It's that time of year again as Nelson Road Kings host Queen City Cruise
By Ari Lord
The Nelson Road Kings will bring style and automotive showery to the streets of Nelson again, coming this weekend — September 8th and 9th — for the annual Queen City Cruise.
Jack Chambers of Nelson Road Kings says this year’s show is sure to be a great success.
“Every year we get locals that bring the same cars year after year, but it’s the cars that come from out of town, out of province,” Chambers explains.
“From the Northern US to one year we had a car from southern Missouri. You get to see all these different cars and see peoples’ idea of a classic car.”
Chambers says they already have close to 80 cars preregistered for the weekend and may even get an Octogenarian from Saskatoon making the drive out for the event.
This year’s show will likely be riding the coattails of last summer’s successful show.
“Last year was our first show after a couple of years due to Covid. We had well over 400 cars, and it was unbelievable how many cars we fit into the downtown core. It was great. Really nice to see,” says Chambers.
“Last year we had between 10 and 12 thousand people on Baker Street. It’s a lot of fun.”
This year, Chambers expects there to be some electric cars at the show.
“We have had some electric cars in the past. A fellow from Crescent Valley showed up a couple of years ago with a 1930s Ford with electric power (that he retrofitted himself). I’m pretty sure this year we’re having one of the electric dealers bring up some cars to display.”
Nelson Road Kings is a volunteer organization; they don’t make any money from the event.
Charitable donations are part of what they do, says Chambers.
“We have two $750 scholarships we give out every year at L.V. Rogers for students going into the trades. Last year we raised over $36,000 for the Hospital Foundation here in Nelson.”
This year is no different.
“We’ve taken on Dr. Nick Sparrow’s KERPA (Kootenay Emergency Response Physician’s Association),” says Chambers.
“We had a Show and Shine for our own members last week down at one of the member’s shops down by the airstrip in Nelson, and we raised over $1,200 in donations. And the club has decided we’re going to match that.”
It all kicks off on Friday night, Chambers explains.
“The Friday night parade through town is a big thing. It’ll start in Railtown and go right up Baker Street, along High Street, past the tourist park, down onto Anderson, and along Nelson Ave. We’ll be setting cars up in Railtown if people want to come down on Friday afternoon and get a preview of the show.”
The excitement will continue on Saturday, says Chambers.
“Registration will open about 9 a.m. We present the trophies roughly around 3 p.m. We have Poker Walks where people walk around to various businesses to get a card in each location and at the end of the day, the best card wins $500. There is a cash prize for the worst hand also. We have a Poker run out the North shore in the afternoon.”
This run ends with a mini car show at Mount Lake Senior’s facility.
Chambers is grateful for all the support his group gets from the community.
“We have to give the businesses and all the people that support us a pat on the back. They’re so helpful every year, supporting us monetarily wise and donating supplies.”
The event is one of a kind in our area.
“It’s a great community event. I know the businesses, restaurants, and hotels are more than happy when it comes around because it’s probably the second biggest outdoor event in the Kootenays, other than Shambala,” says Chambers.
Chambers asks attendees not to ride bikes or skateboards through the crowd for safety.
“People just want to get out and see the old cars. It was a part of our growing up, our teenage years, and we think it’s good for kids to see this and get involved.”
For more information, please email info@NelsonRoadKings.com.
Vintage cars of all kinds are expected to line the streets of Nelson Saturday for the Queen City Cruise. — Submitted photo
