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Annual Oak Bay Collector Car Festival expects 15,000 spectators

July 28 show features a pair of super cars that won prestigious awards at the Detroit Autorama show
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Crowds already started to pour into Oak Bay Ave for the car show as early as 7 a.m. (Oak Bay News file photo)

It’s been 20 years since Ken Agate first organized the Oak Bay Collector Car Festival and he still loves it now as he did then.

From 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 28, an estimated 15,000 people will saunter along Oak Bay Avenue between Mitchell (next to Foul Bay Road) and Monterey. The show includes one block up, and one block down, along Hampshire Road. This year the show is adding Electric Avenue, where the Victoria Electric Vehicle Club will pose on a section of Elgin Road.

READ MORE: Exotic cars bring added interest to Oak Bay Collector Car Festival

“Ours isn’t like the big ones, we have some things a little different,” Agate said. “This car show has a nice atmosphere and nostalgia. You’ll see a car your mom or dad had, or that you owned. It really lends itself to creating a nice atmosphere.”

Local car owners brought about 150 cars to the Oak Bay Collector Festival 20 years ago and Agate keeps it at about 250 to 300, though it could go over that. There will be 35 Aston Martin cars from around the north west and about 20 exotic cars, such as Lamborghini.

“Under 300 is the right size or we’ll need to move somewhere to accommodate the cars and we don’t want to do that,” Agate said.

Agate will likely be assisting with the barbecue on the lawn of the municipal hall. They’ll be serving prime rib burgers, smokies and hot dogs.

Laid back but with protocol, one of the unique things of the Oak Bay Collector Car Festival is the permission for owners to discreetly signify if a car is for sale.

READ ALSO: Famed Victoria Nascar driver memorialized in book form

“It’s not allowed at every car show but we don’t mind,” Agate said. “We ask only that you do it discreetly.”

Sellers can place a business card on the windscreen that says it’s for sale and leave additional information on the car seat for interested parties. Be with your car on the hour to answer any questions a prospective buyers might have.

There are 10 various award categories chosen by members of the Oak Bay community. Among the awards are one from the police, the firefighters, and a Lady’s Choice as selected by a group of women who are members at the Monterey Recreation Centre.

This year’s show will feature a pair of super cars that won prestigious awards at the Detroit Autorama show. The Impostor, a 1965 Chevrolet Impala SS body on a 2008 Corvette chassis, and the Anvil, a 1964 Acadian Canso modified with a 2510-horsepower Nelson Racing Engine. The Anvil is actually owned by Victoria’s Danny Jadresko as a project with his son Cody. It features a 632 cubic-inch engine with mirror image Twin 88 turbos.

The two will be on the spotlight in a marquee outside the Scotia Bank at Hampshire Road and Oak Bay Avenue.

“These are the Super Bowl winners of super cars,” Agate said.

Anyone can show their car, no registration is necessary, just show up at 7 a.m., Agate asks. The fee is $15.

reporter@oakbaynews.com


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