The largest annual car show on Vancouver Island provides the community with more than a chance to check out cool vehicles, said Seaside Cruizers Car Club chairman Dave Field.
The 22nd annual Father's Day Show and Shine this weekend in Qualicum Beach will feature almost 600 vehicles on display Sunday. After the last car heads to its home garage, the Cruizers will once again look to disburse funds raised during the weekend to local organizations.
The club has distributed about $83,000 to local groups since 2006 alone, organizations like the Salvation Army food bank and Oceanside Hospice.
The club raises money through registrations, raffles, T-shirt sales and the support of sponsors. Those businesses and the 100 volunteers — in addition to the club's 59 members — who donate their efforts help make this event one of the largest on the Parksville Qualicum Beach calendar.
"We can't do this without the help of those volunteers and our platinum sponsor Quality Foods and the Town of Qualicum Beach," said Field.
The first Show and Shine in 1993 was organized by six club members and featured 25-30 classic cars. Crowd estimates can be difficult for a street event like this.
"It's virtually impossible to do, but we did a photo from the fire department's ladder truck one year and counted heads," said Field. "We estimated 15,000-20,000 people."
The Show and Shine itself is Sunday, rain or shine (see the pullout section in today's paper for more information). There are other events related to the show this weekend.
On Friday, an estimated 300 cars will gather at Harris Oceanside GM in Parksville before going on a cruise — a parade of sorts — through local streets, starting at about 7 p.m. This event is open for the public to view the vehicles (after 5:30 p.m. at Harris) and also open to anyone who wants to enter a classic or hot-rod car in the cruise.
There is also a street dance Saturday night in downtown Qualicum Beach. It's a free event and starts at roughly 5:30 p.m.