5th annual Newport Beach Classic Car-Truck Festival raises $50,000 for charitable efforts
About 150 cars and trucks shimmered Saturday against the sparkling expanse of the Pacific Ocean, which served as a backdrop for the fifth annual Newport Beach Classic Car-Truck Festival.
The charity event was hosted by Knights of Columbus #15083 Balboa Council and drew between 2,000 and 3,000 people to the Newport Elementary School playground on the sands of the Balboa Peninsula, according to event organizer Mark O’Ravitz. The group raised $50,000 for its efforts.
“Now with the city into it, and quality sponsorships, [the show] has grown legs, “ said O’Ravitz. “Until now, the city of Newport Beach was the only local city that didn’t have a car show. Now they’re doing this for us.”
Hoping to appeal to a younger demographic, the show included a kids’ activity area with storytelling, face painting and a costume bike parade. A surf and snow expo was also added to bring in younger families, along with musical entertainment.
“Our [Knights of Columbus] organization has always been been a charitable organization, and along with Meals On Wheels, Share Our Selves and Be Well, for example, we’re very involved in the Maui Relief effort, with donation ‘Jars for Maui’ available,” said O’Ravitz.
Among the vehicles showcased at the festival was a 1966 Volkswagen double-cab pickup bus that’s been nicknamed Tank by its owner, Robin Lewis of Placentia.
“He’s my best friend and takes me wherever I want to go,” said Lewis, who had it restored in 2018. “He also has a really cute butt, which is a 2054 Stroker motor.”
Costa Mesa resident Gary Boler spent seven years on his weekend project rebuilding his 1932 Ford Roadster including adding a 1955 Chrysler Hemi engine. “I finished it nine years ago at a cost of $70,000, and if I’m lucky my wife will go on road trips with me,” said Boyer. “We’ve been to Victoria, Canada, three times.”
A few spaces away it was hard to miss the sunset orange 1955 Chevy Apache truck glistening in the sun. “This was my brother’s truck and he passed away, so I finished [restoring it] for him,” explained first-time show exhibitor Anthony Gutierrez, of Long Beach. “I’ve been working on it for about nine years, and it’s almost finished, I’m just waiting to do the interior.”
Similarly, Jeff Tibbets of Costa Mesa pursued his restoration project as a tribute to his dad’s memory. Tibbets has participated in a half dozen car shows with his eye-catching 1937 Ford Slantback with a turquoise and black paint job completed in 2008.
“It’s got all the creature comforts, all modern suspension, air-conditioning, power steering,” said Tibbets. “The car was originally built in Detroit and I’m only the fourth owner.”
Timothy Kosharnyi came all the way from Russia — via Simi Valley — to show off his 1970 Plymouth Superbird for the first time in the USA.
“The car was imported to [the] U.S .three weeks ago from Russia,” said Kosharnyi. “It was built 15 years ago as a tribute to Richard Petty because he had signed the car, and there is a photo in a Russian museum of Petty signing the fin.”
In keeping with the Halloween theme, attendees Marlita Patriquin of Irvine and Sharon Seal of Newport Beach said they especially enjoyed the 1929 Dodge Brothers Hearse, decked out with a mortician skeleton riding with a casket.
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