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Classic car show returning to Sooke Flats

Sooke Classic Car Show and Shine July 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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Numerous hot rods and classics turned up on a sunny Wednesday night in Sooke

Every time we hear “classic car show” our minds slip further afield; to Langford, to Victoria, to Saanich – but what about Sooke?

After all, it is home to some of the rarest, most extreme (even odd) classic cars around, regardless of their make, model or country of origin. At one point, Sooke even had one of the biggest car clubs around, known as Sooke Street Iron.

So, a few Sookies got together and decided to bring back some of those good ol’ days with a grand event at the Sooke Flats campground, known as the Sooke Classic Car Show and Shine on July 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“It’s a great event for the whole family and a chance see some really cool cars,” said Sooke Fall Fair president Ellen Lewers, one of the organizers spearheading the show.

Around 150 classic vehicles are expected to take part, including vans, trucks, several motorcycles and even a few vintage farm tractors, just to round it up.

Special trophies and prizes will be awarded based on winners from nine categories: Best in Show, Best Motorcycle, Best Original restoration, Best Paint Job, Best Hot Rod, Best Vintage, Best Custom and Best Orphan (foreign vehicle).

Lewers noted the car show at the Flats was very popular at one point in Sooke, drawing in cars from all over Vancouver Island and B.C., even Washington State. As such, she hopes to bring back some of those memories this time around, complete with era-appropriate 1950s rock ‘n’ roll.

For Keith van Ek, a professional automotive painter in Sooke, those memories are already coming back, with casual car meets every Wednesday night at the old Royal Bank parking lot.

Ek hopes the Flats car show will stimulate and inspire more gearhead Sookies to bring out their toys.

“We’re hoping to get that going here again, and have an annual thing going,” he said, as an owner of a classic, hairy-chested Pontiac GTO.

The show certainly won’t just be just cars, either. Fresh pies and food will be available, with burger or bean chili and A&W root beer to boot, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Breakfast is also available, from 8 to 10 a.m.

Proceeds from breakfast, cooked and served by Sooke Lions, go towards renovations of the Sooke Community Hall.

Parking is limited at the Flats campground, though additional space is available at the SEAPARC Leisure and Complex and Edward Milne Community School.

A special awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday (July 20) at the A&W parking lot at 6 p.m.

For more information on registration and the event, please go online to sookefallfair.ca or call 250-812-2830.