Kimberly Quintero bent low to the ground to make sure she found just the right angle as she snapped a picture of a classic Chevy displayed at Cal State LA’s First Annual Car Show and Community Festival. It was the first car show that the 25-year-old junior had ever attended.
Car enthusiast Derrick Dedmon, 56, took a break from some schoolwork at the University Library and circled Lot 5 to capture images of some of the 130 classic cars, lowriders, imports, muscle cars, custom builds, and bikes on display.
Six-year-old Noah and 4-year-old Penny walked to the campus with their grandfather from his Alhambra home to support their father, Andrew Aragon, and his fellow SoCal Subaru Club members. Aragon was displaying his souped-up Subaru WRX.
Quintero, Dedmon, and the Aragons were among the estimated 3,000 people who participated in Cal State LA’s first-ever car show, which celebrated the university, the neighboring communities it serves, and Los Angeles’ vibrant car culture on Saturday, April 25.
“We didn’t have anything like this before,” said Dedmon, who recently returned to Cal State LA after 30 years to complete his studies with the Department of Television, Film, and Media Studies. “It brings the community out, and it’s good for the students too. It’s just good vibes. I love the atmosphere, and hopefully it will be an annual fit.”
Aragon, 35, was equally impressed. “I’m surprised this is a first-year event,” he said. “I’ve been to other events that have been around for years that weren’t nearly this organized. They provided each car with plenty of space; we’re not all crammed in. There are a lot of different vendors, a lot of things to do, and a good variety of cars. It’s been great.”
The car show was just one aspect of the community festival. Cal State LA was abuzz with activity on the mostly cloudy Saturday that also featured a concert by East LA’s own Tierra Legacy, as well as performances by stand-up comedian Johnny Roque, Cal State LA’s Afro-Latin Salsa Band, the Cal State LA Cheer Squad, DJ Why Not, and acrobatics crew Stunts in Motion.
Michael Cooper, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer recently named Cal State LA’s men’s basketball coach, signed copies of his book, COOP: The Makings of a Showtime Laker Legend. The El Sereno Night Market brought in some of its most popular food trucks and vendors, including Evil Cooks and Zingo Tacos, to satisfy the appetites of the enthusiastic festivalgoers.
The festivities kicked off in the morning with a ceremonial handoff of the Solar Eagle III car to the Petersen Automotive Museum. The record-breaking, student-designed vehicle won the national intercollegiate Sunrayce 97 almost 30 years ago, besting 34 other universities, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford/UC Berkeley, George Washington University, and Yale.
The Solar Eagle III finished the 10-day, 1,240-mile race from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to Colorado Springs in impressive fashion, finishing 20 minutes ahead of runner-up MIT.
The car—which has come to epitomize Cal State LA’s ingenuity, fortitude, and excellence—had been stored at the university and occasionally displayed for secondary school students and the public. It has found a new home among the 400 rare and classic vehicles at the Petersen Automotive Museum.
“I knew we had built something special,” said Cal State LA alumnus Roman Vasquez, who captained the Solar Eagle III as a civil engineering undergraduate. “It’s an incredible honor that it will now be in a space where everyone can see it and learn about it. I can’t think of a better permanent setting than the Petersen.”
The car show and handoff reunited Vasquez, now a project engineer with Southern California Edison, with some of his 11 teammates and team advisors, including professor emeritus and Cal State LA alumnus Dick Roberto.
“I never expected this,” said Roberto, who retired as professor of mechanical engineering in 1999. “I was afraid I would receive news that the car had been trashed. It’s been sitting in a trailer all these years, but we would take it out for outreach programs. It’s now going to have new life at the museum.”
One of the highlights of the afternoon was the captivating return performance of Tierra Legacy. Brothers Rudy and Steve Salas founded the pioneering Chicano band in East LA as Tierra, which then had its first gig at Cal State LA in the early 1970s.
The band created a unique Latin R&B flavor by incorporating rock, pop, jazz, R&B, and salsa into its beloved songs, including the hits “Together,” “Gonna Find Her,” and “Memories.”
Following the passing of both brothers earlier this decade, David Salas, Rudy’s son, took over as bandleader and rebranded the group as Tierra Legacy, merging the original band’s timeless hits with new, original material.
Cal State LA alumnus David was a toddler when Tierra first played at Cal State LA. He is also well versed on the neighborhood.
“I actually grew up across the street on Bohlig Road,” he said. “It’s a beautiful experience to be back in the neighborhood for this event. People remember Tierra as the band from Lincoln Heights, from American Bandstand and Soul Train. They tell me stories about my dad and uncle. This is very special for me.”
In keeping with the theme of unity and community, Tierra Legacy played the festival for free, according to Vice President for Administration and Finance Claudio Lindow.
The idea of the car show and festival came to Lindow last summer when he happened across a car show in La Brea.
“I stopped by and started looking around,” he said. “I started wondering, why don’t we have this type of event at Cal State LA, considering that low riders and the car culture are so ingrained in East LA?”
Lindow said the university has received glowing reviews about the festival from all involved—car owners, vendors, performers, and, most importantly, community members. He said planning for next year’s car show and festival will commence shortly.
“We are a big part of the community, and we need to invite our neighbors to the campus,” he said. “This is their home and they came here to enjoy themselves. All we have to do is continue opening our doors.”
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California State University, Los Angeles is the premier comprehensive public university in the heart of Los Angeles. Cal State LA is ranked number one in the United States for the upward mobility of its students. Cal State LA is dedicated to engagement, service, and the public good, offering nationally recognized programs in science, the arts, business, criminal justice, engineering, nursing, education, and the humanities. Founded in 1947, the University serves more than 22,000 students and has more than 260,000 distinguished alumni.
