A morning of cars and coffee in Sarasota

Clifford Scholz had an idea.

He’s a car guy, in addition to his role as principal partner at Clifford M. Scholz Architects, so he thought why not invite some of his friends, clients and co-workers on a Saturday morning to his company’s headquarters to chat about all things internal combustion?

So that’s what he and business partners Rick Oswald and Daniel Shaffer did, in the form of a Cars and Coffee event in the parking lot of his Orange Avenue offices. Nothing formal or scheduled. Sports cars, classics, motorcycles, you name it.

“We didn’t want it to be big,’’ Scholz said. “No commitments, no obligations. It’s just a beautiful morning.’’

As the machines rolled in, producing sounds and smells not typically made by 21st-century transportation, the stories of the owners and their metal varied as much as the shapes, vintages and styles on display that morning.

Chuck Jacobson

Replica Shelby Cobra, built by Backdraft Racing, Boynton Beach

For decades, ever since he was a kid, Chuck Jacobson has been a big fan of the Shelby Cobra, the quintessential small car/big engine racing machine of the 1960s.

So you’ll have to excuse him if he smiles (a lot) while talking about the replica he drives for fun now – powered by a modern-day 427-cubic-inch V8. (Your Camry? Maybe 120 cubic inches with half the cylinders.)

“It’s a lot of fun,’’ he said, adding such a powerful sports car in his hands 20 years ago might not have been such a great idea.

The car is custom-made by Backdraft, with major components shipped to Florida from South Africa, he said. Final assembly takes about two weeks. With his wife and family, he picked out all the finishing touches, such as the tan leather interior. “I just didn’t want black,’’ he said of the material normally found in the British luxury brand Bentley.

He took delivery just before Christmas 2018.

The end result is a rumbling, snorting smile machine.

“It’s nice to get out there and just jump on it,’’ Jacobson said.

Mark van den Broek

1966 Pontiac Bonneville convertible

One particular feature on the dashboard of a neighbor’s Pontiac has stuck with Mark van den Broek since he was 6.

“The bright-light indicator was a silhouette of Chief Pontiac,’’ he said of the Great Lakes Native American leader who led a rebellion against the British in 1763.

And you know what? His classic Pontiac from the same era has that light, too.

“At that time, it was design, engineering, it all worked great,’’ he said, remembering his rides in his neighbor’s car – sometimes on the back seat’s parcel shelf.

He’s owned the long white convertible for 25 years, after buying it from its original owner. He said with three children, car collecting isn’t in the cards right now. But the whole family can still enjoy the Bonneville.

And while it looks impeccably preserved, van den Broek shakes his head and points: “This is where I spilled coffee.’’

He says it’s smooth and supremely comfortable at speeds that would get the highway patrol’s attention, but it’s no “muscle car.”

“It’s not a GTO or a Camaro,’’ he said, adding once he set his mind to finding a classic, it took him about four or five months to find this one. “You don’t see too many of these.”

Joe Arme

1966 Chevrolet Corvette

You don’t find a car every day driven by James T. Kirk.

Joe Arme did.

Arme owns one of three classic sports cars featured in J.J. Abrams’ reboot of the science-fiction classic Star Trek, in which a defiant Kirk joyrides as a young boy in his stepfather’s antique car.

Arme said Corvettes of this vintage aren’t particularly rare but are still fun to own. In fact, he sold a previous 1966 to finish college. “There are a lot of them around, but to make it a Star Trek collectible is cool,’’ he said, adding fans of the series often pose for photos alongside to mimic an image of the film’s Kirk-joyrides-then-crashes sequence.

These days, he says he drives the car – at less than warp speed – maybe once a week.

Arme said the three cars used in the film were stored for years after production wrapped, then were offered for sale by the movie company. His nephew in the movie business told him its sale was imminent, and Arme took action. He brings it to shows occasionally, drawing typical reaction from car enthusiasts, but . . .

“If someone is a Star Trek fan, the reaction is enormous.’’

Daniel Shaffer

1956 Chevrolet Nomad

The classic station wagon from the 1950s has been in Daniel Shaffer’s family for a long time, and he emphasizes it will remain that way. Originally his grandfather’s, the Chevrolet underwent about a 2½-year restoration to bring it back to what it looked like when it was new – including the color and an engine accurate to the time period.

He said he brings it to car shows a few times a month, but it’s not a pampered collector car. “We drive it everywhere,’’ he said. “As a cruiser, it’s awesome.’’