Actually, it wasn't all that bad. Weather predictions of low 20s for Saturday and Sunday mornings during National Parts Depot's (NPD) 12th Annual Ford & Mustang Roundup prepared everyone for the frosty temperatures, which fortunately gave way to nearly 60 degrees on Saturday afternoon and downright balmy 70s during Sunday's awards presentation. Mike Eaton from Eaton Detroit Spring wasn't complaining about any of it: "It's a lot better than back home."
In just 12 years, NPD's Ford & Mustang Roundup at Ocala, Florida's Silver Springs theme park, home of the famous glass-bottom boats, has become one of the largest shows in the southeast. This year, with NPD offering its traditional free registration and two tickets to Silver Springs for the first 1,000 registrants, preregistration hit the 1,400-car mark. So perhaps the weather did have something to do with the 400 or so no-shows, which still resulted in a record 1,002 vehicles for the weekend. Mustangs made up the majority, of course, but there were plenty of other Fords, including a foursome of new Ford GTs featured on the mansion porch for anyone looking for diversity.
This year, NPD corralled its featured manufacturers into a special display area so attendees could easily check out the wares and talk with company representatives from Stainless Steel Brakes, Eaton Detroit Spring, RRS, Parish-Heacock Classic Car Insurance, and TMI Products.
Always held on the first weekend after New Year's, the NPD Ford & Mustang Roundup at Silver Springs is a great way to kick off a new show season, and if you live up north, it's also a great excuse to escape the winter cold. Maybe.
 It was definitely cold on...  It was definitely cold on Saturday morning, but that didn't stop Steve Grey from bundling up to finish the detailing on his '66 Mustang. |  In anticipation of all 1,400...  In anticipation of all 1,400 pre-registered cars showing up, Mustangs and Fords were packed into every nook and cranny at Silver Springs. However, only 1,002 showed up, which gave NPD's Rick Schmidt a break from his parking challenge. "If all the preregistered cars show up," Rick explained before the event, "we'll have to park a car every nine seconds." |  Blue Moon Motorsports took...  Blue Moon Motorsports took advantage of the manufacturers' area to showcase their Control Freak IRS suspension packages for '05-'06 Mustangs. |