Wayne White/Herald-Chronicle
 Onlookers take in the sight of dozens of Model Ts in downtown Burlingame Friday morning. The plethora of historic automobiles brought out residents, enthusiasts and fellow classic car owners.
Jeremy Gaston | Reporter

BURLINGAME—Burlingame welcomed a piece of the past as 55 Ford Model Ts drove in from the east, settling in downtown for a break, breakfast and an open air classic car show.

Residents, car clubs and out-of-town enthusiasts crowded the wide brick streets of downtown Burlingame, where a variety of classic cars were displayed.

“I think they were all excited to be a part of such a historic event,” said Jeanne Riggs, owner of the Santa Fe Cafe, Burlingame. “That’s once in a lifetime visit.”

Friday’s visit was just days after the hundredth anniversary of the end of the 1909 Ocean to Ocean Endurance Contest from New York to Seattle. The winner of that race drove a 1909 Model T Ford.

In this year’s retracing of the race, 55 driver are making the 4,100-mile trip across the country in the half-ton historic cruisers, one representing each state, along with a few guests from overseas.

Burlingame was an official stop on the 13th day of the tour, with organizers planning breakfast for all of the participants at the Santa Fe Café. Gary Hylton, Prairie Village, who drove the Model T representing the state of Kansas, had meet with Riggs three years prior to the event to coordinate the checkpoint.

“They wanted to stop here, if it was okay with me,” Riggs said.

Riggs welcomed both the notoriety of the event for Burlingame, as well as the business. Breakfast preparations began at around 3 a.m. for Friday’s visit, with the first Model Ts arriving in town around 7.

“At least 220 people were served breakfast,” Riggs said. “I heard from a number of people who said that it was the best reception they had received in any of the town – the best support by the different car clubs and from the locals. I’m just thrilled they came.”