WASHINGTON - Traffic here is already good and jacked up, with authorities closing streets close to Friday's parade route, and the site of a 7,500-pound, 29-foot long rolling contraption cobbled together from two Mercedes Benz station wagons and a 1962 Chrysler Imperial and tricked out with Donald Trump gear isn't helping.
But the rolling traffic jam Jorma Puranen is causing with this head-turning Trump-mobile seems to be inspiring other motorists to slow down and take photos instead of laying on their horns (as they're doing pretty much everywhere else).
"This is a very long but funny story," Puranen said as he gave us a little run-down of the custom wheels.
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He and his wife, Marrti, are handing out postcards to the tourists stopping to gawk that identify them as pastors. Of which church it's unclear and as you can tell in the video the street noise and bustle didn't really lend itself to an in-depth interview. But two seconds of Internet sleuthing turns up some info on the fancy ride.
The auto, initially christened the FinnJett, is owned by Antti Rahko, a 72-year-old chauffeur from Finland who immigrated to the United States in 1984 and now lives in Palm Beach. The Puranens traveled up to Washington (hauling the vehicle in a trailer rather than driving it the entire way).
The car has its own web site, naturally, that includes video clips of it cruising by Trump campaign events in Palm Beach, home of the "Winter White House," as the president-elect has taken to calling his Mar-a-Lago estate.
It seems the FinnJett was modified to become the Trump-mobile as earlier photos of it are missing the campaign paraphernalia and doll in Trump's likeness.
"First we want to thank our Heavenly Father for the election results," reads the card the Puranens are handing out. "We know this will make America great again."
At the very least, it's created one very unique ride. Check out this video clip (it skips a little bit due to connectivity issues early on.)
