The main rule about the Evergreen Show and Shine is that there are no rules.

“We accept any kind of car or motorcycle,” show founder Dan DeMars stressed.

With this no-holds-barred approach, it’s anyone’s guess what kind of vehicles will show up to the eighth annual show on Saturday, Aug. 4, at the Flathead County fairgrounds in Kalispell. Last year’s Best of Show winner was Dave Knoll with his 2005 Ford GT.

DeMars said that based on past experience there will be plenty of variety. He plans to show a custom 1923 “T-bucket” he built from the ground up.

“It’s based from a Ford. I did the fabric, the framework. I built the motor and rear end and did all the body work and painting,” he said.

The T-bucket features a 383 Stroker engine that turns 400 horses. It’s lightweight, tipping the scale at 1,600 pounds.

And speed?

“It goes faster than I care to,” DeMars said. “I’ve never wound it clear out.”

Once the T-bucket was finished eight years ago, DeMars decided he needed a place to show it off, so he started the Evergreen Show and Shine. It traditionally has been held in the ShopKo parking lot but moves to the fairgrounds this year because the event has outgrown its previous space.

“The first show had five sponsors, with three trophies my wife and I bought,” he recalled. “There were 26 or 27 cars. Last year we had 189 cars and gave out 40 trophies and had 50 sponsors.”

The trophy list for this year runs the gamut: Best muscle car, best street rod, best-dressed engine, best import, and so on. Each award is sponsored by a local business. Valley Ford is sponsoring the “Blue Oval” award for best Ford while Eisinger Motors will present the “Bow Tie” award for best Chevy.

Another drawing card for the show is no entry fees.

Cars have been a lifelong love for DeMars, a 1975 Bigfork High School graduate.

He started doing body work in 1974 at Manion’s in Kalispell and has had his own body shop since the mid-1970s. DeMars owns and operates Double Deuce Towing and Auto Body.

For many years he frequented area car shows.

“Years ago that’s what I lived for,” he said.

The novelty wore off for a while, but after DeMars finished his T-bucket he was once again motivated to get back into showing cars.

He had two restored 1956 Chevy pickups that he eventually sold.

“It was hard to part with them,” he admitted. “Brian Watson of Great Falls worked on me for six years” to buy one of the pickups. “He ended up with the pickup and I ended up with a bus ticket home.

“He had it here [for the Evergreen show] three years ago and I still sob a little bit when I see it,” he said.

DeMars’ wife, Cyndi, has helped make the annual show a success. She handles the entries and does much of the legwork in getting sponsors for the trophies.

Gary Gudmundson, another “old car guy,” also helps out with the show and usually displays his impressive collection of Kaiser Frazer models.

“If a guy could get all the cars you knew about at one show, it’d be unbelievable,” DeMars said.

Alongside the wide variety of cars on display, the spectators also make the show, he said. And he’s made a lot of friends at car shows through the years.

“The spectators make it a fun day,” he said. “The people are unbelievable.”

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.