Thousands attend rain-shortened World of Wheels

A heavy downpour brought an early end to the World of Wheels Show & Shine in Peachland on Sunday, but it still drew a large crowd.

Organizers pulled the plug at 2 p.m., two hours earlier than planned, as a series of thunderstorms blew through.

Earlier in the day, thousands of people strolled down Beach Avenue to get a glimpse of everything from vintage automobiles to muscle cars to the newest innovations.

The kitted-out off-road vehicles of a couple of friends from Vernon attracted a lot of attention.

Mike Buell says people were drawn to the large awning he sourced from South Africa. "It has a lot of coverage, so that's probably the one thing that everyone has been asking about."

One of the businesses that set up a booth at the show is owned by a recent transplant to the Okanagan.

"I grew up in Toronto and had this business there with a friend and business partner of mine. I relocated to the beautiful Okanagan about three years ago, rebranded the business, and it's been excellent," said Andrew Morton of Drew's Autosports.

The Victoria Day long weekend marks the start of the car show season in the valley.

"The day before, Summerland has a car show, Spring Fling. They kick off the day before. It gets everyone into the valley, and then we have our car show," explains Randy Bloy, Vice President of Peachland World of Wheels.

He estimates that over the past 24 years, the car show has raised a couple of hundred thousand dollars for local charities, including more than $9,000 last year.

This was the second Peachland World of Wheels since the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the events in 2020 and 2021.