It has been said before, but it bears repeating: organizers of the annual Rock’n August classic car festival deserve a pat on the back for another job well done.
With this being the festival’s 15th year, as well as St. Albert’s 150th anniversary, the bar was set awfully high for the latest edition of Rock’n August. But organizers did not disappoint, packing parking lots with whitewall tires and swooping tailfins for pancake breakfasts and mini show-and-shines throughout the week.
Then, of course, came the street dance on Friday night, where cars lined the streets of downtown St. Albert and people filled up the dance floor to hear the sounds of the 1950s come to life once again. And the main event, Saturday’s show-and-shine, saw cars of almost every make and model imaginable stretching as far as the eye could see, beyond the confines of Lions Park and into the rest of the Sturgeon River valley.
Of course, Mother Nature did her part as well, delivering spectacular weather for the vast majority of the event. There were a couple of booming thunderstorms, but those happened in the wee hours of the morning, when all the cars were — hopefully — tucked safely under their covers or in their garages.
It was truly a feast for the eyes, and something of an anomaly in the world today — an event that people of all ages could enjoy. Grandmas and grandpas could bring the little ones out to bask in the summer sunshine and get a glimpse of days gone by. For the older set, it was a trip down memory lane, a chance to reminisce about their first car or favourite car. For the younger ones, just being able to peer in wonder at the gleaming chrome and the monstrous engines is enough of an attraction. No matter your age, you’re sure to find something that will bring a smile to your face at a show like Rock’n August.
Of course, all those smiles also had a message behind them. As it has been for the past 14 years, Rock’n August wasn’t just about polishing hubcaps and winning awards; it also raised a whole lot of money for the Alberta Diabetes Foundation. The final numbers aren’t in yet, but last year’s total of $76,000 — for which the ADF was presented a cheque at Tuesday’s kickoff breakfast — was a goal organizers had squarely in their sights.
It’s events like this that put St. Albert on the map, and it’s one that others should look to emulate. Rock’n August brings the community together, but perhaps more importantly, it brings in tourists and their dollars. As St. Albert rebrands itself a botanical arts city and cultivates other yearly tourism events, Rock’n August’s template is one that can be followed with great success.
Rock’n August is a shining example of the kind of great events that can be held in St. Albert, and if others follow in their footsteps, they too ought to receive plenty of pats on the back.
