Car show move was right direction
Another successful event held in Yarmouth during Seafest
It’s hard to believe this event used to be held in a parking lot.
Once again there was a huge turnout of vehicles and people for the annual Seafest Classic Car Show held on Yarmouth’s Main Street.
Organized by the Roaring 20’s Antique Auto Club, this was the fifth year the show featuring antique, classic and custom cars, trucks and motorcycles has been held in downtown Yarmouth.
Saturday was the busier of the two days of the show, which was held July 14 and 15, with around 550 vehicles showcased on the first day, stretching from Forest Street to Grand Street, with a number of side streets and the Brown Street parking lot also utilized.
Kenneth ‘Bud’ Ritchie of South Ohio, Yarmouth County, was happy to chat with people on Main Street as they stopped to look at his 1930 Durant. He’s had the vehicle for about 20 years.
“It works good,” he said, saying he traded another vehicle for it. “I fixed it up a little bit more for myself. Power steering. Power brakes.”
He tries to get out for a cruise with it at least once a week and said he’s not looking to trade in this vehicle for another model.
“I think I’ll go before the car. I’m older than the car,” he said laughing.
Parked a short distance away was a 1951 Chevrolet pickup. Ray Connolly and the group he was traveling with had come from Saint- Mathias, Quebec to take part in the show. Connolly had seen promotion about the car show through the hot rod group he’s involved in – hot being the key word for another reason.
“We saw that and we had the big heat in Quebec. We ran away from the heat and the only place that I saw where the weather was great was here,” he said.
They’ve had the vehicle, which includes a camper lift, for about 10 years. Connolly said what’s best about owning an antique vehicle is the people you meet because of it.
“It brings conversation, so you meet a lot of people,” he said, noting in his travels he’s had people offer to help with vehicle parts if he’s needed them, or other ways they can lend a hand.
Connolly also took part in the July 13 Classic Car Cruise by the Sea in the town. The Roaring 20’s Antique Auto Club said 390 vehicles took part in the cruise. Connolly was amazed by the number of people lining the streets to watch.
Seated on the sidewalk during the car show, alongside his 1969 Chevelle Malibu, was Paul Robicheau, one of the organizers with the antique auto club the first year the show was moved to Main Street. He’s still blown away by the success of the move, thinking back to the days the event used to take place in the Yarmouth Mall parking lot and then at the Mariners Centre.
He said it’s great to see the younger and next generation of car buffs and club members stepping up and continuing to organize and run with the show, which has grown considerably since first making its move to the downtown in 2014 when 221 vehicles took part.
One return participant is Barry Barnett who made the trip from Middle Sackville to take part in his fourth car show here.
“It’s great – right on the street where the businesses are. The people are great. The cars are great,” he said, as he did a bit of shining under the hood of his 1968 Chev C10 Sidestep Texas Farm Truck. He’s part of a group of people who travel to car shows. “We go to PEI on Canada Day weekend and then to Moncton and then here. Then we take a week off and then go to more shows.”
Barnett also owns a 1965 Impala, so he rotates between the two vehicles. This, of course, begs the question: Is it hard to decide which one you’re taking to a car shows?
“You wouldn’t believe how difficult it is,” he said, saying sometimes he’ll bring in reinforcements. “Sometimes I take both of them. Last weekend in Moncton I had a friend of mine drive one up.”
Barnett, a former Nova Sco- tian MLA who used to be a minister with several departments during the John Hamm and Rodney MacDonald governments, said he’s always enjoyed owning older vehicles.
“I enjoy working on them more than everything. It’s so different than anything I do for a living,” he said, noting aside from his time in government he also runs an ATV association. Kenneth ‘Bud’ Ritchie had his 1930 Durant on display during the car show.