Breckenridge crowds flock to see wide array of vintage vehicles at Show and Shine Car Show
Photo by Hal Vatcher
BRECKENRIDGE — From a 1967 Mercury Cougar to a 1974 Pantera GTS to a 1967 Volkswagen Bus, Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on the town of Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street showcased a motley assemblage of motor vehicles almost entirely from Eagle and Summit counties.
The 31-vehicle show was hosted by the High Country Cars and Coffee Group, who wrangled together group members and others from the Colorado High Country for the show in a roped-off area of Main Street between the Gold Pan Saloon and The Canteen Tap House and Tavern.
The event took place on Walkable Main after event organizer Hal Vatcher organized a previous event: a Fourth of July cruise around Breckenridge with custom cars. Vatcher said the Breckenridge Tourism Office came to him and the High Country Cars and Coffee Group afterwards to see if they’d put on a car show as an added amenity for Walkable Main.
The four classes of cars the group displayed on Saturday were Vintage (Pre-1973), American Sports Car, Foreign Sports Car and Custom. Saturday’s class winners on were a 1967 Mercury Cougar (Vintage), a 1969 Camaro (American Sports Car) a 1974 Pantera GTS (Foreign Sports Car) and a 1967 Volkswagen Bus (Custom).
Vatcher said he thinks it was the diversity of cars that made Saturday’s show special. It was able to draw people from the BreckConnect Gondola and surrounding parking area, as the show was just a half of a block away.
“We had some American muscle cars, some American sports cars — Corvettes, Mustangs, Camaros. We had European sports cars — Porsches, Jaguars. And we had custom cars. One of the winners, the guy had an old bus, and he attached the top end of a Volkswagen car on top of a Volkswagen bus. Everyone was excited about it,” said Vatcher.
Vatcher said he appreciated a few cars that did not win on Saturday. One was a GT 40 that a participant trailered up from Denver. He also admired a brand-spanking-new Corvette.
“Just a beautiful car,” Vatcher said. “And there was a Lotus in the show that looked great. All of these cars were immaculate. And there was a local guy here in town, Bob Girvin, who had an old Jaguar, a 1960 Jaguar, a little white car. It must have cost a fortune to get restored. It’s beautiful.”
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A 1960 Jaguar on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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A 2020 Corvette on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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A GT 40 on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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A 1974 Pantera GTS on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street. The Pantera was a class winner for the show’s Foreign Sports Car class.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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A 1969 Camaro on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street. The Camaro was a class winner for the show’s American Sports Car class.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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A 1967 Mercury Cougar on display at Saturday’s Show and Shine Car Show on Breckenridge’s Walkable Main Street. The Cougar was a class winner for the show’s Vintage class.
Photo by Hal Vatcher
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