MidDays with Gerard Gibert 2026-10-07

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

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Get ready, get ready to go beyond the headlines and join a meaningful conversation with people from around the state. You're listening to MidDays with Gerard Gibert here on Super Talk Mississippi.

Gerard Gibert (1:02)

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to MidDays. Super Talk Mississippi. I'm your host, Gerard Gibert. On location on Highway 90 at the Biloxi Town Green, it's Cruisin the Coast, the 30th annual Cruisin the Coast. We'll be guiding you through the middle of your day with facts, fodder, and fine music on this day.

What's happening up there, Rhino?

Austin Sumrall (1:27)

Oh, not too terribly much, just enjoying this cooler morning weather.

Gerard Gibert (1:31)

Yeah, it was delightful this morning. Let's kick things off this morning with the host of the Ricky Matthews show. Ricky Matthews. All right, Ricky, you just wrapped up your show down here, saw you interview Gulfport Mayor Hugh Keating, of course, Biloxi Mayor Fofo Gillich. Big event for those guys in all the coastal communities, the entire coastal region. And I had to drive down this morning, couldn't come in last night. And as soon as I got to 110 there, the traffic, with a bunch of those classic vehicles, pretty cool to see them just driving along the highways.

Ricky Matthews (2:06)

Isn't it awesome?

Fofo Gillich (2:07)

People have so much pride.

Ricky Matthews (2:08)

So much pride.

Gerard Gibert (2:10)

All are shined up, ready to go. Just look at this huge crowd here. They have a passion for these vehicles. And, you know, as the saying goes, they don't make them like this anymore, do they?

Ricky Matthews (2:21)

No, they don't. They don't. And listen, we talked a little bit about the hurricane situation as well. And literally, they just issued a hurricane watch for the Northern Gulf from Bay St. Louis, Mississippi to Indian Pass, Florida.

Gerard Gibert (2:33)

Okay.

Ricky Matthews (2:34)

So we're going to watch that. The current trajectory has it east of here, but we'll know more later this afternoon. But Black Party goes on.

Gerard Gibert (2:42)

Beautiful today.

Ricky Matthews (2:43)

Everything is going on. And people can make decisions later today. Do we know a little bit more?

Gerard Gibert (2:48)

Yeah. Well, it certainly doesn't appear to have deterred those who like to drive their classic vehicles right here behind us on Highway 90 on the Beach Boulevard.

Ricky Matthews (2:58)

Yeah.

Fofo Gillich (2:58)

They're all over the place.

Ricky Matthews (2:59)

I get here a little early, because my show starts at 9 So I get this opportunity to walk around and get to talk to a few people. Yeah.

You said it. We've already alluded to it. But the amazing pride, not only in the cars, but the pride in just being here and being part of this event. People, look at everybody smiling. Everybody enjoys being here.

Gerard Gibert (3:18)

It's a common bond.

Ricky Matthews (3:19)

It really is.

Gerard Gibert (3:20)

And that's pretty cool when you think about all these folks, they share this love of these classic vehicles.

Ricky Matthews (3:28)

Yeah, no doubt.

Gerard Gibert (3:30)

Yeah, and in doing so, they all accumulate here. What I believe is now the largest car show in the country, right?

SPEAKER_6 (3:38)

It has been for a few years.

Ricky Matthews (3:40)

Like USA Today said, the best car show in America are like seven years in a row. Yeah. And what's really cool and important about this year, you've heard Woody talk about this, it's the 30th year, so they're doing an economic study. And the economic study they do, Gerard, is really cool because they're literally talking to people, asking them, where did you spend your money? How much money did you spend? And when they roll all that up, you know, it was already in the mid 30 million range. Yeah. It's going to be well north of 40 million this year.

Gerard Gibert (4:05)

Well, no better way to conduct a survey than to do it on the street with the actual people that, where are you from? You came from out of town. We know that. Or you could be from within the state, somewhere else, and you traveled here, and you're staying in the hotels, and you're buying stuff with merchandise in the shops, eating in the restaurants. And all of that generates lots of economic activity for the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Ricky Matthews (4:27)

It does. The way that the cities work together, it's really awesome.