Pharaohs Car Club coming to Fairgrounds
Crystal Redinger, event coordinator for the local chapter of the Pharaohs Car Club stands next to "Annabelle." The '55 Ford F-100 was purchased for $1, the year Crystal and her husband Dave married, in 1975. Rusted and covered with graffiti, they pulled the vehicle out of a farmers field and have been cruising with her ever since.
COEUR d'ALENE — Cruising up in her glossy ‘55 Ford F-100, lovingly named “Annabelle,” Pharoahs Car Club event coordinator Crystal Redinger is the perfect advertisement for the club.
Anticipating the club’s first car show this Saturday at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds, Redinger has been planning the event since December.
“I worked my fanny off,” said Redinger, 65. “A work of love. My very first car show that I’ve ever put on.”
The “Rockin’ the Lake City” car show is expecting at least 500 cars, including 150 Model T's from the International Model-T Club.
Pharoahs Car Club is the oldest and largest car club in the world, originally founded in 1948. Only a year old, the Spokane, Eastern Washington/North Idaho chapter already boasts close to 500 registered members.
“Cruising isn’t just for us old people,” Redinger said.
The club promotes clean family fun and participates in all kinds of community service and volunteerism.
Cruises happen weekly. Every Friday night, club members meet at Hangry’s, a restaurant at 11923 E. Trent Ave. in Spokane Valley. Their presence has boosted business for the small diner, as the Pharoahs tend to do everywhere they go.
Traveling in a caravan, club members cruise all over the Inland Northwest.
“We like to roll in as a group to show our support,” Redinger said.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, most community events were canceled. Legends Park Assisted Living in Coeur d’Alene contacted the Pharoahs, asking them to come. Cruising in with their show cars brought joy back to residents.
“They were just ecstatic,” Redinger said. “And I love that.”
“Rockin’ the Lake City” offers more than 20 different show classes to enter. A portion of the entry fee goes to support Coeur d’Alene’s Community Action Partnership and Second Harvest Food Bank in Spokane.
The event features TV host Heather Storm, host of "Garage Squad" on Discovery’s Motor Trend Network, as well as food and beverage vendors (non-alcoholic) and numerous awards and door prizes. Entry is free to spectators and doors open at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Info: Pharoahs.spokane@gmail.com, https://www.facebook.com/Pharoahs-Spokane-Car-Show-2021-101533915334289