Coaldale Custom Cruisers kicks off summer car show circuit

Calling all car enthusiasts, the 12th Annual Coaldale Custom Cruisers car club’s Show and Shine is cruising into town this Sunday. “We usually have a lot of great cars,” said Gary Klassen, president of the Coaldale Custom Cruisers car club.

Registration begins at 10 a.m. and the Show and Shine runs from 12-4 p.m. on the soccer field at R.I. Baker Middle School in Coaldale.

“The club was started by a few guys that wanted to be a car club in Coaldale, rather than go to Lethbridge. This is our major event and we usually get about 100-150 cars,” noted the lifelong car buff.

Klassen said this year the Show and Shine will feature cars from all over the area including the Crowsnest Pass, Calgary and Medicine Hat.

Klassen will also be a participant, as always, in the festivities. “We’re going to put a Mustang in it this year. I have a 1957 Chevy truck but it’s not finished yet. It’s a forever project, that one,” joked Klassen.

On top of the car show aspect of the day’s scheduled activities the Coaldale Kinsmen will have a raffle set up at the event and Coaldale Emergency Services will be cooking up hot dogs and hamburgers plus two car-related vendors will be on location. “Our car club members are excellent guys. If you’re at all interested in cars, this is the place to be because these guys have such knowledge. There’s guys that know more about cars than I’ll ever know in my life. There’s guys that manufacture cars and build cars,” added Klassen.

Klassen said the club gives out Top 10 trophies, rather than just a number one or two trophy plus an official Coaldale Custom Cruiser car club trophy, as well as a Hard Luck trophy.

“It’s for the guy that had a tough time coming to the show or a tough time about something. One year my brother-in-law won it but he won it the next year because when he was coming to the car show he rolled his truck, so that’s hard luck. Last year we had a guy that almost totalled off his Corvette. He came in the wrong way and didn’t come in the way we told him to come in and he almost ran over a culvert but we caught him before he got that far,” said Klassen, adding the Coaldale Show and Shine is the first car show of the season. A rain out day has been scheduled for the following week, if need be.

Coaldale Mayor Kim Craig said the Custom Cruiser Car Show is a great event for the town, into its 12th year.

“This is an opportunity for a few hundred people to visit Coaldale and to share their fondness for automobiles. The event also provides opportunities for local groups to generate funds that benefit local causes, such as the Coaldale Food Bank, which is always a good thing. I hope May 25 is filled with an abundance of sun to showcase the vehicles that will be on display,” added Craig

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