On a typical day, it takes five minutes or less to drive a loop around downtown Seymour.
That’s even if you catch a red light.
But on Saturday night, Jennifer Loudin sat in her Equinox for one hour and 20 minutes and only made one lap.
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The bumper-to-bumper gridlock is what people expect and look forward to during Seymour’s annual Scoop the Loop event, along with getting to see old friends and lots of cars.
Loudin said Scoop the Loop, now in its eighth official year, is a way for people to reminisce about the days when teenagers had nothing better to do than waste a tank of gas and hang out the passenger side of their best friend’s ride.
“For me, it’s about reliving the memories from back in the ‘90s when I spent a lot of time uptown,” she said. “It’s sad that kids these days won’t have those memories.”
Scooping the loop died out in the 1990s, when local law enforcement put an end to teens gathering downtown because of complaints from businesses of noise, littering and vandalism.
A lot has changed since those times though, most notably the age of those participating and the types of vehicles they drive.
From old station wagons to a Lamborghini to souped up trucks and street rods, it’s anything goes in this rolling car show.
“It’s definitely not the same as it was many years ago,” Loudin said.
These days, people bring lawn chairs to set up on the sidewalks, a band plays at One Chamber Square and there’s even a drive- through for people to purchase old-fashioned root beer and Big Red floats. All money raised from the floats goes to support the local Cops and Kids program.
Official Scoop the Loop t-shirts could be purchased from the Seymour Evening Lions Club. Students from Seymour High School also were set up selling tacos in a bag as a fundraiser for the school’s Riley Dance Marathon.
Some people enjoy the event but don’t have the patience to stay “in the loop.”
“We did half of a loop and were done,” said Heather Lewis. “It took way too long.”
Mary Burgmeier and her crew played it safe, choosing to park, waving and hollering at people as they drove by.
“We sat in the back of our truck and watched,” she said. “It was great.”
Instead of honking horns at people to get them to move, people honk during Scoop the Loop as a way of saying hi to those driving around and to people parked along the streets.
Curt Schleibaum said Scoop the Loop is part of Seymour’s charm. He traveled around in a convertible with his wife and their two young twins.
“One of the best parts of living in a small town is when it comes together and puts on a great community event,” he said. “We had a great time tonight riding around drinking floats and seeing everyone who journeyed downtown for just plain good old fun.”
But he couldn’t decide if he was in a car jam because traffic was so bad or because they had the music in the car turned all the way up.
Lifetime Seymour resident Erin Hays resurrected the local tradition of Scoop the Loop in 2011 through the power of social media. He made a post on Facebook asking if anyone wanted to meet him downtown. He never dreamed it would attract as much interest as it has.
Now it’s become one of his favorite local events of the year, bringing thousands of people, some of whom come from out of town, to experience Scoop the Loop.
The event also keeps downtown restaurants like Larrison’s Diner and Bullwinkle’s hopping on Saturday night. Both places stay open later and offer Scoop the Loop food specials. Gas stations also see an increase in business.
After taking three laps early on with his family and then going just one block in 30 minutes, Hays pulled off and walked around for awhile. He then went four or five more laps later that night.
He had a lot of fun meeting up with several old friends, he said.
But what he really enjoys is seeing how the event brings people together.
“I saw one corner with at least four generations gathered together by their family cars, little kids waving at every car that passed,” he said. “I found it great to see. Maybe, just maybe, Scoop will outlast me.”