Boise Needs One of These

If you've ever been on a really long road trip to Texas, you might have seen Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo.  If we had one of these in Boise, would it be Cadillacs buried nose-first in the dirt, or should we do it with F-150s?

Even if you haven't been to Route 66 you've probably heard of it.  It's full of nostalgia and history and a little bit of quirkiness too, and I had the chance to cruise on it a little bit last week on vacation.

On I-40 west of Amarillo, Texas, a bunch of Cadillacs are buried nose-first in a dirt patch in the middle of a field, and they've been there since 1974.  It's the only stop you'll probably make that's not a snack or bathroom break, but it's totally worth it. In fact, there are no snacks or bathrooms here.  Just Cadillacs.  And dirt.  And a lot of spray paint.

Roadside America points out that Cadillac Ranch was "invented and built by a group of art-hippies imported from San Francisco.  They called themselves The Ant Farm, and their silent partner was Amarillo billionaire Stanley Marsh 3. He wanted a piece of public art that would baffle the locals, and the hippies came up with a tribute to the evolution of the Cadillac tail fin. Ten Caddies were driven into one of Stanley Marsh 3's fields, then half-buried, nose-down, in the dirt."

And those Cadillac tail fins will be on display in the Texas panhandle for all eternity.  And so will the globs of paint.

Anyone can get out a can of spray paint and squirt an elaborate design on one of the cars, or paint something simple like initials or a smiley face.  I painted my initials on a car in bright red, but I have a feeling the J and A have already been covered up because it's been, well, a week and a half.  There are so many people painting every day that the designs get covered up quickly.  And the paint is thick!   They're forty-five years into this quirky painting project, and it adds up to layers and layers of a colorful and rubbery mess.  But you know the whole thing is screaming history, so it's accepted and fun and you want to add more and make it even more rubbery.  Just don't wear white to this tourist attraction, especially if the wind is blowing.

So let's plant a display like this somewhere in the Treasure Valley, whaddya say?  Anyone have some Ford F-150s to spare?  Maybe some Chevy Silverados?  Toyota Camrys?  What other vehicles could we bury?  Let us know if you make this happen, and we'll be right over with the spray paint.