A small fleet of lowrider cars revved their engines Sunday at Fort Lewis College as part of the Sociology Department’s Save the Kids program.
“We wanted to bring a social, nontraditional event to FLC,” said Brandon Stacy, a senior and intern for the program.
A lowrider is a customized vehicle fitted with hydraulic systems that allow the car to rise and fall at the owner’s command. The vehicles often feature custom painting and other details.
The cars at FLC on Sunday were part of the Boulevard Knights Car Club, based in Bloomfield, New Mexico. The club mostly builds lowriders and participates in car showings and other events.
Joe Alcantar, who founded the club, said he started building lowriders when he was 13. He said his interest in the cars stem from the fact lowriders are part of the Latino culture.
“This is part of my heritage,” Alcantar said.
Customizing lowriders are generally thought to have started in the mid 1940s in Los Angeles, gaining more popularity among the Latino culture throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Part of the allure of lowriders, Alcantar said, is the joy of riding a vehicle slow that’s low to the ground, as well as the building process.
Alcantar’s son, David, said holding events like the one Sunday help breakdown stereotypes typically associated with people who drive lowriders.
“A lot of people judge us, and think we’re gangsters or troublemakers,” he said. “But we take pride in our cars. This is a lifestyle we like.”
In all, club members say Boulevard Knights has more lowriders than members, about 15 custom made cars. Models can range anywhere from Cadillacs to Monte Carlos.
“Each car we do has our blood, sweat and tears,” said Alcantar’s other son, Joseph.
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