Dozens of gleaming classic cars will leave Davenport tomorrow on a 500-mile jaunt around the state over the next few days. John Swanson is a co-organizer of the Motor Ioway 500 which he says is more about the journey than the destination. This year’s trek involves 76 vehicles. The oldest are from the 1920s while the newest are from 1976 — virtually all of them restored to their original condition. They run the gamut of makes, including foreign cars. Swanson says the trip is an annual jaunt across Iowa, and like RAGBRAI, the course changes every year. The route closely follows the original route of a Spaulding race car in its match race against the Rock Island fast mail train in 1913. In addition to being a showcase of automotive memorabilia, Swanson says the drivers, passengers and onlookers have a great time meeting each other and talking about cars and he says they want them to explore the beauty of Iowa.The Motor Ioway Tour goes from Davenport to Grinnell on Thursday with stops in West Liberty, Amana Colonies and Brooklyn. Friday, it’s from Grinnell to Stuart with stops in Colfax, Altoona and Adel. Saturday, they go from Stuart to Council Bluffs with stops in Adair and Oakland. For more details, surf to “www.motorioway.com”.
