Anything with wheels goes at the Ephrata Car Show & Shine

EPHRATA — Saturday was a toasty 100 degrees out, but that didn’t stop people from enjoying the 2024 Car Show & Shine in Ephrata, put on by the Ephrata Chamber of Commerce. 

C Street NW was filled with cars and people from various decades and backgrounds. From bicycles to muscle cars to motorcycles to classics and a little bit of everything in between, it was there.

Kerry Taylor of Soap Lake brought two vehicles. The first a 1923 Ford T Bucket named “Gang Green.”

“It goes from fun to terrifying in about one second,” he said.

Taylor said he came across this vehicle years ago and was able to trade another vehicle for this one. He said the vehicle's look drew him in and he knew he wanted to fix it up.

“I completely went through and rewired it, added some stuff to it, made it my own, added some chrome, had the interior completely redone and that’s the story on that,” Taylor said.

He added that it was, in a way, a childhood dream and he never thought he would own one.

“I love the T Bucket,” Taylor said. “I’ve always loved them; it looks like an old Hot Wheels car when I was a kid. Same color and everything.”

All the work and love he has put into it will be something he and his family will enjoy for a long time.

“I’ll never get rid of it,” Taylor said. “I’ll hand that off to one of my kids.”

This vehicle won him the Best of the Pre-30s Trophy.

 The second car he brought to the show was a 1976 Fiat Spider 124. 

The Fiat has been a four-year project for Taylor who said he wants to make it look like a rally car. He was unsure if he wanted to follow through with the stickers to complete the look.

“Today, just sitting here today, I’m like, ‘You know what, I’m going to do it,’” Taylor said. “That’s my original vision so I am going to do it, I’m going to put the rally stickers on it and make it look like a rally car and get on with it.”

Just like Taylor, every car enthusiast has a story about their car and that is no different for Brian Strausbaugh of East Wenatchee. Strausbaugh has owned his 1967 Cadillac CPE DeVille for over 45 years, but his story about his dream of owning one started even earlier.

When Strausbaugh was young, his older brother joined the Navy. Shortly after joining, his brother came home on leave with a 1941 Cadillac.

“I was just 16 and I thought ‘Oh my god my brother’s got a Cadillac!’” said Strausbaugh.

He thought it was so cool - his brother even let him drive it a little — and that’s where his dream of owning a Cadillac started.

“But ever since, after that, I told my mom, I said, ‘Mom I’m going to have a Cadillac someday’,” he said with a smile.

That he did.

This 1967 Cadillac is actually the third Cadillac he has owned, Strausbaugh said, and there has been very little work done on it over the 45 years.

“I’ve had it repainted, I've had the upholstery redone, basically that’s it,” said Strausbaugh.

Part of that being he only drives it to and from car shows. He said the first few years he owned it, it was a daily driver but he changed that with the rising cost of fuel. In total, he said he’s only put 50,000 miles on it in the last 45 years.

“It’s just my big toy now,” Strausbaugh said.

Rebecca Pettingill is a freelance photographer and writer based out of Ephrata.

Car Show & Shine winners’ circle: 

Best of the Pre 30’s - Kerry Taylor 1923 Ford T-Bucket

Best of the 40’s - Dale Veden 1949 Ford F-1 Pickup

Best of the 50’s - Jack Livingston 1955 Ford T-Bird

Best of the 60’s - Ron & Mavis Melcher 1969 Ford Mach1

Best of the 70’s - Charley & Nancy Leach 1970 Ford Torino

Best of the 80’s - Gerald Berube 1982 Blakely Bernardi

Best of the 90’s - Felipe Gonzales 1999 Chevy 400SS

Best Late Model - David Mullenix 2024 Ford Mustang

Best Early Model Truck - Jim Vines 1957 Chevy Pickup

Best Late Model Truck - Pedro Berbazu 1980 GMC Sierra

Best Farm Vehicle - Rock Witte 1947 Studebaker

Best Import - Brian Jacobsen 2017 BMW i8

Best Motorcycle - Ven Trujill 1995 Harley Davidson

Best Interior - Ellene Johnson 1999 Corvette

Most Unique - Joe Aguilar 1998 Nissan Skyline

Best Work in Progress - Dean Alexander/Colt Fekkes 1940 Chevy COE

Coolest Wheels - Wade Dirk 1923 Ford F Bucket

Best Engine - Dean Johnson 2008 Corvette

Most Likely to be Pulled Over - Jayden Dietrich 2006 Ford Mustang

Best Lowrider - Geovanni Deleon 1996 Cadillac

Loudest Pipes - Linda Davis 1932 Ford Pickup

Best Rat Rod - Dennis Tjoelker 1947 International

Kids Choice - Henry Mauney 1968 Firebird

People’s Choice -  Roy Klein 1948 Ford F-1 Custom

Fred Goetz Memorial - Pat Gies 1958 Chevy Impala

Best of Show - Kelly Moore 2015 McLaren 650 Spider

    The 1967 Cadillac CPE DeVille owned by Brian Strausbaugh of East Wenatchee.
  

    Spectators young and old showed up to check out the Anything with Wheels Car Show & Shine in Ephrata on Saturday.
  

    The Anything with Wheels Car Show & Shine in Ephrata really means anything with wheels; the show featured not only cars but motorcycles and even bicycles.
  

    Kerry Taylor of Soap Lake brought two vehicles, the one on the right in green won him the Best of the Pre 30’s Trophy.
  

    Saturday was a toasty 100 degrees out, but that didn’t stop people from enjoying the 2024 Anything with Wheels Car Show & Shine in Ephrata.
  

    Many participants in the show enjoyed interacting with spectators and showing off their cars.
  

    Many cars had their hoods up for spectators to get a close-up look.