Cruisen By The Bay car show comes to Polson August 9, 10
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POLSON — Cruisen By The Bay car show rolls into town Friday and Saturday, Aug. 9 and 10 in Polson.
The 13th annual event, organized by Mission Valley Cruisers, includes a poker run, cruise, parade, static display for vintage, classic and hot rod cars and a free concert. The public is welcome to come and enjoy the event, and even join in on the poker run and poker walk.
Hundreds of cars are expected to be on display along Main Street.
“We never know (how many) until they show up,” show director Jackie Brown said. Participants will arrive from Washington, Oregon and Canada.
This year’s car show will be held in memory of Wes Johnson, a former car enthusiast and highway patrolman who passed away in 2012.
“He was a huge supporter from the very beginning,” Brown said.
The event opens Friday with a poker run. The highest and lowest hand will win $150. Saturday’s poker walk takes participants through local businesses that support the car show. The public is invited to participate with the poker fun for $5 per ticket.
Car show participants will then cruise around Polson Friday evening, making sure to drive by St. Joseph Retirement Community and Polson Rehab Center so all the residents can see the classic cars. A car parade down Main Street follows at 6:30 p.m. After the parade, the public is invited to a pig roast held at the Elks Club on Main Street.
While cars line up for Saturday’s static display on Main Street, student volunteers from Kicking Horse Job Corps will be on hand to direct traffic.
“They absolutely work their little selves to death running back and forth,” Brown said.
Food vendors will be available on Fourth Avenue during the show. A short walk further east on Fourth Avenue will take people to the shaded Sandpiper Art Festival on the Lake County Courthouse lawn. The show runs in conjunction with the car show, and provides local art and entertainment.
After the static show winds down, Best of Show will be awarded. Car show participants choose the winner, and diamond and platinum sponsors will award 20 additional trophies.
All proceeds from the poker run, poker walk and the 50/50 are donated to charity; this year’s contributions will help Mission Valley Aquatics.
Cruisen By The Bay got its start after a group of car enthusiasts, including Jackie and William Brown, Jack Bishop, Mike Lee, Laurence Mikesell, and Rick Sternjacob, met in 1999 at The Pizza Cafe in Ronan and started a car club they called Mission Valley Cruisers.
As word got out and the group went on car show outings together, the membership grew. Then, in 2000, the club decided to do their own car show. With limited experience, the club managed to put on a small show with 105 entries. Satisfied with the results, the club decided to do it again in 2001.
When Walter Simon came on board, “a guy who really was not a car guy but a great promoter,” according to the website, Simon’s expertise helped the show grow year-by-year. By 2007, the car show was drawing 500 entries. Cruisen By The Bay even ended up on national television.
For more information about registration and fees, contact Jackie Brown at (406) 883-1042, or email missionvalleycruiser@gmail.com, or visit: www.missionvalleycruisers.com.
Car show schedule:
Friday, Aug. 9
• Noon to 5 p.m. -
Registration in Walmart
parking lot
• Noon to 5 p.m. - Poker Run
• 5 p.m. – Line up for Cruise
at the Polson Baseball
fields on 7th Avenue and
Kerr Dam Road
• 5:15-6:15 p.m. - Cruise
• 6:15 p.m. - Line up for
parade on Main Street and
7th Avenue
• 6:30 p.m. - Parade
Saturday, Aug. 10
• 7 to 11a.m. - Registration at
Main Street and 7th Avenue
• 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. - Show &
Shine display on Main
Street
• 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Poker
Walk
• 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Art in the
Park on the Lake County
Court House Lawn
• 3 p.m. - Awards on Main
Street on Fourth and Main
• 7 p.m. - Free Bop-a-Dips
concert at Riverside Park
and 1st Street East
