 'after all, a Cadillac is a Cadillac,' " he said. "We were in Detroit, which is such a big motor city. When you made it in Detroit, you got a Cadillac. When people saw you in a Cadillac they knew you were someone."

Both club members say they try to drive their classic cars at least once a week to keep them in top condition.

"Any excuse to drive them will do," Christie said. "Running to the store, going to Cadillac Club meetings, even just taking a drive around the neighborhood."

The only requirement to join the Cadillac Club of Las Vegas is an interest in Cadillac cars. The club has about 7,000 members world-wide, and those members own about 18,000 cars.

For the Cadillac Through the Years event, the club wanted to display Cadillacs from every decade, though Christie said it's hard to find cars from the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s.

"Even if you have one of those cars, they're just too valuable to take out. But we'll have paintings of the earliest cars," he said.

During the event, visitors will be able to vote for their favorite car for a best in show award.

The car show will take place along The District at Green Valley Ranch's main street on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

For more information regarding the Cadillac-LaSalle Club of Las Vegas, visit www.cadillaclasalleclub.org.