Car enthusiasts who don’t normally take their vehicles out of their garages are being encouraged to display their automobiles during this year’s Moose Jaw Show and Shine.
The event — now in its eighth year — kicks off with the Cruisin’ the Streets gathering at the mall at 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 20. Vehicle owners can bring their rides to meet with other owners, before joining up in a convoy and cruising south on Main Street and then north again to the mall.
The main Show and Shine occurs on Sunday, July 21 at Happy Valley Park from 12 to 4 p.m. A burnout competition takes place at 2:30 p.m.
The entry fee for Show and Shine participants is $10, while it is free for children, adults and families to view the vehicles on display.
“We would like to see people who do not take their vehicles out of their garages,” said organizer Shauna Easterby. “We would love to see them come and enjoy the show. … I’m thinking there’s lots. You drive down back alleys and you see vehicles you’ve never seen out.
“You kind of get the idea that there are people who hold them in their garages, but, bring them out and show everybody.”
Easterby and her husband are the only two people who organize the Show and Shine, which means it is plenty of work, she explained with a laugh. There was a car show that began several years ago under the same name but it shut down. A friend of the Easterbys wanted to put it on again, so they began helping, and before long were running it themselves.
“It’s been fun,” she said. “We feel it gives lots of fun for families. We just continue doing it.”
Every year the Easterbys make a donation from the event to someone who is ill. In recent years they have donated money to a child who is ill in Calgary. This year they have selected a little boy in Moose Jaw as the recipient, although Easterby wouldn’t say who the family is to keep it a surprise.
There is no pre-registration for the Show and Shine; vehicle owners are encouraged to come down on the day of the event and sign up. Although Easterby didn’t know how many vehicles might show up, she noted they have received many calls and emails from interested people.
Last year there were 146 participants, although this number was low due to bad weather, she explained. There have been more than 200 vehicles entered the past few years.
“It (the Show and Shine) is a lot of work,” Easterby added. “But at the end of the day, when you look back and look at what two people did and how many people enjoyed it, and to hand over that money to somebody (who) needs it, it’s an amazing feeling.
“All that stress and hard work is worth it.”
