The Industrial Heritage Society will host its ninth annual Antique Truck & Machinery Show on Saturday, Sept. 3 and Sunday, Sept. 4 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
This year the show will be in town at the Industrial Heritage Centre—the old arena next to the curling club, at Gyro Recreation Park—both inside the building and in the parking lot. Dunbar Street between Seventh and Ninth avenues will be closed to traffic on those days.
More than 50 trucks and antique machines are expected this year. Although big trucks tend to dominate, vintage pickup trucks and machinery are also welcome.
Several vintage machines will be in operation on the site, spokesperson David Hooper said. Ken Fyfe’s just-restored 1923 Keystone steam driller will be in action outside the centre. The 1917 Farquhar traction engine will provide the steam.
A recently-acquired Ottawa gas drag saw—a precursor of the modern power saw—will do some scheduled “cuttings”.
On Saturday, Sept. 3, Lou Desbiens and friends will be doing demonstrations with their radio-controlled models: excavators, dump trucks and graders. They will be building roads, digging and loading trucks.
“Moving dirt is their game,” says Hooper.
There will also be a model logging operation—yarding, loading and hauling.
“Lou even has a gravel pit operation,” says Hooper.
The Co-op is sponsoring this demonstration, which will happen beside the curling rink. There will also be a sandbox for young truckers to play in.
Inside the Industrial Heritage Centre, families will find kid-oriented events on Saturday at 2 p.m., including a Truck Birthday Party complete with a cake.
“Two trucks are having birthdays this year: the Expo Hayes HDX turns 50 and the Federal, restored last year as a tow truck, turns 90,” says Hooper.
“Our oldest truck, a 1918 ‘White’, will also be on display.”
There will be trucks from Victoria and Campbell River in attendance. The BC Forest Discovery Centre will send a couple of trucks too.
Registration is free for truck enthusiasts wanting to show off their own restorations.