Hastings held its annual Father's Day car show on Sunday, June 16. The event is the second of five car shows that run the third Sunday of the month until October with the next show to be held concurrently with Hastings’ Rivertown Days celebration on Sunday, July 21 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Car shows are hosted by the Hastings Downtown Business Association as well as the Hastings Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Bureau and overseen by the Car Show Committee, a group of volunteers who shape the event.
Hastings’ car shows have long been a community event that not only brought residents downtown, but brought car afficionados from around the area to Hastings. Classic trucks and cars of all ilk, with the sole stipulation that they must be from 1985 or older, are welcome with themed nights like Napa weekend, military weekend, and cars through the ages.
2024 marks the 18th year of car shows in Hastings with only one year, 2020, not having the event due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The pandemic shaped the recent car shows with the event shifted from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon as well as the date of acceptable cars pushed back from 1975 to 1985. “Cars just kept getting older,” said David Youngren, Marketing and Events Coordinator for the Hastings Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Bureau as well as member of the Car Show Committee.
According to Youngren, part of the reason to move the event from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon was the increasing popularity of the event.
“After so many years of it growing and getting more popular, we couldn’t have it on Saturday night like before,” said Youngren.
The car shows were moved to Sunday afternoons in order to bring in larger crowds during a slower time.
For more information on Hastings Car shows, visit https://hastingsdba.com/historic-hastings-carshow