Legends Car Club closes out Block Party weekend with its third car show

The Legends Car Club is coming back to North Bend to close out the Block Party weekend with their third annual car show on Sunday, July 23.

The car club, a non-profit organization which has members from around the Northwest, will close down North Bend Way from Bendigo Boulevard to Ballarat Avenue for the show.

Dave Dunn, North Bend show director for the Legends Car Club, expects the show to feature as many as 150 cars owned by members of the club.

“Last year we had about 125, and it was only the second year of the show. We expect to be in the 150 to 160 range this year,” he said. “Hopefully going toward 200.”

Dunn said that the club, which formed in 1999, hosted the Kirkland car show for years before moving their shows to the Valley. Now they host two car shows a year, North Bend in July and Snoqualmie in August to go along with the North Bend Block Party and Railroad Days.

“We used to do the Kirkland show, and we did that for a 12 or 13 years. We decided to opt out of that and we enjoy doing shows that are in smaller towns, it’s a lot more fun,” he said. “It’s a difference in the people and towns, too. We are the icing on the cake of the Block Party weekend. It’s a lot more fun to go somewhere where people do want you, it makes it a lot more enjoyable.”

Dunn said he works with the city staff to help with the transition between event and organization. The Block Party lasts into Saturday night and the car show picks up the next morning.

“It works out really well, they do the Block Party on Saturday, they tear the stage down right after the band finishes at 2 a.m., we show up at 5 a.m. to get cars ready,” he said. “We work with the organizers of the block party and everything else, we will have have a few cars at the Block Party next to the stage to promote the show.”

The car show will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. The public can check out the cars and talk to the owners. There are also some all-ages activities like a water balloon fight for children, and other events like best tattoo and best beard contests. Dunn said many of the games and activities are chosen on the day of the show to keep attendees surprised.

The teams of car club members will also be judging the cars on display to find winners in 14 categories of awards including a “city’s choice” in which city staff and police officers get to pick out their favorite car.

Legends Car Club will also be selling posters, flyers and T-shirts at the event to raise money for local and national charities including The Forgotten Children’s Fund, The Royal Family Kids, and Snoqualmie’s Tanner Jeans Bike Rodeo. The money made at the car shows will also help fund a scholarship for students at the Lake Washington Institute of Technology through the Washington State Hot Rod Hall of Fame.

The club also gets funding from the registration fees their members pay to show off their cars during the event.

“It goes to charities, The Forgotten Children is one of our largest we deal with, we also give a scholarship to Lake Washington Institute of Technology,” he said. “We give scholarship through the Washington Hot Rod Hall of Fame to a deserving student in the automotive classes to help them get over the edge and help further their lives.”

Dunn said he loves being a part of the shows because he is able to share his love of cars with those who share his passion while also showing the attendees how much work and effort goes into restoring and maintaining the cars on display.

“Local people should come down and take a peek, it’s a lot of fun,” he said. “By the time they come down and go through the show they appreciate it a lot more because they understand what goes into these cars. It’s a labor of love.”