Harold Dyck is what one might call a huge car buff: he rolled onto the property of the Kinsmen Scout Hall on Sunday morning in his 1971 El Camino, joining hundreds for the group’s annual car show.
Dyck and the other Kinsmen lucked out this weekend with beautiful weather and even more beautiful cars bringing more than 500 participants to their Show and Shine car show.
“We stopped charging at two o’clock because we were running out of room,” said Ken Slingerland, a Kinsmen member and lead organizer.
“We definitely cleared 500 cars, there’s no question about that,” he said.
After what he is calling “the best car show we’ve ever had,” even Slingerland was wowed by both the crowd and the automobiles.
“Honestly I am no car buff but I was amazed at how many different ones there were. They are just awesome,” he said.
Dyck started the first-ever Show and Shine and has been helping lead the shows since.
He said that with so many cars checked in, the Kinsmen would not have been able to pull off the day without parking space from Parks Canada.
“We were getting pretty full close to the end,” he said.
He added that with two people per car and an estimated 1000 spectators, nearly 2000 filled up the show area to flaunt and gawk at the show-stopping vehicles.
“We couldn’t have done it without all the volunteers and the Kinsmen wives,” Dyck said.
While a final amount of funds raised is still being calculated, Dyck said that the 50/50 may have been the highest in Show and Shine history, with the Kinsmen giving away $2,300 to the lucky winner.
Slingerland added that given past years bringing in $10,000 to $15,000 in support of Kinsmen community efforts, this year’s show will likely help the club catch up after the pandemic.
“We went two years without a car show. We’re catching up,” he said.
Dyck said that the Kinsmen are “expecting a good healthy year,” with funds going to support causes including Girl Guides, Pathfinders and Cystic Fibrosis research.