Leelanau County’s longest running auto show is back this Saturday at Haserot Park and celebrating its 27th anniversary in the village of Northport.
Cars in the Park started in 1998, attracting car enthusiasts and spectators alike year after year. Darin Irvine, son of the late George Irvine who founded and ran the car show for many years, said the symbiotic relationship between the automobile owners and onlookers helps make the event both a social and meaningful one where all who attend can have a good time.
“It’s kind of a social event that people can count on. I’m still getting a lot of pre-registrations with people saying it’s their first time coming to the show… There’s a lot of people that come up here for Memorial Day weekend, and the car show is just one of the things that they do,” Irvine said. “In contrast, we have quite a few cars that have come to every single show — they had their car at the first show and they’ve been to every single one, so that kind of speaks to the social aspect of it and the people who come to it every year. They meet other people who have been coming either for a long time or most of the shows anyway.”
Pre-registration opened in January, with Irvine noting a significant uptick of about 25% by the end of their April count. He said the increase in registration doesn’t just give him and the Cars in the Park advisory committee an idea of how many cars will be there, but it also shows that there is still a strong interest in the event.
“There’s certainly a lot of local people that are here, but I would say that, especially in the last five to six years, the cars have come from a greater distance,” he said. “It’s always exciting to see that the event is still attracting new people that have never been to the show and inspires them to come back… nothing draws a crowd like a crowd. Some of the cars have been in families for generations, some of them have been a lifelong dream to hunt down a car that they either owned when they were younger or wanted to own, but never did.”
For those who have yet to sign up with their cars, Irvine said registration will also be open the day of the event at 8 a.m. Onlookers can expect 50-75% of the cars at the park around 10 a.m., with awards announced at 3 p.m. A number of awards in various categories are given out including: The top 10 cars in the show, the Founder’s and People’s Choice awards, best modified, sports car, Corvette, pre-war classic, classic, and modern classic.
Another big announcement from State Representative John Roth is anticipated for the event. Roth will talk about the passing of House Bill 4183, a law that Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently signed on April 2 that will allow owners of classic/ historic automobiles to use their vehicles from Memorial Day weekend through Labor day. According to the bill via the Michigan Legislature, a “Historic vehicle means a vehicle that is over 25 years old and that is owned solely as a collector’s item and for participation in club activities, exhibitions, tours, parades, and similar uses, including mechanical testing, but is not used for general transportation. For purposes of this section, use of the vehicle during the period from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day each year is considered an exhibition.”
“It changes a lot of things for the car show participants that have antique auto plates. They can drive their cars without any restrictions now within that time frame,” he said.
The all day event is made possible with the help of the show’s advisory committee that meets monthly, and the dozens of volunteers working different jobs on the big day. Last year, Irvine said they had over 40 volunteers helping guide car owners on where to park and with participant registration.
“Without the manpower on the day of the show, we would never be able to put on the type of show that we put on, and certainly not be able to do it in an efficient manner,” he said. “It takes a lot of people in registration to make it as efficient as possible just so it’s not as timeconsuming for the participants because the last thing that someone wants to do when they’re coming to something like this is sit and wait in a line.”
For more information about Northport Cars in the Park or how to participate, go to www. northportcarsinthepark.com.
