GROSSE ILE, MI – The Mustang Owners Club of Southeastern Michigan (MOCSEM) is among the largest organizations of its kind in North America for many reasons, but members will tell you that it’s because of the many unique club events that it hosts each year. While events for car clubs nationwide have been few and far between this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, MOCSEM was able to hold one of its key annual events this past June while following the latest government guidelines to slow the spread of the virus. One of the first events on the club calendar to signal the beginning of the cruising season each year is the Show-n-Cruise at the Ford Yacht Club on the island community of Grosse Ile, Michigan, which is situated at the southern delta of the Detroit River.

No, the yacht club is not affiliated with Ford Motor Company, although more than a few of its members happen to be current or retired Ford employees. One such retiree, none other than former Ford Design VP Jack Telnack (yes, of Fox Body Mustang fame), has been inviting MOCSEM to the yacht club the last few years on a Friday night as a way to get a one-day jump on the club’s annual participation in what’s known as the “Downriver Cruise” along old Fort Street on the following Saturday.

Each year, some 100 club members sign up to cruise to the yacht club with their Mustangs for a mini-show overlooking both the Detroit River and Lake Erie. While attendance this year was down nearly 40 percent, many MOCSEM cruisers still drove a variety of Mustangs to the yacht club grounds on the evening of June 29, 2020, where they enjoyed a cookout of burgers and hot dogs before taking a cruise all around the perimeter of the island. Although MOCSEM calls this event the “Downriver Cruise Kickoff Party,” participants know it as the Grosse Ile cruise; no matter what it is called, the opportunity to see and Mustangs parked at the Ford Yacht Club and drive around Grosse Ile is too picturesque to pass up, so Ford Performance was there. Cars were assembled in the parking lot instead of the yacht club’s grassy waterfront because of high water this year, but it made no difference to attendees, who were able to assemble their mini show before their drive at dusk. We walked the cruise-in lot and snapped photos of some of the many wonderful Mustangs that we spotted there, and share some of our favorites with you in the exclusive gallery below:

FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY JOHN M. CLOR