f all the collectible-car sites on the Web (and there are many), the Saturday Sunrise Cruisers Car Club's stands out with its whopping 800-plus images of more than 500 cars. The vast gallery comes courtesy of self-appointed photo-documentarian and Webmaster Thomas Miller. A self-described "technical marketing guy," Miller is a former freelance automotive journalist and Baja 500 pit crew member residing in Fountain Valley, Calif.

The Saturday Sunrise Cruisers — formerly known as the "Donut Derelicts" until a copyright dispute earlier this year required a hasty name-change — formed in the late '70s when hot rod fanatics began gathering at a local donut shop. Since 1980 when, according to Miller, Hot Rod magazine mentioned the gathering, the donut shop has been the place for area hot rod aficionados and car restorers to see and be seen.

Racing the Sun
These days on a typical Saturday from 6 to 9 a.m. — the Sunrise Cruisers' regular gathering time — more than 300 cars and owners stop for donuts; Miller joins in to snap photos. "I don't shoot every car in the parking lot," he says. "I can't move fast enough to even see all of them. The special cars get the attention." There are so many special cars at the cruise, though, that Miller shoots four or five rolls of film per week.

The Sunrise Cruisers are a loosely-organized bunch. Their only truly official activity is the weekly donut gathering. "There are no officers, real meetings or real business to conduct," Miller explains. "Everyone interested can come and join the fun."

For the past three years, Miller's Web site has been spreading the fun worldwide. His aim for the site is to "dispense photos to hungry hot-rodders," he says. "The Sunrise Cruisers site has brought me a lot of attention." Miller updates the site once or twice a month, swapping upwards of 100 photos with each update.

Pedal Pusher
Documenting the Sunrise Cruisers' cars is only part of Miller's Web endeavor. He also displays his own car collection, including a 1979 Jaguar XJ6L, 1979 Jeep CJ7, 1973 Mercedes-Benz 450SL and seven pedal cars (belonging to his dogs, Sara and Sammy).

In addition to these photographs of cars large and small "in the wild," as Miller refers to them, he has also documented cars "in captivity," including collections in the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles and the now-closed Briggs Cunningham Auto Museum (formerly of Costa Mesa, Calif.).

Miller says his most recent addition to the site is a bulletin board, the Old Car Forum, "to let folks share their own stories." Miller has also just added a favorite recipe for raised donuts. Now, if you can't make it to Huntington Beach Saturday mornings for hot rods and donuts, Miller's Web site has made it possible to join the Saturday Sunrise Cruisers online.

Reported by Kara Reuter, cars.com

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