MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Classic Car Club will take to the streets to celebrate its 50th birthday with a Cruise Night Out.

“All cars, trucks (and) motorcycles are welcome,” said club President Dave Robins. “No registration required. Or just bring a chair and enjoy the evening watching classic drive-bys up close and personal.”

The cruise will begin at 4 p.m. in the parking lot on Stratford where Big Lots and Staples are located, then make its way down Stratford, out Broadway to where it meets Third Avenue, then back up Third, out Division to Nelson, then back to the starting point via Pioneer Way and Stratford Road again. It’s a pretty informal affair, Robins said; anyone who wants to can just show up and join in. 

There will be music from the 1950s and 60s, Robins said, and giveaways at the start/ending point, including a 50/50 cash drawing with a guaranteed minimum of $250 to the winner. All proceeds go to local charities.

In addition, there will be coupons for food from local businesses within walking distance and along the route, including McDonalds, Burger King, Baskin Robbins, Woody’s and Blue Palm, Robins said.

The Moses Lake Classic Car Club will participate in the Spring Festival Moonlight Parade as well, Robins said, but will not be putting on the Springfest car show; that honor belongs to another group, the Lakesiders Car Club.

The Moses Lake Classic Car Club, then called the Horseless Carriage Car Club, began in 1974 among a group of motor enthusiasts as a way to show off their cars and trucks — and occasionally tractors, members said. The name change came in 1987, when the club took a more formal approach and was registered as a nonprofit organization. Vehicles need not be of a particular vintage to be included, Robins said; the club just welcomed its first electric vehicle, a self-driving Tesla.

“I think it’s great, because at our age, as soon as our kids take our driver’s licenses, one of those is gonna take me to town,” Robins said.

The club also participates in cruises of the same sort in other cities, including some large ones in Yakima.

“After 40 years it got to be so big that the town had to limit it,” Robins said. “So now they’re only gonna do it four times a year down Yakima Avenue.”

“Walla Walla has a big one on Friday nights,” said club member Larrie Chmela, “They go cruising through the neighborhoods and people are sitting out on their lawns, and then you go through a park and a lot of people are picnicking.”

The club also participates in community fundraisers, particularly raising money for scholarships and supplies for students studying automotive mechanics. 

The club is hoping to see Cruise Night Out become an annual tradition, Robins said.

“What we figure is, the Moses Lake Classic Car Club’s product is our cars,” he said. “Cars bring people … and people interact. And that makes the community roll.”

Joel Martin may be reached via email at jmartin@columbiabasinherald.com.

    Cars lined up on display at a car show in Sunnyside in April. The Moses Lake Classic Car Club participates in shows and cruises all over the region.
  

    Classic cars - any car, truck or motorcycle, actually - will go crusin’ through town Friday, celebrating the 50th birthday of the Moses Lake Classic Car Club. The route is pictured.