This past weekend, Bronco Nation hosted our third annual Woodward Dream Cruise Bronco Corral, and with it, our first Michigan Bronco Basecamp. From camping to off-roading to scenic drives, the community did a bit of everything together –– and we can’t wait to repeat a weekend like this with you all again.
Bronco Basecamp
We kicked off the weekend with camping on Thursday. We rented a group area at Groveland Oaks and invited members to come stay with us. It was a packed weekend, and Bronco Basecamp was both a great launch point for heading across the street to Holly Oaks ORV Park and chill place to come back to at the end of the day.
We broke out the grill each day, hung out by the fire, and enjoyed getting to know each other. Members drove from multiple states to Michigan –– Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia, and more –– and had different levels of experience with their Broncos so far, making Bronco Basecamp a nice melting spot of adults, kids, and dogs. Come alone or bring your family to the next one … either way, you’ll be welcomed, and we always seem to have a good time.
Holly Oaks Takeover
Friday morning, Tom Zielinski and Bronco Nation's Dan Schaffer met our group at Basecamp and led them over to Holly Oaks, where we met up with plenty more owners. Bronco Nation rented the park so we could run with just Broncos and Sports, and Tom and Dan had selected a couple routes for our group. One was perfect for those newer to off-roading and with lighter equipped Broncos; and one was planned for the more experienced with more extensively equipped vehicles. BN member and moderator [USER=1292]@SlashRacer[/USER] has ran the park numerous times and came ready to give a hand.
Tom and Dan gave instructions on picking lines and tips on driving, spotted, and had everyone ready to do more. Rumor has it the group had so much fun on the first run that a few who planned to do the Motor City Miler decided to stay back and spend the day at the park. We love hearing that! Taking your Bronco out with the community usually ends up as “perfect day” material.
Motor City Miler
From Holly Oaks, we staged a group of more than 30 Broncos and rolled out. The day was sunny and the weather warm, so many of us were enjoying tops back and panels and doors off.
Jeff's Bronco Graveyard
credit: Allan Schweighardt
Our first stop was at Jeff’s Bronco Graveyard, our partner and the world’s largest supplier of vintage Bronco parts. Jeff and his team had lunch ready for us, so after a quick photo of all our Broncos, we got to enjoy his hospitality. He showed us the warehouse and let us browse through the amazing collection of Broncos –– including the “Stone Soup” Bronco they did for 94.7 WCSX’s raffle benefitting Vets Returning Home. RIGID was there as well and offered a set of lights as a giveaway.
We could have easily stayed there for hours longer, but we had more ground to cover with an ever-growing group of Broncos. On to Michigan Assembly plant!
MAP
credit: Allan Schweighardt
Due to production being in full swing at MAP and our 40+ Broncos (and now including a Bronco Raptor too –– thanks, Bronco team!), we lined up at the Modification Center next to the main building. With the Blue Oval in the background, we got pictures and drone footage of all our Broncos at their birthplace. While the holding lots at MAP were much emptier, we will be thrilled when all the early reservation and order holders waiting for their Bronco have theirs.
Fair Lane Estate
From MAP, we headed to Fair Lane, the former home of Henry and Clara Ford. Mr. Edsel Ford II was so kind as to extend an invitation to our community on an earlier livestream, and the staff there opened the portico up just for us to be able to get pictures under. We appreciate their help snapping photos as we rotated our traffic around the driveway! The home and gardens are beautiful, and we hope many of you will get to spend more time there in the future.
Ford Motor Company World Headquarters
credit: Allan Schweighardt
Our last stop of the day was WHQ. Once again, we all lined up to get a group photo, and owners were free to position their Broncos away from the crowd for individual shots. Throughout the weekend, we enjoyed having multiple current and retired Ford employees spending time with us, and it was fun hearing people say they used to work in the building and liked getting a picture with their Bronco there.
From there, we turned everyone loose to enjoy the evening as they liked, and we met back at Basecamp for dinner. Great stories from the day were shared!
Bronco Corral at Woodward Dream Cruise
The grand finale of the week was meeting in Memorial Park on Saturday for the Bronco Corral. We had a record number of Broncos with us, with more than 280 Broncos of all gens and Sports registered.
Ford dropped off two Bronco Raptors, an Everglades and a Wildtrak, and the Heritage Bronco and Heritage Limited Sport. In addition to sharing their vehicles, we had visits from Ford Performance as well as the Bronco brand team, so people could ask questions directly.
Among the comings and goings of Broncos to cruise, we got to look closer at all the vehicles and talk to the owners about the modifications they’ve done and the trips they’ve taken. Like at Bronco Basecamp, we had attendees from all over –– Seattle to New York and a bunch of places in between –– and it’s so cool to hear everyone’s stories of when they got their first Bronco to learning where they are headed next.
If you ever want to meet more people in the community, come to an event. You can walk up to nearly anyone and end up in a great conversation: We all have at least one thing in common!
Thank You
Our Bronco community continues to be one of the best reasons to own this vehicle. The BN team enjoys all the time we get to spend with you; thank you for coming out and allowing us that privilege. We also appreciate the effort our partners and friends put into this weekend with us. Thank you to Holly Oaks, Jeff’s Bronco Graveyard, Ford, and the Fair Lane Estate team for helping us make each day of it special.
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