‘Awesome!’

Richard Powell drove from 78th Street and Western Avenue in his burgundy ’65 Impala, “Richie Rich,” with the burgundy-mohair, biscuit-tuck interior.

K. C. Jones towed his “Cannonball Express” dragster with the F-104 jet engine.

Gary Wales brought the ’36 Bentley in which he won “The Great American Auto Race” old-car rally in 1984.

Sherwood and Rita Kahlenberg came in their ’85 Chrysler LeBaron Town and Country convertible.

It was the Sixth Annual Cleveland High School Auto Expo. The event is put together by the school’s industrial management class under drafting instructor Don Runyan.

At 11:30 a.m., the Cleveland student body was dismissed and headed for the field where this year’s 200 entries were assembled.

As state-of-the-art auto stereos blasted out tunes like, “We’re living in a material world and I’m a material girl,” the students milled about the automotive splendor, issuing critical evaluations such as “hip” and “awesome.”

Many of the owners were students. They sat proudly beside their cars and discussed the fine points of engineering and design with their less-fortunate classmates who didn’t own awesome cars.

Meanwhile, Rita Kahlenberg, the mother of one of the event’s organizers, stayed inside the LeBaron. She listened to talk radio and knitted a sweater.