Rev it Up and Go to the Sandy Cruisin’ Car Show

By Ty Walker

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. It’s time to rev it up and go to the 26th annual Sandy Cruisin’ Car Show on Saturday, Sept. 14, on the grounds of St. Michael Catholic Church. More than 200 vehicles are expected to roll into the sprawling church lot to compete in the show.
Trophies will be awarded in 23 classes, with winners selected by people’s choice. The Dick Larrowe Memorial Trophy, named after one of the car show’s founders, will be awarded to the best in show.
“There will be all kinds of cars, anything and everything,” said Anne Chambers, who co-hosts the show with her husband Kevin. “Somebody even entered a pedal car last year.”
Classes of cars include classics of any make or model from from older than 1939 and up to present day. Muscle cars and Mustangs have been popular in years past. Convertibles, custom cars, imports, lowriders, hot rods, sports cars, trucks, utility vehicles, motorcycles and more will be on display.
“We’ll have some real beauties from the early 1900s up through the current stuff,” Anne said.
The Sandy Cruisin’ Car Show has a storied local history. The late Dick Larrowe, who worked at the local post office, and his wife, Donna, co-founded and hosted the original car show in 1997 as part of the annual Sandy Oktoberfest. Only German cars were accepted that first year but they opened it to permit all cars in subsequent years.
For 19 years, the car show became a major part of the Oktoberfest celebration, before it joined the Sandy Siesta Festival for a year. For the last five years, the car show has been cruisin’ on its own. It has found a home on the nine-acre grounds of St. Michael Catholic Church.
The show maintains a strong connection with its past, as original co-founder Donna Larrowe still has a hand in running the event with the Chambers.
The car show is free to spectators and open to the public from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the 9-acre grounds of St. Michael Catholic Church, 18090 SE Langensand Road, Sandy, south one quarter mile off U.S. Highway 26.
This year more than a dozen cars pre-registered for the event. In past years, the number of entrants has varied from 205 to 239, Anne Chambers said.
There’s plenty of space to register your vehicle and starting at 8 a.m. the day of the car show. Cost is $20 per entry, $10 with each additional class. In order to be eligible for a trophy, vehicles must be registered by noon. All proceeds will go to benefit St. Michael Catholic Church and the local St. Vincent De Paul Food Pantry.
Other attractions include raffles and live DJ music all day, along with hot breakfast and chili dog lunch for purchase.
For car show registration forms, go online to stmichaelsandy.org/sandy-cruisin-car-show. Call Anne and Kevin Chambers for more information at 503-663-5558 or email at sandycarshow@gmail.com.