Vintage car enthusiasts mingle among some of the hundreds of automobiles on display at the 2018 Ruddell Auto Cruise-In in Port Angeles. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)

Vintage car enthusiasts mingle among some of the hundreds of automobiles on display at the 2018 Ruddell Auto Cruise-In in Port Angeles. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)

Annual Ruddell Auto Cruise-In set Friday in Port Angeles

Hundreds of vehicles expected at free event

PORT ANGELES — Ruddell Auto’s 23rd annual Cruise-In is set for Friday, July 12.

The public is invited to drop by the event from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Ruddell Auto Mall, 110 S. Golf Course Road. Admission is free.

“We expect this year’s event to be the best yet with hundreds of cars,” Ruddell dealer Howie Ruddell said in a news release.

Members of about a dozen car clubs are expected to show their vehicles, and area classic car owners can display their vehicles free of charge.

Parking will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Pre-registration closed Wednesday.

Due to the limited number of display spaces, incomplete project cars and post-1977 cars are not allowed.

“We expect cars from across Western Washington; from Bremerton, Tacoma, Puyallup, up to Bellingham, as well as some folks coming down from Canada,” Old Timers Car Club chair Jerry Scott said in the press release.

The Old Timers of Bremerton are co-hosting the event with Ruddell.

“We are usually full within an hour of opening the gate and expect the same again this year,” Ruddell said.

Trophies will be awarded for car owners in categories including, but not limited to, Best of Show, Peoples Choice and Farthest Distance Traveled.

“With some good weather, we are expecting this year’s Cruise-In to set a new attendance record,” Scott said.

Live music will be provided by the Bremerton-based band No Slack Jack.

In addition to the cars and music, attendees can try their hand at sinking Next Door Gastro Pub’s Jake Oppelt, Lefties Baseball owner Matt Acker and Lefties in-game host Chig Martin — among others — at the celebrity dunk tank.

Proceeds from the dunk tank will benefit Clallam County fire district volunteers and the Captain Joseph House Foundation.

Food provided by Queen of Angels and St. Joseph Knights of Columbus will be available for purchase.

New this year, Fogtown Coffee Bar will have its coffee trailer onsite serving a variety of coffee drinks, and NextDoor Gastro Pub’s food trailer will offer a variety of foods.

This year also features a Premium Club that can accommodate up to 300 guests.

Tickets to the club, which will be on sale at the event for $10 per person, will include a free drink, access to a beer and wine garden and access to games from 7 Cedars Casino, the Cedars at Dungeness and the Elwha River Casino.

The annual event was started by the late H. “Mac” Ruddell in 1996 with the help of Old Timers Car Club’s then-chairman Jerry Scott of Bremerton, according to the news release.

After success in the initial years, the car club and the dealership forged a long-term relationship, and the event has grown significantly since its inception, according to the release.

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