All roads lead to downtown Loris for third annual car show

All roads will lead to Loris on Saturday, April 19, as a procession of muscle, classic and antique cars, trucks and motorcycles rumble into town for the third annual Small Town, Big Show Car Show.

When organizers staged the first show in 2023, they were hoping for 50 cars and got 134 freshly waxed and detailed entries. Last year, the show grew to 154, and the Loris Chamber of Commerce is hoping for even more for its big spring event, a bookend for the Loris Bog-Off Festival held each fall.

This year the car show falls on Easter weekend, but Chamber Executive Director Samantha Norris said she doesn’t expect the car-count to go down.

“It’s a been a hit since we’ve started,” she said.

The cars will be rolling into town before 9 a.m., when the roads will be closed to the display area on Main and Meeting streets and Railroad Avenue.

The show runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., when trophies will be awarded to the top three cars in each of 29 different classes.

There’s also a Best in Show award, with $500 and the biggest trophy of them all going home with the winner. There will also be sponsor awards for the vehicles chosen by event sponsors, as well as the mayor’s choice award and an award for most-miles traveled to participate.

New this year will be a “food truck alley,” Norris said. “It’s like a little food truck festival with tables.”

There will also be live entertainment, and numerous downtown restaurants and businesses will also be open to serve what Norris expects will be a large crowd if the weather cooperates. She estimates attendance will be about 5,000.

Another new wrinkle for car show entrants will be a trip to the WillowTree RV Resort in Longs after the show. Drivers will parade their cars through the park, enjoy a glass of wine, and visit the on-site car museum which features a variety of antique automobiles, the private collection of the resort’s founder.

The car show is free for spectators, while the participants pay a $25 entry fee to offset the cost of the trophies and prize packs. You can register online at https://carshowpro.com/event/2241.

Same-day registration at the show costs $30.