This week Thursday the final show 'n shine of the summer is scheduled to grace Killarney's main street with a wide variety of vintage vehicles, and live entertainment, BBQ burgers and popcorn and ice-cream - a veritable street party!
The monthly cruise night that has taken place the second Thursday of the month has been a big hit throughout the summer months, with folks coming out to take a closer look at these sweet rides.
"We've had three really good show," says event coordinator, Keith Kemp. "I guess we'd say we were very fortunate. For all three Thursdays the weather's held for us. You know, guys don't like to come out if the weather looks a little iffy. They're hesitant to bring their cars then, so we changed our timing. We how have our shows from 6:00-8:00 pm instead of going to 9:00 pm. Because the guys also like to get home before it's dark, in case you know, of wildlife, deer, whatnot."
Touring Broadway Ave during the evening car shows conversations break out between local car enthusiasts and the owners of the vehicles on display. There is always a story behind the project. It could be a wreck of a ride that's been dragged out of the back 40, or a forgotten relic overgrown with weeds and bushes in a shelterbelt that's spotted from the roadway. Or it could be that first purchase sometime in the 1960's that's been held onto for years and finally restored.
Kemp says not all the vehicles are fully restored, many are in different phases of restoration.
"And that's what we want. We're not after just to show vehicles, we're after almost anything with wheels. We have motorcycles, we have cars, trucks, we have even tractors. And we don't give prizes or anything like that because we know it costs a lot of money to put one up and glistening and that. But people don't always want to see that. They like to see something that's in progress. They want to see something that's original," he explains.
"Some of the car shows, if you're looking at prizes, it deters the person that, how would you say maybe doesn't have the funding to put one in that's show-condition. Or they've got one partially done. And you know, it doesn't matter. We want them all here."
The Thursday evening car show has become a true community event with local musician, Lyle Baldwin, sharing his guitar, fiddling and singing talents throughout the evening. And this year's there's more!
From being a smaller car show of showcasing local vehicles to now displaying anywhere from 80-100 at a time from across southwest Manitoba with multiple sponsors, the event has grown to significant size over the past few years.
"People are all coming out because our entertainment is always very good and our fire department's really good at providing hamburgers, hotdogs and drinks," explains Kemp. "And now we've got the credit union involved with the popcorn, and the Co-op is involved now with the ice cream on the street. And so, it's become a real community event where it's not all about the cars anymore. It's about getting out just with your neighbor and talking about vehicles that you've had in the past. And yeah, to be honest with you, we're quite proud of our show now, yeah."
The Killarney cruise night is set for this Thursday evening on Broadway Ave close to the mall, from 6-8 pm. Bring a lawn chair, sit back and relax and enjoy community at its finest! All are welcome to attend!
Please listen to more with Keith Kemp below!
