The first spring cruise of 2020 on CY Avenue two weeks ago had exactly one car.

The third one scheduled for Saturday evening probably will have hundreds more than that with better organization, a route that won't jam CY, and a plea for safety to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Two weeks ago, Jeremy Faust saw a post from a friend in Riverton who showed him a way to share community, cars and a cruise to beat back the social distancing but not social isolation during the novel coronavirus pandemic, his wife Courtney said.

Jeremy thought it was a good idea and shared it on Facebook.

On April 11, he was it.

But a little publicity and some social media action changed that the next week,

"We started it, and s--t blew up," said Faust, the defacto organizer of the event.

On Saturday, they drove their 2009 Dodge Challenger and 2019 Ram pickup to Smith's parking lot in the 2400 block of CY Avenue, and expected 30 to 40 vehicles ready to hit the strip, she said Monday.

Tom Morton, Townsquare Media
Tom Morton, Townsquare Media
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They saw at least 200 -- new, old, classics, antiques, tuners, street rods, muscle cars, trucks, a replicar or two, at least one car engineered so the suspension can jack up front and rear wheels and drive on three (don't ask how), and the daily drivers of just folks who wanted to get out of the house and drive along CY Avenue, Faust said.

People stood at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church and the former Ridley's store along CY Avenue to watch, wave and take pictures.

The event was so successful that it attracted Casper Police officers about 7:45p.m. who said they liked the idea of the cruise and asked participants to practice the social distancing. Officers arrived a half-hour later because Smith's management called and asked them to clear the lot, Faust said.

Casper Police Department spokeswoman Rebekah Ladd said Monday the cop-car-cruise interaction wasn't so much confrontational as it was contrite,

"What happened was unintentional by the organizer," Ladd said. "Everyone they [the officers] talked to was understanding and remorseful."

Since then, Courtney Faust has been able to secure a new staging area with the blessing of Matt Galloway and his El Marko Lanes parking lot in the 2800 block of CY Avenue.

She also set an oval route from the bowling alley to SW Wyoming Boulevard that will go north then east on 13th Street/Collins Drive/East Second Street to SE Wyoming Boulevard, then west on 12th Street west to CY Avenue.

Anybody can participate and join the cruise at any point during the route, Faust said,

There's no registration, no fees and no restrictions on the vehicles that want to join, she added,

However, she urged participants to practice the six-foot social distancing guidelines and other recommendations from the Wyoming Department of Health.

Faust also recommended that people wear gloves and masks -- not so much to prevent getting the virus, but rather to keep you from spreading it if you have it and don't know it. She has a pattern to make masks and you can contact her at the Casper Saturday Cruise Facebook page. Masks aren't needed while driving.

Finally, she asked for volunteers to return to the El Marko Lanes parking lot on Sunday morning with brooms to sweep any trash and kitty litter to absorb any fluids that might have dripped from the vehicles.

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This is the schedule and route for the Saturday cruise:

  • Vehicles assemble at El-Marko Lanes, 2800 CY Ave., starting about 6 p.m.
  • The National Anthem is sung at 7 p.m. to signal the start of the cruise.
  • Vehicles leave the parking lot.
  • Right on CY Avenue, drive to SW Wyoming Boulevard.
  • Right on SW Wyoming Boulevard, drive to West 13th Street.
  • Right on West 13th Street, which morphs to Collins Drive through the area south of downtown, drive to East Second Street.
  • Right on East Second Street, drive to SE Wyoming Boulevard.
  • Right on SE Wyoming Boulevard, drive to East 12th Street.
  • Right on East 12th Street, drive to CY Avenue.
  • Left on CY Avenue, drive on CY Avenue to El Marko Lanes.
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